The old-school bowling alley and arcade with old-school prices, Sea Bowl in Pacifica, has announced it is closing permanently in two months, so schedule a visit if you want one more trip down its memory lanes.

Bowling alleys were one of those types of businesses that had a difficult time surviving the pandemic. And even before COVID-19, bowling alleys were a tough model when you need a lot of real estate for a low-margin business that has extremely specialized maintenance requirements. Simply put, goodwill and nostalgia alone will not sustain a bowling alley. The East Bay’s 71-year-old Albany Bowl closed just over two years ago, and now another legacy bowling attraction is heading for the gutter, as the Chronicle reports that Pacifica’s 64-year-old Sea Bowl is closing permanently, effective May 31.

The letter above posted to Twitter has news that is confirmed on the Sea Bowl website. "It is with a very heavy heart that I inform all of you that Sea Bowl will be closing its doors for good on May 31st, 2023 after more than 60 years in business,” Sea Bowl owner Davis Szeto says on the website. “It was a difficult decision, but it is time to retire. I know this news may come as a shock to many of you and I want to express our deepest gratitude for all the amazing support and loyalty you, our customers, have shown us over the years.”

The alley’s recognizable mascot Mr. Pin may be the Bay Area’s original Instagram trap, and he’s also seen on the charmingly retro sign along Pacific Coast Highway in Pacifica.

Certainly there was a day when there was demand for this bowling alley. SFGate has the story that “When Sea Bowl first opened its doors in March of 1959, it was reportedly so popular that for three nights in a row, it didn’t even bother to close, hosting ‘several thousand’ patrons in a single weekend. It finally shut down for a few hours at 3 a.m. on a Monday morning so construction crews could put finishing touches on the $500,000 project.”

So which pins are still standing on the bowling landscape? Here in SF, we do have Lucky Strike and Mission Bowling Club, both of which are far pricier than an old-timey bowling alley and not kid-friendly. In terms of family-friendly lanes for the traditional birthday party or something, Yerba Buena Ice Skating & Bowling Center is still open but with somewhat irregular hours, and Presidio Bowl remarkably still exists after nearly being shuttered  in 2009.

Related: Scenes From Last Night: Knocking Down Cocktails At Mission Bowling Club [SFist]

Image: Curtis L. via Yelp

In what has been a big week for big openings, SFist had the chance to drop by a preview of Mission Bowling Club on 17th Street in advance of their grand opening this Monday. We've bowled a couple games in the former warehouse space before, so last night's preview was all about the atmosphere, the drinks, and various on-a-stick menu items.

While the bowlers downstairs were hurling balls down the hardwood and putting the refurbished bowling machines through their paces, we snagged a two-top on the mezzanine overlooking the action. (Those bowling machines, by the way, came from an old alley near Fort Bragg and have definitely chopped off a finger or two in their day.)

Serving as guinea pigs for Chef Anthony Myint's new menu of bowling alley comfort fare, we went started off with an Everything Pretzel (like an Everything bagel, but knotted up and served with spicy-sweet mustard made with rendered pork fat) and the 7-Bean Salad. Normally ordering a salad in a bowling alley would be like ordering the calamari in a strip club, but this fried chickpea number made the dish feel a little more snacky and a little less like you're the one eating a salad of a menu with corn dogs and burgers.

Speaking of corn dogs and burgers — those two items rounded out our entrees along with the home fries on a stick (Why are they on a stick, you ask? Doesn't matter, don't question foods on a stick). The burger is admittedly pricey at 15 bucks, but it's clear Myint is going to be giving Nopa and Zuni a run for their money in the classy burger department. As a noted corn dog aficionado, this SFist Editor can safely say the sausage corn dog is some kind of evil genius material. It will probably ruin cornbread-wrapped mystery meat for you forever.

On the cocktail list, we put back: one hell of a Blood & Sand as well as a nicely balanced citrusy/spicy whiskey number dubbed The MBC. We ended the night with the TBD — a firey tequila thing that is, as of this writing, unnamed (hence: "TBD"). The drink will eventually carry the name of whoever bowls the first 300 game at the club. Bringing things back to the Blue Collar roots, there's always Pabst Blue Ribbon on hand.

It might seem odd to hang around over a couple of courses and cocktails at a bowling alley, but the restaurant and bar section of Mission Bowling Club could easily stand alone in the neighborhood with or without the lanes. Most of the menu items are ideal for sharing amongst your hungry bowling team, and with only six games of bowling going on at once, there's a strong chance bowlers will end up waiting a bit anyhow. (We're also told only three lanes will be reserved at a time. If you walk in at Happy Hour, which starts at 3 p.m., the other lanes will always be available.) As one of last night's rollers put it: "It's kind of like bowling in some rich person's house." Whether folks come for the food or come for the bowling, we'll be sticking around for the pin-cracking atmosphere.

Mission Bowling Club opens Monday, March 19th at 3176 17th Street near Shotwell.

While we anxiously await the opening of Lucky Strike Lanes next week and Mission Bowling Club later this spring, we've received some sad news in the ten-pin department. Serra Bowl in Daly City, which for a long time was the most convenient local bowling option, is scheduled to close out a 51-year run on April 15th.

According to Serra Bowl's Facebook page, the suburban bowling alley known for 24-hour bowling, galactic laser lights, Karaoke nights and free games for kids all summer has lost their lease on their space next to the Colma BART station. In a status update last night, the bowling alley wrote

Unfortunately Serra Bowl has lost our lease and will be closing on April 15, 2012. We would like to thank all of our wonderful customers who have shared their lives with us over the past 51 years.

Anyhow, add Serra Bowl's closing date to the list of April 15th tragedies. And for those of you who won't get a chance to experience Serra Bowl, you can relive here in this TV commercial the bowling alley put out last year:

"Leagues are forming now" suddenly seems so tragic.

[Facebook]

The wait for bowling in an actually accessible location in San Francisco got a shorter timeframe this week. As South of Market blog LiveSOMA reports, the ballpark-adjacent Lucky Strike Lanes is set to open two weeks from today on Friday, March 9th.

That means local rollers will have a little over a month to throw some balls down the hardwood before the Giants return to AT&T park on Friday, April 13th and ballpark-drunk suburbanites overrun the place until the fall. (Also, our home opener is on Friday the 13th? Yikes.) Assuming earlier reports hold true, drinks at the upscale bowling alley will be roughly as high as ballpark prices anyway.

Meanwhile, our other exciting bowling alley prospect Mission Bowling Club has been quietly working its way through all sorts of legal and permitting issues, but assuming everything goes well with the final inspections we should hear a real opening date in the next month or so.

Previously: All Bowling updates on SFist.
[LiveSOMA]

We bring you all the latest news about the city's two most anticipated bowling venues: Mission Bowling Club and Lucky Strike Lanes. Because we know how you've been patiently waiting for some new ten-pin options in the city:

Mission Bowling Club: The forthcoming bike-friendly, boozy bowling alley headed to 17th and South Van Ness got some good news earlier this week. You might remember that somewhat barren corner of the Mission has a ban on liquor licenses and as we previously reported, the bar was depending on freshman supervisors Scott Wiener and Jane Kim to pull some strings and push through an exception to the planning code. Well, the supes are currently on recess until September, but owner Sommer Peterson of Mini Bar and Mission Bowling Club tells us that on Monday, the Small Business Commission voted unanimously to support adding bowling alleys to that exception. In other words, the Small Business Commission doesn't want you bowling sober either. With the SBC's support, Peterson says, "we are one step closer to pouring pitchers of beer for lane-side enjoyment!"

Approval of the liquor license should be a sure thing when the supes reconvene. The lanes are still on track to rack the pins and open the doors in February 2012.

Lucky Strike Lanes: LiveSoMa reports that the developers taking over the former Borders Books at 3rd and King Streets started knocking down walls and making room for 12 lanes of fancy, expensive bowling a couple of weeks ago. Reps at the national chain of upscale bowling alleys didn't have any further updates, but the ballpark-adjacent facility looks to be on track for January 2012 opening.

PREVIOUSLY: All Mission Bowling Club coverage, all Lucky Strike Lanes coverage.
[LiveSoMa]

The proposed Mission Bowling Club coming to 17th Street in that namesake neighborhood needs some support from the Board of Supervisors to move forward, the Examiner reports today. Due to some quirks in the planning code that restrict liquor licenses in the semi-industrial wasteland East of Mission street, MBC will need to get an exemption in order to let the locally sourced beer and cocktails flow when they plan to open next spring. Luckily for us and everyone who enjoys getting sloshed while knocking down pins, freshmen supes Jane Kim and Scott Wiener are already pushing the legislation through.

You'll recall Mission Bowling Club plans to host kitchen space for Anthony Myint's resurrected Mission Burger, as well as a full bar and plenty of bicycle parking. Overall, the concept sounds a lot more democratic than the upscale (read: prohibitively expensive) nationwide chain Lucky Strike Lanes, which is still moving forward with their first San Francisco location at 3rd and King streets. The Examiner also reports that NYC-based Brooklyn Bowl is still looking for a San Francisco spot to call their own. (Although last we heard, they had abandoned those plans in favor of a more suburban location.)

Supervisor Kim laid the blame for the city's current dearth of available lanes on the real estate market, telling the Examiner that the square footage needed for a proper bowling alley can usually fetch a higher price as a condo project. Meanwhile, the jovial Wiener simply asked, "...who doesn't like bowling?" Exactly.

Previous bowling coverage on SFist
[SFExaminer]

The actually-happening, six-lane bowling alley slash locally sourced eatery coming to the Mission next spring released a couple pieces of key info this afternoon: A name, address and a chef. Co-owner Sommer Peterson of Mini Bar on Divisadero lets us know that the lanes will carry the simple-yet-effective name: "Mission Bowling Club" when it pops up at 17th and South Van Ness. In keeping with the theme, they've also announced a kitchen deal with local celebrity chef Anthony Myint - formerly of Mission Street Food and currently a partner at the much-loved Mission Chinese Food and the celebrated Commonwealth. Since we know Myint loves to tuck his food operations inside of other establishments, the arrangement in the warehouse-turned-bowling alley at 3176 17th Street should be a fine fit. More importantly, as Tablehopper points out Myint will be resurrecting Mission Burger from where ever it disappeared to in the back of Duc Loi supermarket. From Mission Bowling Club's press release:

The restaurant program will be headed by Anthony Myint, founder of Mission Street Food and Mission Burger (and current partner in Mission Chinese Food and Commonwealth restaurants). Myint’s menu will feature the “Mission Burger” and other technique-driven comfort food, with a portion of sales going to local youth-related charities.

Nice to see the altruism that garned so much buzz at Mission Street Food is still on the menu as well - with a bowling-related spin even. As for the general vibe at MBC, the lanes will be "a modern take on an old-school pastime... a welcoming spot, where people can drop in to go bowling, have a drink, enjoy a meal, or all of the above." We'll be sure to let you know when slots become available on our bowling team.

[Tablehopper]

From our pals at Tablehopper comes word that the ladies behind the conveniently sized Mini Bar on Divisadero will be opening a six-lane bowling alley in the Mission next spring. Apparently they weren't thrilled by those rumors of Brooklyn Bowl's Western expansion (which sounds like it was never really a thing), and decided to handle the matter of setting up a neighborhood bowling alley themselves. This is great news for those of us who don't want to go bowling in dress jackets for $80 bucks a lane (which should be all of us).

Things to get excited about: Full bar with "warm furnishings and plush seating at the lanes", an outdoor patio for dining and plenty of (covered!) bike parking. In terms of munchies, owners Sommer Peterson and Molly Bradshaw plan to lease out the open kitchen to a seasoned pro who's growing their business, but we can expect a healthy, quality take on the typical greasebomb bowling alley food. If the slick banquettes and cozy back room at Mini Bar are any indication, it should be a fun spot to hunker down over some reasonably priced drinks and wait for a lane to open up. There's no name for the lanes yet, but we'll go ahead and propose "Mini Bowl" because that sounds just-adorable-enough and maintains the all-important brand identity.

Previous bowling coverage on SFist.
[Tablehopper]

San Francisco's elite Mission district could be the lucky recipient of a high-end-ish bowling alley, just like SoMa. According to Inside Scoop's Paolo Lucchesi, "New York's acclaimed Brooklyn Bowl has been the subject of some juicy rumors involving a possible Mission District location." While it's still in the gossipy stages and a locale has yet to be determined (obviously), Lucchesi warns us to "keep an eye on the 2500 block of Mission Street." Whatever it will be -- if it will be -- we can only hope a lot of WASP food cart Blue Bottle beer DoloPark salted caramel Bansky LEED heroin bikes will be involved. That would be the most, to say the least. [SFGate, via Mission Mission]

Glorious news, Mission Bay, South Beach, SoMa, and Rincon Hill residents. More details have emerged in what might happen to the closing Borders Books at Third and King. As previously reported, talk of a bowling alley crackled in August. But now, according to LiveSOMA, it could be, possibly be, may be a done deal.

Apparently, the large retail space is being leased to Lucky Strike Lanes, an ‘upscale’ bowling alley (and lounge) chain that has locations in 12 states, Washington D.C. and Canada. After looking around their website, they only have California locations in the Los Angeles Area, until this one opens. The buzz coming out of the Beacon is that the new proposed Bowling Alley hopes to remain open until 2 a.m. and acquire a full liquor license.

Word on the street is that the project is going through the Redevelopment Agency as opposed to the Planning Commission, which means that there are probably not as many hurdles to jump through. (Although I would imagine it might be difficult to open a new lounge that sells alcohol until 2 am below a building full of residencies as pointed out in the comments below).

Although concerns about noise and "security risks" persist -- which is insipid because it's adjacent from a BASEBALL STADIUM, so tread lightly with this one, NIMBY neighbors -- we look forward to some sort of establishment that, you know, will be of actual interest to residents, something that will re-ignite nightlife in the area.

In related SoMa news, did anyone else receive countless Jane Kim fliers over the weekend? Because SFIst home/headquarters, located in SoMa, now has enough of them to start a large inferno.

The Border's Books at 200 King Street in South Beach, sadly, will close its doors for good in October. (On a personal note, we will miss the staff, the stuffed cream cheese pretzels, and regularly thumbing through European fashion rags at the retail chain.) Last night, we noticed “Store Closing” signs posted throughout the place, so you might want to head over for good deals while they last.

Anyway. According to LiveSoma, a bowling alley could be a candidate for replacement.

A few weeks ago, when I first heard the rumor that Borders was closing, the woman I was talking to also mentioned a bowling alley as the expected replacement for the struggling book chain. Granted the location seems large (and long) enough to accommodate a bowling alley; but what sort of news (other than a lot of main stream media) is based solely on rumors?

This, of course, would be a grand idea, one that would "further solidify this part of the neighborhood as an entertainment destination." (Yerba Buena, we should point out, already has a rather joyless and small bowling alley.) But what say you? Any other ideas as to what, if anything, should go in its place? (Obviously, a seedy, unpretentious bar with cheap drinks is out of the question. This is, after all, San Francisco 2010.)