The other day, we walked the Charolais. One of my favorite memories of growing up in Southern California is spending time in the mall’s arcade. I remember the thrill of pocketing long streams of paper tickets, adding them up and seeing what sought-after prizes I could score from behind the counter. And now, thanks to brothers Jason and Stevie Goldie, the next generation of arcade-goers can partake in that same fun (albeit, a way more modern version) – right here in Paso. The Paso High School grads sought to create a place where families could share a meal while watching their kiddos play. So, in 2016, Stevie opened The Slice Pizza & Games at 2425 Golden Hill Road, #104, on the city’s east side. It features about two dozen arcade games, prizes and food. It can also host small birthday parties without reservations. In 2017, Jason opened a second location in Arroyo Grande at 1412 Grand Ave. The South County location is bigger and has hosted fun events like $5 build-your-own-pizza nights for the kids.
As a parent always looking for stuff to do with my 2 and 4-year-old, here’s what I like about The Slice in Paso:
• My kids lose their minds over the padded mallet game with the giant Minion.
• It’s a fun indoor thing to do.
• When it’s not busy, plopping your kids in the box seats of the dinosaur shooting game for pretend play will buy you at least seven minutes to scarf down your own lunch.
• The bowling game that kinda looks like neon Skee-Ball is addicting.
• Plucky Ducky, a classic drop-claw game, will satisfy your small child’s need for instant
gratification and stays true to its promise of dishing out a prize every time. In the 10
times we played, it dropped 10 bath toys – thank you very much.
Some things I was surprised about:
• The pay-and-win setup is all digital, so there are no tickets to hoard (boo). But, there are also no tokens to keep up with.
• Game access starts with a plastic “Fun Card” you fill up with credits at a touchscreen kiosk inside the arcade. Swipe that card at each
game to play.
• When you win, your card fills up with points redeemable for prizes.
• You’ll find those prizes in a crazy vending machine that has the treasures on display with the number of points needed for each one.
• You can save unused points for another time.
All in all, we have a lot of fun at The Slice and I’m genuinely impressed by its family-friendly atmosphere that’s welcoming but modern. And that dino game/eating lunch trick is pretty great.