Founders of Glitch Bar Open Fort Lauderdale Pinball and Pizza Arcade

The founders of Glitch Bar, Fort Lauderdale's beloved, indie arcade lounge, have struck again — and its calzones may be some of the best I've ever had.

Satellite Pinball Lounge has quietly opened at 3501 Dixie Hwy. in the super-burgeoning Oakland Park neighborhood, which is just north of Fort Lauderdale. It's nestled between the future brick-and-mortar home of BMC Smashburgers and a soon-to-open Meat N' Bone butcher outpost.

For months, locals (including myself) have wondered why a mysterious and sleek black building with bold, yellow, orange, and red horizontal stripes had been under construction. Now we know why — it's home to what might be the hippest pinball spot in South Florida.
Whereas its exterior is simplistic and the patio has four simple tables and umbrellas, its interior is bursting with color and flavor. You'll find 18 pinball machines from franchises like Game of Thrones and the Walking Dead and bands like Foo Fighters, Rush, and Led Zeppelin. Leave your quarters at home — the machines take tokens, the play runs $1 for three balls and there is a bill conversion machine on site. Visually, you'll also find retired pinball playfields, classic guitars, and stoplights on the walls. Plus, there is a central, quartz-topped bar with a dozen taps and quirky alien garb on its shelves.

Altogether, it feels like a vintage rock club with pinball and booze taking center stage.

On a recent Wednesday night, 35 people packed into the bar, most of whom were there for a corporate outing. The collective acoustics felt like a bowling alley — the machines were dinging up a storm with pinball-induced "Ughs" and "Yeahs" providing the chorus.

Therefore, it is not the place for quietly reading poetry or delicately pouring your heart out to your boo, that's for sure.
Sitting at the bar, I snagged a can of sour beer sourced from the Charleston, South Carolina hotspot Edmonds Oast and a hazy IPA draft from local brewery Civil Society ($9). Beer costs $5 to $12, and there is an intimate wine and non-alcoholic menu. However, there are no cocktails on the menu, as they don't serve liquor.

I was then told, "If you're ordering pizza, it will take a while," as I stared at two empty pizza racks around the whole bar. I later learned it was because the pizza oven was broken that day. Attached to Satellite Pinball Lounge is Moon Pizza Pie — you can order oven-fired pies from its menu within the pinball lounge.

On the first day I went (yes, I came back another day to order pizza and calzones — more on that in a second), I went for some fried ravioli ($7), the "Loaded Comet Fries" ($12) with ground beef, mozzarella, and cheddar cheese, pickled onions, jalapeño, and a ranch/ketchup drizzle, and the "Eclipse Calzone" ($23) loaded with pepperoni, sausage, mozzarella, and ricotta cheese.

The ravioli was ultra toasty, the comet fries could have been a little toastier, and the beef further seasoned but I was left speechless by that calzone.
The calzone is a total winner that can feed you for days. It's delightfully crisp, hot, and stuffed with heaps of sausage and fresh ricotta. I was so impressed by the calzone that I went back to the lounge to try the pizza from Moon Pizza Pie. I had the pepperoni and hot honey pizza called "Pepperoni H" for $19 and the meatball-topped "Out of Space" pizza for $21.

However, all I could think about was that ridiculously good calzone.

The bottom line: A very good time is to be had at Satellite Pinball Lounge as it inevitably becomes the cool new spot to be in Oakland Park. But do yourself a favor when you get there and order a calzone. You're welcome.

Satellite Pinball Lounge. 3501 Dixie Hwy., Oakland Park; 954-728-0659; instagram.com/satellitepinballlounge. Open 5 p.m. to Midnight Monday through Thursday; 4 p.m. to Midnight Friday; and Noon to Midnight Saturday and Sunday.