Small bites of news about a big sport
Moneyline, the sports bar and book, reopened at the Park MGM with a new look and expanded offerings. Those offerings include 2 social-duckpin lanes along with vintage arcade games.
Check them out when you next visit Vegas and let us know what you think.
(From Moneyline website)
The 50+ year old tenpin facility has recently undergone a $3Million remodel and is set to reopen in late-September. The remodel includes a reimagining of the tenpin portion of the center while adding more arcade games, a very popular virtual-reality game, and a mini-form of duckpin bowling without approaches.
It is interesting to see that a tenpin house has opted to add this to the center. Recent local press coverage described the duckpin game inaccurately, as most do. Skyline’s General Manager, Corey Kolquist, has high hopes for the new games, the duckpin addition, along with the new virtual-reality offering called Hologate. The center has also revamped their menu and expanded their bar.
Although very different from regulation duckpin, could this be the camel’s nose under the tent? The short-lane and no approach version of duckpin might be an excellent addition to an existing center. Depending on how many are installed, kids birthday parties and outings could be hosted on them, which have a significantly lower cost of operation, rather than the regulation lanes. If done right, this could present an opportunity to grow youth participation by starting young ones on them and moving them to regulation lanes as they get older.
Bull and Bowl is a new bar and bistro opening on September 30, 2019, in downtown Austin, Tx. The location will feature a form of duckpin bowling alongside billiards and a mechanical bull. According to an article in Eater Austin, they plan two locations for the venture.
They will offer a full bar and food menu and a suite of entertainment options that also includes private karaoke rooms. Nearby businesses include Japanese restaurant TenTen and a nightclub called Mayfair.
Bull and Bowl is the brainchild and first venture of B&B Hospitality and managing partner Daniel Borelli. It is not related to New York-based B&B Hospitality Group.
Several months ago, we wrote how developed Pat Hagan was planning to bring duckpin bowling to his new project in downtown Franklin, Indiana. Since that time, Hagan opted to install six mini-bowling lanes instead.
In a recent article for The Daily Journal, Hagan explained that he didn’t want to add just another place to play duckpin bowling. Instead, he went with US Bowling’s “mini-bowling”. Overall, he mentions that the dimensions of the lanes and equipment were a better fit for the building.
We made contact with Hagan those many months ago and he was surprised to hear there was a national duckpin organization and a somewhat large member-base for duckpin bowling. He was interested in hearing more, especially of any advantages it offered. During the conversation, we offered to share his information with both the National Duckpin Bowling Congress as well as the Duckpin Bowling Proprietors Association so he could gather more information.
Unfortunately, when we recently caught up with Hagan, he said he was never contacted and selected mini-bowling. Duckpin didn’t seem to present any clear advantages and mini-bowling offered a less-expensive package. However, even he says he might have gone a different way with more information on why duckpin could have been a better choice. After all, his original inspiration was bowling duckpin at Action Bowl at Fountain Square in Indianapolis.
Hagan mentioned, “I had done that many, many times, and I had thought earlier that (Franklin) would be a really cool place to do something like that. But I’d never put much thought into it. As we were bowling this time, people kept saying that we should do something like this, and I wanted to try it.”
10Pins also features arcade games, a bar stocked with craft beer choices and wine, as well as food menu. A partnership with nearby Greek’s Pizzeria and Tapp Room has helped him to expand the menu.
Describing his business, Hagan says, “We’re a bowling facility first and foremost. I just happen to have a bar. I would rather people come in and bowl, then if they want a beer or a soda or a hot dog, we can accommodate it…”
Pinhouse, a self-serve taproom offering the entertainment version of duckpin bowling is scheduled to open on this Saturday, July 27. The business has taken over the old Midwood Cleaners building in Plaza Midwood and transformed it into an adult social destination.
With 6,036 square feet across two stories, they will have self-serve 70+ taps using the iPourIt system, Pinhouse will have four duckpin lanes on the lower level. The business will not have a kitchen, but will have a food truck located on-site.
This region of North Carolina was once a duckpin powerhouse of bowlers and bowling centers. However, when the last remaining center closed in Kings Mountain, bowlers had no options left that didn’t involve hours of travel. While this is not the regulation duckpin bowling that many know and love, it might be enough to provide some satisfaction to those that have not bowled for years.
Charlotte Magazine – First Look: Pinhouse, a Self-Serve Taproom with Duckpin Bowling
“MoodRight’s Duckpin Bowl & Boogie” is the name, duckpin is the game. The concept for this business has been in the planning stages since October 2018, but it may soon be opening to its first customers. Hoping to locate in the Thomas Square / Starland District of Savannah, GA, it will be located amongst other historic district businesses.
The owner, Christopher Moody, says that the business will provide “a kitschy and welcoming atmosphere”, duckpin bowling, and billiards in a “thoughtfully curated ambiance”.
At present, plans call for 4 duckpin lanes and, given the size of the existing structure, they will likely be short, non-regulation lanes without approaches. Moody intends to also focus on creating leagues for weekdays which he feels will add to the communal experience. For now, the decision on duckpin versus rubberband duckpin has not been made.
The building at the target location is not exactly what you would expect and will need some superficial work, as seen in the rendering. According to the permit materials submitted to the City, construction should take about six months. There is, however, some local opposition to the plan as parking in the area is challenging and the streets in the historic area are not well-suited to the many delivery trucks that are already found there. Increasing both of those is not a popular idea.
MoodRight’s has applied for their liquor license and much will depend on whether that is approved. However, Savannah residents and visitors may be seeing duckpin return within the coming months.
Update 2019-07-31: Moodrights has obtained their liquor license and is moving fuulspeed towards opening. Owner Moody recently gave a short interview on Savannah WJCL/22 during which he said that pins will be set manually and they will only use two balls per frame. From supplied video, it appears that they will be using regulation duckpins.
A new 30,000-square-foot entertainment complex outfitted with a selection of games that will include duckpin bowling, billiards, bocce, pinball, classic arcade games and ping pong is coming to Medina, Ohio. Foundary Social will join Elyria-based Franklin Brewing and Medina’s own High Voltage Karting in the historic property at 333 Foundary Street. Owners Greg Cordray, Steve Madden, Brian Fontanella and Gene Whaley are the brains behind the new project.
“We are excited to bring Foundry Social to Medina,” Cordray says. “The Medina community has embraced us and supported High Voltage Karting since day one, and we are proud to bring such an exciting entertainment concept to Medina.”
The plans for Foundry Social include a full bar, kitchen and private event space, combining to create a “premier dining and entertainment spot,” according to Cordray. The entire complex is over 135,000 feet and will still have space leftover for expansion and future ventures.
Brian Fontanella tells us that they will be using lanes and string machines from Infinity Bowl, standard duckpins, and the Stelltronic System for lane management. There will be 8 lanes and each will be 26′ long. There will not be approaches. As in similar venues, this eliminates the need for bowling shoes and inventory, frees up space to create revenue for the operation, and moves the games along at a faster pace.
Clevescene.com – Foundry Social to Add Games, Food, Beer and Fun to Medina’s Foundry Building
While not a bowling “center”, the historic Roseland Cottage in Woodstock, CT, has a 1-lane setup that was built in 1846. Note that it served for both tenpin and duckpin and used manual pin-setting.
While we cannot find a record of when duckpin was first included (original or much later) but there is a reference in an 1856 letter to “bowling the small pins” while visiting Henry Bowen to discuss the “fermenting political ugliness in the South”. We have so far been unable to obtain a copy of the letter, but the information was shared by the letter’s owner, a private collector.
If accurate, that potentially moves duckpins presence in the USA back another few decades from its mention on the original building plans of the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island in Michigan.
Circuit Social is the new kid on the block. Opened just before Memorial Day 2019, the establishment boasts current and vintage arcade games that run 25-50 cents per game, craft beer, and duckpin bowling.
There are 10 lanes installed by Infinity Bowl that are 32 feet long, use rubberband duckpins with string pinsetters, and regulation balls. There are no approaches which speeds up games and eliminates the need to stock and care for bowling shoes. Rubberband pins were chosen to reduce the noise level.
By early June, Circuit Social was still pretty crowded. The owner, Robert Lupica, has two other locations in Richmond, but they do not feature any type of duckpin bowling. He said he plans to open additional locations throughout the Southeast with planning already underway for Charlotte and Atlanta. Thew new venues will focus more on “social” games, such as duckpin bowling.
“I think things repeat themselves in culture and things come back. It changes maybe a tad.” he said. “I think it’s the same thing with the millennials and the parents. They want the ‘old school.’ They want that nostalgia feel.”
The Virginian Pilot – Want some nostalgia with that beer? Arcade bar industry hits Norfolk.
Mark Schulman has built several of his Schulman Movie Bowl Grille locations, but he wanted the one in his hometown of Waco, Texas, to be bigger and better. Besides a multi-screen movie theater, 30 lanes of tenpin bowling, an arcade, and a full-service restaurant, he will be creating a separate area for some form of duckpin bowling. The 300-plus acre complex will be owned under MKT Real Estate Holdings LLC and developed by 58 Aggie Development LLC. Schulman is targeting the Summer of 2020 to have the complex completed.
Since his plans are not final yet, we don’t know if the duckpin portion will be regulation lanes or the shorter entertainment-style 26-ft lanes, but any new introduction of the sport is a positive move. There is still an opportunity for someone in the duckpin world to reach out and try to convince him that a regulation-size setup brings more long-term potential.
In an interview with Mike Copeland of the Waco Tribune-Herald, Schulman mentioned that leagues are not their target nor a priority for the bowling business. However, he does describe a seasonal volatility and even short-season leagues for duckpin could help bring in business during the “valleys” in business revenues.
The complex is expected to bring in 275 jobs with 75 or more being full-time. Some of those positions will be seasonal.
The complex’s full-service restaurant, Billy’s Grille & Bar, will a “mix of George’s and Cheddar’s, and maybe toss in a little bit of Texas Roadhouse or Saltgrass.” The restaurant menu will include burgers, steaks, seafood, salads, pizza and appetizers. He expects to have at least 86 craft beers available, and TV screens will provide an array of viewing options.
Waco Tribune-Herald – Mike Copeland: More on Forthcoming Entertainment Complex
Duckpin World 