Published: August 09, 2009 12:13 am      

TJ’s Arcade place for kids to have fun

MANNINGTON — Vickie and Terry Starsick established TJ’s Arcade as a place where kids could go to have fun.

On June 15, they opened TJ’s Arcade in Mannington at 110 Market St., on the corner across from Snider’s Florist. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held two weeks later.

“My husband and I have always wanted to do something; we just weren’t sure what,” Vickie said of starting a business.

She said their goal was to give children in the Mannington area something to do and a spot to hang out.

“We just wanted to provide a safe environment, give them somewhere to come,” Vickie said.

The shop is named after Vickie and Terry’s 10-year-old son, TJ.

Pinball, PacMan and bowling machines line the walls of TJ’s Arcade, as well as driving games and other video games. The pool tables sitting in the middle of the floor have already been used for a kids’ tournament that featured nine competitors. After the success of that event, the Starsicks plan to hold another pool tournament in the future.

The business tries to offer food — like hot dogs, pepperoni rolls, pizza, nachos, chips and candy bars — at prices kids can afford, Vickie said. The newest menu item is sausage, gravy and biscuits.

Once school starts, Vickie said she’d like to add more food items, such as soups and chili. As the business grows, she anticipates making some changes to the kitchen.

TJ’s Arcade is “doing very well” and gets a nice lunch crowd from the nearby businesses, Vickie said. A mixture of kids and adults comes into the shop to eat.

Gift certificates are available, and a couple birthday parties have already been held at the arcade.

Vickie and Terry, who both grew up in Mannington, only had to do a little bit of work to get the building ready for business. They moved the counter, added some shelves and created a window in front of the kitchen, Vickie said.

The Starsicks, who live just two blocks away from the arcade, run the business with the help of Sharlyn Egress. Vickie said Mannington Main Street has been wonderful to them and their new business.

“I would just like to thank Mannington Main Street for all the support,” she said.

TJ’s Arcade is open 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, noon to 10 p.m. Saturday and 1 to 8 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call 304-657-4721.

E-mail Jessica Legge at jlegge@timeswv.com.