The Gutter, Brooklyn (Yelp)
March 11, 2016 By Christian Murray
The highly-anticipated bowling alley scheduled to open in Hunters Point later this year will be taking on a retro concept with eight wooden lanes, a long timber bar and décor associated with 1970s middle America.
The owners of the enterprise operate The Gutter, a Williamsburg bowling alley that opened in 2007 with the concept of vintage lanes and a 70s bar.
The Long Island City venture, which will be the company’s second alley, will be located inside a former industrial space at 10-22 46th Ave. and will have a similar theme. Owners Paul Kermizian and Todd Powers said the eight wooden lanes will be brought in from Ohio.
Powers said that when the Gutter opened in 2007, many other companies around New York City were closing their alleys. He claimed that the Gutter, which is inside a converted Williamsburg warehouse, was the first bowling alley in Brooklyn to open in 50 years at the time.
The owners plan to set up bowling leagues in the Long Island City location similar to those in Brooklyn. In Brooklyn they have leagues four days per week, with 90 people per league.
The Gutter, Brooklyn (Yelp)
Powers said that they plan to open in August, although acknowledged that he was being ambitious.
The Brooklyn location does not permit children. However, Powers said that given the family nature of Long Island City they may schedule children’s hours on weekends.
The Long Island City alley will have a small kitchen that will serve items such as pretzels, nachos, empanadas, hotdogs and bratwurst sausages.
The alley will feature a long bar with 32 seats. The owners are applying for a full liquor license.
The owners went before Community Board 2’s City Services and Public Safety Committee Wednesday in their quest for a liquor license.
They sought the committee’s approval that would permit them to be open until 4 a.m. seven nights per week.
Kermizian and Powers put forward the argument that they were in a residential section of Hunters Point while claiming they had a spotless record in Brooklyn.
The Committee, while acknowledging the concept’s great appeal, said that the Board typically does not approve licenses until 4 a.m. for operators new to the area.
The Board decided that 2 a.m. was a more appropriate hour and said that the operators could come back and request 4 a.m. closing when they have a track record in the district.
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32 Comments
I hope it is a success! It’s always exciting to see growth for people that take the leap into owning a business regardless if it’s a restaurant, nail salon, or a bowling alley. Being a small business owner is a huge risk and often people are laying it all on the line financially and effort wise to pursue their dream. It’s personal, they’re risking sometimes everything they have on manifesting their vision to share with others in hopes of creating a place that serves the community. That’s something to consider when getting on here an shitting all over someone’s venture. It’s sad that residents old and new alike get on here and bicker and hurl school yard insults back and fourth. It’s actually kind of disgraceful.
Where do people want to put a big 20 lane alley? It’s not like huge spaces are easily available. Sheesh. Lighten up. First time I’m feeling bad about leaving LIC!
Nice…more big balls in the neighborhood is a good thing.
Hahaaaaa lol! Great comment! ?
Décor associated with the 1970s? The worse decade for design in America, hands down.
Hahaha..You are just jealous. Go hang out in your hookah lounges and wanna be trendy places in Astoria.
And after that, we can go shopping in our “trendy” supermarkets, take our kids to our “trendy” schools and visit our “trendy” hospitals should the need arise. Good luck though with your super “unique” bowling alley based on the 70s. I’m sure the 150 nail salons will appreciate the business from all the chipped nails.
Seeing that I’m 56 years old, I don’t jump on what’s ‘trending’ now. That’s for people under 25 and to them a ‘trend’ apparently lasts 24 hours. I was commenting on 70s décor, not bowling alleys. Who on Earth would be jealous over a bowling alley? Thanks for the laugh though.
I think it’s great to have someone invest in a Bowling Alley in LIC. I don’t know how you can make a profit on 8 lanes however. 30 lanes is usually a good way to turn a profit. 20 might have been the least you should put in. There will be long waits for the lanes when leagues don;t bowl. I wish someone would put in a real bowling alley with all the fixings i.e. snack bar, pool table, video games, leagues etc…….in LIC. There used to be one on 47th Ave. near Aviation High School on LIC/Sunnyside border. It closed in the 90’s. It had 37 lanes.
How about being nice? It’s great that someone wants to invest in LIC and open a business. Thank you! and please don’t listen to the negativity.
This is great. Can’t wait!
Can I park my $2000 all-wood made bicycle out in front? I hope they’ll have that very unique early century Edison retro Williamsburg lighting damn bright and high because I’ll be wearing my wooden frame shades as well
We don’t need no stinkin retro themed bowling lanes imported from Ohio with hand crafted bowling balls and pseudo creative types roaming about with man buns and beards and not wearin no socks on their feet. We had great parties with shitty Ritz crackers, some worn out LP’s and some crappy beer. Will they be serving these items there and glorify them with over the top prices for Miller beer in a Styrofoam cup? I’m sure a sawed off boat sized Eldorado will be hanging from the ceiling. Don’t forget to install some of a that crappy paneling found in basements along with the mini bar. We were an unkempt lot in the 70’s with lousy haircuts, clothes I’m embarrassed to say I wore . We interacted not through text messaging but by shagging whoever came along. We didn’t wear no stnkin tattoos , but sported brut cologne on special occasions.
Just what is wrong with you guys? Old people thought you were losers in the 70’s. Now you are the old people calling people losers. Can’t you just realize that things change? I hope to god I don’t ever become such an old, bitter, angry person who never stops complaining about people that are different than me. Archie Bunker is funny to watch as a character on TV, but in real life he would be just an angry, bitter, old man who is never happy and always complaining.
The way you are complaining in your post about someone who thinks differently than you do?
The people who think they know everything that are most annoying to those of us that do.
You are complaining about people complaining about other people and then hope to god (God) that you don’t become someone who complains about people who are different.
Don’t look now – you’re one of those people.
The younger generation loves older people! Look at Bernie Sanders and how far he has made it. Most of these negative comments are from sorry ass middle aged people who realize you can not go back in time and be young again.
Get off my lawn?
If you do not like it..then do not go! And if you feel better expressing your shallow views on this site then carry on.
8 Lanes 90 people in a league. Do the Math –are there 11 people on a team with only 8 lanes available. Are there people in the same league that use the lanes after the first group. You can have 5 or 6 man teams that way. How much per game of regular bowling and shoes? Lots of questions with no answers. 30 lanes would be better. Still like the idea of a bowling alley. Hipsters are here besides Yuppies and trust fund babies.
I have never seen so many labels for people in my life.
how ’bout one candlepin lane in the mix for us new england transplants.
8 lanes?
This is going to be just another bar.
Nice concept though, might just sneak it by the community board.
How are you going to have leagues on 6 lanes??? Enough of this hipster over priced junk, someone should open a proper bowling alley
Sorry to break it to you, but the hipsters are not in LIC. LIC is mostly what you would term yuppies with some trust fund babies in the mix. And they will pay through the nose to visit the business as described.
The reason why traditional bowling alleys are scarce is because almost nobody bowls anymore. If you think that this is a popular business model and that we are so in need, open one yourself. Also, notice how I refer to your bowling as “traditional” rather than as “old fart blue collar bowling”? That would be unnecessarily rude.
Run into an old fart blue collar worker in a really alley one day- not the bowling kind. Maybe your cousin the plumber should teach you some manners when it comes to bashing blue collar workers every chance you get. Nancy.
Ah yes, the inevitable incitement to violence. Thanks for keeping it classy here, Nancy. You must have penned this on your way to a Trump rally.
Yes, it would be rather rude. I do have one suggestion, though. If you don’t like bowling, don’t go bowing.
I was just wondering, are you saying that any time I feel the need for something that you think is not popular, I should open a business?
Geez people, we’re talking about a bowling alley here. Maybe, just maybe, if we’d stop being snarky all the time we could avoid the animosity!
Yaawwwn – how original, hipster/yuppy bashing… Back when LIC was all crack dens and hookers, do you think the crack addicts and hookers were moaning about the non-crack addicts moving in. “oh damn, those plumbers, and blue collar people are moving in, there goes the neighborhood”. It’s called gentrification people, and yeah, its annoying when staying in the neighborhood is difficult because the prices have gone up so much, but that’s how it goes. Get a better job, stay in your current apartment, or move to cheaper pastures.
I really hope the leagues take off as a social hub for fellow LIC residents. Best of luck with the venture.