Scott Nash, founder of MOM’s Organic Market, invites other pinball enthusiasts to play on his machines at VÜK in Friendship Heights.
Pinball machines can be played at VÜK at DC’s Chevy Chase Pavilion in Friendship Heights. (WTOP/Jeff Clabaugh) A pinball machine you can play at VÜK at DC’s Chevy Chase Pavilion in Friendship Heights. (WTOP/Jeff Clabaugh)
MOM’s Organic Market founder Scott Nash has been playing pinball machines since he was a teenager.
At the time, Nash and his friends were riding their bikes to an arcade in Beltsville, Maryland. As an adult, he has been buying and collecting pinball machines for over 10 years, reaching a final count of 70, and many have found new homes to share with the public at tournaments and other events. I got it.
VÜK, along with about 40 machines, has moved to a new permanent location on the lower level of the Chevrolet Chase Pavilion in Friendship Heights. It’s open seven days a week, and the cost to play is 50 cents per game, which is considerably cheaper than other arcades.
VÜK pays homage to the “Vertical Upkicker,” a mechanical rod that pops the ball out of a hole in a pinball arena. Nash also chose to spell it VÜK in a stylized Slavic language. Vük means “wolf” in Serbian.
This is VÜK’s third iteration. Nash originally had an arcade in Bethesda, but it closed after the lease ended. He then moved the collection to an annex at MOM’s Organic Market store in College Park before the Chevy Chase Pavilion landlord contacted Nash and offered him space.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Nash said. “The timing was perfect and it was just a short bike ride away, just like when I was a teenager.”
Nash’s pinball machine collection ranges from vintage machines from the 1960s to the latest high-tech machines. His first pinball machine was the “Eight Ball Deluxe”.
“It was one of my favorite games as a teenager playing in Beltsville. It’s the ‘holy grail’ of pinball,” Nash said. “‘The Lord of the Rings’ was one of my first games. It was a great game with deep rules, and I fell in love with it.”
Pinball has seen a huge resurgence in popularity over the past decade, and Nash said he understands why. “Pinball is thoughtful and great, even though it’s analog. Some games today are highly designed. But it’s like playing cards. It also requires skill. But there’s also luck involved, so anyone can play a great game.”
It’s also an expensive passion. They are expensive to purchase, and pinball machines are also expensive to maintain.
“I have two technicians who work on these games and keep them clean,” Nash said. “There’s a lot of moving parts. One guy said to me, ‘It’s amazing how these things work at all, with that heavy ball bouncing off the glass.’
VÜK also hosts tournaments. Nash said the pinball community in the Washington, D.C., area is close-knit and tournament play is also a great way to make new friends.
VÜK is open daily from 7am to 11am
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