A history story.

Bryant-Lake Bowl was a Ford dealership in the ’20s before becoming an alley in 1935. “Pin setting was by hand here until 1960,” Space is tight on the back end of the alley—I imagined heavy wooden pins exploding off the walls back in the hand-setting era. “Oh sure it was dangerous,” Engmark says. “A pin boy could get hurt. You couldn’t find a pin boy after ’67.”

Enter pin-setting machines. The eight at Bryant-Lake Bowl are American Machine and Foundry brand, built in Shelby, Ohio. They hold 20 pins each, switching out one set after each turn. They’re finicky, with complicated moving parts that require perpetual attention. Which is probably why Engmark and Ellingson will never completely strike out. The BLB was restored as closely as possible to its original splendor, and the video/pool hall was turned into a 90-seat cabaret theater in 1993 by Kim Bartmann. Shows almost every day of the week and sometimes twice a night! Our shows cover a broad spectrum of interests: comedy, musical, drama, dance, music and more. The establishment quickly became both a busy neighborhood hangout as well as a destination for travelers and celebrations of all sorts.

In 2018 longtime employee Erica Gilbert purchased the restaurant. Although 26 years old, BLB maintains its reigning champion status as a humble neighborhood hotspot. We continue to use sustainable and local ingredients.