Alexander Alusheff

Lansing State Journal

LANSING - If Pinball Pete's and HopCat had a baby, it would be something like The Grid Arcade and Bar.

The business, which will open in Old Town this spring, fuses a craft beer bar and a retro video game arcade.

"People are looking for more activities while they are out socializing here," said co-owner Corey Montie, of Lansing. "Even if you're not coming in to have drinks, you'll end up staying there for the games."

The bar will have 30 arcade games and pinball machines from the 1970s and '80s, considered by some to be the golden age of gaming. It will also have 40 craft beers on tap from Michigan and around the country.

"We want to create a destination," said co-owner Callie Mykut, of East Lansing. "The energy of the area and culture drew us to this spot."

Montie lived in San Francisco for a few years. Mykut lived in New York City. Having visited other arcade bars on the coasts, they decided to start one together in Lansing. Old Town reminded them most of the eccentric neighborhoods in the big cities they came from. They leased the former Chrome Cat building at 226 E. Grand River Avenue in September and began renovations.

"This will bring a whole new layer of excitement to Old Town," said Vanessa Shafer, executive director of the Old Town Commercial Association. "It's something that's unique. Old Town prides itself on being unique and quirky. It will have a lot of personality."

Montie said The Grid is a reference to the 1982 science fiction film, Tron, in which a computer programmer is transported into the software of a mainframe computer. A Tron video game was released that same year.

"Retro gaming, for a lot of us, that's what we grew up with," he said. "We want to instill the same sense of curiosity and excitement (about those games) we had as kids."

Alexander Alusheff is a reporter at the Lansing State Journal. Contact him at (517) 388-5973 or aalusheff@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexalusheff.

Pre-launch party

The Grid Arcade and Bar is hosting a contest where people can be entered to be invited to its soft opening.

People can win a t-shirt by participating in a trivia contest on its Facebook page. Those who win t-shirts will be entered into a drawing to win an invitation to the party. For more information, visit Facebook.com/TheGridOldTown.