As more restaurants and bars make the welcome move toward crafting serious beverage programs, simply bellying up to the bar and ordering a drink can sometimes seem a bit overwhelming. But the current wave of new bars offering games (Blazing Paddles, Highball Lounge, State Park) aims to inject some fun into imbibing, and the forthcoming Brass Union in Somerville plans to fit right in among those spirited spots.

The bar’s subterranean back room, which previously served as a spot for live music at the former Precinct Bar, will be home to a 14-foot shuffleboard table and a vintage tabletop arcade with games such as Pac-Man and Frogger. And a section of the upstairs patio will contain a cornhole game as well as a life-size Jenga set.

“There are some really nice places in town and in Cambridge that have games,” says Brass Union general manager Scott MacDonald. “I always have fun. It keeps you in the restaurant for an extended amount of time.”

Lined with couches for a lounge vibe, the back room will also have a DJ booth in one corner. Owner Ken Kelly (Foundry on Elm and more) plans to have DJs spin soul and funk on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays with no cover—but don’t expect Brass Union to turn into a club by night.

“It’ll be a fun, easy, laidback atmosphere,” MacDonald says. “If it turns into a dance party at the end of the evening, so be it. But it’ll be more of an organic thing.”

The restaurant’s front room was designed to resemble an 1800s-style tavern, with dark woods, black-and-white tile floors and antique mirrors. The gargoyles from the Capital Grille’s former Newbury Street location will flank the bar, where the cocktail program will be led by Paulo Pereira. Executive chef Jonathan Kopacz (Chez Henri) will head up the kitchen, emphasizing American shareable plates. Items on the eclectic menu will range from cod cakes with citrus aioli, fennel pollen and blistered tomatoes to a chorizo hot dog with chimichurri sauce. Kopacz also plans on using herbs grown in the patio’s massive planters. It’s one of the ways MacDonald hopes the different areas of Brass Union—front tavern, outside patio and back lounge—will be able to connect.

“Precinct was a live music venue as well as a restaurant up front, so you really were struggling with bringing any type of synergy to the space. That’s what we’re trying to do, while trying a new concept out,” MacDonald says. “We’re trying to have fun with it.”

Brass Union | 70 Union Square, Somerville | 617-623-9211 | brassunion.com