Ok place. They have a large beer selection. Games are free to play with purchase, but it seemed like some of the buttons of the games I played were off. Something fun to do for a little bit. It does get cramped in there. read more

Review Visit: July 24th, 2016 Beer, arcade games and friends. My kind of place. Growing up, I got involved in playing video games thanks to my father and friends. Everything from Atari to Sega Genesis to Super Nintendo to Gameboy; everything in-between and everything after. Once I was legally allowed to enjoy adult beverages, I grew to enjoy beer a few years later. Shortly after, 8 Bit opened up. Having a lifelong love for video games and a recently acquired taste for beer, I gathered a few of my nerdy friends up and headed that way. 8 Bit is a pretty unique place. It's a bar that is also an arcade. It looks like a normal business situated at the end of a building but inside is a different story. Upon walking, you get the feeling you are in a house. You have some stairs that lead up to... somewhere. Off to the right of the entrance is the smallish bar. Between the bar tables and the machines, it can get pretty packed with just a handful of people. As you deviate from the bar, you'll find yourself in a hallway that has one machine at the end on the left, that is tucked under the stairs. Next to that is a room that full of 6-8 games (it could vary, I am not sure). Going back in to the hallway, you'll find the next room down on the left. That room is L-shaped and has maybe 12 games in it. At the end of the hallway, are the bathrooms. All the games are free to play as long as you are ordering drinks and spending money. Instead of loading your pockets full of quarters, you just have to load your belly up with beer. A fair trade off in my opinion. The beercade has a nice beergarden to enjoy. On my first visit here, my friends and I ordered a few drinks and headed outside to play some Pokemon Go. After polishing off my beer, I noticed there was a window in which you could order beer from the bar through. That is exactly what I did. I ordered another beer through the window. I thought that was pretty cool. While we were there playing Pokemon Go, another group of people came in and was playing Pokemon Go. We noticed they were playing as we kept battling for the Gym that was located nearby. At one point, that group sent someone out to spy on us as we battled for the gym. After noticing the other group was taking this too serious, we decided to close the app, head inside and play the arcade games. The selection of arcade games is about your standard fare. There are your usual games but they also had a few games I've never seen before. We played games for a bit longer before heading out. Now, this wasn't my only time I have come here. Ever since this visit, I have been back a few times with various other friends. Each visit has been unique. The first time I went, they offered food. The subsequent visits had no food options due to law changes. The last time I went was in late 2019 and they had this sweet system set up at the bar. It was operated with some aftermarket SNES controller and had almost every retro game available. My friend Nate and I spent more time browsing the catalog than gaming. It was such a sweet system and I wish I had it at home. 8 Bit has expanded to a second location in Bloomington, IL. I have yet to check it out but it is on my short list of places to visit. I feel like it's my duty as a gamer to check out not just the 2nd location but all beercades across the world. If you have the chance to check one out, you don't even need to be a gamer to enjoy these kinds of places. read more

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Fire your technician- Or Hire a technician- Because two things are happening, you have a technician that is incompetent, or you don't have a technician at all. So many games were turned off with out of order signs, and worse was games that were not working that were not marked out of order. Buttons not working, joysticks not working, monitors not adjusted correctly. These are easy fixes that cost nothing, or next to nothing. (button switches and joystick switches are soooo cheap.) but it takes someone to actually spend the time to regularly play or test the games to see these problems. I'm assuming that someone on staff has a bit of tech knowledge, because multiple games have had the original CRT monitors replaced with cheap and awful LCD's, some of the classics have had their original boards replaced with bootleg 60-1 Chinese boards (Donkey Kong Jr for one) The beer selection is pretty good, and maybe that's what most people care about- but not me, I was here for the games. read more

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Great drink deals & promotions, and it truly is for adults to socialise and enjoy fun arcade games, I find it so much more enjoyable than going to clubs. It's genuine good fun, and at a reasonable cost. It's nice and cozy too, it may be on the smaller side, however there is a warm ambiance with wood details, a pretty bar-top and kind staff and people who go out of their way to befriend you and have you join their group to play games if you come alone- or at least it was that way whenever I went. It has the best games too, a little bit of everything. Right on the river too- which just makes it better. Water street is an amazing spot to just walk around with lots of amazing places to be, pretty architecture and art, and sometimes buskers outside when it's nice out. Ice cream nearby to sober up a little, lots of live entertainment on the weekends in the area and you could make a full evening out of it if you wanted to, which I have many times. Downtown is a great place to be especially in the summer. read more

The games are fun a d prices are good and they have free water! BUT they are not handicapped accessible!!! You have to go up stairs to get inside of it and everything else on that block! I used to live going there but now im in a wheelchair and can't get inside. Its sad so many places dont have ramps or handicapped doors in peoria. All the pictures are of their OLD location NOT their new one!!!! read more

Decent place to hang out with friends, or for a date. Lots of old-school games to choose from. There are some free games near the entrance. However, to play at all you have to pay. To exchange quarters, you have to buy a drink. After that, most other games require at least 50 cents. Wish the machines were cleaned up more periodically because some were sticky or greasy. read more

Great place to spend time with friends over games and cold beer or cocktail. Always friendly staff

Good old school place. A good time out with friends. They have a few different rooms with 80's video games from back in the day. Ms packman, centipede etc...Great place all around. Good specials too. read more

8 Bit Arcade Bar - Doing it old school - Bars Near Me - Peoria, Illinois

A great place to hang out and the service is top notch. the bartender Emily was so knowledgeable, personable and attentive. she is a true a true sweetheart and incomparable! great job Emily!!! read more

I didn't have any good, but the place was amazing. You order a drink and can play all you want. I went here for my birthday and will come back. read more

This place is TIGHT, but its still cool. Plenty of classics to play (probably ballpark somewhere in the neighborhood of 20-25 games, NOT 4), a good bar area, and a great emulator console you can play on the bar TV. This would have been a perfect spot back in college. I was impressed with the place's use of its space, Nice location, with a few other cool spots within walking distance. This wouldn't be a single destination stop for me however. Maybe a stop to be made with the guys throughout the evening. Definitely would go back though. read more

Maybe we came in on the wrong night, but the bar wasn't that busy. Wanted to beer and play some video games. Stood at the counter for a good 15 minutes, the girl saw us repeatedly, never came to take our order. So we left. read more

It's got a pretty awesome selection of beers, cocktails, ciders, and the like. Probably the best thing this place has going for it. The games are in (mostly) working order and range from the classics like Contra and Street Fighter II Turbo to the eclectic like Magical Tetris Challenge. There's a NeoGeo cabinet with over 200 classic titles on it, including Rage of the Dragons. And there's a beer garden in the back to catch cool breezes during warm spring nights. All pieces of a winning formula for a night out in Peoria. The only downside is the cabinets are packed in pretty tight with the tables and can make for more than a few bumped elbows, tight squeezes, and warm temperatures during the course of an evening out with friends. read more

This might be my favorite place to have a beer in the whole country. Reasonable priced beer considering that the games are free!!?? However my only concern is this place doesn't make enough money. I wish them many years of future success and please everyone be nice to the machines, some of these games are almost 40 years old! I love it here. Keep on rockin' 8Bit! read more

8 Bit Arcade Bar - Too bad the scores reset every night... - Bars Near Me - Peoria, Illinois

I'm rating Beercade on the amount of fun I had there. It was such a blast to play a four person action game again! Where else can this happen?! Exactly, nowhere else in Peoria. And the beer selection is phenomenal. Recommendation: leave the "nothing is good enough" people behind, because a measure of patience is needed with old arcade games. Some may be out of order. You may have to wait. You'll probably meet new people and have a great time if you're up to the challenge. Oh yeah, don't forget the games are free. So buy drinks and tip your waiter well. I'm going back a lot. read more

Friendly and helpful staff, great beer selection! My husband and I come here with another couple, and it's great because the girls are able to let the guys go play in a contained and supervised environment while we get to sit down and talk (think of it as McDonald's play land for grown men), or play games when we feel like it. The games are free and the beer is reasonably priced. They also have a sloth-print shower curtain blocking off the back area, which lets me know these are people with excellent taste in rainforest creatures. I'm torn between 4 and 5 stars, just because I don't really play video games, so I've never been blown away by this place. I'll give it 5 stars because this place does what it does really well, and it's not fair to ding them just bc video games aren't my thing. read more

This is my first beer arcade I've went to and it was everything I thought it would be. It was a little cramped, but I'm glad they have great business! The bar tender was nice enough and gave me time to pick from the large variety of different craft beers. Instead of having all the games in one room, there are two connecting rooms with lots of old school games in them too. Other than it being small, I enjoyed the bar. read more

Decent selection of beer, and a fun concept, but cannot get over the lack of professionalism and rudeness of the staff. Have been in several times and it always feels the same, as if I am asking for a favor to get service. Questions about beer selection are generally met with something between an "I don't know" shrug, to an annoyed stare that they are having to do their job. The only consolation is that most of the times I have visited, I have been one of very few patrons. With the amount of bar competition downtown these days, I am sure the owner and staff's annoyance at having to run the bar won't be a problem for long, and hopefully they choose a different occupation once they are out of a job. read more

I was in town for work and some coworkers and I were looking for something to do after dinner. I have herd of places like this but have never been to one. This was such a nice surprise, it was so much fun. The games are free to paying customers. We ended up hangin out there for over 3 hours. Great beer selection. Had a blast!!!!! read more

Craft beer? Check. Arcade Games? Check. Nice Patio? Check. Craft Cocktails? Check. Cool Ambiance? Check. Kudos to the employees on a great concept! read more

GREAT BEER, HORRIBLE STAFF This bar has a really good beer selection. I'd definitely recommend it on account of the beers they have in stock. On the other hand, the staff was rude. The guy who was waiting on us wasn't very helpful and on top of that, he kept pestering me to pay for one drink right off the bat which made me feel like he didn't want me to get another. Good thing I didn't because he didn't make the environment feel so welcoming or enjoyable. He was also very persistent about not letting the people who came with me play games either. His attitude was terrible. Horrible staff member that made a first visit that I was looking forward to very upsetting and disappointing. The games were good. I played the Nintendo 64 Mario Kart machine but the controllers were basically all broken. The joysticks on each controller were missing which made it nearly impossible to play that game. I only played one game because of how unwelcoming the staff member was. Good games, could be better taken care of. Overall, not a great first experience here and probably will not be back. There are a million other great bars around Peoria (Pour Bros, Jimmy's, etc) that have a much friendlier staff with a more welcoming environment. I didn't have a huge problem with the games or the beer selection, it was just the rude staff member that made the experience bad. read more

Pretty cool Beercade. Rooms are cramped, speakers playing music need to be updated, but a really good selection of video games to chose from. You will have a good time here for sure! read more

8 Bit Arcade Bar - In on that Double Dragon! - Bars Near Me - Peoria, Illinois

Never had a bad experience here. Games r cool. Drinks are priced right. They EVEN have Butch's pizza and THE best pretzels!! Check this place out. read more

It was my birthday and I was excited to hang out here with my wife, and the incredibly RUDE Packers backwards hat bartender wouldn't even let me be inside! even though I am well over 21... thanks a lot for ruining my first birthday with my wife read more

I was so happy to find this place. We were celebrating a birthday and it was a fun place to go after dinner. I enjoyed the opportunity to try some new beers from the great beer selection. read more

Great staff, good selection of beer. Unending arcade games makes this place and it's a great place to let time slip away from you.

Very disappointed in this establishment. Worker was unprofessional and needs to work on customer skills. If there is a policy that you have to buy a drink to come into the business then put that somewhere for patrons to see. There is no need to be rude. I will not patronize or recommend others to. read more

If you enjoy good beer and grew up on old school video games then what are you doing sitting at home get your ass to 8 bit beercade! You won't regret it! read more

Absolutley terrible. Went there for a friends 40th birthday. One friend was 30 and had a license 1 day expired and he refused to serve her and sent our entire party of 7 out. The bartender was awful and extremely rude. The bar itself was the size of a toenail with maybe 4 games... an absolute disappointment. I will never recommend this place to anyone. Awful. read more

I don't drink. I came with my family to enjoy time together. Got yelled at by one of the bartenders because I didn't order a drink. Really... my family just spent more money than customers combined. Very disappointed. Thanks for embarrassing me for not drinking. Won't be back. read more

I'm very glad Peoria has a beercade-they've done a good job with their beer selections, which is my favorite part. Selections of games are pretty vast. My favorite is probably the hilarious sniper game. The owner is a nice guy who keeps his bar under control. I've always had good bar service, and I honestly appreciate that it is 21 over only. I've been in about ten times and I always enjoy my time there. read more

Great beer selection. Pretty good pizzas. Many old school games to play for free. Easily the most entertaining thing in Peoria.

The 8 Bit has an impressive beer selection. There are about 50 different options. Also - the arcade games are free! About half of the games are lame, but they have Dig Dug!!! read more

TL;DR good beer selection, good variety of games. I like this type of bar. Classic arcade games and a good beer or cocktail selection - I like to play the games I never felt like spending the quarters to master in my teens and twenties. 8bit has a nice variety of beers on tap and in bottles. On a Friday night, mostly a younger-than-me crowd but oh well - still a nice vibe. I didn't try any food so I can't comment on that. Recommended. read more

Let's the Bachelor night begin. At a bar/arcade. It took me back to my childhood with the games they had at this place. They have TVs where you can watch sports games and stuff. The bartender was excellent and a friend of the man of hour of Bachelor party Ryan read more

This place is freaking awesome... Vintage arcade games and a ton of great craft beers!

This place was super cute. We had no idea going in that the games are free as long as you're drinking. It was fun to play throwback games! Loved all of the character of the old building. Loved the gaming touches too!!! read more

8 Bit Arcade Bar - RAMPAGE!!! - Bars Near Me - Peoria, Illinois

This could be a really great place and awesome concept, but the bartender was ridiculously rude and ruined the entire experience. I can't get over how rudely he treated me and my husband. read more

Awesome place in peoria. Super small. Can be fun...if you are fun. Lots of 80s 90s stand up systems. All the good beers. Nerds and hipster crowd.. but mostly netds with money. Free games with drinking. Outdoor area for smokes. 50-50 mix of guys-girls on weekends. Good place to chill for an hour. Not good for four hours. read more