Knox County Commissioner Evelyn Gill, right, checked out the scene at Dave & Buster’s last Thursday night. She brought her buddy Karen Fieldsa.
The ribbon cutting was today at the newest Dave & Buster’s location, which is in Sevierville at Millers Landing shopping center just across the Parkway from Tanger Outlets. Moxley Carmichael helped with public relations for the opening of the action-packed venue, the chain’s third location in Tennessee and the 127th overall.
Dave & Buster’s is unlike any restaurant or sports bar in East Tennessee. First of all, it’s huge — 40,000 square feet. Secondly, it features more than 145 of the latest and greatest arcade games, as well as dozens of massive HDTV screens for sports viewing.
The food and beverages at the VIP preview last week were excellent. And, event planners will be happy to hear, there are several state-of-the-art event rooms that can be divided in a variety of configurations to accommodate all size parties, presentations and company outings and retreats. (I know we plan to have one there soon!)
Tammy Bolt of the Gatlinburg Chamber with Todd Dennison, general manager of the Sevierville Dave & Buster’s.
The innovative menu features legendary burgers including the “Super Stack,” with over a pound of meat, and the “Triple Bacon Burger,” with three different kinds of bacon. (Yep!) But it also can accommodate more health-conscious patrons with grilled proteins like chicken and salmon, the “Impossible Burger,” which is plant-based, and “Zoodles,” spiraled zucchini that can replace the pasta in any dish. Wow. Talk about options! I will say that the most popular food items at the VIP party were the passed “Pretzel Dogs” — little hot dogs wrapped in pretzel dough.
The extensive cocktail menu got a test drive, as well, pleasing those who wanted everything from beer and wine (Yay, they have pinot grigio!) to fancy and interesting specialty drinks.
Here are some photos from the VIP party, attended by over 1,000 folks. But here’s a tip for you. Click on this link and you’ll find yourself on the eatery’s new website and you can snag a coupon for $10 worth of free games. The offer is valid until June 2. And, while you are at it, check out the happy hour offerings on food and drink that are available weekdays from 4 to 7 p.m. See you there!
Get a load of all these TVs!
And more!
Welcome! From left, Lauren Miller, Alex Dubois and Shaun Fulco. Lauren and Shaun are with Moxley Carmichael; Alex is national marketing manager with Dave & Buster’s.
Brandy and John Dominquez. She’s executive director of the Greater Pigeon Forge Chamber of Commerce.
Shaun with Thomas King, Sevier County Property Assessor.
Ellen Wilhoit, executive director of Leadership Sevier, with her husband, Shane Wilhoit.
WVLT-TV’s Kyle Grainger checked out the action.
Alan Carmichael with Knoxville City Council Member Seema Singh-Perez.
Angie Wilson of Visit Knoxville and her boyfriend, Kevin Wilson.
Other Knoxvillians, from left, Megan Stansbury, Stephanie Kluever and Shelley Burns.
Wow! There are a lot of games from which to choose!
More!
My friend Dawn Ford loves to play Candy Crush on her phone. At Dave & Buster’s, she got to play it on a screen as tall as her! That’s hubby Richard Ford looking on.
From left, Katie Cox-Thomas, Leon Thomas, Leon Thomas Jr., and Heather Roussin.
Moxley Carmichael’s creative director, Charley Sexton, left, was amazed by how passionate his buddy John Miller was about a game!
But John got the last laugh. Look at all those winning tickets!
Knoxvillians Christy and Scott Brooks.
Alan with Chef Jeff, the executive kitchen manager.
Speaking of eating, there was a lot of it!
Another packed eating area.
From left, Austin Martin, Cody Huber, Megan Claycomb, and Marcella and Jacob Sercovich.
Still another dining area.
Dawn and Richard enjoying a bite.
Moxley Carmichael’s Maria McHale with Bobby Peterson, corporate sales manager of the Sevierville Dave & Buster’s.
One of several available event rooms.
From left, Jeff Beaulieu, Kristin Lewis, Lee Lewis and George Beaulieu.
From left, Joey Creswell, Janet Testerman, Mitchell Moseley and Dino Cartwright. (Alan Carmichael slipped in, too.)
Air hockey, anyone?
Hoops?
From left, John Moreno, John Hill, Jennifer Jaramillo and Jessica Morena.
Andrea White and Kyle Spence.
Chris and Sarah Cates.
Spencer Lewis, left, and Shon Fields. Can you read Shon’s shirt? It says, “No, I’m not on steroids. But thanks for asking!” They are bodybuilders, which will surprise no one.
Moxley Carmichael’s Charley Sexton, left, and John McCulley waiting in line for the virtual reality games, which got rave reviews (although John almost got eaten by a T-Rex).
Big crowd.
Mimi and Matt Kulp.
In case you were wondering.
Two hardworking — and hard playing — Moxley Carmichael interns. Nick Sarafolean and Natalie Whitaker.
Two hardworking Moxley Carmichael staffers sending info to the news media. Lauren Miller, left, and Erin Donovan.
Shaun Fulco, left, and Rhonda Miller.
When you finish playing, you go to a whole room filled with prizes and cash in your tickets. Here are just a few of the options.
And who wouldn’t want some stuffed poop?
Shaun, right, and Chrissy Hughes.
From left, John and Lauren Miller, Michael Higdon and Scott Bird. Lauren and Scott are with Moxley Carmichael.
Everyone got a lovely to go cup (empty!) as a parting gift.
And they had to run through this gauntlet of friendly faces! (Photo by Dino Cartwright.)
When you visit, look for this sign on the outside of the building!
What a fun night! We’re looking forward to sporting events there and, of course, game playing. We were in the Dave & Buster’s in Marietta, GA when I got word we lost everything in hurricane Katrina. I remember thinking I need more alcohol, and Jacob needs more game money. Maybe we’ll just stay here, in this happy place. So, we feel a bit of a connection to Dave & Buster’s. Ha. It’s our “happy place”. The event was a hit! Folks were still talking about it around town on Friday.
I’ve got a few relatives – young and old – who are going to love this place!!! Great photos!
I had two thoughts about my visit to Dave & Buster’s. One was if you can’t find a game you like here, you can’t find one. And, second, it’s a great place to watch sports — huge screens everywhere. It’s going to be a great year-round attraction, as well as a great place for families visiting the Sevierville/Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg/Smokies area this summer.
Shaun: I forgot about you being at Dave & Buster’s when you got that awful news. I can see why you feel a special connection. Thanks for all you did to make the VIP event a success. The fact that you live in Sevier County and have so many great connections there was a real plus in us getting the fabulous turnout!
Rusha: Thanks! As you can tell, it is a great place for folks of all ages to have fun!
Alan: Totally agree, although I didn’t get to play any games on Thursday. We’ll have to return soon to do that. I was impressed with how little time it takes to get there from downtown Knoxvillle! Yay!
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