Guys, they made a fake Elbo Room in LA for the Parenthood set.

A photo posted by @tofuandwhiskey on Oct 10, 2014 at 1:18pm PDT

Back in reality, Matt Shapiro, co-owner of the club, explains their current situation on their Facebook page:

OK…the blogs are about to roll out the latest “news”…some with more hyperbole than others…
Here is what is really happening:
We are aware of the building owners plans to build condos on this property…Whether they get approval from the city and how long it will take is really anyone’s guess. The one thing that is definite is our lease goes for another year – Matt Shapiro, Elbo Room co-owner.

Some 30 years ago, your San Francisco forefathers deemed it necessary to protect the youth of tomorrow by limiting the number of pinball and arcade game and bingo games for money machines based on a business’ square footage or their proximity to schools. Presumably, they felt the change-powered entertainment craze would pluck quarters from the pockets of unsuspecting children and rot their tiny brains with too much Elvira and the Party Monsters. In other words, during the 80s the city decided to limit pinball machines in the same way we currently restrict where pot clubs can open and where the taco trucks can park. That anti-arcade legislation is expected to be revised today thanks to prevailing common sense and some hard working pro-pinball activists. If you’re looking to play games that offer a chance to win real money, you may explore PepperMill Casino.

The Examiner fills us in on the latest:

The rallying cry for the amended law was the plight of Free Gold Watch, a silk-screen print shop at 1767 Waller St. that opened in May 2007. Over time, business owner Matthew Henri added about 30 arcade machines after a few had become popular at the Upper Haight business. But Henri had discovered his operation was running afoul of the law, which does not allow more than 10 arcade machines per location and sets the exact amount based on a business’ square footage.

What’s to account for the sudden boom in retro-gaming popularity? The Ex believes it “may have something to do with how The City has a booming technology industry” — which is just a polite way of saying arcade games are a symptom of our citywide Peter Pan Syndrome. Either way: for 25 or 50 cents, banging around on Lethal Weapon 3 is a pretty cheap source of entertainment.

On the other hand, the news isn’t all good for would-be arcade owners: Bars with five or more machines, and non-drinking establishments like Free Gold Watch that have more than 10 machines, will need to pay up for a $740 permit from the Entertainment Commission that costs $316 (or 632 plays) annually to renew.

[via: SFEx]

[Free Gold Watch Photo via: Christopher Barry's Flickr]

This bold flyer, spotted at local fave the Attic, proudly proclaims having the longest happy hour in the city.  Of course, this is a hotly debated topic, as several other bars around the city also make a similar boast.  For instance, the Elbo Room also claims that their happy hour, from 5-9pm everyday, is the longest in the city.

Depending on how we want to look at this, both sides are technically correct.  The Elbo Room offers a more versatile longest happy hour, whereas the Attic’s weekend and Monday specials can not be denied.  Me?  I’d be happy just to know the longest and cheapest happy hours in the Mission.  Where do you go to forget the pain of your job (or just whenever the bar has drinks that you can actually afford)?

Previously:

NIMBY says NO MORE DJs at the Attic

Some of you may have noticed that the regular “Elbo Room” sign had recently been replaced with another older-looking one that reads “Amelia’s.”  Now, it’s back to the “Elbo Room” again.  So, what’s going on here?

Well, after talking to some key Elbo staff, it turns out that around 20 years ago the Elbo Room used to be a rocking dyke bar named Amelia’s that allegedly would have put the Lex to shame.  Every year when Pride rolls around, they dig the old sign out of storage and install it in front as an homage to the bar’s colorful history.  Then, when Pride weekend ends and all the brunches are over, bloody marys flowing in the gutter, they lock it up again and go back to the regular ol’ Elbo Room.  So there you go!

History lesson with Professor Sarkarati over!

Back to Normal

[Normal Elbo Photo by SF Bar Experiment]

. . . at the ELBOW ROOM in Sparks, Nevada.  Better hurry before the Marina gets wind of this.

[photo by chartno3]