I don’t know about you guys. I tried unsuccessfully to try and pitch a restaurant idea in my neighborhood. Couldn’t get it started. Not enough time, resources, or money. I was hoping to try and create a cosplay themed restaurant and e-sports play arena.
The cosplay themed restaurant the could have four themes and genre to it. A fantasy game dungeon and dragons type genre, an anime genre, a comics genre, and a sci-fi historical genre. Kind of like the four quadrants of the galaxy. Also like a permanent comic-con restaurant.
There would be the themed restaurant, an esports stage and arena, and an artist showcase area. I wonder how many jobs that would open up. This year we’ve already seen Masked Singer take off. I tried to start this before Masked Singer. But with Masked Singer taking off I wonder if the nostalgia wore off.
In the restaurant the diners would be introduced to various cosplay costumes of the four genre. Imagine eating Dragon Breath Chili with an orc in your ear going “Zug Zug”. 
Plus the esports arena. A staged area where teams of various cities can compete in esports. With the current COVID situation I am kind of glad I didn’t attempt to start a business like this on my own. Maybe someone in the future might take this idea and run. Who knows? Just a thought and something I thought about. I’m one of those ‘older gamers’ with a teen aged child. Most of my time now is dedicated to taking care of my child and her education so I thought I would share this idea with the forums.
This was a thought of mine. Take care. Enjoy the weekend.
Interesting idea … though themed restaurants never seem to last anyplace but theme parks - Hard Rock Cafe notwithstanding. I guess Medieval Times could be considered a “themed eating experience” but you can’t really class that as a restaurant.
I’ve read in several different places that the reason most themed restaurants fail is because people go to them only once, and the operating costs are quite high compared to a standard restaurant without a theme. It’s nigh impossible to get repeat clientele.
Planet Hollywood and the Marvel Comics one they had back in the '90s failed exactly because of this. Well, Planet Hollywood also had really poor planning and management, but I digress. I do see that there’s a newer place called ComicX, but I have no idea how that business is faring.
I wish you luck in the future with it, though. Sounds like a place I would visit, at least once 
Yeah, I thought I’d share the idea. Like I said, I don’t have the business knowledge, money, or people to form that idea. I love watching the Blizzcon cosplay event live stream. We’re in a transitional phase with COVID restrictions. That means we’re redeveloping our future. This could be a fun idea. Thanks for your feedback as well friend.
1 Like
Just dont see anything like this ever taking off.
Maybe, MAYBE a sports bar themed around esports, but gamers arent really the most social bunch to begin with. Internet cafes are already dead in America, so a restaurant that hosts events is a non-starter. Why go to a bar to play games when my computer at home is mostly superior, and the food isnt overpriced? Plus, restaurants rely on high turnover to make profits. If i go to a lan-center im going for 5+ hours, and unless you have an entire building dedicated to lan, there’s just not gonna be enough computers/TVs for most of the guests to use before they get bored and leave.
1 Like
Yeah, this is pretty much what I’m getting at.
Technically, the restaurant’s answer to this would be, “because of the theme,” or “because eating here is a fun group experience,” but I get your point.
Guys’ / gals’ night out or a date - we might do a themed restaurant once or twice even, but it wouldn’t be a place I’d head to like, every Friday night or something.
A few people certainly would, but I’d imagine the vast majority of folks would check it out once if they are interested, come back an additional time if they love it, and that would be it. Personally, I did this very thing with the places I’ve mentioned:
- Been to Hard Rock Cafe once. (Date night with the wife)
- Been to Planet Hollywood once. (Brother was in town)
- Been to the Marvel Superheroes one once. (Folks from work decided to go)
It always has to be a special occasion, at least with me. I’m really not going to choose a themed restaurant when I’m alone (nothing against folks that would!) nor would I choose it when I want to “grab a quick bite to eat.”
I don’t mean to discourage the OP; maybe there are angles that haven’t been tried, like mixing a theme with fine dining or turning it up a notch and making it “exclusive” with a smaller seating arrangement and a “host” for each section (there was a place here in Los Angeles called Wizards that did this with a magic theme - magicians for hosts and magic-themed food.) The other thing is that only three themes have ever really been tried, at least when it comes to a franchise: music, movies and comics. You might indeed hit an untapped market with fantasy or gaming.
Who knows 
The reason I brought it up was because I was thinking with esports taking off prior to the COVID restrictions, teams across the globe or US cities could compete in a friendly cosplay/ esport environment.
I understand it’s a gamble. Most businesses are. Glad I didn’t go out and start such a venture prior to COVID. I would have lost my shirt and then some. Thanks for your insights.