Double Tap (Tap Tap) - Iowa City — Restaurant in Iowa City

Visited during Jazz Fest, the place was sparsely populated, but I imagine they get busy on Friday and Saturday nights. 21+, but all-ages for family day on Sundays from noon-8. The atmosphere is clean and modern, as you'd expect from a newly renovated building, and the layout only partially constrains movement and personal space, depending on occupancy. Hollister fire hazard it is not, but it's still a basement arcade, so don't expect Double Tap to compete with Spare Time's vertiginous 52,000 square foot venue (even if it is substantially more comfortable than Up/Down's cramped weekend crowding.) Decent beer selection on tap with 16 selections, belied slightly by the collection of hundreds of tap handles decorating the periphery of the arcade. A selection of unique(ish) gaming-themed cocktails, mostly sugary amalgamations of sweet liquors, cardinals, and soda. Basic pizzas are also available for those engrossed in a high score session, but certainly not a place to go for dinner. Personal pans are just $6 for a cheese-smothered one-topping pie. A sizable collection of 35 games (a mix of traditional cabinets, "augmented-reality" stations, and multiplayer table games) plus ski ball and beautifully maintained/restored pinball machines. What was most impressive was all cabinets were in good condition, and not a single cabinet was out-of-order. Time (and logistics of procuring parts for aging machines) will tell whether this remains true. It was refreshing compared to a recent visit at Up/Down, where seemingly a quarter of all options were out-of-order, and another quarter had been, shall we say, aggressively played. You'll find your standard selection here- Ms. Pac Man, Gauntlet Legends, Frogger, Pole Position, and of course, The Simpsons. Fighting games (Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, etc.) make up about 10% of the arcade cabinets. A few games are one token ($0.25,) but most demand two or more tokens for a new game. Two of us were able to pour about $20 in tokens into the maw of the ski ball machine in 20 minutes, playing casually, but the traditional games are less voracious. I appreciate that the Guitar Hero cabinet is placed in a corner enclave, which makes its acoustics quite resonant, without drowning out others patrons' activities. Perhaps I am becoming jaded with the burgeoning selection of "bar"cades in Iowa. While my mind was not blown by Double Tap, I had great fun on my first visit, and plan on supporting them one (or four) tokens at a time. After all, you can't play single-player games all the...

Very, very disappointed.

First: no more tokens. They've switched all the games over to exclusively use plastic credit card things. Honestly, this is a major vibe killer. However, it could be acceptable if the terminal you use to get one explained the system better. There were a bunch of numbers around the screen, but I didn't know what they meant and I wasn't sure how many "taps" (play credits) I'd be receiving.

Additionally, it seems you can't play with any less than $20. You can't just bring in a five, change it for tokens and get rolling.

Second: the game prices have all been jacked up. I've come here a good few times and pumped a ton of tokens into the pinball machines because it's cheap and fun. Doing the math with how many "taps" I got, it's more than a dollar per play... for pinball. Over double the old price, for reference.

(Note: one of the pinball machines was charging two swipes instead of one, meaning over two dollars per play. I talked to staff and he said he'd talk to someone, plus offered to refund. I did appreciate this, and I hope that will be fixed)

Honestly, I just appreciated this place maintaining the retro aesthetic. There's games from a range of times, which is fine! I don't hate new games! But these moves plus an increase in modern games makes it clear they don't have a solid identity.

On another note, a little bit back I tried to bring my dad here because I loved the retro vibe so much. We showed up during open hours, and it was locked. We checked a couple more times, then finally asked at the stuffed olive. Eventually, one of their staff told us that there had been some change in management and that someone "probably just hadn't scheduled anyone."

At the time, I figured everyone has bad days, it's fine. But a friend has told me that he went there once and it was completely empty except for him. (as he said, anyone could have just gone in and messed with the bar).

Basically, all this and some more little things are making me realize that this place is just janky. Also, I may not be as upset about all this if Colonial Lanes hadn't recently overhauled it's bowling and arcade. I was hoping Double Tap would be my refuge from the stupid plastic game swipe...

5 Stars – Perfect Date Night Spot with Great Drinks, Food & Games!⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ We came to Double Tap for a date night full of food, drinks, and games—and it absolutely delivered. We had so much fun and left already talking about when we’ll be back.

The drinks were spot-on every time—balanced, flavorful, and consistent. Not overly sweet or heavy-handed with the alcohol -A great drink isn’t about dumping half a bottle in; it’s about craft, and they nailed it. It's clear the bartenders here know what they're doing.

Food-wise, we ordered the crab rangoon pizza, chicken strips, and a half order of nachos—yes, that photo you see is a HALF order! Everything was super tasty and such a great value. The chicken strips were definitely not from a bag—crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, and paired with what tasted like a delicious homemade ranch. The pizza was something you'd expect from a high-end place, with a light, crispy crust and bold flavor.

PRO TIP: Take advantage of their daily deals to save even more on already reasonable prices—total win-win. (We included a picture of the current specials.)

After a few drinks and great food, we moved on to the games. The tap card system was super convenient—no need to carry cash or coins around, and it tracked our points as we played (we even redeemed some for a free drink!). I saw a review complaining about the switch from coins to cards, but honestly? Carrying around coins sounds super awkward. I'd much rather have a drink in hand than a bucket of tokens. 🍸 We spent hours gaming and didn’t feel overcharged at all. One golf game had us going for at least half an hour without reloading.

We did have one game glitch, but the manager, Liz, handled it right away with a friendly attitude. She was great—constantly helping customers and clearly keeping the place running smoothly with a smile. Pro Tip: In any business, if something's off, just speak up. They can’t fix what they don’t know about.

The mix of retro and modern games made it even better. Whether you’re local or just visiting Iowa City, Double Tap is the perfect place for a fun and affordable night out. We’ll definitely be back! 607GuestHouse.com...