QUARTERS ARCADE BAR: FUN AND GAMES.

• Author: Sasich, Chris
• Position: SMALL BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

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Salt Lake City--Clusters of pixels jump around screens and illuminate the faces of thirsty patrons as 8-bit sound radiates from the retro gaming machines inside Salt Lake's first and only arcade bar. Owners Katy Willis and Michael Eccleston were bartenders looking to bring something new to the local bar scene.

"Michael and I were working on a business plan to open a reservation-only speakeasy in Salt Lake," said Willis. "We went to San Diego to check out an amazing speakeasy-style bar, and on that trip ended up at an arcade bar called Coin Op. We were only there for maybe an hour because we needed to catch a flight but knew that more than a speakeasy, Salt Lake needed this concept. We got home and immediately started editing our business plan."

Three and a half years later, QUARTERS ARCADE BAR is open, serving craft beers and cocktails and offering a selection of classic arcade games, pinball, board games, a console gaming area and a custom Dungeons and Dragons table. "Killer Queen is our most popular game," said Willis. "It's a five-versus-five strategy arcade game, modeled after classic style games like Joust and Super Mario Brothers. It's really fun to play in a group and can get very...