FIRST LOOK: Stereo Arcade - novel bar with retro gaming

Written by:
Laura Coughlin
21st May 2015

What’s On has video and pics of Stereo Arcade, the latest addition to nightlife in Dubai. See the interior and find out what’s to come.

More…
– New indoors bars
– May brunches
– Karaoke bars
– Group activities

If you grew up in a pre-Xbox world, then you probably remember the original Nintendo or the Christmas that Sega Mega Drive came to the market. You’re also likely to recall blowing on the bottom of your Mario Brothers Gameboy cartridge when the screen pixelated and froze.

Flash-forward 20 (something) years and a trendy hybrid of bar-meets-arcadia has arrived in Dubai, and we went down there ahead of the official opening to check it out.

Stereo Arcade

Located in the Hilton Double Tree hotel on JBR, Stereo Arcade is nothing short of a inexplicable love triangle between a neighbourhood bar, an 80s arcade and a trendy club. With an arcade in the middle (expect a rush of nostalgia if you’ve ever devoted hours to conquering Pacman, Mortal Combat or Street Fighter), a retro club on the left and a rock bar on the right, Stereo Arcade brings something very unique to Dubai.

Our pals at Hype recently spoke to owner Samer Hamadeh about what else we can expect from this unusual fusion.

What type of music should we expect?
Rock music in the bar and synth music in the arcade. And we’ll have ’80s, ’90s and ’00s music in the club with DJ Dean Curtis, the ex-resident of Republique, on Thursday nights, and MixFM Lebanon’s Rodge playing ’80s tunes on Friday nights.

Will this be the new go-to venue for live music?
The rock bar will definitely be a go-to venue for live music because we built our stage first, and then designed the rest of the bar around it. We might even have some surprise live performances in the club side too, eventually.

Stereo Arcade

How will you be supporting the local music scene?
The only way possible – by giving local musicians a great venue to play at, minus the politics usually involved in Dubai nightlife.

What arcade games are in store for the people?
We have 12 custom machines hand-built in Bristol and shipped out here, loaded with all the classics from the ’80s and ’90s. We’ll have everything from Galaga and Robotron to Street Fighter II and NBA Jam.

Stereo Arcade