May 19, 2017 By Christian Murray
Long Island City’s much-anticipated bowling alley opened today offering $7 games and plenty of craft beer.
The Gutter LIC, located at 10-22 46th Avenue, takes on a retro concept with eight wooden lanes, a long timber bar and décor associated with 1970s middle America.
The alley is owned by Paul Kerminian and Todd Powers, who own another venue in Williamsburg that takes on a similar vintage theme.
Their Long Island City alley opened at 2pm today and offers everything from craft beer to hard liquor. The venue is not open to children, with the age of entry being 21.
The space is large, with capacity for 299 people. The long bar has 21 seats and there are wooden booths throughout the venue.
The alley is open Mon-Thurs from 5pm-2am; Fridays 2pm to 2am; and Saturdays and Sundays noon-2am.
Individual games cost $7, with a shoe rental of $3. People can rent an entire lane by the hour for between $40 and $45 hours.
Drew Dewitt, the manager, said that they will be starting a fall league. He said that there will be an e-mail list at the venue for people to sign up. He said league nights are typically Monday-Thursday.
The Gutter currently has a menu offering small-food items such as hotdogs and chips on offer.
Dewitt said that the menu will be expanded to include pressed sandwiches, paninis and other items in time.
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75 Comments
Designing a business isn’t a democratic process. You vote with your dollars. Gutter Greenpoint has done well and Gutter LIC will too. Creative LIC businesses are and will be patronized by people all throughout Queens looking for new, local forms of entertainment. There are plenty of us happy to explore concept bars occasionally.
It seems there is a combination of confusion and xenophobia here. This concept – game/bar – is all over the US in various forms and has been for a long time. The hostility over turf is a waste of energy. Unless you’re a homeowner, your days are numbered and your influence limited. And even those who have investments in the area will find themselves surprised at the lack of cultural control they will experience. LIC will eventually feel like any other city in America.
How about celebrating that a small business opened? How about getting excited that people are still bothering to be entrepreneurial in this town without the backing of a corporation? That your occupation and whitewashing of the space isn’t completely killing all of the fun and replacing it with suburban conveniences… yet?
No, you technically don’t have to support local businesses if they don’t serve your household’s needs.
The moms have complained loud enough that the bar is actually considering allowing kids. There’s a list to sign if you want them to have kids hrs. I’m a mom and will NOT be signing this list. There are plenty of places for me to take my child, here in LIC and in the greater 5 boroughs without having an adult tantrum and insisting a BAR let in underage clientele.
But when will a crunch or a NYSC or ANY gym open? Any leads?
every building has a gym.
There’s a crunch and NYSC in Greenpoint
LIC is a bedroom community with skyrocketing retail and commercial rents that no gym business model can sustain
Every building does not have a gym. Check out the cliffs on 44th, I’ve heard they have a gym in addition to all the climbing.
Also there’s a cross fit on 46th Rd if you’re into that
A gimmick bar. Bar bar bar with a few lanes, perhaps to draw more pp to their watering hole. Like back in the day when bars had pinball machines. Don’t think much has changed. Number 1 Priority drink. It’s just a another bar in LIC. And what’s with the negative comments about kids & mothers? Sounds like u pp need a good big beer to calm u down. Lol, calm down pp its only a bar.
The new tennis club is for kids only, so I think this is fair. Sorry, but, it’s adults without children who spend all the money on beer. Children make the atmosphere different. Adding them to the mix will drive away the crowd the owners want to attract and ruin the cool vibe. Get a nanny or don’t come.
What’s up with the thumbs up/down feature? A thumbs up click results in multiple thumbs down and visa versa. Odd.
I was born and raised in LIC. When I was a kid, my parents never let me play in the gutter. All the moms on 7th street used to yell at us that they’d break our f**kin’ legs if we played in the gutter. I’m sure the kids would much prefer to play outside in the park. I know we did.
That makes no sense at all.
It was a pun. The Gutter is the name of the establishment. The gutter is the space between the curb and the street as well as being the name for the grooves on either side of the bowling alley.
See what I did there?
I’ve lived in LIC for over a decade and don’t have a kid. I’ve bowled at Brooklyn Gutter, Brooklyn Bowl, and all in-between kinds of lanes in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn and upstate.
Thank christ for a no child policy at this bar/bowling alley. If these parents had any kind of clue, they’d know it’d be tantamount to asking for kids hours at a strip club. This isn’t a children’s amusement place.
Take them to any of the parks. Take them to the soccer field. The playgrounds on Center or 47th or 11th or Jackson. The basketball courts, the handball courts, the Astoria pool, the YMCA, any of the five million other places children are actively catered to and engaged with. Just let the adults be adults for once at this one place and don’t be assholes about it.
Who is being an ahole? A strip club can not be compared to a bowling alley. Kids bowl. Now, if this place wants to be kid free, fine, there should be bars and bowling alleys that don’t have children. But, LIC has become a very family friendly place so I think the owners are being naive when they think they can stay in business in a changing, expensive neighborhood without admitting the largest segment of the population. Parents with kids. Personally, I don’t care if they do allow kids cause the place looks a bit grungy. Which is cool, but not for kids. I am aware that many dusty people in the hood think that they own the place and that we should not try to dust it off. In my opinion, if you no longer fit into or like a neighborhood, you should move. Or just continue on your grumpy, old person path of complaining and whining about the good old days.
Had to smile reading some of these comments; have shared many of these sentiments at different times. It’s understandable there are people who want to enjoy time& space exclusively with other adults .Wishing all the best to this new venue. There IS also AstoriaBowl,which also caters to kids,especially w free hours during the summer.Some may appreciate places like that in future,if/when kids happen to become a bigger part of your personal world.
Looks like they invested a lot of money into that place. I hope they have a long lease so it doesn’t get torn down and turned into more rentals.
Regarding kids – they should think about closing the bar weekdays from 3-5pm or 3-6pm and maybe Saturday/Sunday before 11AM or noon and have some youth bowling leagues. Just kick everybody out at the appointed hour and open the bar to the more profitable patrons.
GO look inside. It is not a place for children, even if they get dedicated hours. It’s a bar (and one that is reminiscent of my college days, if you get my drift), with 4 lanes of bowling in the way back.
It’s a BAR.
I don’t think this place will survive you got to remember kids like to bowl too that’s why some bowling alleys have kids Leagues but on kids not a good ideal +7 dollars a game +3 dollar rental shoes That’s like 10 game of bowling on thinks well I have to say is good luck to the owner I hope he will survive but I doubt it
I can tell you right now I’m gonna LOVE this place. Whether LIC is for families, hipsters, dog lovers, brunch crap, heavily bearded coffee baristas, or Italian restaurants…a business has the right to set an age restriction. Perhaps these owners have seen how OBNOXIOUS those “mombie and dadbies with strollers” tend to be….letting their little ones run around, screaming, disrupting the right for others to enjoy a quiet setting without having to put up a false “aww how cute” pretense. Bravo
This shoulda been a bowling alley
I wonder if that the same bowling lanes that was there in the 70s 28 lanes?
Whether you like it or not , LIC is an area for couples who are either trying to start a family, young families, or people with dogs. If you can’t cater to young families in this neighborhood, no one will show. And to all of you family bashers out there, you have the freedom to go about anywhere. Just because we might be mombies and take our strollers out with us doesn’t mean we should stay home and be confined to playgrounds and playgroup. We have lives , too and being able to go around in our hood is convenient for us as it is for you . I guess we are supposed to live in suburbia to get out of your way.
Actually raising a family in surburbia offers many benifits over living here. LIC is a fine springboard for such but between the schools, the finances, and the space raising a family here makes little sense.
Bowling is especially of interest for teenagers and youngsters. Must they exclude a large crossection from learning and enjoying the game!
hmm maybe more like nycnaive… i think your selfentitled attitude about who the neighborhood is for is ass backwards. it’s a neighborhood. those with the means to live there should, it’s not FOR couples, or young families, or dog owners, or singles, or hispters, etc.
it’s for anyone that wants to effing live there. get your head out of your ass.
Yes, it’s now for anyone that can afford it. That often limits the number of people raising children as their children’s expenses and the high rents here make for tough living unless your loaded with cash. Hence all I he people you see commuting on the LIRR and Metro North.
Yep mOve B…. Get Out the way Get out the Way
seriously. no kids? not even at like 3pm after school? I have an 8. & 10 yr old that were so stoked to get better at bowling. good luck with ur biz. I won’t even go with my wife or friends. know and support where u live. just bizarre.l???
Really? Someone call the waaah-waaah-wambulance!
The Gutter is a bar with bowling lanes, not a bowling alley with a bar. The last thing I want to hear in a bar is your precious little offspring/pet melting down or being hyperactive.
It’s a bar dude.
Didn’t want to have a drink with you anyhow! Sad day when a mom forgets she’s also a grown woman.
Seriously, no kids? That immediately makes me 1000X more likely to have a drink there. NYC is not the ideal place to raise kids, and it’s not supposed to be. Nobody wants your annoying shits around when they are trying to have a nice time as an adult.
a lot of square footage to cover and overhead… I guess all the profit they drive in Williamsburg they will be okay w taking a loss in
LIC.
Different neighborhood here… as a business owner in this neighborhood. Right or wrong- not maximing daytime hours and allowing families during hours until 6 pm (like Brooklyn bowl) is a bad business decision.. assuming they couldn’t do this because of specific rescrictions.
Won’t survive in this neighborhood… no kids means no business
How so? I see plenty of bars surviving. This place is essentially a bar that offers bowling too. Leasing costs lower than the Vernon blvd strip and most of the bowling infrastructure/capital costs already fixed/invested. They will do fine as long as patrons show up to drink.
Agree with LIC fly.
Something different, going to be a money maker. People going to reserve a lane and have a couple of drinks while waiting and then again while bowling. Won’t see many perfect games though.
I think this place will be a success. At least until the developers run out of better options.
I gave up bowling many years ago. Every time I wanted to bowl, the clerk would ask me “What league are you with?” Of course, they would have “Open Bowling” on some odd time like on Wednesday mornings from 8 AM to 11 AM.
Thanks but no thanks.
Who cares what you think.
My kid can be a terror at times. Totally understand. Maybe should just charge premiums for kids instead of the traditional discounts for the little turds.
In all seriousness, happy to welcome a new and more importantly, different type of biz to the hood that adds some diversity away from the usual Italian, burger, real estate, deli, nail salons, etc. seen often here.
Huh? You mean typical NY shit? Are there really so many Italian places in LIC? And is that really an issue for you? Do you feel oppressed?
Are you just trolling looking for someone to insult? To you this person seemed to be complaining their oppressed? That interpretation says more about you then them. Yea there are a lot of Italian places in LIC. Is that something you’ve never heard before. Did the person say “and that’s an issue for me”? No, relax. This is a site for LIC residents and whoever else to see what’s going on and new in the area. You were berating someone else earlier for wanting to be able to bring kids now this person says they are happy to leave theirs home. What exactly is an acceptable comment to you? Is it just the mere fact that this person has a kid? Truly some of the most bizarre comments I’ve seen. For an article about a freaking bowling alley opening people are attacking each other? I’m a native New Yorker who most recently lived in LIC for 4 years and hopped around Manhattan for 3 before that, since I clearly have to state my “credentials” to have an opinion. No need to respond let me guess you are going to say “f$$k you hipster”, “move to another state bc I don’t like the same kind of places you do and that threatens me to read on the internet”. When I have kids hopefully I’ll be able to bring them to different places and teach them to behave even out of an all kid or all family environment so they can learn how to socialize and not have tantrums, seems like that would’ve been beneficial for you.
Sites need to take trolls more seriously. It seems like a small problem but can end up really hurting a business. CNN.com became a cess pool until they banned comments. Ratings dropped big time because people no longer came for news. If you can’t police comments then you should not allow them.
First off, the idea that there are “too many Italian places” has popped up a few times in here, and it is ridiculous. That they mentioned it is clearly a sign that it’s an issue for them. Likewise, complaining about delis and nail places is similarly silly. It smacks of another person desperate to live in a trendy neighborhood, so they can drop the name with pride each time they meet someone.
But I shouldn’t have to explain these things to a “native NY’er” that has lived here for all of 7 years, right? Surely a native NY’er would have taken note of the downward spiral this city has been in for a long time now, with too many interesting and genuine people being pushed out in favor of cookie cutter bros and soccer moms looking to transform the city into their own version of anytown USA.
You mean $7 isn’t a premium price to you for one game of bowling?
It’s pure insanity
In LIC and not open to children. Interesting!
Hope the owner remember to scrub for the ebola virus.
reference: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/24/the-gutter-ebola_n_6041678.html
btw, a joke people. a joke
I think they scrubbed for Ebowla.
🙂
That’s right. In fact I think the sunbather statue in LIC is a tribute to that stupid hipster doctor.
While I applaud that someone thought to bring a sport such as bowling to LIC, I wish they had about 20 lanes. Bowling is a fun sport for young and old alike. A batting cage/pool/billiards/mini golf place wold also be good for the neighborhood. Good for couples/singles and families.
Haha, a sport
I guess its more about the bar! Its more appealing and,,,,profitable! The few bowling lanes are a distraction. (Hmm…hence the name Gutter which is more fitting for a bar… than a bowling alley!!) Good luck NEW YORKERS!!!
No kids allowed?!? HELL YEAH, SIGN ME UP!!! I’m soooo sick of the entitled mombies and their stroller brigades showing up at bars and places meant for adults. Finally a place where it won’t be allowed!!
Disliked by 3 mombies
Funny considering LIC,Sunnyside and all western Queens were all families! Get out hipsters! Boycott
I think we would all be happy if you do Boycott. But more curiously, why would you want to take your children to a place that is half Bar and half Bowling Lane? It’s obviously not appropriate for a child. Just saying…
Yeah… there’s a whole ton of people who want to just live their lives in nyc without screaming nightmares fucking up their iutings, who also aren’t hipster scum. We call ourselves “New Yorkers.” So fuck off, entitled breeders. How bou da?
Too bad no one told your mothers not to breed way back when. Maybe you should have “discovered” lic back when the rest of the single crowd did, not years later after they settled, got their dogs and had their children.
Xoxo
A born and raised nyc kid, Long time lic resident and mom
perhaps you want to consider setting a better example as a mother and chill with the direct insults “told your mothers not to breed way back when” sheesh… for the record, adults don’t come to mygym or any other lic establishment meant FOR CHILDREN with cocktails, so maybe reciprocate the idea and don’t come to the bar with babies. no need to be so offended…
Please don’t misunderstand my comments. I do not want to bring my child here. I too have nights where I like to remember I am just an adult. Is it helpful to be able to bring my kid out with me when I am hungry? sure. Am I respectful of others when I do so? more than I should be.
My post was in response to this spewing of hate against people who have opposing views/lifestyles in our neighborhood
My comment regarding telling your mothers not to breed was in response to the first shot fired, calling anyone with children an entitled breeder. Like it or not, (and sometimes I don’t!) LIC is being taken over by parents.
Were this an establishment with a full service kitchen, that appeared safe for kids, I might be on the “before 7pm kids allowed” bandwagon. But I left my kid at home last weekend and checked this place out. It is super cool, not at all for kids, and I think it should stay that way. Us moms and dads like to let loose while overpaying for babysitting sometimes. At least this mom does.
I am not offended at this place being an adults only establishment. I’m offended at the way people speak about their neighbors, solely for taking a different/earlier life path (having kids), and for assuming every mother in this neighborhood fits the definition of a “mombie” or a “hipster”
I am neither.
And for the record, I am setting a kick ass example for my kid, of inclusion, and friendliness, not this seething hate riddled with curse words.
Mom, what the hell are you going on about? You sure as f$$k aren’t a long time resident of LIC. I’m not either, but I’m also not going around claiming to be, and saying that I will shape the neighborhood as I like it. The arrogant idea that you can reshape the neighborhood as you see fit, and that you are doing a “kick ass job,” shows just what type of person you are. The type of person we don’t need here.
Basta, When you say that “we don’t need here”, just exactly who is we? You and a couple of old farts who miss Juniors? I think you are the one who is arrogant. This IS NOT YOUR neighborhood.
Says the guy from Connecticut. “We” are the NY’ers that happen to live in the neighborhood.
JP, I think I love you!
Happy to chat with you once you hone those reading comprehension skills basta. Until then, back off as you clearly don’t know own what youre talking about.
“Dad,” care to be a little more specific?
Oh man, I want to hang out with you! I call them breaders, but mombies is a good one too :}
I called them “stroller mafia”! :):)
I’ll hang out with both of you
Like it or not, parents today can go out with their kids at certain times and to certain places. Mature places. Clean places that have room. Nobody is going to bring their kids to a place called the Gutter. As a parent who still has some life left in him, I love to bring my kids to Anable Basin Sailing Bar or Bierocracy but not to Rockaway or Alewife. Plus, there is a reason that you can find kids in the local watering holes. Young families. Yes, I know, we are fake New Yorkers and you are the real New Yorkers. Whatever.
You know where you should bring your kids? Connecticut. It’s really nice…
Brilliant!!!
Every bowling alley sells beer and most have bars. There are kids in bowling alleys all the time. What the hell is your problem? Maybe they need to keep you out.
You guys voted for Donald Trump didn’t you?
126 likes? lol.