Document and Entity Information	9 Months Ended
	Oct. 01, 2017 State shares
Entity Information [Line Items]
Number of States in which Entity Operates | State	47
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Oct. 01, 2017
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2017
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Trading Symbol	CEC
Entity Registrant Name	CEC ENTERTAINMENT INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000813920
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--01-01
Entity Filer Category	Non-accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding | shares	200