Document and Entity Information	12 Months Ended
	Jan. 01, 2017 USD ($) shares
Document Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Jan. 01, 2017
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Trading Symbol	CEC
Entity Registrant Name	CEC ENTERTAINMENT INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000813920
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--01-03
Entity Filer Category	Non-accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding | shares	200
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Public Float | $	$ 0