The Bay Area’s got game. A recent boom in bar diversions means you can pair your beers with bocce ball or your cocktails with Candyland. Here’s a list of our top bar games along with our favorite spots to play them.
1. Plinko
The spot: S&R Lounge
The price is right for the tech sect with happy hour specials and a 30-foot Plinko game fed by a bin full of soccer balls. When you’re all plunked out, there’s also an Atari 2600 simulator, Wii, pool, shuffleboard, ping-pong, and an assortment of board games. 55 5th St., San Francisco
2. Miniature Golf
The spot:Urban Putt
You’ll need a caddy to lug your drinks around this fantastical mini-golf course (haha, not true! You can't take your drinks on the course). But there are two bars, a full restaurant upstairs, and 14 mechanically-enhanced holes, all playfully set in a former Mission mortuary.1096 S Van Ness Ave., San Francisco
3. Bocce Ball
The spot: Make Westing
A downtown Oakland bar is a poor sub for a bucolic Napa estate, yet somehow the popular field sport works here. Colorful balls line two indoor courts while local tap handles line the bar. 1741 Telegraph Ave, Oakland
4. Skee Ball
The spot:Golden Gate Taproom
Three glowing skee ball machines hold down a corner at this Union Square bar and game room. The 100-strong beer list helps explain all the netting around the games. 525 Sutter St. #2, San Francisco
5. 80's Arcades Games
The spot:Warped Brewing
This Sebastopol brewery and taproom celebrates the 8-bit and the 8% ABV. Rest your Pixelated Porter on a bar made of old arcade cabinets while you try your hand at Ms. Pac Man or an oddly awesome Space Invaders-themed Jenga. 6790 McKinley St. #190, Sebastopol
6. Pinball
The spot: Molotov’s
Pump some quarters into the Lord of the Rings game, slip on your Google Glass, and enjoy the multi-player action. 582 Haight St., San Francisco
7. Super Nintendo
The spot:Soda Popinski’s
With props to the Russian roughneck from Super Punch Out!!, the eponymous California Street bar serves up Super Nintendo, Soviet-era decor, and oversized boots of Moscow Mules. Just take care not to end up with the boxer’s original moniker, Vodka Drunkenski. 1548 California St., San Francisco
8. Shuffleboard
The spot: Wreck Room
Classic bar games like pool and shuffleboard keep a sporting young crowd entertained at this Polk Gulch man-cave. 1390 California St., San Francisco
9. Darts
The spot: The Albatross
This bookish East Bay pub—which just turned 50—hosts the well-read and the Berkeley-bred with popcorn, a killer scotch selection, and six pro dart lanes. 1822 San Pablo Ave., Berkeley
10. Board Games
The spot:The Willows
Cards Against Humanity pairs well with craft beer or a cocktail at this SOMA gastropub. That is until someone whips out a _____________. 1582 Folsom St., San Francisco