The first year of cinema dining in Round Rock has been, in the words of one company executive, "gangbusters."
And he expects Flix Brewhouse to keep right on rolling in 2012.
"So far, while we're certainly at the mercy of Hollywood with the movies we show, business is good; we've been very well-received by the community," said Walt Powell, vice president of operations.
The six-screen theater opened as a sort of updated, modern version of Alamo Drafthouse, but with its own on-site brewery and a few technological twists on the formula, including call lights for orders during the films.
Since opening over the summer, Powel said the typical blockbusters have performed strongly for the theater, but a few films did well thanks to the area's local character, such as the baseball-themed "Moneyball" and the business comedy crowd-pleaser "Horrible Bosses."
Powell said feedback from customers has been "tremendously positive" and that the feedback has even led to some modifications to the dining/movie-going experience Flix offers, including silent ordering during films and more alternative content.
For example, Flix showed "Killer Klowns from Outer Space"—a "B" horror film from the 1980s—over Halloween, holding clown costume competitions and serving beer from Clown Shoes Brewery.
"There's more things at the movies besides whatever the Hollywood blockbuster is," Powell said.
Among those additional attractions, Powell said Flix has also pumped up the brewhouse part of its business. The theater has joined up with local homebrewers for local brewing competitions and plans to participate in a pro-am competition for the Great American Beer Festival next year.
Powell also said the theater has a number of other new activities planned for 2012, some of which he said could be revealed soon.
"We've got some pretty fun things in the works," he said.
Flix Brewhouse,2200 S. I-35, Ste. B1, Round Rock, 244-FLIX (3549)