Bowling alley with cocktails, arcade and live music coming to New Castle County
For the first time in more than a decade, Newark looks to be getting a bowling alley.
It'll also be an axe throwing venue, a host to live music, an arcade, a pub with brisket-loaded nachos, and space for birthday parties.
That's right: Lefty's Alley and Eats is coming to Newark.
Lefty's, a popular bowling alley and family entertainment center in Lewes, will begin construction this year on a new location at the south end of mixed-use shopping complex The Grove at Newark, according to applications approved by the City of Newark on Monday.
Plans for the 41,000-square-foot space — formerly home to a Kmart — call for 16 lanes of "luxury 10-pin bowling," 4 lanes of Duckpin bowling, axe throwing, TopGolf simulators, Krazy Darts, a pub with a full liquor license and an indoor/outdoor patio, and a small stage for live music.
Lefty's owner DJ Hill didn't respond to inquiries by Delaware Online/The News Journal on Tuesday, but wrote in his application to the City of Newark that he hopes to begin construction in fall 2024.
He described Lefty's to Newark city council members as a bowling alley and entertainment center with "interactive entertainment and surprisingly good food."
"Bowling alley food" is a phrase that rarely inspires optimism, The News Journal's Ryan Cormier noted in 2017 when Lefty's opened its $9.5 million Lewes location.
Cormier called Lefty's part of a "new generation of beefed-up bowling alleys" that's been spreading across the country this millennium — offering better food, a lot more entertainment options and maybe even a whiff of luxury.
At the Lewes Lefty's, the dining options range from smashburger patty melts and cheesesteaks to herb-crusted salmon and platters of chicken parmagiana. Cocktails include beachy orange or lemon crushes, but also variations on mai tais and Manhattans. Pinot noir is on hand. A dozen beer taps include Delaware craft beer from Dogfish Head and Dewey.
More: 12 breweries to visit at the Delaware beaches — or on the way
When it opens at the Grove, Lefty's will join an increasingly broad spectrum of businesses there. The mixed-use Grove, located in the former College Square shopping center, began development in 2019 after developer Fusco Management of New Castle promised a live-work-play complex offering walkability and modern amenities, meant to appeal to young professionals and empty-nesters alike.
Businesses at The Grove now include a WSFS bank branch, a fast food chicken-finger spot called Raising Cane's, a physical therapy and rehabilitation center and a First Watch brunch restaurant.
A Starbucks, a location of Del Pez Mexican Gastropub and a Crunch Fitness are all slated to open this year.
When it opens, the Grove Lefty's will support 45 full-time jobs, owner Hill told Newark's City Council, amounting to $1.7 million in taxable income.
Newark's last bowling alley, Blue Hen Lanes, shut down in June 2014 after 53 years. It was located in the back of the Newark Shopping and has since been replaced with an apartment building.
At the time, the closing left the western half of New Castle County without a center. Pike Creek Lanes in Pike Creek Valley closed its doors in 2009 while Brookside Bowl in the Newark Brookside Shopping Center went out of business after a fire in 2002.
More: Raising Cane's, First Watch and everything else coming to The Grove at Newark
Matthew Korfhage is business and development reporter in the Delaware region covering all things related to land and money: openings and closings, construction, and the many corporations who call the First State home. Send tips and insults to mkorfhage@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Bowling alley with live music and axe throwing, coming to Newark
