Palace Arcade
Victoria Park, 774 Albany Highway, Victoria Park, Perth
Launched in February this year, Palace Arcade’s second location in East Victoria Park offers a classic video games and good booze concept tailored to Gen X and Gen Y locals and their kids.
The Vic Park venue is brighter than its Northbridge counterpart – with family-friendly seating, large open windows, a courtyard with alfresco opening onto Albany Highway, it feels much more diner-like than the dark drinking den Northbridge is known for. Among the 50-odd machines that rotate regularly are mid-90s favourites like Donkey Kong, Street Fighter and Time Crisis as well as pinball classics and driving faves.
The menu offers New York style pizzas made in-house, with 16-inch and 22-inch pies such as the classic Palace Pepperoni and Palace Margarita, available whole or by the slice, with a bougie slice of the week always available. Good time sides include Mac ’n’ Cheese Bites, Jalapeno Poppers and Chicken Wings by the bucket.
A little global pandemic tried to put a halt on the new venue’s growth; forcing Palace to change gears. First-class bartenders became five-star delivery drivers during lockdown, with Palace operating a successful social-distanced-approved Pizza Delivery service for their loyal locals.
Since reopening its doors post-lockdown, Palace has wasted no time kicking things into overdrive with Beverage Director Kaden Pool set to reboot their old Food and Drinks Menu with the soon to be released Palace Arcade Players Manual – a classic retro arcade manual, complete with a few cheeky easters eggs and cheat codes scattered throughout for the hardcore gamers.