300 Dallas - An Upscale Bowling Experience?

3805 Belt Line Rd.
Addison, TX 75001
972.620.7700

I am not a huge fan of bowling. I do not have a problem with bowling. It is just not high on my list of fun ways to spend an evening. Still, I have bowled more than a few games in my lifetime. The games that I most enjoyed involved one or more of the following: a large group of people; consumption of a considerable amount of alcohol; or an upscale bowling experience that felt less like bowling and more like a night out. I was hoping for the third element when I patronized 300 Dallas ("300") on Saturday evening but that isn’t quite what I got.

300 is certainly an upscale bowling alley when compared to its down-scale competitors. As I walked through the entrance a reception area stood in the middle of the floor. To my left was a separate bar and billiards area with gleaming pool tables and a huge big screen TV tuned to ESPN (naturally). To my right was the shoe rental counter which, coincidentally, is also where you pick up your bowling ball.

My sister and I put our names on the waiting list. We were told it would be an hour to an hour and a half before a lane was available. That was fine with me as I was hungry and 300 has a full-service restaurant with more than your typical french fries, nachos, and hot dogs fare. Unfortunately, the “restaurant” is not so much a separate space as is the case with the bar/billiards area, as much as it is an open space between the reception desk and the bowling lanes. The “restaurant” was a mishmash of lounge-style seating arrangements, tables covered with table cloths and silverware, and more casual, uncovered tables. We picked a table at random and sat down.

I ordered Thai shrimp for my appetizer, a Caesar salad, and a cocktail. My sister ordered french fries, no drink. I will refrain from reviewing the food. I will say only that it was not worth the $36 I paid for it. That’s right. I paid $36 (tip not included) for food at what is essentially a bowling alley. Fortunately, our lane was ready soon thereafter.

The wood on the lanes shone in the dim lighting. The stripes on the lanes glowed light neon blue. There was a row of big screen TVs above the bowling lanes; each screen alternated between ESPN and a pre-programmed video channel which was piped through the sound system for our listening pleasure. There were approximately 40 lanes and in a far corner I could see an arcade for the kids.

By the time we left we had bowled three games and I had spent almost $100. Yep, I paid $100 for a night of bowling for two people. I keep emphasizing that it’s “just bowling” because I expected more from 300. It didn’t feel like a casual, yet upscale night out. It felt like a bowling alley, maybe a fancy bowling alley, but a bowling alley nonetheless. If all I am getting is “bowling” I can get it at a fraction of the cost with the same amount of satisfaction at my standard AMF.

300 has potential. It has all the elements of a casual, yet upscale social scene alternative. It just needs to tweak the elements a bit. Firstly, I shouldn’t see kids after 9PM on the weekends. Nothing ruins an upscale experience faster than kids. Secondly, the restaurant needs to be a completely separate space. As it stands, there is nothing separating the restaurant from the bowling area. I’m not suggesting a wall, but there needs to be some kind of design element creating a distinction between the two spaces. Doing so would create three separate entertainment zones: bar-billiards, restaurant-lounge, and bowling alley. Then 300 would attract not just people looking for a game of bowling, but also people looking for a place to have dinner, or a place to have drinks and people watch, or a place to shoot pool – in essence, a greater number and cross-section of customers. That’s what would make 300 worth the steep prices and that’s what would make 300 an upscale experience and more than just “just bowling.”