La Mesa’s Coin Haus, a new Cohn Restaurant Success

In this day and age when video games are complicated, multi-player and social engaged, it is great to find a place where both old and young can enjoy the classics found in video arcades. “Donkey Kong,” “VS Duck Hunt,” “PAC-MAN” are standard titles that have made marks across generations. Put some pinball, multi-player hockey and a great collection of vintage arcade games, add 50 taps of self-served beer and you have the Cohn Restaurant Group’s newest addition to the family, the Coin Haus.

In this day and age when video games are complicated, multi-player and social engaged, it is great to find a place where both old and young can enjoy the classics found in video arcades. “Donkey Kong,” “VS Duck Hunt,” “PAC-MAN” are standard titles that have made marks across generations. Put some pinball, multi-player hockey and a great collection of vintage arcade games, add 50 taps of self-served beer and you have the Cohn Restaurant Group’s newest addition to the family, the Coin Haus. And La Mesa is ground zero for this newest adult only entertainment experience to the CRG enterprise, and it is shaping up to be a great attraction, good for business and even better for the community.

Cohn Restaurant Group Operations Manager Edmund Burke said that David Cohn is always pondering what will be the most exciting and fun concept for its guests.

“The self-pour phenomenon is quickly catching fire and is enjoyed by a public who is intrigued by an interactive, hands-on experience,” he said. “Combining this concept with the allure and charm of retro video games seems to be a great marriage.”

Coin Haus Manager Matt Martens agreed and said in terms at looking around at what is available in other self-pouring or gaming businesses he feels Coin Haus is the birth child of blending the two together.

“It is different and it seems everyone is enjoying it,” said Martens. “They like the combination of beer and games and the decor in here is a big pull. There is really a lot of freedom for people in here. You can pour what you want as much as you want. You can play games without having to have quarters in your pocket. It is really simple.”

The warehouse feel of Coin Haus is as appealing as the self-serving taps and games. It does not serve food and Martens said some people like that and others do not, but that being said, it is a referral mecca for the restaurants in the village.

“We have La Torta here, Bo-Beau’s there, Johnny B’s as well, so people that are not really from La Mesa ask us where they can eat and we refer them to these places in the surrounding community,” said Martens. “So I think that the places around here have had a considerable jump in business with us being here. It only makes sense with the volume coming here and all of the food establishments around us. I think we’ve made some friends in the neighborhood due to this and everyone has been welcoming and friendly to us. The Cohn brothers have been right here with us with Bo-Beau’s, so they have their foot the door in the La Mesa community.”

Martens said extending on the wristband and both concepts of self-pour and gaming that the Cohn Restaurant Group really seems to have read into the childhood memories when it comes to this place.

Coin Haus is a exciting new adventure with 50 different taps, all self-serve beverages and also the retro video games. With the self serve taps it serves by the ounce. So each tablet displays the price per ounce. This means people can come in and pour samples of different beverages or pour a full glass of the beverage that they like.

The games are all per play, some $.050, some $0.75 and a couple of bigger ones that are $1.

“The coolest part is that it is all through the wristband,” he said. “We check people in, create a tab (debit or credit) and everyone in the party will receive a wristband. They can tap the beverage with the wristband and pour as much as they like and also walk around and tap into the games.”

Coin Haus offers beer, wine, meads, ciders and quite a few options, including coffee and soda. While you are drinking, the wristband has a 32-ounce ceiling. When you hit the limit it tells you to find a friendly staff member to help you reload.

“On our end, that is way to regulate how much people are drinking in here since it is self serving,” said Martens. “It is paralleled with California law for self-serving establishments. We can reload the wristband as long as the person is not over inebriated.”

Burke said CRG is happy to report that its guests are overwhelmingly excited and supportive of its new concept, already having a 4.5 rating on Yelp!

“With a winning concept that fits any number of markets, we will most definitely be looking for opportunities to develop similarly styled operations,” he said.