need for speed

New mega-gaming and indoor go-karting playhouse speeds into Katy

Orlando, Florida-based entertainment facility Andretti Indoor Karting & Games will be hitting the Houston area with thrilling attractions and racing experiences.

On Tuesday, March 3, the family entertainment and gaming center will open up a new location in Katy, located adjacent to the newly opened, University of Houston Katy campus and Katy Asian Town at the corner of Grand Parkway and I-10.

Named after the legendary Andretti racing family, the nearly 88,000-square-foot complex will showcase high-speed electric superkarts, laser tag, mini golf, VR gaming, a ropes course, unique dining options, over 4,600 square feet of exceptional event space, and more.

Here are the features and attractions attendees can look forward to:

Multi-Level race track
Experience the adrenaline rush of electric go karts on a ½ mile of multi-level tracks with sweeping downward spirals, multiple sharp turns, and long straightaways that take you all the way to victory lane.

Laser Tag
The two-story 2,053-square-foot black light battlefield transports you inside the engine of a race car with the latest laser tag technology from Delta Strike, the leader in laser tag equipment industry.

Arcade games
Guests can enjoy over 80 of the latest and greatest video, redemption and prize games in the state-of-the-art arcade. After racking up all of the tickets, guests can redeem their winnings at the Redemption Counter with a wide range of prizes for all ages.

Ropes course
Andretti offers an indoor high adventure ropes course which can be found well above the arcade with multiple challenging obstacles for both the beginner and advanced adventurer.

Hologate VR
Hologate is a four-player virtual reality attraction that takes you to a new dimension with advanced graphic technology and immersion. The open-air layout allows spectators to see the players and take in the action on the monitors above the playing space.

Hologate Blitz
This four-player virtual reality experience immerses players in full sensory heart-pounding thrills by combining state of the art virtual reality graphics with a motion simulator that rises a full meter in height and can tilt in every direction. The chance of motion sickness that some players may feel in other virtual reality attractions has been almost completely eliminated due to extremely low latency and next-level network and code design.

Omniverse
Explore virtual reality like never before with a 360-degree-moving treadmill platform, state of the art graphics optimized for multiplayer interactive gaming and an adjustable harness that allows players to move full speed without hitting walls. Guests can play for the sheer thrilling fun of the experience by participating individually or competitively as teams in weekly and monthly Esports world competitions.

Mini-Golf
Lucky Putt is nine custom high-tech holes of mini golf reimagined that blends the nostalgic joy of classic mini golf with exclusive technology to deliver an unforgettable social experience. The scoring system is digitized to streamline score tracking and allow players to focus on the experience. At the beginning of each hole, players select their names on a digital tablet, and sensors automatically track the movement of the ball and tally scores for each player. As for food, this spot offers several dining options including a Food Truck Plaza, sit-down dining, a dessert bar and two bars. The Indoor Food Truck Plaza will feature three different food trucks and a Dessert Bar:

Fusion Bowl featuring Asian cuisine including bowls hot off the wok, cold bowls and spring rolls.
Mama Andretti’s featuring Italian cuisine including salads and brick oven pizzas and calzones.
Let’s Roll Diner featuring American cuisine including wings, burgers, sandwiches and chicken tenders.

The Main Bar area will feature the full restaurant menu including salads, Asian bowls, burgers, sandwiches, brick oven pizzas & calzones, chef-crafted entrees and desserts, along with gluten-free bread, pasta and pizza dough for those with special dietary restrictions.

Andretti also welcomes corporate events, birthday parties and any special occasions of any size, offering a wide variety of birthday party packages and add-ons to customize each event. Event spaces include:

Total Event Space Grand Room & VIP Rooms: 307-person capacity
Mario Room: Viewing Area with two glass walls overlooking the Arcade and Track.

Andretti Karting is hiring for approximately 350 positions, including game and attraction attendants, culinary, janitorial, mechanics and much more. Applicants must be at least 18 years old. A job fair will take place at the Best Western Premier Energy Corridor on January 15 through February 21. The Job Fair hours will be Monday-Friday 9 am to 6 pm and on Saturdays 10 am to 4 pm.

For more information on open positions and to submit your application in advance, visit the official site.

The karts are electric.

Photo courtesy of Andretti

The karts are electric.

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Movie Review

Anthony Bourdain biopic 'Tony' shows the chef at a critical moment

Photo courtesy of A24

Antonio Banderas and Dominic Sessa in Tony.

The reason that most biopics fail is because they try to do too much, telling a “cradle-to-grave” story or one taking place over a long period of time that only scratches the surface of understanding the full measure of a particular person. A better approach is the one taken in the new film Tony, which uses a formative period of time in the life of Anthony Bourdain to identify a larger truth about him.

The film finds Tony (Dominic Sessa), as he liked to be known at the time, in his early college years, trying to BS his way through life. He tells lies to professors, his parents (Dagmara Dominczyk and Rich Sommer), his old classmate Nancy (Emilia Jones), and even himself in an attempt to skate by without actually doing anything.

When one con falls through, he follows Nancy to Provincetown, Massachusetts to try to find her. A series of events result in him getting drunk in a restaurant owned by a chef (Antonio Banderas), who takes him in. Tony starts working as a dishwasher and hanging out with Sal (Leo Woodall), who barely has his own act together. With no other options, he spends his summer on Cape Cod, hoping something will happen to change his lot in life.

Written and directed by Matt Johnson (Blackberry) and co-written by three others, the film gives barely a hint of the man who would go on to become a celebrity chef and acclaimed author. It does indicate that his brashness was always there, but this Tony is aimless and too often rash in his decision-making. His biggest success in the film only comes when he finally recognizes that lying has brought him nothing but misery, and that telling the truth, even if it’s painful, sets him free.

The restaurant at which Tony works, the now-defunct The Flagship, is the heartbeat of the film, containing a motley crew of people who bond over slinging mostly mediocre seafood. Johnson evolves Tony’s relationship with the chef (who’s never given a proper name) into a strong one as Tony spends each night in a hammock on the chef’s porch, only to be woken up each morning with a pot of water thrown in his face.

Tony continues to pursue Nancy for most of the film, and even though their relationship is not fruitful in terms of storytelling, it serves to enforce the mindset of the young man. Nancy only exists as an object of desire for Tony, with just the barest touch of an interior life of her own. While the intent of including a romantic interest for Tony makes sense in a way, it ultimately is the weakest part of the film.

Sessa, who made a bold film debut in 2023’s The Holdovers, has turned into one of the industry’s bright young stars. He embodies the moodiness of Bourdain, stalking around the town with a scowl and lanky walk that tells the audience everything they need to know about the character. Banderas and Woodall (Tuner) bring different types of great energy, and while Jones’ part is not great, she proves that — following CODA — she’s going to be around for a long time, as well.

Fans of Bourdain may lament that Tony doesn’t show anything from the years in which he became famous, but the small and personal film makes a great case that the period it depicts is equally significant to his life. It demonstrates that Tony’s summer on Cape Cod gave him some direction, a reason for being that allowed him to become who he eventually became.

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Tony opens in theaters on August 21.

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