Rack 'em up! Rockledge establishment offers pool, golf, food in a clean, safe environment

Sonny Barrett strives for perfection.

You notice that immediately when you walk into Pockets & Putters, his place on Barton Boulevard in Rockledge.

Sixteen seven-foot Diamond pool tables stretch into the depths of the vast room in two carefully aligned rows, their ocean-blue felt glowing under individual light fixtures. The place is spotless, with seating at the bar, high-top tables and at bars surrounding the pool area.

"First and foremost, this place is about pool players," he said. "Everything else was built around that."

That "everything" includes a full kitchen and liquor bar, dart boards and a simulator where golfers can play 85 courses from around the world.

Barrett bought the Pockets & Putters building in March 2020. It took three years of construction to turn the former quilting shop across from Rockledge City Hall into the family entertainment establishment he envisioned.

The business opened in stages. Pool, beer and wine was available in March. The kitchen opened the first of August, with a menu that includes smash burgers, chicken sandwiches, wings and Detroit-style pizza.

Barrett got a liquor license on Aug. 16.

The place is huge, with the capacity for 248 people, and it really is immaculate. Barrett swipes at imagined specks of dust as he walks past tables and counters.

Pockets & Putters isn't a bar, he said. The object was to create a place to play some serious pool, but also a safe, smoke-free place where families and friends can hang out, shoot a few games and have a burger or wings.

Barrett came up with the idea after play pool in different bars since 1999.

Is he any good? He shrugs modestly. When pushed he answers in a roundabout way.

In American Poolplayers Association leagues, players are categorized as one through nine, with one being a beginner and nine being the best.

"I'm a nine," he said.

Each place he played had a quirk, something that could have been easily fixed, he said.

A software engineer for more than 20 years, Barrett knows even the smallest details count. Some of those details at Pockets & Putters include dimmable lights throughout, USB ports and plugs and purse hooks at the main bar and the bar seating around the pool tables and doors to the stalls in the ladies' room that open out, not in, something his wife recommended.

For now, pool tables and the golf simulator are available on a first-come basis. He's working on setting up an online system that will allow guests to book time slots, as well as schedule parties and events.

The golf simulator costs $50 an hour ($40 before 5 p.m.) for up to eight people. You can bring your own clubs. Golf balls with special markings read by the simulator are provided. In addition to golf, putt-putt, cornhole, beer pong and other games are included.

Pool tables are $5 per person per hour. APA league play is offered Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday nights.

Some players have asked why he went with seven-foot tables when many bars have eight- or nine-foot tables. The answer is simple: Smaller tables meant he could fit more tables with plenty of elbow — and cue stick — room between them. If he'd gone with bigger tables, he wouldn't have had room for a kitchen.

Besides, the APA World Pool Championships in Las Vegas are played on seven-foot tables, he said.

Pockets & Putters is open 1 p.m. to midnight Sunday through Thursday, 1 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday. The kitchen is open 5-10 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and 1-10 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.

He'd like to start opening the kitchen for lunch during the week. He also has plans to add two more golf simulators. But he's expanding slowly. He doesn't want to take on too much too quickly.

Barrett feels like he accomplished his goal of building a safe, clean, enjoyable place to shoot pool that serves quality, but affordable, food and drinks.

Pockets & Putters defies any stereotype of a smoky poolhall. It's the kind of place where he wants to hang out. He hopes others will agree.

Suzy Fleming Leonard is a features journalist with more than three decades of experience. Reach her at sleonard@floridatoday.com. Find her on Facebook: @SuzyFlemingLeonard or on Instagram: @SuzyLeonard. 

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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Pockets & Putters in Rockledge is more than just a pool hall