Wednesday night, the new Lowry Parcade & Tavern drew names from the crowd at random, challenging beer drinkers (and those of us who are still aspiring adults) to head-to-head battles against the evening's featured brewery: Angry Chair Brewing.
Their ammunition? The joysticks, plungers, buttons and more of 20-plus arcade classics.
Ahead of its debut to the general public, this was Lowry Parcade's second Battle the Brewery event of Tampa Bay Beer Week. The soft opening event showcased the Tampa beer bar and arcade's gloriously nostalgic gaming options, ranging from Galaga and Ms. Pac-Man to Mortal Kombat and pinball, plus a crowd-pleasing tap list.Angry Chair's Mojito Gose, Citrus IPA, Ascension IPA and Polar Opposites collaboration with Brewski were on hand, as were a mix of other local and national pours from places like Funky Buddha Brewery, Oskar Blues Brewery and Cycle Brewing.
There are more than 10 tables, as well as a roomy bar with plenty of seats, for patrons to relax at between games, or when their quarter stashes run dry (like this editor's did during the event).
Lowry Parcade's last Beer Week gathering takes place Friday, when Coppertail Brewing Co. hits the spotlight.
This article appears in Mar 10-16, 2016.