All Star Lanes

02/03/09

Decent bowling on the cheap

by cmccaugh

I've been to All Star Lanes once, on a Friday night in January. I'm giving them four stars because the quality of the place is a good match with the price you pay.

Even though it was a Friday night, we didn't have to wait for a lane. (That sets them apart in this city.) The place was decently packed, too -- it wasn't too empty. I have no complaints about the service, although we never had a problem with our lane malfunctioning. The automated scoring system is noticeably cheap, but so were the prices. On Friday nights (and the other weekend nights too, I would imagine), they do that blacklight-heavy "astro-bowling" thing that you've probably seen other alleys do. Other users complained that the place was seedy, but if that's the case then the low light levels totally took care of it. It was a younger crowd that night. There were way more patrons in the 18-28 age range than I've seen at other alleys.

I agree that no one should bring their own bowling ball here. The house ones are all gouged up, presumably because of the old ball-return equipment. Considering I always use a house ball anyways, I didn't care.

In summation, the place really isn't that bad. I'm not looking for a fancy place when I bowl, except when I went to Lucky Strike that one time. (That was just too much money for bowling.) As long as you can be comfortable in a blue-collar place, you'll get your money's worth here.

• Pros: Price
• Cons: Equipment

10/17/08

Fun All American Bowling Experience.

by Newtotown9

I just had my birthday bash at the All Star. We all had a great time. The facilities were clean, well maintained and the staff was SUPER nice. It wasn't too noisy or loud. Was easy to enjoy!!!!

02/26/08

SPARE YOURSELF...STAY AWAY!!

by puckaroo

My friends and I went to All Star Lanes last Thursday or some bowling and beer. The first thing that STRIKES you when you walk in, is how empty the place is. There were literally only 3 lanes being used when we came in. We joked that it felt like a mausoleum. Anyways, a few of us have our own bowling/balls. After rolling our first few frames, we all noticed that our bowling/balls were literally caked with some brown subtance. I asked the gal up front what the story was...she looked at my ball, rubbed it, and said that it must have been on the ball before I came in. The funny thing was, I took it to a pro shop at another alley in Glendale that was full, and they cleaned the ball for me BEFORE we went to All Star Lanes. I assumed the gunk was the oil from the lanes...as it turns out, the ball return belts rub the bowling/balls, and also chip them.

If you do feel the urge to bowl there ( their beer and lanes are fairly cheap) I strongly suggest you use a house ball!!

• Pros: cheap beer and bowling
• Cons: inadequate equipment and laisez fair attitude

11/18/07

hair pieces and bad attitude and gold chains

by drunktank

worst managment ever. worst attitude. terrible service. toxic waste dump. cheap in all the wrong ways. bald owner. bald owner. he/she wears a wig. machines will mangle your ball.

• Pros: staff is uglier than you so it makes you feel better
• Cons: watery drinks

10/17/07

Good times, coming back slowly....

by sckid

Cool place to hang out and have a good time and be melow (different from the usual club scene)....Everything is very reasonably priced and staff are friendly. It looks like they are still working on this venue and giving it upgrades slowly!

We went down witha bunch of friends, watched footbal game, drank and bowled. It was good times I would definitly recomend it, it ain't too fancy but it sure is fun!!

• Pros: Cheap Prices, Friendly Staff, good amosphere

Listen to live rockabilly and play a game on a vintage lane at this Eagle Rock classic.

by Contributor

In Short
The games played on the 22 waxed lanes are still scored by hand. No fancy computerized boards here--it's all manual. On any given night, you'll find serious metalheads, local teens and coiffed gals bearing fully inked sleeves on their bared arms. It's all part of the charm of this dark bowling spot in Eagle Rock. The large karaoke bar inside the lounge provides an outlet for folks in the mood to belt out Led Zeppelin.

08/16/06

Run Down Dump

by bobbobarino

People in LA assume that if something is filthy and poorly operated that it's "kitchy" or "classic". Worse yet, they refer to it as a slice of "Americana".

Folks, sometimes a dump is just a dump.

This place is so poorly maintained and operated. They should have let it become a storage facility (as was planned a few years back). Yes, they added computerized lanes, but they installed the cheapest ones possible (made by K-Tel, I think). They are unreliable and you can barely read the washed-out monitors. It's agonizing to run to the counter every two minutes (seriously!) because a ball is stuck or the pins aren't resetting. They don't give a damn, anyway.

In the hands of competent management this place could become the gem that people pretend it is. These folks are trying to get by operating as low-rent as possible. Every meth lab and 7-11 in the world has better management than All Star Lanes.

I will admit that the bar is certainly unique. Alas, dark and musty isn't quite my style.

Please stop pretending like this place is great. You deserve better, Mr. and Mrs. Los Angeles Area Bowler! There are plenty of other old bowling alleys in LA that are operated a thousand times better.

• Pros: Cheap (dollar-wise)
• Cons: Cheap (in every other way)

08/16/06

Bowl Somewhere Else!

by friendlyskies

A large group of friends and I went to All Star Lanes and spent more time asking for someone to help to fix problems with our lanes, than we did bowling. The staff was extrememly dismissive and rude. The place used to be great, but it's definitely gone downhill. AVOID this place if you want a pleasant evening of bowling.

• Cons: Rude and dismissive staff, lanes often don't function properly

02/17/06

The New All Star Lane is faaaantastic!

by david_wla

The place has gone under a complete remodel. The Lanes are upgraded along with automatic scoring. The bar has been remodeled as well. The drinks are cheap (compare to rest of LA!) and atmosphere is great. I highly recomd it.

• Pros: Inexpensive, Plenty of Parking

03/11/05

Great old-school bowling alley

by fiestascramble

Although they recently refurbished the lanes and added automated scoring monitors (you used to have to score your own card), All-Star Lanes is still full of old-school character. It's a great spot for birthday parties; after bowling a couple of games, you can head into the lounge and sing some karaoke. Per-game and shoe-rental prices are REALLY low compared to most LA alleys. And, if you're hungry, you can grab a bite at the Chinese/pizza/hot dog place attached--they'll even deliver to your lane. And, pinball!!