Ground Kontrol Classic Arcade and Bar

Just spent 3 hours at Ground Kontrol and had an absolute blast! If you're into retro gaming, this place is a nostalgic dream come true. The upstairs is packed wall-to-wall with pinball machines, while the lower level is filled with classic arcade games from every era. We did run into a good number of machines that were out of order, which was a bit disappointing, but there were still plenty of working games to keep us entertained. They offer simple concession-style food and a solid variety of alcoholic and

I've never been somewhere so clean - it was kind of mind blowing. Machines were shiny and in great working condition. Staff is friendly and ready to pour you a drink. The variety of games was impressive and we had a great time. Can't wait to go back!

Always a good time! They have some nice mocktails if you don't feel like drinking. They have a great selection of games and pinball machines, and seems like they have lots of events going on too.

If you're an 80s kid, you will love this giant collection of arcade games and pinball machines. Things have been upgraded with tap cards replacing the need for coins and this place serves beer and wine so you can have some extra fun while trying to resurrect your arcade skills that you've long lost. This is a fun evening. But be warned the neighborhood is a bit rough so be careful where you park and walk.

From this 60 year old San Diegans perspective, this place rocks! First off not only are there 40+ pinball machines (I only played about 8, and every one seemed to be in pristine awesome working condition) and that is far from normal in any establishment I've ever visited. You load a card with credits and imo it was a great value, as i played almost 3 hours and still have credits remaining of my $20 but in, WTF? Awesome!?????????????? Didn't order any food or drinks, but looked to be a great selection and at

Adults only arcade that serves alcohol ?? This place was seriously epic, I spent most of my teenage years playing arcade games at Nathan?s ?? and the nostalgia factor really hit me hard. I've been to other bar arcades before (Brooklyn, etc) and this was by far the best - this place has a great selection of games to play (and the best part no annoying little kids running around screaming)

Omg. I felt like a kid again. My son loves video games. He was in heaven. We didn't have time to return do to a jiujitsu tournament. My son will not let go of his gaming card lol and says we have to return. The drinks at the bar were good also.

I love this place and go pretty regularly! Great drink options and tons of games. They have times available for all ages if you're interested in bringing kids. Part of the arcade is closed during off hours so go during weekend nights for the full experience.

Excellent time hanging out for a few hours at Ground Kontrol! There is a pay to park - parking lot conveniently right across the street. It was $7 to park for like 5 hours on a Sunday afternoon. We came on an unlimited play day and it was fantastic. We were worried that it might be overcrowded but it really wasn't. Customers and staff were happy and easy going.

A cheap fun time. We had a blast playing pinball Machines!! They have a large array of options and an upstairs area.

This place has a great selection of arcade games, definitely like the vibe they're going for too, good selection of pinball machines as well. The bar has great selection of drinks, food is decent. I would highly recommend this place if you're looking for something nice to do with friends.

A very fun place to hang out with friends. The food is not the best, but the game selection is very good, and the drinks are good as well. I love this place as a great start to a night out, but there is enough to do that it can be a night out on its own as well!

Good fun for little cost, this places has a great atmosphere. The people there are super friendly, good spot to mingle.

Great place. Really great selection of new and retro games and *lots* of pinball machines! The people working there are very nice and helpful. I was worried about it being too adult, but it's a great family place during the day and I felt completely comfortable letting my teenager do their own thing while there.

For around $10, an entire group of us were able to play games over and over. From the multiple floors of pinball to group Pac-Man tables, we all found some form of entertainment here. Security does check ID at the door, and we felt safe in this space. There are beverages for sale, and the games have cupholders attached.

What a great experience my daughter and I had here. There are so many different games to play, especially if you love playing pinball machines. Though some of the 2 person games were out of service, we found new games to try. Like The Walking Dead, we played for nearly 30 minutes. I was also able to enjoy one of my favorite Oregon beers, Sunriver's Fuzztail. The only thing I wish I knew before going is that the Arcade closes the minors at 5. Making our visit shorter than we would have liked. Next time we a

Very cool! Kid friendly during the day, cute lil bar in the evening. Great collection of classics and newer stuff, hand sanitizer is readily available.

A very chill place to hang out with friends and play nostalgia games! I just wish there were more food selections. The drinks were great. There's also a parking lot nearby, but you have to pay.

Cool place just not for me. Tons of pin ball machines and old style games. Wish it had a couple of new machines however atmosphere and service were great. Best drink of the night SF Redbull Vodka or Moscow Mule :) Their pretzel sticks were also great, just good bar food

Very fun arcade with classic and new pinball tables, classic arcade cabinets, and multi-player arcade games. Pins are well kept. Nice beer selection, very short but tasty food menu. Games paid using special game card (get at bar or at machine). Small seating area for gaming breaks and beer. Saw that tourneys and events are hosted.

Pretty great selection of retro arcade games and pinball tables. Also keeping up with the newer releases. The atmosphere is amazing and all around a great place to have a fun time and drink some beers while gaming.

One of Portland?s gems (if you like gaming)! Took my son here for his 21st birthday. The staff were friendly and helpful. We all had a good time. Tried 3 different hot dogs?all very tasty and well presented. Drinks and food were reasonably priced. I think I spent $60 on game credit for 4 people over about 3 hours. A mix of classic and newer games, with some remakes of vintage games. Bonus: you can hear people crushing Dance Dance Revolution while standing at the urinal in men?s room. ?? ?? Suggestion box:

Always a fun place to hang out, classic games mixed in with some new and plenty of pinball machines to play. You run through most games pretty fast, so personally I wish they had more but nonetheless less it's a great place to spend some time playing games and having drinks

This place is so much bigger than I thought! No kids after 5, drinks are really well made, you load up a card to play. Super fun games. It gets busy later. There are a few spots to sit and hangout. Had a great time overall.

This place is awesome. We need more classic arcades like this one!! Less about the lights and tickets and more about the experience! Lots of varieties of games, they specialize in pinball, but have a sweet score of multiplayer games, including a bee one that can have up to 10 people! Great for a group or even solo! Personally, I really enjoyed the Star Wars pods - great experience and you can never go wrong with Star Wars. I do wish they had an easy way to show how much everything costs, it was hard to tell

Great atmosphere, good drinks, and an awesome selection of games. The wife and I love to stop here when we're in Portland visiting our son.

Fantastic selection of games. I miss the feeling of using quarters, but that's just my nostalgia. Would be great to see the old dual screen X-Men make a comeback, as well as the NBA Showtime game.......man do I ever miss those two games......but at least my Addams Family Pinball is still up and alive!

Love going with my boyfriend for a fun date night, or to stop in during the day to kill some extra time. Tons of games of different styles and eras! Pinball, FPS, racing, and classic games!

This place is fantastic - if you live nearby or are ever in the area, Ground Kontrol is a must. It's been a number of years since I've been able to make it here, but I need to share a story... In 2015 or 2016, I happened to be there on my lunch break. An autistic kid (guessing 12-13 yrs.) was there with is mom. He started to scream, kick, and hit an arcade machine (I think because he lost). The mom got him outside but couldn't get him to calm down. An employee of Ground Kontrol, who I believe may have been

The amount of games and the atmosphere made for a fun night out. Games were cheap to play and their drinks were fantastic. The 4 star is because we spent several points to play a game just for the game to eat them and not work. The bartender came to reset it which didnt work and then proceeded to tell us they had just fixed it. He walked away and never came back or offered us more points for a game we never played.

This was a great way to spend an hour! It was pouring rain and this place was so fun! We spent $10 for the two of us and played tons of games. We went in the afternoon on a Friday (so I think games were half off). My favorite were the variety of pinball games. I definitely plan on going again with our son next time we are in Portland.

Pretty cool old school arcade with some extra features - like 2 full bars!!! We happened to check it out on a night when they had several DJs playing music which was awesome. NGL, I was there for the music but my 23 yr old daughter had fun playing a few games too.

Expected a little bit more. It's not like Dave & Buster's, it's pretty much tinny arcade, almost half of the machines are pinballs. But we had fun. They have some shooters, Mario cart, DDR! I was surprised they have some classical machines from my childhood??. Hotdogs were yummy, cocktails strong, but I wouldn't say really good. In general, it's a nice place, I would recommend.

Great collection of classic (and some new) arcade games along with delicious beers. Gauntlet dark legacy with beer and friends? That's a hell yes!

Great place to hang out, play games, and have a couple of drinks. Good during happy hour

This place was great. It had a really cool atmosphere and I really liked that they have free lockers. This allowed us to play the games unrestricted and didnt have to worry about setting our stuff down and forgetting it. Drinks were a little expensive for what they were, but we had a great time.

My partner and I went there for last-second drinks after dinner. The games were pretty basic but fun and easy to get a grasp on, the staff was pretty bland, and the bartender was there to serve us but looked like he wanted to be anywhere else on his phone, the walk in greeter woman was there for IDs but could've seemed a bit happier to sit there for a whole shift yknow. I appreciate the displays and LEDS, I recommend trying a Kirby with an extra shot it's a bit sweet, my partner grabbed a Falcon punch and s

The rare arcade that actually gets lighting and atmosphere in general right. Game selection is just mid though, the selection really needs expansion to bring this place to true greatness. I know square footage downtown is expensive but I feel like there's still significant unused space in the current floorplan to put in new games.

Loads of pinball machines here! Other games as well, a nice collection of older games. A bar selling snacks and adult beverages. Great place for a kids birthday as it's not a huge place so kids can run around on their own basically. Is cool and dark inside. Fun place

Cool little bar with some really old retro video games. Game prices are decent, too... starting at less than 20 cents per game. Drinks are pricey, though.

This was a lovely place for a Sunday night! There were lovely people playing games, laughing, and socializing. At the door, you'll get a wristband if you're over 21, and you'll enjoy old-school pinball, and classic arcade games from your childhood. The place is dark inside and the decor is on point! I really loved the astetic. I would highly recommend!

Weekend $4 cover charge, but great value on the gamecard. Plenty of pinball and other games and a bar available.

I was a designated driver for my grandson and his birthday friend. We had a great time! The only thing that I might say is there are not enough places to sit for a little time. Other than that I had a great time with the boys.

Really fun place for a date or a group of people. They have unlimited play days and half-off times. Good balance of all-ages and 21+ times, too. I've been going here since my teenage days and still love coming by when I'm in the area.

Great selection of games, especially pinball machines. Food is excellent.

Super nice people here; that's EVERYTHING.. also: Great games! Atmosphere! Food! Drinks; Tempest must be tried if it's still on the floor Current Door man 10/16/2024: 10:28pm timestamp: He feels I'm UNTRUSTWORTHY; Asks me to go thru my hand bag; twice Rating: Unaffected He's a bit of a .. tho

Sam at the door really made the experience here. I get the need for extra security in downtown but having someone ice there made it feel better

Great price when I was there, $20 got us 640 points and games were 10-20 points The butterbee drink was sooo good. Vegan nachos were delicious too (and so cheap) but it uses cashew cheese haha. My partner was allergic to cashews so I ate it all by myself and it was superrr filling. Definitely something to share.

We love it so much we had our wedding here. Always a fun time, our favorite arcade in Portland! Lots of games and not very expensive. We paid $20 for my wife and myself and were there for about two hours playing tons of games !

Super cool arcade bar! The place is filled with various games and pinball machines that are old-school and some newer ones. You can play games by getting a card with credits in them and you can also refill those credits. They seem to have a really good amount of shooting games compared to other arcade bars I've been into. Some of the things that are not available here that I can think of were skeeball, basketball machine, table tennis, or any other more "physically" involved gaming machines. They do have a

What a fun place. Well designed and playful. The staff is great and the experience well crafted for adults. We spent some time exploring, and then playing 4 player Pac-Man which was amazing. Want that table at home now. They had lots of options and I was impressed by the multi-player options. A great way to spend a couple hours with friends.

Such a fun retro arcade in the middle of historical Chinatown. Yeah you might need to walk through some homelessness to get there, but the destination is worth it. Vibe is great, especially on weekends. They have free lockers at the front and vibe is mostly adults with few kids here and there. After 5, the place becomes adult only. So many themed pinball machines, sitting games, DDR, and a bunch of other favorites like Simpsons, Queen, pong, and many others. It's a great way to beat the summer heat since

Loved my time here. Good beer selection, better game selection, saw new games, old games and even new old games. I would say it's more 12+ age wise, not many games for the real little ones.

Super fun! So many games! And step stools for the shorties! For $20 it was something like 600 credits and games were from 20 credits and up. So roughly .66 cents per play, not too shabby. We like the queen bee game (up to 10 players) old school Star Wars game, and pinball machines. We couldn't even finish our $20 for 4 ppl after 1 hr. At 5pm minors gotta go.

Super cheap price to play video games all day. I went here for a tekken 8 tournament and was super fun. It happens I think the last wensday of every month. Only thing that sucks is that its downtown and you have to pay for parking but other than that it was awesome

Pretty cool arcade place. They have two bars there and they sell food. They have the option to rent the place out if you ever want to throw a party.

Staff are amazing and they care about the games and make sure they are playing great. I highly recommend it. They have a good amount of non alcoholic options.

UPDATE IN RESPONSE TO OWNER: I went back in December because a friend guilted me into it. No, it's still bad, especially regarding the staff and prices. All points from my review remain valid. ORIGINAL REVIEW FROM 2021: Vibe is horrible mostly because of the rude staff (front door and bartenders all seemed very put off), but also some random games are set EXTREMELY loud (3D pong as an example). The selection of games is not as good now, and the pricing on them set arbitrarily. EVERYTHING is SUPER expe

These guys have a great selection of Pinball machines. Jaws was the game of the day! Don't wear a knife on your belt, but they were nice about it. Please follow me if you agree. Thank you

Awesome bar if you're a fan of all things arcade and retro! Pin ball machines in every design imaginable, large selection of driving games and good old classics like PacMan and Donkey Kong etc. Bathrooms are very fun too- although a touch too dark for me! Cheap beer, good selection of beers and spirits, didn't try the food but looked like a reasonably priced selection. Would come back!

Great barcade with tons of games. Including Killer Queen!

Amazing arcade! Has all the best games and then some! Super clean, good atmosphere, one of the few places, that I feel like my kids can enjoy themselves and not be exposed to all the ugly illegal downtown PDX behavior.

The atmosphere is very cool with lights absolutely everywhere and if you're a big pinball fan you will love the selection. However, that's about where it ends. No skee-ball, no hoops, no kinds of physical games, only arcade cabinets. Not really a "true" arcade and Quarter World has a much broader selection. The food and drink choices are also very limited, but the wait was very quick so points there. There were quite a few games out of order which was a bummer, but the games are also very cheap with a $10 p

A great place to hang out with drinks playing at the various video game consoles, super cool old school vices with games such as Mario and Pinball. The walking dead game is awesome. You can take your drink around to the games as well, they are not expensive as well, the food options are limited with some light bites but it is not famous for its food in any case. This place is unique for sure and fits in with the Portland image completely. Definitely recommended.

Great as always. Fair drink prices, fair game prices. But the neighborhood, and individuals on the sidewalk outside are very off putting. My girlfriend definitely felt uncomfortable having to be around them. Just sleeping and peeing right on the sidewalks. The city of portland really needs to get their act together and clean this up.

Love this place! So many games to choose from and multiple rooms and levels. Bartender was great, lots of drink options. We went on a Wednesday night and it wasn't busy at all, but if you want to get in on some Killer Queen action just ask the group that practices, they will let you join them! Highly recommend this place for any arcade lover.

Absolutely phenominal place! It's keeping the spirit of the 80's and 90's alive in Portland. My friend and I had never been but we went on a 5 dollar free play day and I have to say we had a lot of fun! There's a wide selection of games both old and modern, and a lot of pinball machines as well. Definitely recommend if you're a nerd and looking to spend a couple hours surrounded by pieces of nostalgia!

The best barcade I've ever been to. My buddies and I had fun singing Space Oddity walking over here. We had some time to kill as our wives were shopping. We saw pictures of pinball and thought "Oh this could be fun." We were severly mistaken... This was one of my favorite things to do in Portland. While the place from the outside looks small, Ground Kontrol does a great job maximiizing their space. They have a ton of Pinballs, with a lot from different properties and the pinball machines were in great co

It was a lot of fun! There's paid parking nearby, and the arcade is large with tons of game options - certainly a lot of ping ball. $20 lasted me roughly 4 hours, and I was using my it pretty liberally. There's hand sanitizer located in several places around the arcade, too, which is great. I'd like to visit again.

Amazing pinball arcade. You can spend little money and enjoy all day here. There's alcohol and soda amazing place to be. I enjoyed the Simpsons pinball, time crisis II, TRON pinball and the South Park pinball machine a lot. They are my favourite games ever. The staff were very friendly, and the upstairs area surprised me. I thought that there's only the ground level arcade games but there are more stuff upstairs. The leader board looks stunning and makes it feel A lot like the TRON legacy movie. I high

I got so many free games playing the stern pins. Great selection of pinball machines, well leveled and maintained. I put 20 bucks on a card and couldnt finish it in 3 hours. Cool barcade decor as well.

went here once last fall and that was enough for me. fun for the novelty of it but drinks were pricey and bartender was rude. plus it's in a bad part of town.

Cool for the nostalgia but wayyy to expensive, drinks are nice though. i get they need to make money but even pinball was expensive. i spent 60$ on games within an hr

Had a great time here. Liked the system of using a card to pay, it was simple and easy to use. Didn't get anything at the bar so can't comment on it but there were drink holders everywhere so there was always a place to put my drink if I had ordered one

GK is awesome. Drinks taste great but glasses could be bigger and the atmosphere is retro rave with a chill vibe. Definitely fun and entertaining. Prices on some games are a bit high "would be nice if you guys offered a gamer card instead of using quarters & maybe a small free game zone" would definitely recommend it to anyone who hasn't gone. Fun place to go with some friends.

Great little place to play some old school arcade games, eat some great food, and drink some delicious beer. The ambiance is wonderful! I felt like I was in a video game myself. I loved all the pinball machines they had. Our $20 went a long way when playing the machines. At closing time, they played the arcade version of?.closing time! It was hilarious! I couldn't stop laughing. The Womens restroom was also decorated like a video game. It was tiled Pac-Man. I loved it! I ordered a vegan hotdog and it was D

This place has really grown inside. It's been a fun place to take kids and great to have a late night date night. As a bar and place to hang and have drinks. Pretty cool. Their kitchen and it food prices are high and the food is just under bar food quality and small portions. The nachos were the best deal but still wasn't great. For three of us it was $32 and the pizza is a micro mini pizza. Hot dog was alright but spendy. They all came in trays with a wrapper so cutting and eating was cumbersome wi

This was my first time coming here. Had heard good things before, but WOW. The number of pinball machines alone that are featured here is incredible! Plus many other games to play, and the space is huge! It gets crowded, but it should be because this venue is such a blast it deserves the popularity. With a wide variety of arcade games to offer, as well as a good menu of drinks, this is a place I would come back to over and over again. Thank you to the venue owners for putting together such a fun experience,

I heard about this place when searching for cool things to do in downtown Portland. Upon arriving, my partner and I weren't allowed in because we are from Canada and only had Canadian drivers' licenses + credit cards. I was super disappointed as I was really wanting to come here, so we went back to our hotel to get our passports and came back! With our passports, there were no issues at all. The place was soo cool and had so many different games. I like that there are multiple rooms and levels so it never

Everything you would ever want out of an arcade, super cheep with it being like $10 for 300 credits, each game costing 10-30 credits! it's all ages until 5pm where it's becomes a dope barcade. Lots and lots of retro games with a nice mix of some newer games but nothing tacky. heads up there are no prizes, come on now this is a place for the big kids.

Classic PDX barcade. Some of the classic pinball machines such as Indiana Jones are in immaculate condition condition compared to other operators around the country. Other more modern arcade games are excellent as well. Top notch beer selection.

Had a blast at Ground Kontrol Classic Arcade and Bar! It's a great spot to chill with friends, and surprisingly spacious once you're inside. They've got a ton of classic arcade games to keep you entertained for hours. The bathrooms deserve a shoutout too?really cool themed decor that adds to the fun vibe. Plus, there's a bar inside, making it a solid choice if you're looking for a laid-back night with a bit of an edge. Too many pinballs machine, they need to add new games to make it feel fresh. Pro tip: C

Fun games! Drinks! No annoying brats running around. Wish they would stay open later on the weekends. Great place to hangout and be entertained for hours!

I went here with my sister and brother yesterday and it was such a blast! Lots of pinball machines and games (both old and new!) there's a lot of places to take cute photos which i appreciate??such a unique experience and i hope i can go again some time! (ps if you're 21+ there is a bar!)

Such a fun and cool place. We didn't want to leave especially since there's a bar !

Fun place. Has live music on the weekends for a cover, hosts some game tournaments, and has two bars and multiple floors of cabinets and pinball tables.

Awesome place with a variety of arcade cabs. It was a great way to spend a hot afternoon during our recent trip to Portland. Loved the light installations in the hallway connecting two parts of the arcade. Did not try any menu items.

Great staff and atmosphere. Very friendly. Lots of game selections. If you get the unlimited pass you can actually beat some games ??