Hey y’all!
I’m so excited for the upcoming series of episodes on Monroe Today. Since we’re countin’ down the days to the season of good eatin’, Ms. Gilda sat down with different restaurateurs around Forsyth to learn more about their stories! First up is Mr. Casey McCrea, owner of Driven Interactive Sports Lounge.
Have y’all been out to Driven? It’s so unique and different, which I love. It’s not just one thing—it’s a restaurant, yes, but it is also an indoor amusement center. It’s a place for the adults to go and hang out, have a drink, but it’s also a place the whole family can enjoy. Accordion’ to Mr. Casey, that was the vibe he was going for from the start, even though at first he didn’t know what that would look like!
“As an entrepreneur, I’m always looking for ways to invest money or open a business or something like that. So I was looking at different properties around Forsyth, and I found that property there and reached out to Kathy Rowland who owned it at the time and bought the building. I didn’t know what I was gonna do with the building, but I knew I had to have a building to do anything! […] From there, it took me about a year or so to decide what I was going to put in the building.
“I wanted a community-based business where I could deal with the local high schools and the recreational teams and stuff like that in town. You know, [at Casey’s diesel repair shop in McDonough] we fix tractor trailers for a living, so I wanted something that was local and community. The first idea was a speakeasy style bar. Maybe some hidden doors, maybe a telephone booth you had to go through to get in there, something kind of cool.”
The speakeasy idea ultimately didn’t work numbers wise, though, so Mr. Casey pivoted to a teen club concept (inspired by his childhood and son, who was 15 at the time). He was halfway into buildin’ out that concept when a family trip to Myrtle Beach lit up an entire marquee of lightbulbs in his mind:
“We were looking for something to do one night, and we found this place that basically had indoor golf. And so we went there, we had fun, did the whole thing, and I was like, this is really cool! You’re inside, it’s AC, you can get drinks, you can get food. And I said, this is what I’m gonna do. It clicked. I’m gonna bring this back to Forsyth.”
When Mr. Casey returned home, he hit the ground runnin’. The building was 100 years old, part of the old Trio Manufacturing textile mill. It was a blank slate—
“There was a brick wall on the left hand side, a brick wall on the right hand side, and beams every eight foot down the center to hold up the roof. That’s it!”
There was a lot of work to be done to get everything “up to spec!” They had to put in plumbing and bathrooms, tie into the existing city sewer… The sprinkler heads hadn’t been changed in about 57 years Mr. Casey shared, and the floor had to be leveled before any of the fun stuff could be built out and installed.
“The floor actually slopes five and a half feet from the front of the building to the back of the building because it’s part of the old mill. Back then there were no forklifts. So you would bring in your cotton or whatever you were farming, and you would roll it down the hill to the back where the mill was, and that’s how they would get the stuff from the front to the back. Actually, Michael’s building next door, Iron Eagle—the original scale is still in front of his building!”
From there, everythin’ fell into place. Mr. Casey started with the golf simulators he experienced at Myrtle Beach, then added other sports—baseball, football, basketball, soccer, disc golf, and more! There’s also karaoke, pool tables, and four custom racing sim machines. Not to mention the kitchen and bar!
“We get all types of people,” shared Mr. Casey. “We’re not that bar or that restaurant that just has one type of genre. We are kid friendly up until 10 o’clock, so we do a lot of birthday parties, corporate parties, luncheons, team building exercises. And after 10 o’clock, […] the music can change, the vibe can change. You know, we might turn the laser lights on and the fog machines, do a little dance party, you know, just whatever the vibe is.”
Driven opened the last week of November last year, the week of Thanksgiving. Comin’ up on its first full year, Mr. Casey says he and his staff are excited to plug into things they missed last year like football season! Between Friday Night Lights specials, Halloween costume parties, and more, Driven is quickly becomin’ that place for the community to gather which was Mr. Casey’s goal all along. Driven was recently featured as one of six “Third Places” from across the state in Georgia Trend’s August 2026 issue!
“Forsyth closes at 9 p.m. Most restaurants at least. So we’re trying to make a name for ourselves as that late night spot to come and still get food, have a drink, have some fun […] without having to go to Macon, or Atlanta. Right here in town.”
Driven has a full lineup of specials and is always releasing somethin’ new, so be sure to watch their Facebook and Instagram to stay up-to-date on what’s comin’! Monday night pool tournament, anyone?
“I didn’t open this business up to make a bunch of money. I opened it up to have fun, to have somewhere where we could come hang out, where my son could come hang out, his friends could come and hang out, have fun, be safe. I’ve always been big on if you focus on the task at hand, the money will come.
“I love seeing customers come in here and come back every single week. I have some regulars that come just about every single day, whether it’s to shoot pool, get a bite to eat after work, or just coming there and to see people. We have a lot of people that stay in the hotels around here. I met a guy last night that’s gonna be here through December working at the Plant Scherer in Juliette. We have tons of construction workers, we have tons of law enforcement coming from GPSTC. So just seeing all the people, seeing it actually work out, you know, and people smiling and laughing and having fun, that’s been the most rewarding part of it.”
Interested in hearin’ more? Give the full episode a listen below!
‘Til Next Time,
Your Storyteller