Chuck E. Cheese's slogan is "Where A Kid Can Be A Kid," but the pizza-chain-meets-arcade-meets-indoor-amusement-park is hoping to attract those kids' parents with a revamped menu that includes a lot more booze.
You can already get a beer or a glass of wine at some Chuck E. Cheese locations, but the selection leaves much to be desired (Miller Lite and Miller Genuine Draft for beer, blush or chablis for wine). Here's how a Vice writer described the experience of ordering a salad and beer at Chuck E. Cheese's back in 2013:
The mediocrity of both the beer and the salad was unquantifiable. But they were so cheap! Wine was also available, and equally cheap, but the fact that it was: 1. Blush and Chablis only and 2. situated on draft next to the MGD and Miller Light taps disturbed me.
But the chain's new owners are hoping to replace its tired menu with bites and booze that will appeal to millennial moms—and goose the company's flagging sales, according toBloomberg—at its 588 locations. Already, they've introduced a new thin-crust pizza and limited-edition menu items like macaroni and cheese on top of pizza crust. Additionally, they're planning an improved salad bar and a larger selection of beer and wine.
"Her kids know it's a fun place to go, but millennial moms want to provide that great experience without sacrificing for themselves," Greg Casale, the head chef at CEC Entertainment, Chuck E. Cheese's parent company, told Bloomberg. "Before she was a mom, she was going to places like Panera and those concepts. She wants something that fits into her millennial lifestyle."
Booze, it appears, is the secret to the millennial's loyalty and wallet. A Target store in Chicago plans to sell beer, wine and cocktails to customers while they shop in a bid to attract more millennials. And an outpost of Taco Bell in Chicago recently began selling liquor as well.
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