FLIP FLIP, DING DING

Pinball News Website·article·analyzed·Jul 13, 2017

Analysis

claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.013

TL;DR

Venue review: Flip Flip, Ding Ding pinball bar in Seattle with 27 machines, craft beer, and monthly tournaments.

Summary

A June 2017 venue review of Flip Flip, Ding Ding, a pinball bar/arcade in Georgetown, Seattle. The article documents the venue's 27 pinball machines (spanning classic to modern titles), craft beer selection, casual atmosphere, and community events including monthly pingolf tournaments. Georgetown itself is positioned as an up-and-coming neighborhood with strong local brewery culture.

Key Claims

Flip Flip, Ding Ding has 27 pinball machines in total across two floors and a side room
high confidence · Author directly counted and listed all machines at the venue
Most machines were priced at 50 cents per game and took quarters
high confidence · Author's direct observation and testing of pricing at the venue
Flip Flip, Ding Ding runs a monthly pingolf tournament on the last Sunday of each month at 1pm with a $10 entry fee and 36-player limit
high confidence · Author stated this as operational fact about the venue
Seattle and the Pacific Northwest have strong demand for both craft beer and pinball
medium confidence · Author's observation: 'Seattle, like much of the Pacific Northwest of the US, has a seemingly unquenchable thirst for both craft beer and pinball'
Georgetown is home to multiple craft breweries including Elysian Brewing, Machine House Brewery, Georgetown Brewery, Lowercase Brewing, Counterbalance Brewing, and Jellyfish Brewing
high confidence · Author's documentation of the neighborhood's brewery landscape

Notable Quotes

“Seattle, like much of the Pacific Northwest of the US, has a seemingly unquenchable thirst for both craft beer and pinball.”
[name withheld pending review] @ n/a — Characterizes the regional market demand for pinball venues in the Seattle area
“Flip Flip, Ding Ding is an unassuming but welcoming place to visit. It's the essence of a good pinball bar – great games and great drinks in a truly fun atmosphere.”
[name withheld pending review] @ n/a — Final assessment of venue quality and community appeal

Entities

Flip Flip, Ding DingorganizationGeorgetownorganizationSeattleorganizationNorthwest Pinball & Arcade ShoweventStellar PizzaorganizationElysian BrewingorganizationMachine House BreweryorganizationGeorgetown BreweryorganizationLowercase BrewingorganizationCounterbalance BrewingorganizationJellyfish Brewingorganization

Signals

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venue_signal: Flip Flip, Ding Ding documented as well-maintained venue with 27 pinball machines in good condition, reasonable tilt settings, conservative pricing (50c per game), and two-floor layout with side room for machine distribution
high · Author's direct observation: 'We found the pinballs to be in good condition with reasonable tilt settings and priced even quite conservatively. The all take quarters...and were mostly 50c a game.'
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venue_signal: Georgetown Seattle identified as up-and-coming neighborhood with emerging pinball bar presence, supporting regional growth in Pacific Northwest pinball locations
medium · Georgetown described as 'up-and-coming suburb' with craft brewery proliferation and discovery of Flip Flip, Ding Ding as an established venue
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market_signal: Strong regional demand for pinball and craft beer venues in Seattle and Pacific Northwest
medium · Author observation: 'So any bar/arcade hoping to succeed here needs to have plentiful supplies of both [craft beer and pinball]'
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community_signal: Regular competitive and social tournament activity at Flip Flip, Ding Ding including monthly pingolf tournaments and ongoing league meetings
high · Author documented: 'they run a monthly pingolf tournament at 1pm on the last Sunday of each month. It's $10 to enter with a limit of 36 players. If you can't make that date, other tournaments are often held here too, along with league meetings.'
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operational_signal: Flip Flip, Ding Ding uses conservative per-game pricing (50 cents) with quarter-based payment system and on-site change machine, supporting casual play accessibility

Transcript

raw_text · $0.000

Date: June 2017 Location: 6012 12th Ave S., Georgetown, Seattle, WA 98108, USA. Call it fate, call it serendipity, but whatever it was, it was a nice surprise to stumble over Flip Flip, Ding Ding on the way back from a nice meal at Stellar Pizza in Georgetown, south of Seattle. We were staying in Georgetown and using it as a base to explore the greater Seattle region prior to the Northwest Pinball & Arcade Show. Hotels in central Seattle are notoriously expensive, so we picked the Georgetown Inn as a good compromise location. !Greetings from Georgetown Greetings from Georgetown Georgetown is an up-and-coming suburb which has that ‘shabby-chic’ semi-industrial feel to it. Sitting in the shadow of the I-5 to the east and bounded by Boeing Field to the south, the Duwamish Waterway to the west and the BNSF railroad to the north, it looks rougher than it feels. Former home of the Rainier Brewery, Georgetown is now home to several newer beer makers, including Elysian Brewing, Machine House Brewery, Georgetown Brewery, Lowercase Brewing, Counterbalance Brewing and Jellyfish Brewing. On our way back to the hotel from Airport Way on Sunday night, we spotted what looked like a pinball machine in the window of a distant shop unit on 12th Ave S. !12th Ave S in Georgetown 12th Ave S in Georgetown Upon closer investigation, we discovered it was actually the well-known Flip Flip, Ding Ding pinball bar/arcade. We were so unprepared we didn’t even have our good camera with us, so please excuse the mobile phone pictures here. !Flip Flip, Ding Ding Flip Flip, Ding Ding We had heard good things about Flip Flip, Ding Ding, so wasted no time investigating what they had to offer. Seattle, like much of the Pacific Northwest of the US, has a seemingly unquenchable thirst for both craft beer and pinball. So any bar/arcade hoping to succeed here needs to have plentiful supplies of both. First, to the beer. Flip Flip, Ding Ding has eight taps mostly dedicated to local craft beers but with a nod to the staples such as Bud Light. !The bar The bar !The draft beer selection Additional cans are available from their large fridges. !The refrigerators next to the bar The refrigerators next to the bar The bar area is suitably functional and characterful, featuring numerous bumper stickers offering words of wisdom to patrons. !Sobering thoughts on the bar front Sobering thoughts on the bar front And so onto the games. Flip Flip, Ding Ding has a mix of pinball and videos, with pinball dominating as you might expect from the name. We counted twenty-seven pinballs in total: | | | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | | | --- | | Addams Family, The | | Atlantis | | Black Knight 2000 | | Buccaneer | | Champion Pub, The | | Circus Voltaire | | Diner | | Earthshaker! | | Fire! | | Funhouse | | Game of Thrones | | Grand Lizard | | Judge Dredd | | No Good Gofers\ Phantom of the Opera | | Pinbot | | Robocop | | Rollercoaster Tycoon | | Star Trek: The Next Generation | | Starship Troopers | | Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles | | Twilight Zone | | Walking Dead, The | | Wheel of Fortune | | Whirlwind | | World Cup Soccer | | Xenon | | \indicates machine not working !Wheel of Fortune, Judge Dredd and Star Trek: The Next Generation Wheel Generation !Grand Lizard and Fire! Grand Lizard and Fire! The business’s floor area is not huge, so the games are split between two floors with the addition of a side room containing another eight machines. We found the pinballs to be in good condition with reasonable tilt settings and priced even quite conservatively. The all take quarters (there’s a change machine by the stairs) and were mostly 50c a game. !The Champion Pub, Phantom of the Opera and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles The Turtles !Diner, No Good Gofers and Atlantis Diner, No Good Gofers and Atlantis !Xenon, Pinbot, Starship Troopers and Rollercoaster Tycoon Xenon, Pinbot, Starship Troopers and Rollercoaster Tycoon !Videos mixed in with World Cup Soccer, Robocop, Black Knight 2000 and Earthshaker! Videos Earthshaker! !More videos - a multi-game cabinet and Mario Bros. More videos – a multi-game cabinet and Mario Bros. !A multi-player Hydro Thunder A multi-player Hydro Thunder As befits the area, there’s a cool and laid-back vibe at Flip Flip, Ding Ding, with customers spilling out onto the street or just sitting at the bar, ignoring all the games surrounding them. There are plenty of food options at neighbouring restaurants, at the end of the street, and along Airport Way, from great burritos to multiple pizza choices and some solid burger combinations. Although everything is very casual here, if you want something a little more organised they run a monthly pingolf tournament at 1pm on the last Sunday of each month. It’s $10 to enter with a limit of 36 players. If you can’t make that date, other tournaments are often held here too, along with league meetings. Flip Flip, Ding Ding is an unassuming but welcoming place to visit. It’s a short way outside the centre of Seattle, but a 124 bus or a $10 taxi ride quickly gets you there. It’s the essence of a good pinball bar – great games and great drinks in a truly fun atmosphere.