Penn's Picks For Flicks
The Box Office is a special place. Some of you never visited it, many of you did. In November 2006, it’s where you bought your tickets to see Happy Feet or Daniel Craig debut his new role as James Bond in Casino Royale. For Christmas that year, you flooded the box for Night at the Museum.
When we opened, the box office was a central place in our business. It was where we gossiped and kept running lists of the funny things our customers said (i.e. "Two for the Craig Daniels movie, please"). It was cold in the winter and hot in the summer. The microphones in the windows never worked quite right and we always needed quarters. Time marched on and, as we got more involved with the Internet, some folks got smartphones. Before I knew it, we were primarily selling tickets online and in advance. As the use of the Box Office declined, we ultimately abandoned it in favor of conducting all sales at the concession stand.
Tickets, popcorn, soda, and candy. What more could a person want?
Well, my friends – it turns out a person could want a grown-up drink with their movie, or a more expansive menu to go with their popcorn. Basically, it turns out a person could want a little bit more of everything.
So after a proud history, the Penn Cinema Box Office is giving way to our new bar – which is either open as you read this... or will be soon! Our brand new bar will feature a full range of drinks, from beer and wine, to cocktails and specialty drinks dreamed up to celebrate special occasions. We will also feature a self-serve beer wall. All of this is set to open around "now,” then – in the beginning of 2025 – we will begin work on our totally new, from the ground up, concession stand, which will feature a whole new menu including chicken tenders, french fries, better pizzas, and many more snacky snacks. We're not going "dine in" because research shows most people don't like that; instead, we're just doing better for the people who want to have real food with their movie.
So, as we turn this page, I want to take a moment in time and remember how we got started. Penn Cinema was ten screens and a hoppin’ Box Office on a rainy night in November 2006. We had a young kid named Drew Sheaffer working in the Box Office that weekend – he's the boss now.
Drew and I have been working really hard to plan for our incoming bar and new menu for the next chapter of Penn Cinema. We hope you like it.
So now, I raise my glass and toast our good and loyal box office – even as we prepare to tear it down and start anew. We look forward to welcoming you. And, of course, our Vesper Martinis will forever and always be shaken, not stirred.
By Penn Ketchum
