1 of 5
Start saving your quarters for The Burl Arcade’s collection of nearly 40 console games and pinball tables. Located in the parking lot behind the Distillery District music venue, the “barcade” opened in late May. Photo by Estill Robinson
2 of 5
Start saving your quarters for The Burl Arcade’s collection of nearly 40 console games and pinball tables. Located in the parking lot behind the Distillery District music venue, the “barcade” opened in late May. Photo by Estill Robinson
3 of 5
Start saving your quarters for The Burl Arcade’s collection of nearly 40 console games and pinball tables. Located in the parking lot behind the Distillery District music venue, the “barcade” opened in late May. Photo by Estill Robinson
4 of 5
Start saving your quarters for The Burl Arcade’s collection of nearly 40 console games and pinball tables. Located in the parking lot behind the Distillery District music venue, the “barcade” opened in late May. Photo by Estill Robinson
5 of 5
Start saving your quarters for The Burl Arcade’s collection of nearly 40 console games and pinball tables. Located in the parking lot behind the Distillery District music venue, the “barcade” opened in late May. Photo by Estill Robinson
Since opening in 2016, The Burl has evolved from grassroots, new-kid-on-the-block music venue to a significant anchor business for Lexington’s increasingly popular Distillery District. This month, as it celebrates its second anniversary, the business also celebrates another milestone: the recent opening of The Burl Arcade, a standalone arcade-themed bar, which owners have been plotting since day one.
“Small businesses work in phases,” said Will Harvey, a partner with The Burl who joined forces with original owners Cannon Armstrong, Seth Bertram and Jomo Thompson in 2017. “This is our phase two.”
Located in a rehabbed former mechanic’s shop in the parking lot behind the music venue, the “barcade” is a distinct addition to a district already brimming with eclectic entertainment options, ranging from ice cream and pizza-by-the-slice to dive bars, distilleries and upscale cocktail lounges. While ’80s and ’90s nostalgia is a running theme of the new bar – the games come almost exclusively from those decades, and most cost a quarter to play – the experience at The Burl Arcade is elevated a bit by the bar, overseen by Brandon Judd, who was recently hired by The Burl as bar manager for both the music venue and the arcade. A seasoned mixologist who also has a penchant for rock clubs, Judd tended bar at The Dame Music Hall for several years, then served most recently as bar manager for Lockbox, the restaurant at Lexington’s 21c Museum Hotel.
“We wanted this place to be a more thoughtful kind of ‘bar’ experience [than The Burl],” Harvey explained. “Not pretentious or too classy, but just thoughtful.”
1 of 4
The starting inventory at The Burl Arcade features seven pinball machines and more than 30 arcade games. Photo by Estill Robinson
2 of 4
The starting inventory at The Burl Arcade features seven pinball machines and more than 30 arcade games. Photo by Estill Robinson
3 of 4
The starting inventory at The Burl Arcade features seven pinball machines and more than 30 arcade games. Photo by Estill Robinson
4 of 4
The starting inventory at The Burl Arcade features seven pinball machines and more than 30 arcade games. Photo by Estill Robinson
With black subway tile backsplash, glass floating shelves and a bar custom-built from a reclaimed bowling lane, the arcade’s bar is certainly a departure from the rest of the room’s aesthetic, distinguished by wood panel-walls and mismatched vintage furniture, arranged in clusters to create a handful of intimate seating areas. Industrial garage doors open to outdoor seating on warmer days. And along one wall, more than 30 vintage televisions are methodically stacked, creating not only a signature focal point for the room, but also as a practical installation – Nintendo, Super Nintendo and Atari systems are hooked up to several of the televisions for gamers seeking a more “at home” vibe.
“The original vision for this place was to kind of create the aesthetic of being in your grandma’s basement,” Harvey said.
Of course, the central focus of the bar is the games, and all the sounds and lights that accompany them. Owners spent the better part of the past year collecting the games from various sellers around the country, and many were custom-built for the bar by a dealer in St. Louis. With a starting lineup of more than 30 arcade games and seven pinball machines, the bar is off to a good start on that front, though Harvey expects the inventory to grow and change over time.
“We keep telling employees, ‘we’re going to pay you in quarters,’” he said with a laugh.
The Burl Turns 2
The Burl will celebrate its second anniversary with a two-day showcase of local and nationally touring bands on July 21-22, including All Them Witches, Lost Dog Street Band, Mojothunder, Justin Wells and more. More information is available at the venue’s website, www.theburlky.com.
1 of 3
Only open to patrons aged 21 and up, the bar is open seven days a week, with evening hours Mon.-Fri. and all day/late night hours on Saturdays and Sundays. Follow the business on Facebook for updates on special events, including weekend “cereal bar” breakfasts and Saturday night DJ nights. Photo by Estill Robinson
2 of 3
Only open to patrons aged 21 and up, the bar is open seven days a week, with evening hours Mon.-Fri. and all day/late night hours on Saturdays and Sundays. Follow the business on Facebook for updates on special events, including weekend “cereal bar” breakfasts and Saturday night DJ nights. Photo by Estill Robinson
3 of 3
Only open to patrons aged 21 and up, the bar is open seven days a week, with evening hours Mon.-Fri. and all day/late night hours on Saturdays and Sundays. Follow the business on Facebook for updates on special events, including weekend “cereal bar” breakfasts and Saturday night DJ nights. Photo by Estill Robinson