Joystick Gamebar
Bar · Atlanta ·
Retro arcade games & cocktails with chef pop-ups
Retro arcade games & cocktails with chef pop-ups
"Remember when you went to the mall and spent all your money at the arcade while your mom shopped? You can bring that feeling full circle at Joystick, where you can spend all your money playing arcade games while you drink. The divey bar in Edgewood has cheap beer, well drinks, and a ton of old-school games that will make you feel nostalgic for simpler days. If you’re looking for a group game, there’s another room with Jenga, foosball, and board games, along with big coffee tables and couches." - juli horsford
"The Edgewood Avenue game bar is planning to open on Thanksgiving evening for drinks, karaoke, and gameplay." - Eater Staff
"Gamers crowd around a Galaga screen watching intently to see who can beat the high score. Then, with a collective groan, they scatter back to their bar corners when the Fighter is destroyed by a stray bullet. That’s a normal night at Joystick, equal parts arcade and bar. And from our viewpoint, draft beer or alcoholic slushies make classic games like Frogger, Ms. Pacman, and Mortal Kombat (and the nostalgia of quarters rattling in your pocket) more fun. There’s a different nightly pop-up restaurant to fuel avid players. And theme nights, including karaoke and comedy sessions, bring unity to the Edgewood nerdom. The best part? As an adult, you get to decide when it’s time for your last game. Sorry, mom. photo credit: Sarah Newman photo credit: Sarah Newman photo credit: Sarah Newman Pause Unmute" - Juli Horsford
"A quirky arcade-and-cocktail venue on Edgewood Avenue known for pairing classic arcade machines with hand-crafted drinks; every game runs for a quarter, creating a playful, low-cost atmosphere that encourages casual drop-ins and high-score chases. Operated by the same owners as the adjacent beer garden and the upstairs cocktail bar, it remained open during the beer garden’s announced closure and was used for equipment storage during nearby filming that temporarily shut down portions of Edgewood Avenue." - Beth McKibben
"On Edgewood Avenue, I've found Joystick Gamebar to be a decade-old hub for geeky gameplay that owners Johnny Martinez and Brandon Ley set up as an homage to the arcades of their youth—swapping soda and fountain drinks for cocktails and beer. The bar hosts a variety of social events and added regular Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) meetups after noticing an uptick in Millennial and Gen Z patrons who gather at tables to play; Martinez says younger people often use D&D to explore gender and sexuality, noting even “uber-masculine alpha males” will sometimes play female characters and that younger patrons are comfortable not putting themselves into one box." - Olivia Harrison