Hawkins,
I appreciate your concern for our Retropub. I'll be happy to address the issues you've raised and explain some rationale. Additionally, I have some opinions about 71st street.
IF the downtown area could support such a place, I would think a D&B's would have had their eye on a location there. Instead, Dave & Buster's chose to locate in the ECONOMIC center of Tulsa-- 71st and Hwy 169. This is where all the money is spent, and development costs have skyrocketed.
Our place will be nothing like Dave and Busters. It's more of a bar than an arcade. We'll have a combination of retro arcade games as well as some newer ones and skee-ball. That's about where the similarities end. Our food (small menu) will be served by bartenders. There are no entrees, servers, swipe cards, or children. The Max is more of a retro-themed bar that happens to have arcade games than it is an arcade that serves food and drinks. Dave and Busters tends to be tourist oriented, while The Max is geared towards the locals that hang downtown. Much like an Irish themed bar, biker bar, billiards bar, music venue bar, or karaoke bar has a theme, we do too. Ours is just way more unique (and it can be argued broadly appealing) than theirs.
Retro games can be placed in ANY bar, and some bars have a small selection of coin-op games and pool tables, like Fox and Hound, for example (also located near the center of Tulsa's actual economic downtown, just down the street at 71st & Garnett).
You're exactly right. . . and we will prove that point by having nearly 30 of them. As for Fox and Hound. I know that I'm not alone when I say that I'd rather shoot myself in the face than hang out there. There is a very strong sentiment in this town that downtown is cooler, better, more original, more charming, more fun, and more of a big city urban feel. That sentiment (held by however many people happen to hold it) is sufficient to keep my neighbors and I quite busy down here....far far away from the "economic center." Tulsans want excuses to go downtown and support it. They want things to do other than just eat and drink. We're giving them some options. As we add new things, especially in the Blue Dome District, we're not dilluting our base, we're just making it that much more appealing and more viable.
However, they (retro games in particular) quickly lose their appeal when trying to bring in repeat business, which is essential to surviving the Tulsa market, since we are not exactly a hub of tourism.
71st and 169 sure isn't the hub of tourism. Downtown, however, houses a large number of business travelers, and regional fans of any of the acts that play the Cains, Brady, PAC, or BOK. People often forget that to people who live in Wagoner, Tulsa is a big city and a weekend in T-town is fun. . . and they have that fun in our downtown. Just because some Tulsans are too closed off to realize that the only truly unique entertainment experiences to be had are far away from south Tulsa, doesn't mean our regional neighbors share the opinion. It's important to udnerstand that I'm not wholly relying on the games to "bring in my business." Good bars with good bartenders and a strong selection tend to do pretty well regardless of their accessories. I'd argue that most bars could change all kinds of offerings inside and keep their base of customers as long as the bartender and the drinks stay the same. Additionally, I would argue that video games have no more or less appeal than darts, pool, and shuffleboard - very common bar games. The difference is, The Max has a whole room full of games and we're one of two places in town that does (the other being D&B).
As for 71st Street. . . Tony Roma's, Tia's, Smokey Bones BBQ, Jazmos, Al's Bistro, Grady's, Elephant Bar, Up the Creek, Nestle Toll House and Subs, Coach's, Okie Dokie's, Tulsa Brewing Co., Burger King, etc. National chains with big corporate backing somehow couldn't make it in the land of milk and honey. McNellie's, Blue Dome Diner, Dilly Deli, Joe Momma's, Caz's, Lola's, Mexicali, Spaghetti Warehouse, El Guapo's, etc. are all downtown...and somehow surviving despite being a 15 minute drive from 71st street, many for years and years. I can only think of 1974 Bar and Grill and Tsunami that have gone out of business downtown. One wasn't that good and the other was poorly run, but was doing well as far as customers go.
In closing, as much as I work to make Tulsa a better place, I'm in business to make money. I wouldn't have opened Joe Momma's here if I didn't think it would make money, and if it wasn't, I sure wouldn't go chasing after failure (or even mediocrity) with another risky venture. Our successful downtown ventures only stand to get better with the increased interest and traffic that the ballpark brings. I think you'll see that despite the lack of faith that so many Tulsans have in their city, in a few years, the "economic center" will be back where it should be...in downtown.
