Andrew Almenar has been quietly working since January in the former Melt Bar and Grilled space in Lakewood. In early June, he will open Speed Trap Racing (14718 Detroit Ave.), the region’s first racing simulator venue. The entertainment destination is built around the industry’s most advanced equipment and technology, designed and built by SimXperience in Akron specifically to train racecar drivers.
“There was a feeling I had when I sat down in a simulator for the first time,” Almenar explains. “There is so much to learn and like about motorsports and the simulators give you a path to that.”
Almenar has been working towards this goal for years, searching for the ideal location to showcase his efforts. He likens the concept to golf sims in that they are the closest thing one can get to the real thing short of hitting the links or slipping into the cockpit of a stock car.
“I see the concept as being very similar to the golf-simulator concept,” he says. “The technology for a lot of things has gotten hyper-realistic. In the motorsport world, all of the drivers on every race team in every discipline have these professionally built racing simulators to practice on and get better on.”
The second dining room now features four racing rigs, all-in-one units where you sit in a bucket seat, grab the wheel, and operate foot pedals and paddle shifters. The cockpits boast actuators, “butt kickers,” G-Force seats, G Belts and wraparound screens that mimic the sounds, sights and tactile feel of racing.
“This is not an arcade,” Almenar explains. “You’re going to feel the car; you’re going to feel the tires slipping out behind you. When you’re on the highway, you can feel a car coming up next to you. In a simulator, it’s the exact same thing. You see them in your rearview mirror, you can feel the car coming up on you. That’s the beauty of it.”
Headphones transmit the sound of RPMs climbing, the pit crew in your ear, the roar of the crowds.
Surprisingly, the most popular cars aren’t F1s or stock cars or even million-dollar Lambos, but rather cars like Mazda Miatas or even old-school Jettas.
“The first decision is, what do I want my experience to be. Do you want to come in and be casual? Are you a professional driver looking to improve? Do you want to race your friends, put up a fast lap? And from there, you just dial it in.”
TVs above each rig broadcast the live cockpit view or specific views from around the track, making this a spectator sport as well, adds Almenar.
“There are more and more of these racing simulators popping up, but I wanted to make sure that there was that social aspect to it,” he says. “Spectating can be just as fun as being behind the wheel. You don’t even have to race. The food is going to be good enough to stand alone.”
The main barroom has the same general layout as the former occupant. There’s a large bar, booths and an open kitchen. Almenar worked with Kenny Kuhn from the Swinging Door in Rocky River to develop the food and beverage. There are pub-friendly snacks like wings, loaded nachos and the “Pace Car Platter.” There are a half dozen smash burgers, such as the Pole Position with egg, bacon and cheddar and the Daytona 500, an ode to the Romanburger with twin patties, deli meats, and provolone on a hoagie. There are salads, wraps and sandwiches.
Almenar retained as many of the bar’s original elements as possible, including the old Bud’s White Door Liquor sign.
“I wanted to keep a lot of the history of the space, which is what attracted me to it the most,” he says.
Speed Trap Racing is expected to open the first week of June.
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