Leisure Time Bowl

07/21/2008 Posted by RoseWithNoThorns

Last weekend was my first time to Leisure Time and I cant believe I didnt go sooner!!! My friend had her birthday party there, so she got one of their packages with the bowling and it was such a great deal! We had really great pizza and for those who drink beer she ordered some of those GIANT beer towers. A few others and I decided to try some of their speciality martinis and absolutly LOVED all of them! My personal favorite was the Cojito, it was like nothing I've had before and now I want it everywhere I go! Our server was extremley helpful with everything, including helping us put our names in and always making sure our glasses were never low! We only had trouble with a lane one time, and it was promptley fixed. They had a DJ that played great music that really made the experience fun!!! We will definatley be going back soon!!!!

Pros: Fun atmosphere, great service and delicious drinks!

Cons: Difficult to find in Port Authority

07/13/2008 Posted by margo55

My husband took me for my 55th birthday on Saturday night, and we had an absolute blast. If you're a serious bowler, go somewhere else. Most of the people there were 20-30 years old and were pretty terrible bowlers. But what a party! For our first hour the next lane was occupied by 4 Wild Women who were having a mighty fine old time, combining booty dancing and bowling in an Only-In-New-York kind of way. If we'd wanted a quiet night of serious bowling, they could've been extremely annoying, but we just went with it, made new friends, and learned some outrageous new moves (although we didn't go as far as bowling through each other's spread legs, running body slams or throwing of shoes). Our second hour neighbors were 3 young couples from the burbs out for Date Night. They were much more sedate, but they were fun, too. Even with all the shenanigans, we got in 5 games in two hours with zero technical problems. I was glad I'd brought earplugs - it's loud. The staff was efficient and friendly. Two hours of great fun for about $150, including 5 drinks & tip. It was totally worth it. We will remember it forever.

Pros: REALLY FUN if you go with an open mind - you WILL interact with other bowlers

Cons: Possible potential for alcohol-fueled obnoxiousness during late hours

06/30/2008 Posted by Thevintage

My fiance and I went here last Friday and had a blast! She had some crazy watermelon mojito that she said was the best drink she had ever tasted, while I was pleasantly suprized that i could enjoy a bottle of Chimay (not exactly the beer you would imagine a bowling alley having, but it worked!). Our waitress was really terrific, everytime our drinks started to get low, she was ready with a new one for us. I didn't bowl very well (my fiance beat me both games), but the scene definately made it a great time!

Pros: Great service, drinks, ambiance

Cons: Hard to find in the Port Authority

06/30/2008 Posted by kathryn87

Overall it was a great experience. I had my birthday party there on Saturday night. I was nervous about being able to get lanes so I called ahead of time; the girls who made the reservation were very informative and extremely helpful. From the point where we checked in to when we left the staff was extremely nice and always around. There's a pretty good selection of beers and these awesome beer towers that were great to take pictures with and convenient cause we didn't have to keep ordering pints. I would definitely go again and so would all my friends.

Pros: Good Location and Ambience

06/24/2008 Posted by artsandsciences

My party of 6 made reservations for 9pm on a Friday. We were surprised to find a bowling alley that was so inexpensive in Manhattan... we had been going to 300 in Chelsea Piers which is twice as expensive and a little less convenient, location-wise. However, we soon found out why... When we got there, there were still people hanging around in our lane so we started about 15 minutes later than planned. The lanes are CRAMPED and I REALLY wouldn't recommend going unless you reserve at least two lanes. Otherwise you'll be sharing a tiny space with a group of strangers. As it was, half of our group had to stand for most of the 2 hours. With this bowling alley, it's really a case of your getting what you pay for and we had a horrible experience. The staff had bad attitudes and weren't helpful at all. We were sandwiched between 2 lanes of 6+ people who had NO bowling etiquette. They were extremely drunk and spent half of the time dancing IN the lanes so we couldn't bowl and would throw 3 or 4 bowling-balls together at the same time so a worker had to keep walking down the gutter to retrieve bowling-balls (more time we had to stand around waiting) until they eventually broke the machine. We spent a little under 2 hours there but couldn't even finish 2 games! Not to mention that they shut off the lanes at exactly when your time expires. Considering this is NY and that it's pretty difficult to coordinate schedules with people, my party was extremely disappointed that we had such a bad time. Even though 300 at Chelsea Piers is doubly expensive than Leisure Time Bowl, we unanimously agreed that it was more than worth it. 300 Bowling Lanes is really spacious, so much cleaner and nicer, and the service is amazing; the atmosphere on the whole is classier and more chill, without the totally obnoxious (and much younger) crowd at Leisure Time. I definitely advise people to go somewhere else if you actually want to bowl and have an enjoyable night!!!!!

Pros: No idea. It's cheap, I guess... but you get what you pay for.

Cons: Cramped space, the obnoxious crowd, bad service.

06/15/2008 Posted by StrappStak

I've read the other reviews and it seems that the few negative ones come from more serious bowlers... picture Jesus from The Big Lebowski... Yes, there were a couple frames with missing pins, and yes, the lane did have to be reset once or twice - but if your typical score when you bowl is not a 280 or above then who flippin' cares!? We went there and not to Bowlmor because it was so easy to get to. Initially we were a little sketched out that it was at Port Authority - but once you walk into the bowling alley it feels like a funky lounge. The DJ was fantastic and kept the feeling upbeat and fun. There was a party like atmosphere the whole night. The drinks were unbelievable! You MUST order the Key Lime Martini, it has a graham cracker rim!! Deeelish! Service was great. Our server, Anthony, never kept us waiting, and was super cool. All in all, this was a really fun night out and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking to unwind and have fun.

Pros: DJ, Drinks, Service, Atmosphere

Cons: Don't get stuck with a lane with stools

05/27/2008 Posted by Gemi258

I went there with my boyfriend and another couple on a Saturday night and did the Nightowl. I have never thought of bowling as a nightlife type event, but this place lounge feel to it and the DJ was making it feel like more or a club experience. We could hardly stop dancing at the lanes. It is def hard to bowl and shake your booty at the same time, but it was fun to try. The other thing I liked were the towers of beer. They just looked cool and it was great that I could pour myself another glass of beer when I was ready. I reccommend this place to any and everyone... it looks a heck of a lot better than it used to a few years ago.

Pros: beer towers, DJ

Cons: only thing is that it is Port Authority

04/16/2008 Posted by lizzy143

I went to Leisure Time last Thursday for my friend Katie's 24th birthday and we had blast. We were unaware that every Thursday was ladies night and not only did my friend get 50% off lane reservations, we also got 2 for 1 martinis! It was great! The DJ got us all dancing and he played every song we requested. We are definetely going back! Especially for that Wet Watermelon martinis...mmm.

Pros: ladies night, great rates, good music, amazing drinks.

Cons: I want their restaurant and arcade to open already.

04/15/2008 Posted by Kaaym

i visited them recently for a friend's birthday party. I was pleasently surprised.There is something so irresistble about this place.on my way out i was already thinking of when my next visit will be.

02/10/2008 Posted by anonymosity

It's a pretty fun environment. The service was really nice and we had a good time. The food is pricey and not very good, what you could expect from an entertainment venue.