Clover Lanes

Former Location

2750 Monroe Avenue, Rochester NY 14618

Status (as of April 2016)

Closed

See Gone, but not forgotten

Clover Lanes was a bowling alley on Monroe Avenue that had been in Rochester since 1957. It was voted "Best Bowling Alley" in City Newspaper's 2005 "Best of Rochester" contest and has won several times previously. They had Wi-Fi access and a nice bar staff (but avoid the mixed drinks). The music was typical bowling alley fare, nothing too grating. There's was a mix of teenagers, families, college aged people, adults, and league bowlers; no one group seems to dominate, which keet it fresh and relaxing. Clover was convenient to the Monroe Ave area, Brighton, and Pittsford. It was probably the closest and best bowling alley choice for people living on the south-east side of the city.

On March 31, 2016, Clover Lanes closed to make way for a planned strip mall. The owners announced they would be opening a new bowling alley under another name near Artisan Works in the fall of 2016; the more eclectic Radio Social opened in May, 2017. The Monroe Avenue building stood (mostly) empty until mid-2019, when demolition began to make way for Whole Foods Center.

Clover Lanes was voted "Best Bowling Alley" in City Newspaper's 'Best Of' Awards in 2008.¹

Comments:

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2007-03-31 23:13:52   It's a fun experience and the alcohol is priced fairly and when I needed some water in a pitcher they gave it to me for free. The little lounge near the bar is a blast from the past but it's totally ignored by the clientelle. The pizza joint that's in there is great if you like greasy pizza. —TravisOwens

2008-03-02 16:00:05   My teammates and I have needed to pre-bowl for our league on a few occasions and whether or not they have lanes available for you to do so depends on who you talk to. Long story short, this disorganization and lack of communication amongst staff actually cost my team points in a critical match. We have all decided that we will not be joining a league at Clover Lanes in the future. It's a shame, too, because I prefer to support un-franchised, local businesses. Non-AMF alleys are hard to come by.

Also, I agree that you should avoid the mixed drinks. I won a bet with a teammate, and so he had to buy me a drink. Since it was on his dime, a friend and I decided to splurge on whiskey sours...and the bar tender had never even heard of the drink before. Bizarre!

However, the Salvatore's is yummy and I do have some fond memories of this place from my high school bowling years. If you're an open bowler it will suit your needs just fine, but if you're a league bowler, I recommend searching around a bit. —ChelseaAllinger

2016-11-10 11:08:30   New name is "Radio Social"; opening is now planned for 2017. http://radio-social.com/ —markjackson