Barcadia – Those “loaded fries”


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T. Rollin
1 year ago

Kim Justice has rolled into Norwich and gone on a bit of a pub crawl and gastronomic side quest if Twitter is to be believed. Barcadia is conspicuously absent. Make of this what you will.

P. Ness
P. Ness
1 year ago

Peter must be spending every waking hour perfecting his spoogey chips.
Over on his Discord, Patreon members lost access to their exclusive channels almost a week ago. He’s nowhere to be seen.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  P. Ness

You’d think someone would have done a video about the place, a mini review or something. Nothing to be seen on Youtube.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Well they always say “hippy” businesses are the most ruthless. Not to say PL is a hippy but he has a lot in common with them.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

I guess we’re just waiting for the organic detox fries to appear on the menu 🙂

Bert
1 year ago

Reviews for the place are up. Mostly positive but then I saw Kim Justice as one of the reviews and so it seemed pretty clear most of these reviews are for people who backed it or are in the loop.

A couple of more honest reviews:

https://g.co/kgs/ccvNCp
https://g.co/kgs/y7Vdmk

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Another more negative review, nobody is playing the machines hmmm?

https://goo.gl/maps/YTCuoNEvc74UrHJM8

T. Rollin
1 year ago

Barcadia got a mention on This Week in Retro. It was interesting to see and hear how the three guys handled it.

Neil carefully tip-toed around it.
Dave seemed unimpressed by it.
Chris prettry much ignored it.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

*pretty

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

Neil was pretty positive actually. But the location seemed to be the issue for most of them.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Neil doesn’t have a bad word to say about anybody. Bless him.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

Well he said he would go there often if he was local. But then perhaps he’s not seen the prices. It’s a fair point that you can just walk in off the street and the other arcade has an entrance fee. The tokens are something I wonder about, will people just spend a few and then leave with the rest to return in the future and then possibly not, meaning there will be a lot of tokens out there in the wild.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

True. He also pointed out that Barcadia seems more like a pub that has arcade machines in it rather than an arcade as such, and he referenced Retro Replay. But it did seem like he was trying to counter Dave’s subtle yet obvious disdain for it (and good on Dave for inferring what a lot of us are thinking).

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Lets face it, there’s only so much Patreon money to go around and even less when people have to choose between paying their electric bill or supporting some grifting plank on youtube.

P. Ness
P. Ness
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

Neil was one of the first backers on Kickstarter. No idea which tier.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Wouldn’t surprise me if he was a Mekon as well, especially when he’s someone that decided the channel name retro man cave is bad and needed to change, even though he’s a man and he has a cave.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

I can’t bash Neil too hard for that. Trannies are going out their way to ruin everything these days, and the retro scene is infested* with the fuckers.

*BTW I don’t put Kim in this bucket because they at least have the good sense to keep their orientation out of their content.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

The only people who would get offended at man cave are the perpetually offended who never spend any money.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

All I would say it watch this video, it’s very informative and explains why films etc have pandered to a very small minority of people. The media companies rely on these silly statistics providers who skew the results in favour of their agenda.

Bert
1 year ago
frot_hat_gaming
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Finally, we have prices on tokens, and opening times.

And confirmation that the objective measure called ‘atmosphere’ was deemed to be “great”

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Bert
1 year ago

50p a go on the cabs isn’t too bad if you’re only going to have a quick go. Not sure if they listened to us on here by opening in the day (until 8pm) so kids can visit with parents? But then most kids will want some crunchy chicken burgers and chips without pizza toppings or marshmallows on them.

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frot_hat_gaming
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

I like that you’ve been downvoted on the basis that 50p a go is in their view bad, or your assumptions around what children like to eat is in their view, wrong. Possibly both.

I’ll also downvote you because I follow popular opinion and need others to direct me in life.

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Bert
1 year ago

Oh I’m so hurt, I don’t think I can go on much longer now, maybe I’ll have a kickstarter and raise money for a book 😀 But I’m amazed at someone who is running a business finds time to come over here and read all this stuff and rate it.

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Bert
1 year ago

And I just downvoted my own post.

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Bert
1 year ago

It’s like people have become what they hate. So many people hated Trump yet they’re about as thin skinned as he is, can’t take a bit of criticism. In the case of the Don it’s because that’s the New York way, someone calls you an ahole you call them one too. That line from Ghostbusters 2 from the mayor says it best, about treating everyone else like dirt is ever New Yorkers god given right.

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P. Ness
P. Ness
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Oh but look at all the great reviews suddenly on Google, mostly from circle members.

T. Rollin
1 year ago

Looks like the loaded fries have been tweaked a bit (source: twitter.com/wils_2k)

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Why not throw in some marzipan and avacado for the sake of it too.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

I read in the press today that sales of all this vegan stuff is down quite a lot. Oak milk especially.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

That’s the thing with a lot of vegan stuff, it’s worse for the environment if it has to be shipped halfway around the world.

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T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Some people can make their own nut milk too, but I wouldn’t recommend trying it.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Squirrel shit is vegan, there’s a hazelnut in every bite.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  George

I was quite taken by the cat sick drizzled over the top of this particular example.

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Bert
1 year ago

Ashens is now referencing the place in his videos, only made it a few mins into the latest one before I turned off. Basically repeating himself now, they did a dodgy can of Diet Pepsi years ago.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

It’s gotten to the point where the content as about a thread-bare as that old sofa. It’s not like he can’t write either, the two or three Norwich Gaming Festival videos he did were funny enough. But I dunno, I think the products at pound shops and online just isn’t hilariously bad any more and watching someone eat horrific food for the umpteenth time is wearing thin.

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T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

That dodgy old Pepsi still looks more appetising than those loaded fries

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

Now Ashens doing a video on those dessert fries might actually get me to subscribe again. But sadly it seems like my Youtube subs list it diminishing fast. Isn’t anyone capable of doing anything funny now?

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Oh I certainly do. The chat with Simon especially. That was great to listen to while I was building my 3D printer (it’s done now).

Every site seems to let advertisers control what people can say now. Sometimes the words you can’t use are even words in the content you just watched.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

I watched a few channels like that around the time of the Last of Us 2 nonsense but unsubbed from all of them now as they were getting tiresome. Throwing the term “woke” around is just pointless.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  George

There’s a better “w” word than “woke” to describe those sorts of people.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Yep. The Last of Us 2 having a bad story and trying to impart social justice and identity politics into a post-apoc world were all the weaklings who believe in that sort of stuff would be dead in months.

But also the fact the story leaked and all the things Sony did to try to stop the leak, abusing the DMCA system. Oh and the fact the access media all gave it 10/10 and Sony to this day has never disclosed the true sales numbers.

The access media has kinda done the same with the new Zelda game which I’m playing but am not loving as much as Breath of the Wild. It’s not terrible but I feel like things you could get away with in 2017 are probably looking a bit dated in 2023. Why is there’s some voice acting and then the rest of the time its text. The performance is still dogshit too.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

The TV show was almost pointless. If it followed the game then people would like the episode but ask why it was being made. If it didn’t follow the game then people said it was just pointless filler.

Now that the first season is over the only thing they can do now is made the awful second game story. I can’t see myself watching that. I couldn’t motivate myself to play the game given the awful writing and plot.

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marccarran
marccarran
1 year ago

The fact that this is a “vegan” bar, just stinks of a “I’m thinking about myself and my mates” kind of thing, which is not a good idea for business.
By all means, open up a food establishment and go for a “specialist” area, but when this bar is part of a “gaming establishment” your kind of implying what type of clientele you want here.
If it were up to them, they would probably discriminate against non-vegans and ban anyone who’s wearing animal products, that’s the kind of vibe you get when you offer a service, like gaming, which should be considered inclusive, but then attach something which should be a personal choice.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  marccarran

Having seen pictures of the place on Twitter it seems okay in terms of how they’ve fixed the place up. Although you can’t always tell from pictures. The jungle decor thing seems to have been affected by agent orange. But they seem to have some good cabs?

Slice and Dice has good reviews but this place will have a different menu. One is food for people having a fun lunch, the other is for people who are a bit drunk. Although even drunk people don’t want marshmallows on their chips.

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T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  George

They could have at least painted the walls jungle green. That would make the 10 quid’s worth of plastic vines from Poundland look a lot less scabby.

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P. Ness
P. Ness
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Good cabs? They’re alright, but who has a single Daytona cab? The photos make them look awkwardly positioned too. I suspect the space is much smaller than it initially appeared.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  P. Ness

Well, they have Out Run which is “good”. A classic. Although as we know, these are basically being rented and will most likely be returned at some point.

Also, at this stage in their life I kinda see having classic cabs out in the wild being used to earn money to be a bad thing. A bit like using a classic car as a taxi.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Looking at the pics Kim Justice put on Twitter they have:

Asteroids, Centipede, Burger Time, Mortal Kombat, Out Run, Xybots, Frogger, Marvel vs Capcom, Ghosts n Goblins, House of the Dead.

One of the other machines is busted already, but that’s to be expected from such old machines, usually the CRT or PSU that gives up.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Cabs do take up a fair bit of space (I only have one upright and a cocktail one). Plus they’re on loan? how much does a decent retro cab go for now? just the Out Run PCB alone goes for £600 on ebay.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Thing is, when you played them back in the day you’d have a quick game and then move on. But when they’re free you start to realise how tiring it is standing up leaning over them.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  marccarran

“Gatekeeping” is such a hackneyed term that it’s basically a meme, yet it’s the perfect description of what Barcardia is attempting with its strictly vegan-only menu. NN also comes across as the gatekeeping type, lest someone else who is not part of The Circle Jerk come along and take any of the ever diminishing shekels from the YouTuber pot.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

Anyone who starts a business is perfectly entitled to set out their beliefs and ethics. However they can’t then turn around and complain that footfall was low if they’ve excluded the majority of people.

A nightclub I went to years ago used to have one room open early as a sort of pre-club meeting place for drinks. They kept complaining that nobody was using it and said “use it or lose it”. They completely misunderstood that people get drunk at home first then go out to the club.

frot_hat_gaming
1 year ago
Reply to  George

I don’t know why, but it sort of cheeses me off that some of these muppets have seen the SF2 movie already (I don’t include Quang as he’s a proper Street Fighter head and a cool dude in person too)

frot_hat_gaming
1 year ago

Sorry. The ‘here comes a new challenger ‘ kickstarter.

frot_hat_gaming
1 year ago
Reply to  marccarran

I’m going to start up my own arcade bar but the kitchen will only produce food beginning with the letter K.

And the launch party will only be mates and people who are prepared to listen to me rattle on about how hard I’ve worked.

No children. And all pets are welcome. For a fee. Unless they’re prepared to listen to me rattle on about how busy I’ve been.

T. Rollin
1 year ago

Does ketamine count as a food?

frot_hat_gaming
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

Pets on Ket. A good name for a band or a niche barcade.

Max Levin
1 year ago

Speaking of cum: am I seeing this wrong, or did they (unevenly)sprinkle sesame seeds over this… creation?

Steven Kennett
Steven Kennett
1 year ago

Holy shit! Are those marshmallows? LOL Jesus christ…

OrdosAlpha
OrdosAlpha
1 year ago

Well, I definitely won’t be gracing the place with my custom if I’m ever in Norwich. I’ve seen pigswill that looks far more appetizing. Plus, I also can’t stand the arsehole running it.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  OrdosAlpha

It wasn’t until I watched the youtube parody video earlier that I realised just how annoying he is. When he said Barcadia was going to be the best retro bar in the world I just had to chuckle.

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Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Time will tell. But the location wasn’t great to start with, a rundown pub that’s been empty for a few years? If that was prime real-estate it would have been snapped up in no time. I can see that offering an “experience” is a valid idea, in my town we have a venue with mini golf, pool etc. These are however things you can’t easily replicate at home, but you can play arcade games. Sure, emulation and not on the real machines but there’s only one or two games where the real cab makes a huge difference, driving type games, vector games (Battle Zone etc) and lightgun.

P. Ness
P. Ness
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Nerd is so high on his own farts he probably thinks he has a better chance than most to make it a success. Just take a look at his old entrepreneurial blog.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

I can just see him doing a Gareth Cheeseman. “You’re a tiger……raaaaaaaaaar”.

chithecynic
chithecynic
1 year ago

I genuinely think these are fries covered in marshmallows and glacé cherries, as Kim Justice has tweeted that “dessert fries aren’t my thing” in reference to the Barcadia dry run. Dessert. Fries. 🥴

B3tan_Tyronne
1 year ago
Reply to  chithecynic

Dessert fries?
WTF

Never in a million years when eating chips or fries have I ever thought ‘these really need to be mixed with a dessert’.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  B3tan_Tyronne

Given this is a partnership between NN and someone else I do wonder if these fries were his dumb idea. I’ve done some odd things in the past, Butterkist popcorn on top of ice cream (it does work), but I draw the line at putting cheese on chips.

chithecynic
chithecynic
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Yeah, plus if you are going to make something called “dessert fries”, surely you’ve got to try a bit harder than just “make fries and throw some marshmallows and cherries on top”? I think the whole concept is gross, but it’s not even like they’ve tried very hard to make something innovative. It’s just lazy.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  chithecynic

Call me old-fashioned, but I think potato is not something you associate with pudding. Unless your idea of dessert is a bag of crisps. Even potato salad is a bit hit n miss with me.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  chithecynic

Maybe he thinks weird food is “retro”. After all, we had Hedgehog crisps in the 80s.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Try it. But it has to be Butterkist toffee popcorn. I hate cinema style popcorn.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  chithecynic

Just be thankful they’re not desert fries, those would have sand on them.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Sand would probably be an improvement tbh

Colonel basic
Colonel basic
1 year ago

They served it in a camp site ash tray with glaced cherries, it’s put me off my roast beef lunch i’m about to eat.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  Colonel basic

A few fag butts would probably improve how it tastes.

Colonel basic
Colonel basic
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

It would certainly improve the presentation for sure

Colonel basic
Colonel basic
1 year ago
Reply to  Colonel basic

Looking at it reminds me of this picture where you can’t make anything out https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/comments/bghyv5/this_picture_is_designed_to_give_the_viewer_the/

P. Ness
P. Ness
1 year ago
Reply to  Colonel basic

The ashtray is just bizarre. Why?Are they reusing them? If they’re not, why not use cheaper paper-based alternatives?
Could they not afford crockery with the £25k?

Preston Thomas
Preston Thomas
1 year ago

OMG my kids could do (and has) better.

It gives the meaning “eat shit and die” a whole new meaning.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Preston Thomas

Well they did say it was “vegan junk food”.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Well, the fries are £5 at Slice n Dice. But that’s without all the random cake toppings thrown on top.

Stevieboy74
1 year ago

The second I saw that photo I thought cheap oven chips from Iceland, marshmallows and glacé cherries. I mean come on now, George…who wouldn’t be prepared to pay at least FUCK ALL for a smashing plate that looked like that?? I genuinely dread to see what the burgers look like.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Stevieboy74

Vegan marshmallows, as the usual ones have beef gelatine in them. That adds £10 to the cost lol

Stevieboy74
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

The grift that keeps on giving (or taking as the case may be)

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Stevieboy74

The strange thing is if you read both the Google reviews and Trip Advisor reviews for the Slice n Dice place they’re good reviews. So why on earth would they serve up such pigswill on such an important night?

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Oh and I should add that decent food doesn’t mean profits and a successful business. In my own town there’s a place selling amazing pizzas, proper rustic Italian pizza cooked in a wood powered oven. But does it do well? nope. It’s barely ever open and they even had to beg for orders for their own beer shop to stay afloat. They only took delivery orders Fri/Sat and I had one of my orders cancelled once.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Maybe Peter asked Ashens to taste the food and provide feedback 🙂

P. Ness
P. Ness
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

I’d cut Nerd some slack and suggest it’s Dazz’s recipe, but given his “talent” he’d be incapable of such an original idea. Unless they are ripped off from somewhere.

Geezer
Admin
1 year ago

Even ChatGPT doesn’t manage to fuck it up.

What would I put with vegan loaded fries?
ChatGPT
There are many delicious toppings you can add to vegan loaded fries. Here are some ideas:

Vegan cheese sauce or shredded vegan cheese
Guacamole or avocado slices
Vegan sour cream or yogurt
Salsa or pico de gallo
Chopped tomatoes, onions, and cilantro
Vegan chili
Sautéed mushrooms and onions
Roasted vegetables like peppers and zucchini
Vegan bacon bits or tempeh bacon
Jalapeños or other spicy peppers
You can mix and match these toppings to create your own unique combination of vegan loaded fries. Enjoy!

The Furthest Man From Home
The Furthest Man From Home
1 year ago

Good Grief, that’s worse than the slop the works canteen serves up.

Barfcadia is a more apt title for this absolute disaster in the making.

Bert
1 year ago

I know some places serve “dirty fries” but those look like they’ve been fished out of a dustbin.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Ah, we’ve guessed what they’ll be called on the menu now…..Catweasel loaded fries 😀

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T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  George

It’ll probably be 15 quid. If you’re lucky, Barcadia *might* offer a meal deal with the loaded fries and a pint of single source organic vegan ale for 20.

B3tan_Tyronne
1 year ago

Not only am I looking forward to seeing pics of the rest of the food on offer, as if it is presented as well as this then we are in for a treat BUT I am really looking forward to seeing the prices.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  B3tan_Tyronne

Comparable to Slice and Dice I’d imagine, burgers from £13-18. £14 for Burrito. Drinks seem more reasonable.

Oh and card/contactless payments only, no cash. Perhaps they can’t count out change?

JamesP
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Those new plastic bank notes are not vegan ! , so that might be why its cashless

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Still, with cash not allowed they can’t do any accounting tricks. Probably why the other place needed a cash injection.

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P. Ness
P. Ness
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Bit of a contradiction to be cashless but handling tokens for the machine.

JamesP
1 year ago
Reply to  George

I cant be the only one that thinks this will fail it has zero and I mean zero chance of lasting a year.

So with regards to the opening hours NN was telling people one thing and the staff where telling them something different. Sounds like he has no clue what’s going on If the prices are anything like S&D you wont get much change out of £20 for a burger and a pint

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  JamesP

That’s the flaw with the whole thing, it is way too upmarket in its pricing. It’s a special occasion type place and given it’s a bar it won’t even be used by families as they won’t be allowed in.

frot_hat_gaming
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Can confirm. The reviews were great. Especially all the barcadia and lady d news in the middle sections.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

What, Peter “You want more?” Leigh mixing with the great unwashed?

Frisky Dingo
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

I said it before, as have other people who’ve met him. He’s a stuck up arsehole.

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Jim
Jim
1 year ago
Reply to  George

Those behind the 25k lost their money the moment the mystery benefactor stepped in to get them over the line. If they were buying shares in the business you could (sort of) understand it…

Vlad
Vlad
1 year ago

Hahahahahaha That was amazing George!!!

JamesP
1 year ago

From the pictures I was it looked like a mess. Some plastic plants nailed to the walls, the cabs looked in a right state. The food looked just wrong. So it opens to the pubic in a week and NN has only told a few people about the opening hours and we still dont know the price of tokens

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  JamesP

As the old saying goes “If you have to ask the price you can’t afford it”.

frot_hat_gaming
1 year ago
Reply to  George

“Champing at the bit”

It’s refreshing to see the phrase written or said correctly. Nice work!

Bert
1 year ago

Loaded fries? seems like they got an “R TAPE LOAD ERROR”.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

Those loaded fries seem to suffer badly from colour clash as well.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  George

I’d sooner have a Rustlers (they do a veggie one now, it’s not bad) or McCain Microchips if that’s the best they can do.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  Bert

That probably applies to most mass produced foods though. I helped my father do a few days job at a Cadburys factory once. They told my father not to worry if he dropped any nuts or bolts into the system as the magnet would fish them out. Oh and Dairy Milk is the only “pure” chocolate, the rest is a mixture of broken returns and fresh.

T. Rollin
1 year ago
Reply to  George

All good… I know there are plenty of dodgy geezers out there posting sus pics… like those loaded fries…

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

But they’re loaded with vegan splooge, so they’re ethical.

Bert
1 year ago
Reply to  T. Rollin

Any vids on this whole affair are appreciated. When browsing DJ Slops video there was on about Kickstarter worst people, but no mention of NN at all.