Excellent atmosphere. Very intimate for a birthday party. The lanes were clean. We tried to get food/drink service at our table and no one came to help. That was the only d read more

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Downtown bowling with a luxury feel! My department at work hosted a retreat for us at 500 Pearl, and rented out the Spare Room for us to have some fun after. I've always wanted to check it out, so it was a real treat! The alley itself is on the smaller side, but it's decorated very nicely and has an arcade attached. There's a bar too which is always a plus! We ate dinner there - pizza and various appetizers. The chicken finger pizza was incredible, and I snagged a chicken wing egg roll as well, which was just as decadent. It's not cheap to bowl here. There's definitely more affordable options, so I don't think I'd necessarily list the Spare Room as a top choice if I were to have a bowling get-together in the future. But it was really neat, and if you do get the chance to experience it, you should take it. All in all, The Spare Room is a nice addition to 500 Pearl and Downtown Buffalo as a whole. I don't bowl often, but when I do, I love for it to be a unique, yummy experience. Let's not talk about what I bowled though. read more

Went to spare room with a bunch of friends! It was so much fun, food was amazing. Only thing I would keep in mind is that it's $60 a lane so I would suggest going with bigger groups! Would definitely go back! read more

I was not impressed. We went in as a group of 40+, which I understand could have been hard to manage for one staff member, but we had booked days in advance so they had time to bring another staff member in if they needed it. Several things happened to convince me this place is not the best quality you can get when it comes to bowling. First, the staff couldn't handle wandering around to take drink orders, so we had to take our own drink orders up to the shoe rental area. Second, they set our lanes to time out after an hour, so they cut out in the middle of our games and lost our progress. There was nothing that could be done to bring it back even though we'd paid for two hours. So we had to start fresh and not finish a second round of games rather than having a continuous session. Finally, I'm not impressed by the very gendered restroom facilities. The woman's room was floor to ceiling pink, including painting the inside of the wood door pink. Yes, I did peek into the men's room to confirm it was blue. I know that piece is a personal preference for me, but it is not super welcoming to our queer community peers. read more

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Stopped by on a Friday night for my cousins birthday. Its located a nice small bowling alley. It was $40 a lane for 5 people to play for an hour and a half. Not a bad price and we didn't have to purchase bowling shoes It was optional. You can order food and drinks with the workers and they would go up to WXYZ and get it and bring it to you. It's connected to WXYZ lounge. So you can order off there menu as well. We had a good time. Have to reserve a spot online. Online it said it was $60 a lane but when we got there to pay that said $40. Parking was an issue for me because they had a event going on at the down the street from 500 Pearl. read more

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Hip new bowling alley in an unexpected place. The Aloft Hotel is becoming a go to spot with the rooftop bar and now this option. In the basement of the hotel is completely renovated bowling alley from 1914. The space is very modern with 6 sunken lanes and fun vibe. Shaq Lawson of the Bills was there opening night which was a bonus. Not easy to find, so ask the front desk how to get down there read more

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Spare Room is hands down the best place in Buffalo to go if you want a cocktail and some recreational activity! The lanes aren't greased, so a pro bowler will have to change their game, but the atmosphere, food, and drinks are all on point! The music was a mix of dance and rap music. The cocktails are all made at the lobby bar upstairs (another great place to have a beverage and chill). The food was surprisingly good. The loaded fries had fresh scallions on them and the buffalo chicken pizza had celery on it, which was a fresh new take! You can rent shoes for $5.50 pp and they are clean and velcro. The lanes are rentable by the hour, with the first hour being less expensive than the second. They also have happy hour bowling from 4-7pm during the week, with discounts on the lane rental, and food and drinks. You can rent the whole place out for parties if you are a high roller. You can also make reservations online for lane rentals pretty far in advance, so if someone's birthday is coming up, get on it people! There are some video games and also some tables to hang out at if you aren't actively bowling, but you still want to hang out. We had a really great night out in Buffalo on a weekday in winter without even leaving the building! You can head up to Patrick's Rooftop Bar and still enjoy the view through the large windows, and the lobby bar is decorated really nicely with some couches, booths, and interactive games like big Jenga if you really want to get crazy. Check it out if you haven't been! read more

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