Alhambra Bowling Center

Smudgie here, this time to report on a recent trip to Alhambra, mecca of of dim sum palaces and other yummy Asian cuisine. After a disappointing meal at a highly recommended restaurant (that will remain nameless), we sought and found redemption in desert: ice cream at Fosselman’s. For those who have not yet experienced the delight of Fosselman’s, head east with gusto and great speed, Fosselman’s is homemade ice cream to write home about. And should you, like Hamster, watch your two scoops roll off the cone and go splat on the sidewalk, fear not, the kind staff will replace the scoops free of charge, provided you have cleaned the wayward melting cream off the sidewalk. Redemptive desert in stomachs, we took the evening up a notch with a trip to our true destination, Alhambra Bowl.

Walking through the entrance, there was a distinctive 1970’s rec-center-esque feel, similar to the high-school hangout in which the kids played pool and drank beer in Dazed and Confused. Because we were there for nighttime bowling, the overhead lights were out with only the lanes lit up. Once my eyes adjusted, I could see there was a certain grunginess masked under the cover of darkness.

Aesthetics aside, the price was right, and there was no wait to start bowling. After being greeted and helped immediately at the front counter, our names were entered for us by the friendly bowling staff, and we only had to pay for shoes before we were given our lane assignment. 

The Bowling Bandit immediately hit the bar, where there were numerous signs proclaiming, “No outside alcohol is allowed,” as well as one that said, “And NO, we will not give you a cup with ice.” Too funny, as it seems some patrons not only want to sneak in alcohol, but they also want cups and ice to cool their tasty beverages! Oh, to be young again. A fantastically under-priced $7.50 snagged the Bowling Bandit not just one but TWO imported beers, a New Castle and Tecate. Is Alhambra really just 10 minutes from downtown? Can drinks really be this inexpensive? Bandit’s mind was bending. Drinks in hand, now we were ready to roll.

Once we arrived laneside, it was so dark that the only thing my eyes could see were the guide lights built into the lane to help see where the arrows were. Usually, night bowling involves flashing strobe lights and pulsating rock hits, but that was not the case on this evening. Perhaps to fill the void caused by the lack of customary disco balls, strobes and black lights everywhere, the large crew of college kids bowling next to us punctuated each throw of the ball with extremely loud screams and the occasional shriek. Their excitement was infectious, even though I couldn’t get a strike to save my life.

The lanes were smooth, and featured an old-style ball return that alternated between sending the ball back with great speed and then not such great speed. The mixture of balls to choose from was haphazard and mixed together in terms of weight and finger size, which made our bowling-ball-less compadres have to hunt for a while to find something that worked. Looking around, the lane was probably two-thirds full with an overwhelmingly Asian clientele on the Saturday night we visited.

The snack bar offered an assortment of sodas and nachos which we did not sample. The bathrooms, despite a few warnings on Yelp describing them as “being like something out of ‘Saw’ ” were not as scary as they could have been.

Bowling newbie Tiger Pants took high game of the evening honors with a competitive come-from-behind win of 129, by marking in his final four frames. Music was an upbeat mix of popular rap and R&B featuring Missy Elliot and 50 Cent, and appeared to be a big hit among the Saturday night crowd.

Despite the slightly down-on-its-luck feel, Alhambra Bowl garners high ratings for low prices on everything from bowling to beer, ease of use in terms of not having to figure out the computers or wait for a lane, and authenticity -- no gimmicks, no strobe lights -- just honest-to-goodness bowling.

I’m sure we’ll be back to Alhambra Bowl, perhaps next time during the light of day.

Alhambra Bowling Center
1400 E Valley Blvd
Alhambra, CA 91801
(626) 289-5168