ecity3138

Wow, this will be a great addition to the Gateway entertainment scene and unique to Arkansas. The website looks interesting like a haunted house adventure year round. Can't wait till this open!

A lot of people would also like to see Joe's Crab Shack in Little Rock but that's unlikely at this time due to Ignite Restaurants (parent company of Joe's Crab Shack) filing for bankruptcy. Anybody ever tried Razzoo's Cajun Cafe based out of Dallas? I heard the food is good but never tried when I'm down in that area.

Any updates to the status of Playtime Pizza?

The food at the Dallas area Saltgrass Steakhouse locations are great and one of the better concepts from the Landry's restaurant brands. Their Texas Rattler appetizer is delicious to me. I would love Pappadeaux to expand into the Little Rock area specifically the Gateway Town Center. However, a representative from Pappas Restaurants of Houston recently said there are no plans to bring a Pappadeaux to Arkansas within the next 5 years. My guess is that there are not coming here due to the market too small. Most of their locations are in major metropolitan markets such as Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Birmingham, and of course Texas.

Does anybody notice Playtime Pizza website is no longer available?

Yum. I got to try it out!

One of the mistake Playtime Pizza made was charging entry fees at the front door. This turn a lots of customers away because some people may just want to play the games and attractions rather than eating unlimited buffet which had poor food quality. The food quality during my last visit was awful (ex: even worse than a Ci Ci Pizza buffet). They did not try to provide quality ingredients on the pizza or salad. I've also heard most of the games was recently out of order due to poor maintenance. Playtime Pizza could be an awesome concept (even after Dave and Buster's opens) if the management took care of their business. They should of have a separate fees for the buffet area while not charging entrance fee to get in the building. They should update their attractions such as new arcade games, indoor rides, upgrade the laser tag to a multiple story arena, and to put some effort on their food. With that said, Main Event offers similar attractions to Playtime Pizza with the exception of a full scale bowling alley, high velocity ropes rather than bumper cars and indoor go karts, and a full service restaurant/ bar instead of a buffet. I don't think Main Event will affect business at Dave and Buster's because both concepts aimed at different demographics. I, too, really want both Main Event and Dave and Buster's to be successful in the Little Rock market.

I think there's a market for both Main Event and Dave and Buster's. Main Event will just be a replacement of Playtime Pizza (with the exception of full service restaurant rather than a buffet) and caters more towards family rather than adults. A typical Main Event location features a full size bowling alley, multiple story laser tag arena, a few arcade games (not as much games like Dave and Buster's), Velocity rope course, billiards, and a full service restaurant/bar. Dave and Buster's is aimed towards young adults and have more variety of games and better alcholol and food selections in my opinion (ex: their Salmon is pretty darn good for a sports bar restaurant). I, personally, don't see any competition between the two business as the two aimed at different demographics. As previously stated, the Playtime Pizza building fits the criteria of a Main Event location since it's in close proximity of a major intersection of I-430 and near Cinemark (formerly Rave Theater). The size of the building is large enough for Main Event to do a major facelift of the building. I'm also really sad to see Playtime Pizza closed because I used to love going there (ex: bumper cars and indoor race track used to be my favorite) and thought business was good despite Dave and Buster's opening 5 miles down I-430. However, I think Main Event would be a good replacement as it is a similar entertainment business. https://www.mainevent.com/

That's not true. I'm in talks with Main Event corporate office in Dallas regarding a potential Little Rock site and there are exploring potential sites around the Little Rock market. Dave and Buster's requires a million population but they are here whereas Main Event requires a population of 400,000 and 500,000 within 20 miles of the site. Playtime Pizza building fits the market criteria since the average size of a typical Main Event location range from 45,000 to 60,000 square feet which Playtime Pizza building (which is a 70,000 square feet building) definitely fits with a major renovation. It would make sense for Main Event to acquire the property and due a major renovation to fit the Main Event criteria.

I really hope another car dealers does not take over the building. There's enough car dealerships in that area already. I hope that another major family entertainment chain will purchase the building such as Main Event entertainment center based out of Dallas. It will be a perfect fit for the Little Rock market and rebranding of the building. They should keep it as a Family Entertainment Center.l building.

Playtime Pizza website is no longer available and there Facebook page has been removed. I guess they are closed for good which is sad but not surprised.

I use to love X-Site when I was younger and so disappointed it close. I remember a McDonald's on site as well as laser tag, indoor rides, and a batting cage. Believe it or not, I still have invitation cards from X-Site. I agree that Main Event would be a perfect fit for the former Playtime Pizza building and would be just as fun if not better than Playtime Pizza. All Main Event needs to do is a major overhaul of the building to meet their criteria and rebrand the building with Main Event logos along with their signature attractions as mentioned previously.

Maybe another company can buy the property and do major renovations to it. I would love to see Main Event Entertainment (with locations in Memphis and Dallas) take over the building. They have multi story laser tag, bowling, full service restaurant, Velocity Course, and arcade. I would be a great addition to the market. Here's the website to Main Event. https://www.mainevent.com/

Does anybody know when will Playtime Pizza reopen? I know they closed two weeks ago due to failure of paying their taxes but I'm not sure if it's for good. Based on millions of tax pay they owe, I doubt it will reopen unless it will be sold to another company.

Construction on Movie Tavern is moving along quickly along with Creek Plaza and Tru Blue By Hilton Hotel. Also, it appears that infrastructure work is in progress at the planned Hooters and Saltgrass Steakhouse site. I'm glad to see progress being made at the Gateway development. I wouldn't be surprised to see a bowling alley (Lucky Strike?), or a live entertainment venue (hoping for something like House of Blues) opening there in the future. I still hope that a true seafood restaurant opens there in the future as the seafood choices in Little Rock are pretty limited (besides Cajun Wharf, Red Lobster, Copeland's, and Lulu Crab Boil). We have plenty of fish houses (ex: Flying Fish, Soul Fish Cafe, Eat My Catfish, etc) but lacking a true seafood restaurants that is on par with Cajun's as an example.

Does anybody knows the opening date of Dust Bowl and Lane Lounge?

The menu looks good based on the website. I got to try it out!

Saltgrass Steakhouse has applied for a plumbing permit in Sherwood. I believe it will be next to Crain Kia of North Little Rock.

Some of their restaurant concepts (including Landry's Seafood House in Branson and other states) are pretty good but not spectacular. I've been to their Willie G's Seafood and Steak near Galleria Houston and it was very good. The company have grown significantly since the last time it made a presence in Arkansas. They own casinos, entertainment districts, theme restaurants (ex: Rainforest Cafe), hospitality, and a variety of other upscale restaurants across the country. The problem Landry's had with Cajun's Wharf during the 90's was when they tried to make changes to the restaurants that everybody was accustomed to (such as removing favorite menu items and changing ingredients) instead of maintaining the menu and recipe the same as the original owners had. It wasn't successful and they had to sell it back to the original owners. Cajun Wharf is still great after all the years and their business still thrives. With that being said, I wouldn't think those mistakes would stop Landry's from making a presence in Arkansas.

A lot of people on thv11 Facebook post regarding Hooter's coming to Gateway Town Center has preferred a Joe's Crab Shack over Hooter's. Personally, I don't care for neither one of those restaurants and would rather have a Pappadeaux, Razoo's Cajun Cafe, Landry's, Willie G's Seafood, or any other nice upscale seafood restaurant in the area. Besides, Joe's Crab Shack is not expanding at this time due to the struggles its parent company (Ignite) is experiencing. A spokesperson from Pappas Restaurants (parent company of Pappadeaux) said the company have no plans to open a Pappadeaux in Arkansas within the next five years. I don't think they will ever come here from the way the spokesperson sound on the phone. The lot that is being cleared behind Bass Pro Shops will be restaurants. There will be a couple of restaurants on that site with Hooters being one of them and two other unnamed restaurants that cannot be disclosed at this time.

Anybody knows what restaurants beside Con Queso coming to this development? I hope they are new to the State.

Anybody tried the newly open Tacos 4 Life?

There was a recent article on Arkansas Business and on Thv 11 on the progress at Gateway Town Center. Construction on the Movie tavern site along with the Tru By Hilton hotel should begin soon. There will also be a strip center that will contain additional shops and a fast casual restaurant called Con Queso, which is based out of Fayetteville. In addition, there are plans to have restaurants between the Outlet Mall and Bass Pro Shop. My guess would be the undeveloped land behind the Bass Pro Shop site of the planned restaurants.

I mean DSW. Sorry about that. Nordstrom Rack would be a great addition to the Promenade Mall.

That's good news! I wish the mall could open a Nordstrom Rack in the large empty space next to Dress Barn. That space had sat empty for a long time. Nordstrom Rack would be a good fit for the shopping center.