photo by: AdobeStock

Skee-Ball machines are shown in this AdobeStock image.

Skee-Ball and schooners definitely could be a new combination on Lawrence’s entertainment scene. A longtime pool hall soon will re-open as a “pubcade” that has about 40 video games, pin ball machines, and even more traditional classics like Skee-Ball, foosball and air hockey.

Importantly, to some, they all will be just steps away from a full-service bar.

“I didn’t just want to do a regular bar,” Chad Landis, owner of the soon-to-open Empire Pubcade & Venue, told me. “I don’t really like just plain old bars. Let’s give people a reason to come out and do something, and that’s what we are going to do here.”

Look for the business to open March 20 in the former Empire Bar & Billiards location in the Hillcrest Shopping Center at Ninth and Iowa streets. Landis is the owner and operator of Empire Billiards. As we reported in July, he made the big decision to move Empire Bar & Billiards into a bigger space on Sixth Street. That move into the former Clemons AutoMax building at 1527 W. Sixth Street has happened, and now Landis is set to unveil what he plans to do with the former pool hall space.

The concept isn’t hard to grasp. It basically is a video game arcade for adults.

Other communities have grasped the concept for quite awhile. Landis said he’s visited several ‘pubcades’ in other college communities, and had sensed that the idea would be popular in Lawrence.

With about 8,000 square feet of space in the former pool hall building, Landis has plenty of room to bring the idea to life. Landis said he plans to fill the space with a mix of game types. The space will continue to house eight pool tables and numerous dart boards, he said. But it also will include pinball and assorted bar or carnival games like Skee-Ball, Pop-o-Shot basketball, foosball and air hockey.

photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World

The site for the new Empire Pubcade & Venue is pictured on March 10, 2026. The building is located just west of The Merc in the Hillcrest Shopping Center.

Landis, though, said he’s also working with a vendor to stock the space with a mix of modern and classic video games. Plans call for about four Mario Cart driving video games, NBA Jams, NFL Blitz and classic games like Frogger and PacMan, he said.

All of the games will use a tap-and-play system where customer download credits onto a card or onto a phone app rather than using cash or quarters to feed a machine.

The space, which is separated into a front room and a back room, is large enough to also have a stage, which Landis said will be used to host open mic night comedy sessions, plus karoke, trivia and other events.

The back room or the both rooms combined will be available for rental by everything from bachelor parties to corporate events, Landis said.

photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World

A Los Tacos is pictured on March 10, 2026. The new restaurant is located behind The Merc in the Hillcrest Shopping Center

The entire venue will be served by a new Mexican restaurant that is located next door to the pubcade. A Los Tacos has opened in the spot in the Hillcrest Shopping Center that previously housed Tortas Jaliscos. That location shares a wall with the former pool hall space, and patrons of the pool hall long had been able to place orders with Tortas and have their order passed through a carryout window between the two establishments.

Look for that same arrangement to continue with A Los Tacos. But look for some new creations on that menu. While the menu includes many traditional items like tacos and burritos, the menu currently is featuring numerous Latin seafood dishes. There’s Aquachiles Mixtos Tropical, which takes shrimp and scallops that have been marinated in lime juice and combines them mango, habanero peppers, onion, cucumber and a wild Mexican chili pepper known as chilitepin.

photo by: Chad Lawhorn/Journal-World

A taco plate from A Los Tacos is pictured on March 10, 2026.

Additionally, the menu includes two different types of ceviche, which is a popular Latin American dish that uses raw seafood that is “cooked” by being marinated in acidic mixtures like lime, lemon and orange juices. One dish is a shrimp-based ceviche, while the other combines shrimp and fish, both with a mix of peppers, vegetables an avocados.

As for drink offerings, Landis said the bars — there is one in each room — will be full service operations just as they were when the pool hall was operating in the space. Landis said having the bar space is an important component of the business plan, but said he has become a firm believer that drinking establishments need to be more than just a place to get a drink. Newer customers are demanding it, he said.

“I think the days of just sitting around and being in a room with other people to have a couple of beers is kind of dying out,” Landis said. “I think people are looking for a reason to go out.”

While any number of video games can be played from the comfort of your own home, Landis said he does think people still want to get out and meet new people and be in social settings. However, he’s betting they want to be active while doing that.

The broader market seems to be sensing that as well. As we reported last month, the owner of Sinkers Lounge and Blade & Timber ax throwing has filed plans with City Hall to open a video arcade in a portion of his downtown building.

Look for Empire Pubcade & Venue to be the first to the market though. While Empire Pubcade plans to open next week, the downtown venture is still working through city approvals and likely won’t open until the early summer.

“I think people want a reason to be out and around other people,” Landis said of the surge in interest. “We can all play video games in our house. But let’s give people a reason to not just go to a bar and sit there and drink. Let’s go with a couple of friends, maybe meet new people, and be in the same room with other human beings. I think there is a call for that.”