Bowling Down
Punch Bowl Social closes Fort Worth location after only 3 months
In sad news for Fort Worth residents who like fun places, the Fort Worth location of Punch Bowl Social has closed.
The Denver-based chain opened the restaurant and games spot in the West 7th area at 1100 Foch St. in August. It was the second location to open in DFW, following one in Deep Ellum that opened in May. The Deep Ellum location remains open.
Founder Robert Thompson opened the first Punch Bowl Social in Denver in 2012, blazing a trail of "social"-themed restaurants that come with a side of fun.
Punch Bowl's concept combines food and beverage with games and social activities including ping-pong, darts, board games, classic video games, bowling, and private karaoke rooms. Other locations can be found in Austin, Portland, Minneapolis, Detroit, and Cleveland.
Fort Worth was the chain's first to open with a smaller size than the usual, occupying 12,500 square feet, as compared to the Dallas location which has 24,000 square feet.
In a statement, Punch Bowl Social COO Peter Gaudreau called the Fort Worth closure a difficult decision.
"After service on November 5th we made the difficult decision to close our Fort Worth location," Gaudreau said. "We opened in the West 7th area with the best intentions and deeply appreciate the support that the neighbors and community showed us. Unfortunately, we didn’t believe we could be as successful as we wanted in that particular location."
Gaudreau says they're not ruling Fort Worth out entirely, saying, "We very much believe in Fort Worth and know we can be as successful there as we are in Dallas and other markets. It is our hope to relocate to another part of the city in the near future."
In July, Punch Bowl Social entered into a partnership with Cracker Barrel, in which Cracker Barrel would invest up to $140 million in capital for future development.
On November 5, the same day the Fort Worth location closed, investor Sardar Biglari, whose hedge fund has invested in Cracker Barrel, requested records from Cracker Barrel related to its investment in Punch Bowl Social.
