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.
