We Had Dinner at Be-Bop/Boomers Cafe!

During my high school years in the eighties, Boomers! was formerly known as Bullwinkle's. It is still Boomers! except for its main dining area which is now named Be-bop Cafe. You can find it near the corner of Benson Ave. and Moreno/7th St in the city of Upland, California. It is similar in layout to that of Scandia, Chuck E. Cheese, and Pharaoh's Lost Kingdom in that the main attraction is its family style atmosphere, arcade games that pay out tickets for players to exchange for prizes, indoor/outdoor rides, and dining.

We went there on a weekday to have dinner. It had been quite some time since we last went to Boomers! so we were a little confused to see the sign 'Be-bop Cafe' above the door of the main dining area of Boomers! Although both establishments have different names, they are still both under the Boomer! umbrella. However, according to the cashier, the name change occurred more than a year ago and the two buildings are now owned by two different entities.

First Impressions
We brought our two girls and they were delighted to be greeted by several life sized caricatures or people painted on wood with the faces cut out. The caricatures included, a mini-Elvis, a beach couple cladded in swimsuits, a girl with a poodle skirt and roller skates, and a pianist on a baby grand piano. They rushed behind each of the wood planks to peep through the hole where the face had been cut out and asked to be photographed. These caricatures were located at the foyer of Be-bop cafe; this placement is excellent in providing entertainment for those waiting in line to place their order. That night, however, there was no line. We were able to go in and place our order immediately.

Placing Our Order
We ordered the family special for $23.99 which included a one-topping large pizza (about 10 slices), 4 bottomless drinks and 25 free tokens for the games. They did offer a buffet comprised of all-you-can-eat pizza and buffalo wings for $6. The cashier was helpful in pointing out to us the best selection for our situation that had the most value. We opted for the family special because it included the tokens and our appetites could only handle about 2 slices each (there were a total of 4 of us). When all was over, we ended up taking home 3 pizza slices which the kids were more than happy to have packed in their lunches the next day.

Decor
The overall motif of the Be-bop Cafe is set in the 50's Era. Vinyl records, photographs of famous celebrities of that era like Elvis & Lucille Ball adorned the walls and hallways of the restaurant. On the wall at the entrance of the bathrooms was an adorable painted mural of a boy & a girl dressed in 50's attire to indicate the respective door for each bathroom.

Dining Area
The dining area was enormous. I estimate it to be at least 2000-2500sf. On one end were tables and chairs, on the other end was a big screen projector TV. On the wall where the TV was placed, one can see another mural: a shot of the feet of a girl's a poodle skirt hem are shown. On the opposite side of the TV is a mock soda bar complete with stools that extends from the floor, up the 20 ft (estimate) wall to the ceiling. The mere size of the dining area was impressive, however, that night only about 4-5 families were there watching Monday Night Football & eating dinner. This gave us the feeling that nobody dines there much -- or at least on Mondays.

Service
Our server could have smiled a little more as she came up to our table. She did not even introduce herself as she approached. How could we have been certain that she was our waitress? I'll give her the benefit of the doubt on her character, but as a waitress, she needs to brush up on her basic social skills. She did deliver our pizza to our table in a prompt, timely manner. Maybe she was new, maybe she was having an 'off-night,' however, to encourage diners to come back, she needs to exude 'friendliness.' In fact, I don't remember even hearing her voice as she serviced us that night.

Games
We proceeded to the games after dinner. The games were typical of an establishment like that and included the 'claw,' the spider stomper, skee ball, etc. For a school night, the 25 free tokens were enough for our 6 and 8 year old to be entertained for at least 30 minutes before we headed home. They were able to accumulate 96 tickets with their efforts which they exchanged for little toy prizes at the end of the evening.

We did not venture out to the outdoor rides/activities which included a rock climbing tower because it was getting late. Perhaps, on the next visit we'll be able to test out the rides.

Overall, Be-bop Cafe was satisfactory. It's a good local place to take your family out for dinner and have some fun without having to spend your entire savings account.