Bingo Joe 570 runs trivia and bingo events all week long at venues across Luzerne County.
III Guys Restaurant & Sports Bar in Edwardsville holds bingo on Mondays, themed trivia on Tuesdays, and regular trivia on Mondays with Bingo Joe 570.
I entered myself into trivia as one-woman-show, “A League of her Own,” and I didn’t do half bad trying to keep up with the trivia regulars!
It’s clear that quite a tight-knit crowd, many of which are regulars, turn up with their teams every week for Bingo Joe’s events.
Along with my trivia, I enjoyed the Crab Grilled Cheese with a side of steamed broccoli and a Blue Moon.
III Guys Restaurant & Sports Bar in Edwardsville is one of the many bars and restaurants that Bingo Joe 570 travels to in Luzerne County.
EDWARDSVILLE — I experienced trivia by Bingo Joe 570 firsthand at III Guys Restaurant & Sports Bar’s location in Edwardsville.
When I walked in, I was pleasantly surprised to discover my colleague and Times Leader writer, Bill O’Boyle, already there. He said he and his team come every week for trivia nights, and from the look of the place — so did a lot of other people!
“It’s kind of slow today,” Bill O’Boyle told me as I peered around at a full bar on a Tuesday night.
Everyone came ready to play — serious about their trivia but enjoying their time together, talking light-hearted smack about the impending friendly competition for a gift card grand prize. Chatting with those around me, I found that nearly everyone here shows up every week for trivia and they’ve all gotten to know each other in the process. They try it once, keep coming back, bring their friends, and make new ones.
Bingo Joe 570, led by founder and owner Joe Culp, hosts bingo and trivia events at bars and restaurants throughout the Wyoming Valley. His business is bringing fun and entertainment to an otherwise ordinary weekday.
Bingo and trivia in general have seen a resurgence since the pandemic. We want to get out of the house, we want things to do! These timeless games are the perfect excuse to go socialize — and gaining some bragging rights doesn’t hurt either.
I’m personally a big fan of any drinking-optional entertainment that everybody can participate in. I entered myself as a standalone team. “A League of Her Own” was the name I went with. The questions were a healthy mix of pop culture, history, English, and more. I am a connoisseur of random knowledge, especially critically acclaimed film and TV from the past 60 years so I love testing my skills. Sadly, I was no match for the competition but I hung in there, even impressing myself by nailing the double jeopardy question.
I felt welcomed in by the Tuesday night crowd and it was obvious they truly value their trivia! The bartenders expressed how much they love trivia too — it brings a wave of people in on what would otherwise just be a boring weeknight shift. Not to mention, they even get in on the action and compete against the patrons!
Bingo Joe a.k.a. Joe Culp has always been a big game show fan and started as a trivia regular himself. He started Bingo Joe 570 in 2021 and now he brings that same joy to others.
“I still find it to be fun to not only challenge myself, but to challenge other people,” said Culp.
Every night of the week, he and his staff host trivia and bingo events at spots such as Benny Brewing Co, CrisNics, Breaker Brewing Company, Pisano’s, Indian Lake Spirits, Kelsey’s Restaurant and III Guys Restaurant & Sports Bar in Edwardsville and Mountaintop. Bingo is perfect for an easy game of luck where you don’t have to think too hard, and then trivia is for those seeking the opposite — ready to flex their brain and put their knowledge to the test.
“It only keeps growing. Every time I think to myself that we’re going to lose one, I just pick up another. As long as I have the capacity to do it, I’ll do it,” said Bingo Joe.
He’s created a community around trivia and bingo nights in Luzerne County. He gets a ton of regulars at these events and sometimes they bring in their friends too. Then, before you know it, it becomes a close family who looks forward to seeing eachother every week. III Guys was packed, and Bill called it a slow night!
“They must like me a little bit because I’m here three days — so I must be doing something right,” said Joe Culp.
The business-owner community is also very supportive and they’re not too proud to share Bingo Joe 570 and spread the trivia/bingo fun all around town. It’s a labor of love that his whole community of business-owners, trivia-goers, and even bartenders/servers really respect and appreciate.
“My main goal is to be able to accommodate any additional business that comes in. I want to make sure my employees have everything they need to succeed with their goals. And I want to continue to provide a quality product to the people of the area,” said Joe Culp.
This is Bingo Joe’s way of adding some entertainment value to his hometown of NEPA. He gets to help the businesses and their workers make money while giving people something worth leaving the house for. He makes a positive impact on everybody by giving them a space to just come out and play games together.
Integrity is also important to Culp. He actively tries to tell his employees that he appreciates them and what they do for the business. For a long time, he was hosting all the events himself, but now he’s expanded so much that he’s added staff to cover all the places who want to bring trivia/bingo to their venue.
Everybody had only good things to say about Bingo Joe, as both a professional trivia/bingo host and as a person. “He’s a great guy,” whispered the woman sitting beside me as I interviewed Joe after the riveting trivia match full of laughter. The energy in the room made me want to return every week and bring a stacked crew of smart people!
Whether testing your knowledge or trying your bingo luck, hey, winning feels good. So, if you’re looking to take a weeknight off from binge-watching Netflix — check out Bingo Joe 570’s Facebook Page to find out where trivia and bingo is happening next!
