By Nick Nahas
The Alley at Southshore is not your father’s bowling alley, according to Events and Sales Manager Faith Hanaway. Located at 10221 Big Bend Rd. in Riverview, it is the most unique bowling alley that you will ever go to. With more than 42,000 square feet of fun, including 32 bowling lanes, it will surely provide you with a great time.
“The first time that I went into this place, I came for a chamber meeting, and I thought “I’m going to a bowling alley? You have got to be kidding me,’” said Hanaway. “When I walked in there my chin about hit the floor.”
Since April of 2008, the Alley has provided customers with countless hours of fun, whether it be while bowling, or at the giant arcade called the Tin Pan Alley Arcade, with Route 66 Mini-Bowling, skeeball and many other games. Tickets earned can be redeemed for prizes.
The Alley Kat’s Pub and Grill provides an expansive top-notch menu, along with the Alley Scoops Ice Cream parlor and onsite catering with tailored menus for parties or any special events. The Alley contains Hurricane Alley, and 8-lane Executive Suite, a suite with a bar and food service that can be reserved for private parties.
The Alley has a 100-foot diameter TV screen in its dining room for watching sporting events. On Sundays, the most popular game is put on the big screen, while every other NFL game is displayed on the other 38 TVs.
The Alley is a good place to watch football, especially if you are into fantasy football because you can view every game at the same time. The dining room also has several billiard tables.
The multimedia center, which includes a meeting room that can seat at least 80 people, is complete with new audio-visual equipment and massive screens.
Bowling leagues are year-round at the Alley. There are leagues every day of the week, including Saturday morning children’s league. Cosmic bowling is on Tuesday evenings at 9:30 in the 8-lane VIP suite, which is open to everybody, even without a reservation, and also on Fridays and Saturdays at 6 p.m. On Fridays and Saturdays from 12 midnight to 2:30 a.m., every lane goes cosmic. If you reserve the VIP suite, you can do cosmic bowling at any time of day.
“I think that everybody needs to come out and experience the Alley for themselves,” said Hanaway. “I think it will be a pleasant surprise, and I hope they fall in love with it like I did.”
For more information, you can visit its website at TheAlleyAtSouthshore.com.
