Ricochet game lounge, bar set to open in long-vacant space at Capital Square

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This first-floor space at Capital Square, 400 Locust St., has been vacant since the Embassy Club moved to the Ruan Center about 15 years ago. Ricochet Game Lounge & Social Bar is slated to open in the space this fall. Photo special to the Business Record.

Ricochet, Des Moines’ first game lounge that had been located in the East Village, is expanding and moving west into Capital Square into space that has been vacant for about 15 years.

Ricochet opened in 2014 at 504 E. Locust St., on the floor above the concert venue Wooly’s. It will now occupy about 10,000 square feet that the Embassy Club vacated 15 years ago in Capital Square, 400 Locust St. In addition, a 100-seat patio is planned that will overlook the updated Cowles Commons.

“We love that we’re smack downtown but still a little bit off the beaten path,” said Brad Argo, concept developer of the original Ricochet, which has closed. “We’re connected with the skywalk, and that will be a big plus.”

Richochet grew after it opened in the East Village, but “we realized we needed a full bar and to be open more than we were,” said Argo, who is teaming up with Mike Utley, Richochet concept designer and owner of Americana Restaurant, to launch Ricochet Game Lounge & Social Bar.

The lounge and bar will include game tables, lounge areas and a full-service bar that features local craft beers and cocktails. Games will include regulation-size table tennis, foosball, billiards, bags, shuffleboard and darts.

Construction of the space is beginning soon; the lounge and social bar is expected to be open by late fall, Argo said. While hours of the game lounge and bar haven’t been set, Argo expects it to be open six or seven days a week.  

Ricochet has a lot of history in downtown Des Moines. Initially the company started as a table tennis league called “King Pong,” which started in 2011 at the Des Moines Social Club.

“When we started the league, we always felt there was a lot of people interested in table tennis, and we weren’t wrong,” Argo said. Tournament slots quickly filled up, he said. “It was also great to see players from all over the world, that now reside in Des Moines, enjoying the camaraderie that the game gives us.”

Argo and Utley have trademarked Ricochet and are making plans to expand throughout the Midwest.