Barcade

I love coming to this Barcade to play Galaga especially, whenever I’m in the area I want to stop by. There’s always really great energy at Barcade! All of the bartenders are very kind and friendly. I never have to worry about waiting too long for a bartender to notice me trying to order a drink, good fast service! Aliyah is always the best, she really cares about being welcoming to her customers and making them the best drinks!

Lots of retro games. Be ready to stand cause there are very few seats. Music is loud, crowd is young-ish. Fun for an hour or so and the games are very well kept.

Barcade on St. Marks Place is hands down one of my favorite spots in NYC, especially for a fun date night. As soon as you walk in, you’re hit with this amazing retro vibe—classic arcade games like Pac-Man and Donkey Kong line the walls, and everything’s in great shape, ready for some friendly competition. The drink menu is impressive too, with a solid lineup of craft beers, unique seasonal brews, and cocktails. The staff is super friendly and quick, even when it’s packed, and they really know their stuff when it comes to beer recommendations. The atmosphere is perfect—dark enough to feel like a classic arcade but still warm and welcoming. It’s the kind of place where you can have a blast playing games, laughing, and just relaxing together. For the quality and location, the prices are really reasonable. With awesome games, great drinks, and that unbeatable nostalgic vibe, Barcade has become my go-to spot for a fun, laid-back night out.

Cool place. Lots of different games, plenty of space, and machines are taken better care of than Salisbury Beach. Kitchen closes at 12am at this place I think so plan according. Splatterhouse is a good game 🫟

Prefer the midtown location. More open space, and seemingly more games. Most arcades token operated...taking 1-2 tokens for most games. Tokens can be purchased from machines throughout the space at 0.25 cents each.. (4/$1, 20/$5...). Service at the bar and front door were good. Our ID's were checked upon entering at 3:30pm. Not sure if this was for all locations, or specfically for downtown as our ID's were NOT checked in midtown earlier that day. Great beer selection. Beer prices were fair (for NYC) at about $9. Pints for the more common weaker stuff (under 6% or so) and 10oz. pours for the stronger stuff. Given the average prices for beer and food, you'd definitely want to go there for the games...think of it is an arcade that serves beer and food...not a bar/restaurant with an arcade. A better happy hour special (currently it is $1 off beer) may attract bigger crowds.

I’ve been to all the locations in manhattan and Jersey city one too. I loved all the locations. I come to St.Marks location the most. It has always nice and vibrant atmosphere. I loved their new pinball machines! I like their bar too. It’s always a fun place!

Definitely the oddest barcade experience I’ve ever had, and I’ve been to quite a few. I don’t want to sound like a Karen, but here’s a heads up: if you have an Indiana ID, you might not be allowed in, and the staff may not be particularly kind about it. My friends and I were excited to check this place out. We’d heard good things about the games, but we didn’t even make it inside. One friend, who lives in Indiana and has an Indiana ID, was stopped at the door. The bouncer asked for a passport, and when my friend showed it, he got even more suspicious because it listed Illinois as their birthplace. We tried to clarify, but my friend was born in Illinois but lives in Indiana now, but the bouncer became hostile and told us, “I wasn’t born yesterday,” and to “leave, now.” TL;DR: Not sure if theres an epidemic of fakes from Indiana or what, but if you’re actually from Indiana or a not so popular state, you might want to bring a passport and hope for the best. We left confused and pretty disappointed.

Holy crap, we had such a good time here. The barkeeps are great, they have a nice beer selection, and the crowd was friendly and just the right size. Was so happy to have access to a fun selection of pinball machines that were well-maintained, whether they were older machines or brand-new ones. If I lived closer, I would be here every night.

A fun arcade bar tucked into the heart of East Village with tons of awesome, retro video games -- it was surprisingly large, albeit a bit narrow so it was hard to move to the back since both walls were lined with games. It was busy on a Saturday evening, but not so busy that you had to wait a long time for games. This location is closest to me, but would totally visit another one if the games are as plentiful -- they had so many of my favorites, including Galaga, Ms. Pac-Man, Street Fighter and Donkey Kong, to name a few. You get a lot of value from the games, since most cost a quarter to play -- for $10 in tokens, we got a whole night of gameplay. I'll be back again soon!

I really love the midtown Barcade but this location was a bit underwhelming. I was here a few weeks ago and all of our food was burnt. My friends and I ordered at two different times during that night and both orders were burnt. Fun selection of video games. The space is smaller than some of the other locations so they make it work with the space. Given the location I was expecting it to be a bit more crowded on a Friday night and was relieved that we were able to get seating. Service was a bit slow but the pacing was better as the night went on.

Fun vibes! But this is a relatively small location, it gets cramped. They also don't have any driving games probably because of space constraints. Nice rotating beer selection too, but the food was a bit underwhelming.

This place does not allow food or drink from outside so they will make you leave it by the door. They also check IDs and bags at the door I'm a little torn on this one. The place was way too crowded and a few of the games didn't work but they did take your money. The games are all retro arcade games & that was cool to see a bunch of games we never see elsewhere The drinks were not that great. I had a peach ish mocktail that was unbelievably sweet that I didn't end up finishing it but at least they had a couple non-alcoholic options other than water They have food but nowhere to eat at except the bar which was crowded all night so we didn't get any food Most games are $1-3 which was kinda pricey on some and a fine price on others. They have a token exchange machine to give you tokens for games We stayed about an hour and played a plethora of games like pacman and galaga and it was an interesting way to end our day but I probably wouldn't be hanging out there on the regular

Fun, no frills, dive bar in the east village with old school arcade games. We stopped while we were in town and had some time to kill on a rainy day. Lots of games to choose from and a fun walk down memory lane. Cheap drinks, full bar, lots of beers on tap and bar food available.

Good beer selection. The cider I had there yesterday was great. Games are sick and the tater tots of legit.

Staff and manager were rude and disrespectful. The establishment was also very dirty. So many better spots to check out in LES and East Village.

Prefer the midtown location. More open space, and seemingly more games. Most arcades token operated...taking 1-2 tokens for most games. Tokens can be purchased from machines throughout the space at 0.25 cents each.. (4/$1, 20/$5...). Service at the bar and front door were good. Our ID's were checked upon entering at 3:30pm. Not sure if this was for all locations, or specfically for downtown as our ID's were NOT checked in midtown earlier that day. Great beer selection. Beer prices were fair (for NYC) at about $9. Pints for the more common weaker stuff (under 6% or so) and 10oz. pours for the stronger stuff. Given the average prices for beer and food, you'd definitely want to go there for the games...think of it is an arcade that serves beer and food...not a bar/restaurant with an arcade. A better happy hour special (currently it is $1 off beer) may attract bigger crowds.

Very nice bar tender and fun place to hang out at. Nice selection of beers and drink. Fast service.

This is a great bar if you are interested in retro-arcade games. The service and bar-tending was great and accommodating. The main attraction is the large variety of arcade games, but they were slightly underwhelming. The games felt like a money grabbing machine, with each game requiring more coins after a minute. One quarter of NBA Jam requires a new set of tokens which felt disappointing. The music is great, and its a good time with friends and company. I wish they had more multi-player games, and its also a great place to meet new people. The drinks menu was very diverse and my friends loved it. Also I tried some of the strongest ginger ale I have ever had, and it was great.

No baby policy? Looking for a place to sit and have a beer the doorman said we couldn't bring in our daughter. First time this has happened so I am pretty sure this place is full of shit when it comes to coming up with policies. Near empty bars at 6 PM don't need to be fascists about such things.

Such a fun spot! My partner and I came early evening on a Saturday night and had a ton of fun playing the games. It was fun and nostalgic! Beer and tots were fairly reasonably priced, and the tots were among some of the best I've had in the city. SUPER large portion. I could see it getting crowded at times which would make it difficult to play the games you want to, but for the most part we had a minimal wait for the ones we were most interested in.

5 stars it's so good it gets a bonus haiku! Buttons, Beers, Babes, Boys, Space Invade Pizza Turtles My joy for joysticks! Gosh golly gee do I love Barcade! I am THE target audience and all I can say is please take my fucking money, all of it. Barcade is delightfully consistent across their locations and it's truly been my pleasure watching them expand over the years from the Brooklyn dive bar to Astor Place, JC, and the more bougie almost midtown spot. What I love most is that I kept my brooklyn game tokens for 6 years and finally had a chance to use them tonight in Manhattan and the games did NOT go up in price! What a deal. They are always adding new machines, more drinks, AND more food! I was so impressed with how their menus have grown and continue to include a variety of food allergies. The bathrooms are gender neutral and the space is expansive and so well organized for being a St. Marks bar! Rarely are the games broken. It's such a chill spot. Stairs lead down to the game floor but otherwise accessible and maneuverable. Friendly for people of all ages but there is a bouncer so I don't know if that's for night time or all the time. You can rent out the space, seems like a killer spot for a bday party! Cowabunga dudes!

Wanna retro game and do some drinking in the East Village? Bam! Welcome to Barcade! Holy crap there's a lot of old school games here. 3 pinball machines, dozens of upright games including several shooting games like Terminator 2. A giant, 4-person pac-man tabletop game. There's even this super-bizarre torture game that's a shooter that was super disturbing! That said, bunch of classics here like millipede, dig dug, etc. crazy long hours and good drink prices, and most games took 1 token (.25$). I ended up donating almost 1/2 of mine because I couldn't use them fast enough. Great place!

I went here last night for some fun and drinks with my friends to celebrate my birthday. It was pretty crowded but it was a Saturday night! Games costed between 1-3 tokens (25-75 cents a game). Drinks were good , I personally loved the blood orange beer. My friends all enjoyed the sweet chili wings. Fries were good too and came with multiple dipping sauces(just a bit salty) Employees were friendly and helpful. Some small cons: The bar service was a slower once the bartenders switched out which sucked but it's understandable. Also The bathroom lines were long! There are only two available bathrooms and the lines were so long it was crazy. There were about 16 people at one point waiting for the two bathrooms. They should definitely have stalls for the kind of traffic they get. Overall, it was a good time and affordable for the city.

3.5 / 5.0 - I came to Barcade with colleagues for our holiday party this year. If you want to go back in time to the 80's or love arcade games and are in the East Village, you should check this place out. They have cheap arcade games which you use tokens for and a good selection of drinks. The food was ok. I didn't love that the buns on the sliders weren't toasted. Also, if you're looking to hang out and play games, I recommend coming earlier, since space is small and it got quite crowded as the night went on.

A really fun bar to get some decent drinks and play some fun games! Games: the main attraction is the games. You have to get tokens to play. The most popular games get crowded but you can still get a turn! I loved the variety of games they had Drinks: I ordered the mezcal drink and it was really good! The mule is also very good! Prices: very reasonable and on par with other places. The games are also very fairly priced Service: quick despite the crowd

A fun spot to meet up with friends. Even in the middle of the work week there was a decent crowd but the vibe was nice and laid back. Quick service, no frills but all thrills. There was a great selection on tap and finding a brew you like won't be a problem. Plenty of munchies to go around too. If you want to play on any cabinet you will need to get tokens though, so come prepared to make change!

The games are amazing here from Frogger to pinball to street fighter. Its a little small but well kept and a positive vibe. Everyone was nice. The bathrooms don't have any mirrors and as a girl we need mirrors lol but thats my only complaint.

Super fun spot. Lots of old arcade games. Sometimes there's a wait to play some of the games when it's a Saturday but that's expected. In the meantime you can sit at the bar and talk with the friendly bartenders.

Kind staff, FUN GAMES, reasonable prices, excellent beer and game selection, and just a perfect place to kill a few hours and a lot of digital bad guys!

We all know that after my experience in Canada, that I have a very high bar set for barcades. That being said, this one is nice and met some essentials. They have drinks, they have food (which I didn't try as I was stuffed), and of course they have arcades! I had a couple hours to kill before my train departed the city, so I figured why not game for a bit?? So I showed my ID and vax card (at the time it was needed) and took in the environment. One thing I definitely appreciated is that there plenty of outlets around so I could charge my phone :). Anyways, I went to the token machine, got some coins, and got some cocktails -- I particularly enjoyed the rum / Campari-based Jungle Bird. Very tasty cocktail that washed down all that food I had prior. I found myself mainly playing the Pac-Mans. Millipede would've been a fun one, but it wasn't around! All in all though, Barcade is a good NYC staple and you'll enjoy yourself with friends for a couple of hours if you come through!

Went here for the first time with a girl friend years ago. I don't recall how I felt or what I did back then because we stumbled in after drinking all morning leading into the afternoon. Came here a few weeks ago with a guy and it was fine. We played a few games, stepped out and went back to play more games. It was fine for what it was since I liked my company at the time. The drinks are your standard bar drinks. Nothing extraordinary or fancy, but not the vibe they are going for. A good place if you like playing arcade games. Will go back here with guy friends since they are obsessed with video games and like St. Marks.

I think I've been to ALL of the barcodes including the one in Jersey City. I'm a long time fan of vintage arcade games and this location is a fix for gamers and pin ballers alike. All the locations vary in their options of games and because this one is near NYU it can get packed with Tinder dates and group parties reserving the tables in the back but is still fun to go to. Bar staff is always attentive as much as possible depending on the ebb and flow of the people waiting to be served. Craft brews are readily available and why not have a hop back (their version of a pickle back) while you're at it? TBH I love the JC one the most because it's just bigger and there are more pin ball machines but Barcade is barcade. I'll go to one no matter where I happen to be. Always my first pick of fun things to do.

We came here during a date night and surprised that it wasn't that busy on a Friday night . There is a change machine to purchase the coins to operate the games . We enjoyed the house of the dead shooting game and the bub . There were also three pinball games which take 3 token each. Not expensive for the games IMO . The beer list is great as well and we enjoyed the happy hour price of $1 off.

9 dollar wine regardless of what time you walk in had me at hello. Old school arcade games held my attention. But the crowning glory is that Aaliyah or Alia or Leah behind the bar (I'm so sorry I do a lot of asking people's names so I can leave them nice reviews and sometimes I forget) was so so sweet to both me and the rowdier patrons at the bar that I won't hesitate to be back. I've heard from a few people on bumble that this bar has Mario kart but I have yet to see it. Besides Alia that's the main reason for this review, so I hope within a few weeks the Mario kart will rear its head and I'll be able to get a lap or two into rainbow road. Happy Nintendo-ing !!!

The drinks are priced reasonably and the bar itself wasn't too busy on a Tuesday night. So you pretty much have free reign over the games. Tokens are cash only in the back. The games themselves are retro, so definitely not claw machines or anything of that. More like pacman, shooter games, pinball, etc. Some of the games are multiplayer (some 2 player, some up to 4 player). The games weren't too entertaining to be honest, but if you're into them they definitely could be. Close proximity to a lot of restaurants though which is great.

Awesome place to revisit your inner child. Beer, cocktails, and old-school arcades are a perfect mix for fun in the East Village. I will admit that this location is a bit smaller and has fewer arcades than the other Barcades in the city. The place has a pretty chill, relaxed vibe which is perfect for the East Village, and most of the games are about 1-2 tokens. Also, if you want to raid your quarters that have been set aside for laundry, the arcades take both tokens and regular quarters. During our visit, we did not have a chance to try the food; however, I was very please with the wide variety of beers and cocktails. I think that I counted at least 25 different beers, so definitely come to Barcade thirsty. We came around 5 pm on a Sunday, and the place was pretty quiet, but it started to pick up around 6:30 pm. I definitely hope to return in the near future.

Fun casual date spot. Not as big as the other barcade locations but still super fun and lots of game options including the basics like pinball and Tetris and Pac-Man. Cool spot

This is the second Barcade I have ever been to - the other one being the location on west 24th Street. This one is considerably smaller and is fairly narrow. Being in the East Village, it can also get fairly crowded on a Friday and Saturday night. However, overall it is still a good place to hang out. And despite having less machines, they have some games I did not see at the other location. Simpsons the Arcade Game, Splatterhouse, Jambo! Safari and Dynamite Cop are some of the ones that come to mind. Good selection of beers and decent quality bar food too.

I have heard about this spot for a long time, and finally came here last week to celebrate a friend's birthday! The vibe is super fun and definitely a step back in time. You have to be 21+ to enter and they card at the door. I loved all the retro games! The tokens go a long way so no need to get too many. My favorite games were the group Pac-Man game since you can compete with your friends and the good old pinball machines! I had the Brooklyn Mule cocktail for my first drink. Unfortunately it really fell flat. It lacked flavor and was definitely not worth the $14 price tag. I switched to one of their draft ciders for my second round and loved it! It was a blood orange hard cider and definitely unique. This is a super fun, retro spot that has a dive bar feel. It's casual and great for a gathering with friends!

Mixed feelings about Barcade. It's in my regular rotation and I missed it dearly during COVID -- but in the same breath, it's over crowded, overpriced, and the bartenders are usually assholes. The best time to come is in the afternoon, early -- maybe right at 5pm. There is no point in coming if you see a sea of heads once you walk down the ramp. (Even if you're looking to just use the restroom, the lines will be crazy long anyway.) This place is also kind of dirty all the time...lmao. Keep in mind, unlike the other Barcade, this one doesn't have it's liquor license. But the beer selection is updated a decent amount. The menus are easy to read and you can always find some high percentage pints. The games are great, of course. They're a decent amount, but in my 4/5 years of going here, there hasn't been any new additions. While the other location has had new games come in here and there. I get that it's small but hmmm... It's fun, it's a good gimmick. Who doesn't love a bar where you can do something besides take shots and talk?

Ultra aggressive doorman and $16 for a single shot of low end whiskey on the rocks makes this a tough sell.

Ok, so, i once came here a few times to enjoy playing some street fighter 3rd strike and a few others. the place is pretty small, and the bathrooms are pretty limited. I'm gonna be honest, i came here to play games and not really drink. The prices are a bit steep, but overall, it's not too bad to hang out here

Place: This place is so fun! I love barcades!! Service: The service is great! There are machines where you can change you money into tokens and play the games. Usually each game is about 25 cent token or up to 4 tokens Food/price: I am not sure about the food but the drinks are around $8-9. I had a cider beer and it was $8 and they filled it up to the top top lol. Audience: Great for friends! WHOO Recommend/tips? I highly recommend this place. I went at 7:00 PM and honestly perfect time because it was pretty quiet so MORE GAMES TO PLAY.

Average games. Expensive beers at $8 $9 Great location next to st marks when you need to wait for food

It's a cool place with lots of arcade games but the drinks were alright. They were a bit overpriced considering they weren't that strong in my opinion.

We were having a good time with our family and they didn't let us order anymore drinks bc we were having fun. It made us feel very uncomfortable because they made us feel like we were being judged. We bought so much credit for tokens and were there 2 hours before we ordered anything from the bar

When my friends and I opened the door to barcade we were immediately met with an aggressive security man who took his job of sitting on a stool and being rude to ONLY women very seriously. He slammed the door to thein our face (as it was pouring rain) and checked our IDs (we are over 30) one by one (as we each waiting in the rain. our bags and told our friend she had to throw out a half eaten bagel from her purse. I'm sorry to you think she's planning to shove her half eaten BEC into a skee-ball machine? Of course he let the man right behind us in without checking his ID, bag, or pockets. If you are looking to have a beer and play Mario kart with your girls, you might as well pull out your Nintendo 64 and stay in your pajamas. Waluigi would provide a better experience than that man. 10/10 never going back to that boys club.

Love playing the arcades and hooking up spot. They always card. Like... thank you. I know, I look under 18 right? :P There's sometimes nasty odors tho. Not sure if its the alcohol or man strench. The staff or manager there is nice. Always welcoming.

I wanted to stop by and reminisce some great back then arcade game playing experience but the bouncer with zero customer service skills ruined it and I left right away after asking me to dump my water out of my water bottle even though I was planning on having a beer or two. I thought: 'no service, no commission'. Many other bars don't do that to their customers so barcade: I won't be surprised if you go out of business in the very near future.

In the area & figured why not come in here & kill some time. Drinks had some Beer & white wine not bad. The space is not very big so with all the games & bar area it's a bit cramped inside. What can u really say about this place? Not much more , old school type arcade games some are good, most are bad. Fun to drink & play games of course but wouldn't really last too long here since the games are ahhh. Decent music playing, drinks they do have a full bar good enough to kill about an hour or so can't say I would be here too much longer.

When looking for a bar to come to as a regular, I look for on that has a great theme, a wide selection of drinks and food, an excellent service. Barcade has hit all of those points with flying colors. The idea of a pub and an arcade in one might sound childish, but this is anything but that with the age minimum and their game selection (which is both diverse and awesome). The selection of drinks is superb and compliments their objective and atmosphere. And finally like the drinks, the games are reasonably priced, with most being 25 cents per game. Overall, this place is perfect to unwind after a long week and to stimulate your inner child.

I do like the other locations but this was a hard pass due to the bouncer's misogynistic remarks.

Micheal, Amy and the crew are so hospitable. We come here almost every Friday and love our time. The games are fun and the vibe is quintessential East Village.

Any child of the eighties must stop by. Drinks are stiff but tasty too. Try the different locations too

Solid selection of beers and games. An easy fun night out with friends and watching people crush it at the driving games. Always love a good game of street fighter!

Let me just preface this by saying I did not want to go out tonight. It's a Tuesday night, my friends want me to go out and they recommend we meet at Barcade since it's near our job. Immediately as I walk in, the music puts me into a better mood, and we go and get drinks. Aliyah was our bartender. She was the BEST. Apparently she works only works Tuesdays so we lucked out, but she was super knowledgeable of the area, gave great recommendations, was SO efficient, never let our drinks hit the bottom, and kept us laughing. Overall, pretty good Tuesday night.

Check this place out to get my pinball fix. I didn't realize how close it is to other spots I check out. Literally across the street from the dessert Spot. Inside it's a little dark but that the nature of arcades. They have a nice draft menu as well as wine and other drinks. If you run up an appetite they have a great spread of food. I did not have any but it looks legit. There are 3 pinballs in the back. All machine are in good or newer condition. Nothing worse than a pinball machine that isn't maintained well. 3 tokens for each pinball game. Not a bad deal. The rest of the games are 1 or two tokens. Not a bad deal and the other games are kept up well. They have the classics, Pacman and Galaga. They have have a good amount of VS fighting games, side shooters and games you can play with others. No skeeball or pool tables here. Not really needed since they take up so much space. Two unisex restrooms in the back and you're set. If you don't have cash to get tokens with you can ask the bartender. They can charge on your card whatever in tokens.

It looks cool from the outside. Less fun when you enter and multiple members of staff were unfriendly.