2019 FALL ARCADE ROAD TRIP, Stop 4: Lyman’s Tavern - Washington DC (October 2019)

Knapp Arcade·article·analyzed·Oct 1, 2019

Analysis

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TL;DR

Tour of Lyman's Tavern DC pinball venue featuring 11 machines including rare LE titles.

Summary

A 2019 arcade tour stop at Lyman's Tavern in Washington DC, a well-known pinball venue recently featured on NBC's Today Show. The bar features 11 pinball machines including two Stern Limited Editions (Black Knight: Sword of Rage and Star Wars), classic Bally/Williams games, and a Pabst Can Crusher machine. The venue is praised for its dive bar atmosphere, reasonable pricing ($0.50/play), and well-maintained machines, though the author preferred other stops on the tour.

Key Claims

Lyman's Tavern was recently featured on The Today Show on NBC in a piece about the resurgence of pinball
high confidence · Direct statement about venue's media coverage
Lyman's had two Stern Limited Edition pinball machines (Black Knight: Sword of Rage and Star Wars)
high confidence · Documented in the pinball lineup list and explicitly noted as rare for location venues
The pinball machines at Lyman's were set to $0.50 per play
medium confidence · Author states uncertain recollection due to beer consumption
11 pinball games is a solid lineup for a city bar
high confidence · Author's assessment comparing to other venues visited

Notable Quotes

“Lyman's vibe is what I would call Dive Bar Chic, along the lines of NYC's Jackbar.”
Author (Knapp Arcade) — Characterizes the venue's atmosphere and style
“You don't see LEs on location very often so that was a treat.”
Author (Knapp Arcade) — Highlights the rarity of Limited Edition machines in commercial locations
“Lyman's is absolutely worth the trip if you're in the area. It is an iconic Washington DC pinball venue.”
Author (Knapp Arcade) — Final endorsement of the venue despite noting preference for other stops

Entities

Lyman's TavernorganizationKnapp Arcadeperson RobpersonBlack Knight: Sword of RagegameStar WarsgamePabst Can CrushergameStern PinballcompanyBallycompany Williamscompany

Signals

?
community_signal: Lyman's Tavern in Washington DC identified as the city's most well-known pinball venue with strong community presence
high · Direct statement + NBC Today Show feature + author's assessment as 'iconic Washington DC pinball venue'
$
market_signal: Presence of two Stern Limited Edition machines (Black Knight LE and Star Wars LE) at commercial location venue is noted as unusual/rare
high · Quote: 'You don't see LEs on location very often so that was a treat.'
$
market_signal: Lyman's Tavern operating at $0.50 per play pricing point with cheap beer pricing ($20 for several beers for two people)
medium · Author's recollection acknowledged as uncertain due to alcohol consumption; pricing noted as attractively low
?
product_concern: All pinball machines at Lyman's reported in good condition with no major mechanical issues
high · Author states: 'The pins all played well and were in good shape. I don't remember any major issues with any of them.'

Topics

Commercial pinball venue operations and logisticsprimaryLimited Edition machine placement in location venuesprimaryPinball media coverage and cultural resurgencesecondaryArcade venue comparison and tour documentationsecondaryPricing and machine maintenance standardsmentioned

Sentiment

positive(0.72)— Author praises Lyman's as an iconic venue with well-maintained machines and good pricing, though explicitly states preference for other stops (MOMs and VÜK), indicating qualified but not enthusiastic endorsement

Transcript

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After touring suburban Maryland, the next stop on the arcade tour brought us into Washington DC to the city’s most well-known pinball venue Lyman’s Tavern. Lyman’s was recently featured on The Today Show on NBC in a piece about the resurgence of pinball. Lyman’s vibe is what I would call Dive Bar Chic, along the lines of NYC’s Jackbar. Long and narrow, the patio area really helps to open the bar up when the Carl Weathers is nice. Lyman’s has a full bar featuring Pabst Blue Ribbon on tap. Now normally I wouldn’t get too excited about having a PBR, but when you can drink one while playing the neat WhizBang The Pabst Can Crusher pinball machine, now that’s cool. The pinball lineup there wasn’t huge compared to many of the locations I have been, but 11 games is a very solid lineup, particularly for a city bar. The collection even included two Stern Limited Edition pins, Black Knight Sword of Rage and Star Wars. You don’t see LEs on location very often so that was a treat. Here’s Lyman’s current pinball lineup, courtesy of Pinball Map: Attack From Mars (Bally, 1995) Black Knight: Sword of Rage (LE) (Stern, 2019) Ghostbusters (LE) (Stern, 2016) Hot Tip (Williams, 1977) The Incredible Hulk (Gottlieb, 1977) Lost World (Bally, 1977) Pabst Can Crusher (Stern, 2016) Red & Ted's Road Show (Williams, 1994) Star Wars (LE) (Stern, 2017) Waterworld (Gottlieb, 1995) Whirlwind (Williams, 1990) Interestingly, Lyman’s had a solid state version of Williams 1977 pin Hot Tip. This is interesting (probably to me only lol) because I had just played the EM version of Hot Tip at VÜK an hour or so earlier. In addition to these pins, Lyman’s had a 4-player Atari Gauntlet on the floor, which is always a fun classic. Against one wall, there was a cool flatscreen that a camera attached to the ceiling was streaming the Black Knight playfield to. This was really impressive because the ceilings at Lyman’s were very high. The beer there was cheap. Rob and I had several beers for less than twenty bucks. I believe that the pins were set to $0.50/play (the beers consumed are affecting my recollection but I think that is correct). The pins all played well and were in good shape. I don’t remember any major issues with any of them. I didn’t eat anything so I can’t comment on the food. While I was lucky enough to get a good spot, I can see were parking might be an issue. Ubering there might be a good idea. I personally liked MOMs and VÜK more than Lyman’s but that’s a tough standard to live up to. Lyman’s is absolutely worth the trip if you’re in the area. It is an iconic Washington DC pinball venue.