‘Camp Pickle’ coming to Huntsville’s MidCity

HUNTSVILLE — The newest concept from serial “eatertainment” entrepreneur Robert Thompson is coming to Huntsville’s MidCity District.

Thompson, founder of the award-winning Punch Bowl Social concept, is launching a food-and-drink-focused, indoor/outdoor pickleball concept called Camp Pickle.

The CEO of Angevin & Co., Thompson said Camp Pickle, which features a nostalgic 1940s summer camp setting, will stand out from the crowd.

“It is not a pickleball municipal rec center” but rather an immersive brand experience, he said.

In addition to indoor and outdoor pickleball, visitors will be able to participate in pastimes like horseshoes, darts and bowling. Meanwhile the food-and-beverage program will be the core operational component, making up 83% of sales.

The first location will open in Huntsville in 2024, the company said. A second unit will open in a suburb of Denver soon after.

“This concept can scale to fit a wide range of locations,” Thompson said in a news release. “We’re even working on putting a Camp Pickle on the rooftop of a six-story building in a downtown area of a major city.”

Plans include 10 company-owned locations by the second quarter of 2026. Camp Pickle also plans to sell franchises.

The concept will help bring nighttime, family energy to marketplaces that need it, he said.

“The pickleball eatertainment demographic net is the widest I’ve ever seen,” Thompson said, “ranging from the groups of Millennials and Gen Z that we’ve targeted for the past 12 years to families and senior guests that play pickleball for fitness in the early mornings.”