Kung Fu Saloon
Kung Fu Saloon is a privately held Texas-based bar and restaurant operator founded in 2009 that runs two 21+ venues in Austin and San Antonio, combining full food and beverage service with vintage arcade games, free skee ball, and private karaoke rooms.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersSan Antonio, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Kung Fu Saloon does
Kung Fu Saloon is a privately held Texas-based bar and restaurant operator founded in Austin in 2009, with a second location in San Antonio that opened in 2022. The company's core product combines a full bar and kitchen with a curated collection of 18+ vintage arcade games (Galaga, Centipede, Ms. Pacman, NBA Jam, Mortal Kombat, Golden Tee, Big Buck Hunter), complimentary skee ball lanes, and oversized lawn games (Giant Jenga, Giant Connect Four). All venues enforce a strict 21+ age requirement and operate primarily evening and late-night hours (until 2am most days).
The business generates revenue from three primary streams: (1) food and beverage sales (domestic and craft beer, cocktails, specialty drinks such as pickle shots, and a full food menu), (2) private karaoke room rentals at the San Antonio location at $50/hour accommodating up to 15 guests each with dedicated hosts, and (3) event venue bookings for parties, team-building, sports watching parties, and private screenings. Event booking is operationalized through self-serve online platforms (Tripleseat in Austin, Jotform in San Antonio). Walk-in retail is the primary distribution channel, with no e-commerce or delivery services.
The company runs the Drink 4 a Cause community philanthropy program, donating 15% of happy hour sales to local nonprofits (over $250,000 since 2009), and the Kung Fu Masters athlete sponsorship program supporting local competitive athletes in SUP, basketball, running, triathlon, volleyball, and motorsports. Marketing is conducted through organic social (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter), email newsletter, and the company website. Ownership is not publicly disclosed, the company appears independently held, and no external investors, funding rounds, or M&A activity are reported in the available data.
Kung Fu Saloon firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Kung Fu Saloon
- Legal name
- Kung Fu Saloon
- Website
- https://kungfusaloon.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Kung Fu Saloon is a privately held Texas-based bar and restaurant operator founded in 2009 that runs two 21+ venues in Austin and San Antonio, combining full food and beverage service with vintage arcade games, free skee ball, and private karaoke rooms.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Kung Fu Saloon industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Arcade Bar Entertainment
- NAICS
- Amusement Arcades (713120), Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (7224), Amusement Parks and Arcades (7131)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Gaming Café/Bar Hybrid Venues (Food & Beverage + Competitive Play) (MPAFALAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Neighborhood & Sports Bars (THAFAEAA), Sports Bars (CRANACAC)
Keywords
Where Kung Fu Saloon is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Antonio
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Kung Fu Saloon business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Food and Beverage Sales: Full bar service including domestic and craft beer, cocktails on tap, and specialty drinks like pickle shots. Each location has unique drink menus.
- Karaoke Room Rentals: Private karaoke room reservations at $50/hour with capacity for parties up to 15 people. Includes dedicated host service.
- Event Venue Booking: Private event bookings for parties, team building events, sports watching parties, and private screenings. Event coordinator handles inquiries.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Private Karaoke Room Rental |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Kung Fu Saloon product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Kung Fu Saloon operates Texas-based arcade-bar and restaurant venues (Austin and San Antonio) that offer a full bar and kitchen alongside free-to-play vintage arcade games, skee ball, private karaoke rooms, and bookable space for private events such as birthdays and corporate gatherings. The venues also run recurring community programs like Drink 4 A Cause and Kung Fu Masters that tie on-premises spending to charitable giving and loyalty rewards.
Product overview
Kung Fu Saloon is a Texas-based bar and restaurant chain operating two locations in Austin and San Antonio. The core offering combines vintage arcade gaming (18+ games including Galaga, Ms. Pacman, NBA Jam, Golden Tee, Big Buck Hunter) with free skee ball lanes, Giant Jenga, and Giant Connect Four. Add-on offerings include two private karaoke rooms at the San Antonio location, full bar service with craft beers and the signature pickle shots, event booking capabilities, and the Drink 4 A Cause charity program. The Kung Fu Masters sponsorship program supports local competitive athletes. All locations operate with a 21+ age requirement.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Bar and Restaurant Service Full bar service combined with a restaurant kitchen at the Austin and San Antonio locations, serving walk-in adult patrons as well as private event guests throughout operating hours.
- Vintage Arcade Gaming and Skee Ball Free-to-play retro arcade machines and skee ball lanes available on the venue floor for adult patrons and private event guests, intended as a draw to drive food and beverage sales.
- Private Karaoke Rooms Bookable private karaoke rooms available to walk-in groups and event bookers, priced on an hourly basis and suited to small gatherings and celebrations.
- Private Event Venue Booking Bookable private event packages at the Austin and San Antonio venues for birthdays, corporate events, and group celebrations, combining the bar, restaurant, arcade, skee ball, and karaoke rooms into a single venue rental.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over $250,000 donated to local nonprofits since 2009 through Drink 4 a Cause program
Companies that use Kung Fu Saloon
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Kung Fu Saloon technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Kung Fu Saloon partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor.
- Night at the FuseumminorNight at the Fuseum is an event/activity partnership or promotion at the San Antonio location, featuring museum-type experiences at the bar venue.
- Bill Smith RacingminorBill Smith races in the IMSA Porsche GT3 Challenge series with sponsorship from Yokohama and Kung Fu Saloon. He achieved four podium finishes in 2018 and three of eight Hard Charger awards, currently in fourth place nationally.
- Austin Women's Basketball League (AWBL)minorKung Fu Saloon is a two-time Platinum Sponsor of AWBL and hosts the Championship Game Day Party. The sponsored team won the Divisional Championship in Spring 2016. AWBL is a local non-profit established in 2013 providing organized competitive basketball for women 18+.
- Joe EricksonminorJoe Erickson is a beach volleyball player and organizer sponsored by Kung Fu Saloon. Currently battling Desmoid Tumors and organizing charity volleyball tournaments to benefit the Desmoid Tumor Research Foundation (DTRF).
- Angela VegaminorAngela Vega is a competitive runner and triathlete sponsored by Kung Fu Saloon. Lives in Austin and works as a personal trainer. Placed first in her age group at Rookie Triathlon in 2011 after completing her first marathon.
- Chris TietzminorChris Tietz is a professional Stand Up Paddle Boarder (SUP) sponsored by Kung Fu Saloon. Got his start in paddle board racing in 2010 with background in surfing.
- Drink 4 A Cause RecipientsminorCommunity philanthropy program where Kung Fu Saloon donates 15% of happy hour drink sales on designated days to local non-profits. Recipients include organizations such as Austin Fire Department, Gilda's Club, American Red Cross, Foster Kids, Operation Finally Home, and many others. Program started with original Austin location in 2009 and has donated over $250,000 to date.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Kung Fu Saloon competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Dave & Buster's: Dave & Buster's is the national incumbent in the arcade-plus-food-and-beverage entertainment category, operating 100+ locations. While its scale and family-skewed positioning differ from Kung Fu Saloon's adult-vintage concept, the core operating model of combining arcade games with bar/restaurant service is directly comparable.
- Main Event Entertainment: Main Event Entertainment operates a chain of family entertainment centers combining bowling, laser tag, arcade games, and food/beverage. While more family-oriented than Kung Fu Saloon's 21+ positioning, they overlap significantly in the bar-plus-games entertainment category.
- Bowlero: Bowlero is the largest bowling entertainment operator in North America, increasingly layering arcade games and bar/restaurant concepts onto its bowling centers. Their evolution toward bar-plus-games entertainment venues represents an adjacent competitive threat to arcade bar concepts.
Direct peers
- The Rec Room: The Rec Room, operated by Cineplex, combines arcade games, bar service, and event spaces in a hybrid entertainment venue format. Their entertainment-anchor positioning and bar-plus-games model are directly comparable to Kung Fu Saloon's offering.
- Punch Bowl Social: Punch Bowl Social operates a similar bar-plus-games concept combining bowling, arcade, karaoke, and full bar service, targeting the same 21+ social entertainment demographic as Kung Fu Saloon. Their multi-city footprint makes them the closest scaled comparable for the hybrid arcade-bar model.
- Caddy's: Caddy's is an arcade-bar concept operating multiple Florida locations with vintage games, bar service, and casual entertainment. Their multi-location replication strategy and bar-plus-arcade positioning closely mirror Kung Fu Saloon's operating model and target customer.
- Up/Down Arcade Bar: Up/Down is an arcade bar concept specializing in vintage and modern games paired with full bar service. They are a direct format competitor to Kung Fu Saloon, operating in similar mid-sized U.S. metros with comparable target demographics.
- Freeplay Arcade Bar: Freeplay operates arcade bar venues in Texas (Dallas) and other metros, with a vintage game focus and full bar service. Geographic overlap with Texas markets makes them a particularly direct regional comparable to Kung Fu Saloon.
Emerging players
- Pinstripes: Pinstripes operates venues combining bowling, bocce, bistro dining, and bar service in an upscale social entertainment format. While their core games differ, the social entertainment-plus-bistro concept targets the same adult group-outing demographic as Kung Fu Saloon.
- Flight Club: Flight Club operates social darts venues combining bar service with competitive gaming in a nightlife format. Their social-games-plus-bar concept targets a similar adult demographic seeking group entertainment, with an emerging specialization in a single game category.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Kung Fu Saloon social profiles
Digital presenceKung Fu Saloon financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Kung Fu Saloon leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Kung Fu Saloon funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Kung Fu Saloon M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Kung Fu Saloon
What does Kung Fu Saloon do?
Kung Fu Saloon operates Texas-based arcade-bar and restaurant venues (Austin and San Antonio) that offer a full bar and kitchen alongside free-to-play vintage arcade games, skee ball, private karaoke rooms, and bookable space for private events such as birthdays and corporate gatherings. The venues also run recurring community programs like Drink 4 A Cause and Kung Fu Masters that tie on-premises spending to charitable giving and loyalty rewards.
Is Kung Fu Saloon a public or private company?
Kung Fu Saloon is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Kung Fu Saloon founded?
Kung Fu Saloon was founded in 2009. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Kung Fu Saloon based?
Kung Fu Saloon is headquartered in San Antonio, United States, in the North America region.
How does Kung Fu Saloon make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Food and Beverage Sales are the primary driver. The others are karaoke Room Rentals and event Venue Booking.
Who are Kung Fu Saloon's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Dave & Buster's, Main Event Entertainment and Bowlero. Direct peers are The Rec Room, Punch Bowl Social, Caddy's, Up/Down Arcade Bar and Freeplay Arcade Bar. Emerging players are Pinstripes and Flight Club.
Does Kung Fu Saloon have an API?
No public API is recorded for Kung Fu Saloon.
What industry is Kung Fu Saloon in?
Kung Fu Saloon's product category is Arcade Bar Entertainment. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAFALAD, Gaming Café/Bar Hybrid Venues (Food & Beverage + Competitive Play), with a secondary code of THAFAEAA, Neighborhood & Sports Bars. Its NAICS code is 713120 and its SIC code is 5810.