Deep in the heart of Texas – Austin to be exact – there is an amazing movie theater – some might say the best movie theater – called the Alamo Drafthouse. One of the many, many reasons the Drafthouse is so great is that every other row of seats has been removed and replaced with a bar, and you get beer and food service while you watch the movie, like having a restaurant right there in the theater. So when it was recently brought to my attention that there is a 'dining at the movie' style theater operating in the heart of the Denver suburbs – Thornton to be exact – I was curious to see how this place stacked up. So on a cold Sunday a couple weeks ago, my significant other and a good mix of family came along with me to check this 'Cinebarre' place out. We went to see Sherlock Holmes, which, though I thought I was going to hate it, turned out to be a surprisingly fun flick. It was the perfect vibe for scoping out the new theater. So how did Cinebarre stack up against the Alamo? Let's break it down:
PRESENTATION
The first thing you notice when you walk into the Cinebarre theater is that there is no stadium seating. This may not seem like a deal breaker, but it actually makes a huge difference when waitstaff is constantly walking in front of you to take orders and deliver food and drinks. The stadium seating at the Alamo makes it entirely possible to ignore the waitstaff if you want to just enjoy the movie. Not so easy when your waiter or waitress is towering above you, right in front of the screen.
Point goes to the Alamo
Alamo: 1
Cinebarre: 0
FOOD
Okay, neither the Alamo nor Cinebarre count as fine dining. The pizzas are greasy. The onion rings are greasier. But you're not going to break the bank eating at either place. Both menus offer a similar selection of pizzas, burgers, and finger foods. The Alamo Drafthouse is smack dab in the middle of Austin, where you can throw a stone and hit 6 restaurants that will blow your mind. Maybe it suffers by the comparison, but food-wise, I gotta give it up to Cinebarre. The food there is surprisingly pretty tasty.
Point goes to Cinebarre
Alamo: 1
Cinebarre: 1
PROGRAMMING
At least at this point in its operation, Cinebarre plays only first run movies, which means that the 'dining at the movie' experience is really the only thing separating it from any old megaplex. The Alamo, on the other hand plays not only first run movies, but a disturbingly wide variety of premieres, cult classics, sing-a-longs, quote-a-longs, a horror movie night, a 'weird' movie night, and myriad other themed events. Their archive is so strong, 42nd Street Forever released a trailer compilation DVD dedicated to their collection alone. They have an accumulation of Shaw Brothers film prints that numbers in the thousands.
Point obviously goes to the Alamo.
Alamo: 2
Cinebarre: 1
EVENTS
Are we starting to sense the quality gap, kiddies? Well, if you're not yet, let me lay this trip on you: The Alamo Drafthouse regularly hosts moviemakers from around the world at crazy premiere events. The lady who runs the thrift store across the street from the South Lamar Alamo once told me that they once had a giant robotic man running around and burning things in the parking lot. This is unsubstantiated, and furthermore, I have no idea what movie this was for. Iron Man? The point is they get the choice premieres, and they do them up right. Because that isn't enough the Drafthouse regularly hosts themed food screenings: hobbit and elvish food at Lord of the Rings, Elvis' favorite meal at Viva Las Vegas. They even host movie-themed Iron Chef competitions. They couldn't stop there, either. Oh no. They host the movie half of SXSW, as well as Fantastic Fest, their own weeklong sci-fi and horror fest, and the holy grail of geek, Butt-Numb-A-Thon, a 24-hour straight movie extravaganza hosted by Ain't It Cool News' Harry Knowles. And just to blow the lid off, some summers they pack up the van for the Alamo Rolling Roadshow, showing classic movies on a giant inflatable screen at the actual iconic settings featured in the movies. Close Encounters at Devil's Tower for instance:
What do you have to offer in the way of events, Cinebarre? What's that, I couldn't hear you. Mile High Sci-Fi? Oh, you mean that Mystery Science Theater rip-off, but instead of making fun of actual bad movies they make fun of awesome movies like Big Trouble in Little China? Hey wait a minute, you don't even host that anymore. They moved to the Starz Film Center. So, nothing?
Do you even have to ask? Point: Alamo
Alamo: 3
Cinebarre: 1
ALAMO WINS!!!
Okay I know this is kind of a David and Goliath thing. Obviously the Alamo is pretty much the most amazing theater in the country (though there are a few notable challengers), and there was really never any question whether it would win.
That's not the point. The point is that even though it's no Alamo Drafthouse, Cinebarre is pretty cool, and absolutely worth the drive from downtown Denver up I-25 to Thornton. They go out of their way to offer all sorts of deals and low ticket prices. I mean, they'll make their money with food, so why gouge up the ticket price? The staff is friendly, and if you're gonna see the movie anyway, why not make a day of it?
Instead of taking your lady or gent to dinner and then a movie, why not save money of the movie and eat while you watch? That leaves more time for hanky-panky later. You're welcome.
Fun Fact: At karaoke night, I may or may not have sang ABBA's Dancing Queen in front of Alamo Drafthouse founder and owner Tim League.
-Ben