Bayside Bowl
58 Alder St, Portland, ME, 04101
Bayside Bowl Menu
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Address :
58 Alder St
Portland, ME, 04101 - Phone (207) 791-2695
- Website https://www.baysidebowl.com/
- Click To Get Directions
Opening Hours
- Mon :4:00 pm - 12:00pm
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : Yes
Delivery : No
Take-out : No
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Accepts Bitcoin : No
Good For : Late Night
Parking : Street, Private Lot
Bike Parking : Yes
Wheelchair Accessible : Yes
Good for Kids : Yes
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Hipster
Noise Level : Loud
Music : Live
Good For Dancing : No
Alcohol : Full Bar
Happy Hour : Yes
Best Nights : Thu, Fri, Sat
Coat Check : No
Smoking : Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
Outdoor Seating : Yes
Wi-Fi : Free
Has TV : Yes
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : No
WE SERVE THE FOLLOWING STATES
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Beth R.
A non-scuzzy bowling alley with a great bar and food. No joke. It's for real! When I think of bowling alley cuisine, images of slippery pizza, pig lips and arse hotdogs, "nachos", and greasy burgers and fries that slime up the bowling balls come to mind. Not at Bayside Bowl! This place has a great pub with delicious food. I get the Rachael, which is a vegan tempeh reuben. Love it! I've eaten here several times, but have never bowled. One of these days... for now, I'll just continue to enjoy the food and admire the modern, clean bowling alley.
(5)Fred B.
The bowling is great and the food is surprisingly very good. You're probably not going to believe this, but they have perhaps the best mushroom hamburger pizza in Portland. It's small and the crust is like a soft flatbread, the mushrooms are fresh and tasty, and the pieces of hamburger are the real thing, plentiful, large, and not overcooked. All in all, this is a great spot for families and getting together with your friends. My only comment in terms of room for improvement would be answering the phone more regularly when folks call, but maybe we were calling at a bad time.
(5)William B.
The pizza was good, the bowling was good, the bands were really good too! The sound guy is a pro. They even have a nice board mix piped into the washroom & out to the bowling lanes so you don't miss any of the music.
(5)Edward M.
Tries Bayside Bowl for the first time tonight. Cool jazz combo. I had a very tasty red bean and rice vegan dish, Nicely spiced. Served a bit too hot to eat initially, but worth the wait. I wish the fine corn bread piece had been larger. Quite a generous portion as well. The bummer of the night was that they ran out of Guinness. But I will return. Perhaps I will even try the bowling.
(3)Matthew M.
Downtown Portland has a swank new place to check out! Yeah, it's a bowling alley, but it ain't your dad's bowling alley (unless your pops is a svelt hipster who rolls 10-pin in the Portland area). The place has twelve lanes to bowl on, 14 beers on tap, and nice, big bar for when you are done throwing rocks. They often have live music playing, including a live karaoke band on Wednesdays. The food is pretty dang good here, too! Eat while you bowl or eat before/after, either way works at Bayside. Hell, you could even come in and bowl/eat on your lunch-break from work! Mondays are the day to hit up Bayside for bowling deals (before 6pm). League bowl begins at that time. Wednesdays is live karaoke. Weekend evenings are pretty busy so far.
(4)Brian A.
I'm a fan. Been involved in bowling leagues here for the past 2 years. Always a good time. Have come on other nights besides league nights and it can get packed. I've also seen wait times well over an hour. Good thing they have a bar and some pretty damn good food. I've only eaten here twice but both times I remember the food being good. I think I had the pulled pork sandwich the last time I ate there with the sweet potato fries. Pitchers of Moosehead for only $10. Yes indeed. Since I'm a leaguer here we usually have the same 1 or 2 waitresses who serve us. They are awesome! Always friendly, prompt and cute. I've never had any trouble with the staff and everyone has always treated me well. Keep up the good work. My only gripe is in the bathroom. They are almost always out of paper towels. I like the shared sink concept but who the hell ordered the air blowers in there? They are GARBAGE. Useless! They need to either remove them or replace them with the really high powered ones that every other place has. They recently added an outdoor seating area with 2 full sized bocce courts and cornhole. They show movies out there as well on Wednesday nights in the summer but have never been myself. Bocce and cornhole are free to play as long as you leave your drivers licence with them. I didn't think this place could get any better and then it did. Props to you Bayside. I should have bought in when you were still looking for investors.
(5)H K.
I want to shed light on Bayside Bowl-- the hub of the social scene for us Mainer's who live in the dark from Nov-March. At BB you can rock an adult night out, with their great events and entertainment and feed your inner child while bowling on the CLEANEST, coolest lanes around. GREAT food and great vibes. They offer a very diverse menu that even a vegetarian will drool over (though I say go burger!) They even have Skee-ball! Come on, what more can you ask for?! Don't take my word for it, GO CHECK IT OUT! Much to the love Bayside crew!
(5)Wes T.
All bowling alleys should aspire to this level of awesomeness. It's more a cool and casual bar with a bowling alley attached to it, rather than a bowling alley that also serves beer. Purists might not like it for that reason, and I can sympathize. But for a good time out with friends that might not have their own custom bowling balls this place is more than appropriate and fitting. Let "The Big Lebowski" quotes flow like White Russians! There's nothing foul about this place.
(5)Michael D.
Bayside Bowl is the best place in Portland for the complete bowling experience. The staff is friendly, they have great music and an energetic environment. I usually go with a decent sized group and getting multiple lanes can be challenging on certain nights so if you are planning a group or company event you will want to plan ahead.
(5)Jordan K.
I really like this place. It's fun for everyone! Kid-friendly, adult-friendly, wallet-friendly, just maybe not car-friendly (parking is a nightmare, especially in the winter when the City of Portland seems to stop plowing around this tucked away gem). Two things that really have stood out for me about this place: 1) Clean, clean, CLEAN! Bowling alleys can sometimes smell and feel skanky, but this place is continually spotless. Bravo. 2) Their VEGAN FOOD! Bayside Bowl is home to the best hot vegan sandwich I have ever had. Just mind-blowing. Try it even if you love meat.
(4)Lola N.
Rock. I liked this place a lot! I thought it was gonna be like a gross dowdy old normal bowling alley, but it was a cool hip sexy bar-bowling-alley instead. We had a lot of fun, the drinks were strong and well priced, the bar area/dance floor was pretty cool, and although I didn't eat anything here their menu actually looked pretty awesome and cheap! I definitely plan on coming back.
(4)Jonathan F.
Piss poor customer service. Walked in during the afternoon to inquire about coming in that evening with a large group. They were not willing to set up a reservation, which is understandable, however they were also unable to speak in complete sentences. When asked what time it starts getting busy, the man stuttered and said "I won't be here then". OK... not what we asked.... so we said we would call about an hour prior to our anticipated arrival time and he said that was a good idea. Unfortunately, they don't like to answer the phone. After calling 10 times w/in a 1/2 hour, someone finally picked up. "How long is your wait time?" i ask. "I don't know, i can't tell you unless you come in. it changes all the time." says the clerk. "If i were to walk into your facility right now, what would my wait time be?" I don't know guy, you just have to come in" I finally got him to tell me 1.5hrs after a 8 minute argument. We'll see if anything gets any better if we decide to go spend our money here.
(1)Tom D.
Want some fun? Get to this alley for it! 12 lanes, good food and drinks. Not your typical bowling alley grub, cheese plates! Daily beer specials. Really nice lanes, sometimes a little wait but worth it. Big space with room for large groups. Also live music.
(5)Heather G.
Did I come on an off night? Sure, there was a wait for the lanes (and we never did end up getting to bowl), but the bar area was dead, save for our small gathering and one dude typing away on his laptop at the bar. They tell me this is a rather happenin' place for "hipsters" and the like, with a live band on the corner stage and the vast bar area packed to the gills. I, however, witnessed none of this on the Thursday evening I visited. Instead, I only saw a large, cold, empty bar area and lonely, unoccupied stage. No matter, I saddled up to the bar for some food and a beer. The beer selection is generic, and the food is standard pub fare. I went with a steak wrap with caramelized onions, which came with a side of fries. Both the sandwich and the fries were greasy and limp, though the dish did come out in mere minutes - bonus points for promptness. The bartender was *incredibly* friendly without being intrusive...wish I could remember her name but she was a sweet blonde lady. I may just return for the sole fact that she's a nice lady. I'm crossing my fingers that it was just a dead-night, and I'll certainly give it another shot the next time I'm in Maine.
(2)Daniel B.
This is a classic bowling alley. No loud dance music, no security guards, no flashing lights. Just good old fashioned lanes with great service. Love the fact that there is live music going on in the restaurant area, really brings the entire atmosphere to a whole 'nother level. Paid for an hour, which seemed to be a very fair price to split among 6 people, and had a great time! Lots of fun to be had when you bowl here!
(5)Kat D.
Love it! Loud for my kids, $2 beer, and yummy food! I had to get the bbq pulled pork sandwich. It is the best bbq pulled pork I've had in a long time! YUM! The fries were great too. They are fresh shoe string type fries. My kids LOVED LOVED them. My hubby got the double cheeseburger... he heard they were good and he wasn't disappointed. My kiddos shared a kids' menu cheese pizza. It was more than enough for my three little ones. I don't think I would of been able to finish it! It was great pizza too. My oldest son ate three slices (which he normally doesn't do). We also got some chips and salsa to start off with and I was impressed. Hot chips and good chunky spicy salsa. We will definitely go back again, and hopefully go bowling too! Bowling alley side was packed. You can also order food while your bowling. There was only two servers for the whole place (even serving the bowlers) and our server was attentive and nice. Impressed!
(5)Alex F.
Convenient location for bowling right in Portland. This place also has incredible food, for a bowling alley and great beers/drinks. I would probably give them 4 stars if not for some of the most obnoxious, pretentious and rude staff crammed into one facility in Portland. Specifically those who work the front desk side of things. Waitstaff and bartenders are good, just to clarify. I recently came in with a group and after being told earlier in the day that I would not need a reservation for lane(s), I was told at the counter this was false informatino for a group this large. Additionally, the wait time was 3 hours. There seems to be some miscommuncation among information delivered. I have also had some questions that upon asknig, I was cutt off and given a hostile response. I was playing there skee-ball game and the game stopped taking my quarters. I got a staff to fix it and after he took the stuck money out, looked up and says, "Whats the problem, its working fine for me" and walked away. The staff need some etiquette training. To add another annoyance of this bowling alley, they will only take reservations if its 1week in advance and you must pay a deposit. They also refused to give me even as much as a ballpark wait time for a lane stating "You need to come in for me to give you that info".
(2)Emily A.
So I've been here at least 6 times, but never been able to bowl. With faced of wait times 2.5+ hours, there are just other things to do. It's frustrating cause the bf have tried on both weekdays AND weekends, but to no avail. Guess it's just not meant to be Bayside!
(2)Bud P.
Great location and good food items. But whether it's the music or bowling it really just too loud in there. Soundproofing would really help.
(3)David M.
The bowling here is too expensive. Also its by the hour which is stupid. The pizza is pretty damn good. Its like, all grilled up and stuff. The nachos suck. Toppinged chip to toppingless chip ratio is like 1:1. Guess thats what happens when you make nachos in a bowl. The live music can be good. I have seen some really good bands for cheap. More reasonable pricing would be better for the bowling.
(3)Jess S.
We've been here twice and while it's fun and a more "mature" place to bowl, the prices and staff could use some adjusting. I hosted a party for 30+ people and had to pay MORE to reserve lanes. In addition, they wouldn't reserve me a table for our guests who weren't bowling to congregate at while they drank and ate. We spent $200 on food that was embarrassing to serve - although most of our guests didn't even know we had food because there was such a small quantity. For a $400 party, I sure expected more than to have our second game of bowling be cute short due to the "hour" being up and most of our guests not fed. I also would have appreciated ANYTHING for having to pay more - even just a reserved table so I didn't have to get there three hours early. It's too bad because this would be one of our go-to places for a date night, birthday or any get together with friends, but after our experience, I don't want to give them anymore of our money. The live band was fun and our server was great, though, so our guests had a good time, which was the main point. :)
(1)Addison H.
Going to Bayside Bowl was the highlight of my weekend in Portland. Cheap beer and bowling. It's the most up-to-date and fun bowling alley I've ever been to. All the machines and lanes worked and they played good music. Boston has a bunch of nice bowling alleys, but they're all really expensive, so this was nice. An hour rental with shoes was about $25. I would definitely go back. It would be fun for a date or just to hang out with friends.
(5)Jason B.
You probably won't bowl. Bad Service. I specifically created a yelp account to log in and leave this bad comment for this place. I posted on their Facebook wall to see if they would do the right thing but they just deleted my check in and comment about how "it would have been nice if we could have at least finished our 1 game of bowling" before they kicked us out for a larger reservation. By the way- they told us when we called we couldn't make a reservation. Go figure. Party of 15 or so - we won't be back.
(1)Doug F.
This place is terrific. The lines for bowling can be long, but the food is delicious and the beer list is really outstanding. The food and drink are so good that sometimes we go here even if we're not going to bowl. The service is great, and the crowd is friendly-- a true asset to the city!
(5)Jess B.
Being a fan of both the old-school family-friendly bowling alleys I grew up with in suburbia and the above-average food and drink you can get at swankier bowling lounges in NYC, Bayside Bowl is the best of both worlds. My boyfriend and I came during Viva Lebowski, so we got lucky and didn't have to pay for a lane or shoe rental (it came with the small amount we paid for admission). We split the lane with this super cool couple (one member was decked out in full Dude attire) and played/gossiped for two hours over Maine brews and gnarly cocktails. Aside from that fantastic White Russian I had to have (it'd be wrong if I didn't drink at least one on Lebowski night), I stuck with my Brooklyn Brewery lager. Since it was was their Beer of the Day, my pints only ended up being only $3 each! You definitely can't find that price in the BK. After we finished our games, the couple told us that we HAD to get the mac & cheese with pineapple and bacon. They vouched that it might be the best of the best on the East Coast. BF and I decided to split a bowl, which was the right choice because it was HUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE. With the addition of crumbled Ritz crackers on top and a bath of hot sauce mixed in, I can definitely say that it was, indeed, the best mac and cheese I've had in a long ass time.
(5)Celeste M.
When I moved here (in the dead of winter) I had heard about a funky chic bowling alley in the rough parts of Portland. Little did I know, I was living in the rough part of Portland because this place is a 3 min walk from me. Anyways, it took me 6 months to get in on the bowling scene and boy was I surprised! My friends and I decided to go on a Saturday night around 7pm without reservations. Daring, I know. The place does take lane reservations with a 24hr notice. We all filtered in around 7ish and wanted a lane. Do not purchase the lane time until all of your party is ready because the time starts 5 mins after you pay. Since it was prime time we paid $30/hr but split between the 5 of us it was pretty cheap. Shoe rental is a one time $3/person. We were being pretty casual about getting a lane so we ordered drinks at the bar and some tots to take down to the lane. I ordered a dark and stormy and boy was it dark with a hint of stormy! Not complaining. The tots were perfect! Super hot and crispy. I wish they offered some additional sauce choices but it's a bowling alley, right? Let's not get held up over the food here. Even though it's kind of amazing! They have a happy hour where the burgers are half priced, 4-6pm M-F. And on Tuesdays, games are only $2. You know where to find me on Tuesdays. We played a couple games then headed into the bar area to order dinner and watch some live local bands. Overall, it's a great way to spend your night if you're sick of the regular bar scene or want to do something out of the ordinary with friends.
(5)Anna D.
I mean, this place is just an awesome bowling alley. There was a group of 14 of us and Bayside couldn't have been more accomodating. We trickled in by couples, so our space of choice was constantly changing and growing. We ordered a few apps and drinks at the bar to start. The wait for a lane was about two hours, BUT that being said, on a Saturday night most people rent the lanes for at least an hr so it's understandable. We were able to saddle up at the bar and watch some of the amazing bowlers crush it while we waited. My 4 yr old nephew also showed up and was bowling a few lanes down, which was the cutest thing I'd ever seen; his excitement after barely managing to knock one pin down was so humbling. Food, not amazing, but definitely a great selection and tasty (they sell BOWLS OF TATER-TOTS, can it get any better?!), the service was on point and the drinks range from great Maine brews to a full bar. Always a great time at Bayside, whether you're a one or ten star bowler.
(5)Clint B.
I've been here twice, and it's a pretty solid place to bowl downtown. I've only been on the weekends, where it's $30/hr per lane to bowl (which when split with friends, isn't bad at all - also includes shoes). I'm pretty sure it's $25/hr per lane during the week, and I think you can reserve a lane if you call 24 hours in advance. They also have pay-per-game bowling as well. In addition, they play movies on their patio in the summer on certain days. There's only 12 lanes, so it can get crowded fast. But it also houses a very nice, large bar area with a great selection of local craft beers on-tap (Rising Ride, Oxbow, Bunker Brewing, etc). I also enjoyed their mixed drinks, especially the Bayside Derby. My friends and I also got their nachos, which were very good. Surprisingly, there's not many chips (which were nice and buttery) but TONS of meat, cheese, green peppers, etc. on top. If you're in the Old Port, want to bowl, and maybe have some drinks and/or food too, then look no further!
(4)Ashley T.
I have been bowling here for the restaurant league and this is by far the cleanest prettiest bowling alley I have ever stepped foot into. I am from ny and nyc and I have been to some raunchy alleys. I haven't had food here yet but their drinks are awesome. Very happy that I know this place exists.
(4)Brittany C.
I went to Bayside bowl last night with a group of friends after work, and did not have the best experience. I did not interact with one staff member there last night that was pleasant or helpful. I asked the woman at the desk if I could grab my shoes while we waited for our lane so I could get them on, she told me it would be a long time until our lane was free so no I could not... we decided to wait at the bar-the bartender was not personable and turned us off immediately. We waited a long time to get our second round of drinks.. I went and found a server to wait on us so we didn't have to continue dealing with him. I was hesitant to tip the bartender because I was so displeased with his service. I DID TIP HIM out of common courtesy and experience from serving myself for 10 years.The server I found took our food order - 2 chicken nachos. When they came out they were plated differently. Mine was in a bowl and my friends on a larger plate. There were 3 pieces of chicken on each of our orders and not exaggerating 50 or so jalepeno's, which I enjoy but not that many! Because mine was in a bowl, the cheese was not cooked all the way through and was cold on the bottom. The chips underneath the toppings were all cold and soggy. I ate literally 5 bites of it or so. When the waiter came back at about 9:50pm we let him know the nachos weren't great and we would like to order something else. He told us that the kitchen was closed- even though they are open until 11:30... and still charged us full price for our nachos- which I believe were $11 each. Not cheap.. We stayed and played our last round.. next thing I know, staff members told us we needed to switch lanes because the one we had been playing on needed to be worked on. Although, they had been working fine all night for us and we only had one game left. I was just irritated at this point. I will probably come back here but not for a while after last nights events. My profession is in customer service and the staff on last night did not meet my expectations for quality service. I know it's a bowling alley, but I truly believe in going above and beyond for guests while I am at work so I suppose I expect the same when I go out. I was disappointed that a fun night out turned into more hassle than relaxing and having a good time with friends after work. Everyone has their opinion- I am just sharing my feed back to let others know of my experience. Hopefully next time, my experience will be different. My hope is that a staff member will read this and encourage the team there to put a little more effort into guest service. I am organizing a weekly outing for my staff to go bowling- I will probably not choose Bayside after this experience. Thank you.
(2)Meg R.
Great atmosphere and good. The drinks were fantastic. Bowling was a lot of fun, you can have up to eight people per lane and more can just hang out and watch in the same space. Will definitely be headed back. Once you are on the lanes, don't expect any kind of service. We tried to order drinks from several staff members to no avail. Ended up walking over to the bar to order. In general the staff seems rude, especially the female waitresses and bartenders. The guy at the bar was patient with us for our large drink order, but not by much. There were a lot of "Hold on" and "You'll just have to wait" from the waitress on the lanes. Parking is free for all. There may have been more spots we were unaware of, but the sand lot to the right gets crazy real quick. Park on the edge so you know you can get out.
(4)Kim C.
Love this place. Great atmosphere (a stylish bowling alley!), great food, great staff and great prices.
(5)Shane L.
I have been to this establishment twice in the past two weeks and I will have to tell you, the experience was different both times. The first time that we came here to meet some friends at about 11pm, it was both thinned out and the music playing as Gang Starr on repeat over and over again (Old school hip hop band) and although I love the music, the same thing over and over is a bit monotonous. The bathrooms also are mens and womens combined where you had to go through the womens to get to the mens which was wierd. The second time that we came here (with 5 friends) we had a blast with great service, cold beer and really good finger foods while slinging the ball down the lanes. It was very crowded but you couldn't even tell because we were taken such good care of. What a tale of two different experiences but the consistent between the two was the great service we received. The staff was attentive and fun making this a go to place. I don't know if this place is one that I would take my 8 year old son but it was a hip and fun place with some good food.
(4)Brenda G.
Great downtown bowling alley. Great atmospere, staff and food. Can't wait to go back for the music on the weekends.....A little more expensive than other bowling alleys but well worth it.
(4)Hannah D.
Possibly the best hamburger, fries, and onion rings I've ever had. Also a great cocktail menu. Yum! That said, I'm not sure I would go back because between the cranked up (and bad) music blasting and the thud of the bowling balls, it was close to impossible to have a conversation. Food: solid 5 stars. Acoustics/noise level: 0 stars.
(3)Justine J.
I love this place. The bowling isn't cheap, and there's usually a long-ass wait, so that's a bit of a downer. But they sometimes have live music, which is fun, and they have delicious food and awesome drinks (including BOOZY MILKSHAKES).
(5)Eliza M.
Hey - not bad! We ventured down to Bayside Bowl on a Monday night during vacation. I haven't bowled in YEARS and I don't think hubs has either. We got in and were greeted by a slightly apathetic hostess... We asked if we could bowl she said "it'll be about an hour and a half". Welp, okay, looks like we're eating at the bar then. I had the chili and hubs had a veggie burger. Yummy fries and my chili bowl was E-NORMOUS. I've had better corn bread in my time. It was pretty loud so expect to speak up whilst ordering. We got a lane and got two games in with my hubs and my father in law. All in all, we had fun and the food was a-okay. $25 for a lane, $33 total with three pairs of shoes.
(4)R B.
This hip bowling alley may have a wait, but has a much better atmosphere than those other chain bowling alleys! Good food, good drinks, good company, and friendly staff! Nigel was extremely helpful and pleasant. I will definitely be back next time I'm in Maine!
(5)Susan L.
Me and my family used to love bayside bowl when it first opened its doors, now 3 years later we go back a few different times to see if it will improve, we had the worst 3 times there in a month. They have very poor service with getting food out. We waited 40 minutes just for nachos, our waitress argued saying we've only been waiting 20 minutes. 20 or 40 minutes, it's still too damn long for chips with melted cheese! Front desk woman was extremely rude and sarcastic. We've never had issues with their staff before but today was a terrible way to treat customers. Had 3 mechanical issues with 2 lanes in 1 hour. That took 10 minutes of our 37$ hour, they added 2 minutes to our lane with attitude. Too pricy for what they offer. We have found our favorite bowling alley for luxury bowling at easy day. Same price too, amazing atmosphere and staff. We will not be returning to bayside bowl again, neither will friends.
(2)Gladys S.
Great place to have fun and eat a good meal. Love the music and drinks. This is a great place to go even if you don't want to bowl.
(4)