Chuck E. Cheese’s should open in Tupelo around April 1, according to franchise owner Ira Butler.
Remodeling and construction work has started on the former McDuff’s Electronics building near the Red Lobster restaurant and The Mall at Barnes Crossing.
Butler told Biz Buzz today that he had hoped to open earlier, but with the holidays and all the equipment that needs to get ordered, he thinks April 1 is a realistic opening date.
Biz Buzz toured the building with Butler yesterday and also got a look at the plans for the store. Here’s the scoop:
About 11,000 square feet of dining/gaming floor space, with an additional 3,000 square feet of expandable space;
A stage for Chuck and his friends;
A walking Chuck mascot (some don’t have one);
NO beer (some corporate stores do have it);
Long purple awning on the front, with the logo on top of the front facade; more signage on the rear of the store facing Gloster.
Mr. Butler hopes he’ll do well here, considering his sizable investment - I assured him he has NOTHING to worry about.
I just spoke to Mr. Butler this morning (March 4), and he’s still shooting for an April 1 opening.
That’s exactly four weeks from now, if anybody’s counting.
Chuckie’s will open the first week of April. They are planning a very soft opening. No grand opening until their staff gets things just right. Watch for more info. JDS
You can now see ol’ Chuck smiling from the front entrance - I saw sign crews this morning working on it. Lookin’ good - and we’re that much closer!!!
Monday, March 31, 2008
Today my 5 yr old daughter noticed “flashing lights” and “lots of kids” inside the building. My wife pulled through the parking lot and saw people inside playing games and noticed a mom carrying out what looked like a “to-go” box in her hand as if she was carrying left-over food home. We’re assuming they opened today and have invited a friend and her kids to go tomorrow morning with hopes that they are in fact opened. This would indicate a “soft opening” as previously reported! (The Chuck E. Cheese corporate website, however, does not show a restaurant in Tupelo, just yet).
Have a great week!
Russell Smith
Tupelo
Ira Butler, the owner of the CEC, had a special employee and family gathering on Sunday.
He doesn’t want to heavily publicize any sort of opening because he wants his newly trained employees to get used to everything. It’s typical of new stores and restaurants to have a soft opening, so it should be no surprise that you’ll be seeing some activity there the next few days.
Considering the built-up demand for the place, when he does make the official grand opening announcement, you can bet that the place will be packed - and then some. In fact, it will likely be that way for quite some time.
A little more than month has passed, and CEC is as busy as ever. Still no “grand opening” announcement, but I think just about everyone knows the place has been open. Judging by the crowds, especially on weekends, there’s no need to shout it out.
We went there on Wednesday - church night - at around 5:30. By the time we left around 7:30, it was getting full.
By the way, the phone number there is 842-0788