There's Only 5 Chuck E. Cheese Locations Left in Massachusetts

Growing up in the 2000s, I can remember the old commercial very well. "Chuck E. Cheese's where a kid can be a kid." Sadly, I never actually visited a Chuck E. Cheese location until I was about 20. But I do have many other kid memories like "Busters" in Pittsfield (current BIG LOTS location also formally Price Rite).

As you know, the pandemic affected a lot of things including businesses that especally involve entertainment. According to Masslive.com, Chuck E. Cheese's parent company, CEC Entertainment, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020 and ended up shuttering 4 in Massachusetts out of the 45 locations that were on the list to close in the nation which included Springfield, Natick, Leominster and Danvers. However, the pandemic wasn't the reason why the company was struggling.

So, what was the reason?

Chuck E. Cheese was already struggling five years prior before the Pandemic after being taken over by Apollo Global Management in 2014 according to CNN. To spare the business from completely folding up due to COVID, they offered DoorDash delivery with a different name also known as a "ghost kitchen." According to Food & Wine, this "ghost kitchen" was branded as "Pasqually's Pizza & Wings" but in reality it was Chuck E. Cheese.

According to the company, they still operate about 600 Chuck E. Cheese locations nationwide including only 5 left in Massachusetts.

Here's the list:

The shortest drive which is about little over an hour from the Berkshires to Chuck E. Cheese is the one over at 601 Troy-Schenectady Rd, in Latham, New York.