Bryan Schubert grew up spending countless hours on the two pinball machines in his parents' basement. Years later, as owner and brewer at Millpond Brewing in Millstadt, Illinois, he set out to recreate that experience in his taproom.
A collaboration with Mikerphone Brewing eventually put him in touch with Stern Pinball and a local vendor, who placed machines at Millpond. Customers can now play Foo Fighters, Guardians of the Galaxy, Iron Maiden and Star Wars. "Craft beer and tactile, retro arcade games just go hand-in-hand," Schubert says. "It gives people a reason to put their phones down, step away from the table, and interact."
Millpond is one of at least nine brewery locations in the St. Louis area where drinkers can pair a craft beer with a game of pinball.
The trend fits a wider picture. PinballMap.com, an open-source, crowdsourced worldwide map of public pinball machines, tracks roughly 12,700 locations, and about half of them are drinking establishments. Co-creator Ryan Gratzer says the site adds 70 to 90 locations each week and removes 30 to 40 that no longer have machines. Some additions are existing machines that users have only just discovered, so growth is hard to measure precisely.
Gratzer still believes interest in pinball is rising, helped in part by competitive leagues, tournaments and more ways to find games. "Pinball can be really social," he says. "If you're going to park it for a while next to games with friends, people are often going to choose to do that at places with good food and drinks."
At Millpond, pinball has grown into a two-person team league that welcomes both veterans and newcomers. "While we love the hardcore 'pinheads,' this league is designed so casual players who just enjoy flipping a few balls on a weeknight can jump right in and have a blast," Schubert says. Opposing teams trade strategies, cheer high scores and form friendships. Millpond is preparing another league session.
In St. Charles, Two Plumbers Brewery + Arcade has made pinball central to its identity since opening in 2017. Its rotating collection of roughly 15 to 18 machines covers decades of pinball history, and the brewery hosts league play. Nearby, Mead Hall, home to Swarm Brewing Company, has 11 machines and a Sunday afternoon league open to beginners and experienced players alike.
Other area locations with pinball include 4 Hands Brewing Company in St. Louis and at The District in Chesterfield, Central Tap and Main & Mill Brewing in Festus, Narrow Gauge Brewing Company in Florissant, Perennial Artisan Ales in St. Louis, and Shortleaf Brewing in Winghaven, O'Fallon. Machine lineups can change, and games sometimes go out of service. The listings are based on PinballMap.com data from 2026 and additional local reporting.
For people returning to pinball after years away, Gratzer suggests starting small instead of trying to master every feature of today's increasingly complex machines. Learning something as simple as how to start multiball can make a game more rewarding.
For Schubert, the entry requirements remain simple. "If you like drinking good beer and know how to press the flipper buttons, you're qualified."
