NC Triangle Dining Food Blog

The Best Restaurants and Bars in Raleigh, Durham, Cary, and Chapel Hill

  • NC Triangle Dining Food Blog
  • Home
    • Blog
  • Best Restaurants and Bars
    • The Best Restaurants in Raleigh, NC
    • The Best Restaurants in Durham, NC
    • The Best Restaurants in Cary – Apex, NC
    • The Best Restaurants in Chapel Hill – Carrboro, NC
    • Best Food Specials and Deals in Raleigh, Durham, Cary, and Chapel Hill
    • The Best Bars and Lounges in Raleigh, NC
  • News
    • Coming Soon to the Triangle – New Restaurants and Bars
    • New Restaurants and Bars in Cary and Morrisville
    • New Restaurants and Bars in Chapel Hill and Carrboro
    • New Restaurants and Bars in Durham
    • New Restaurants and Bars in Raleigh
    • New Restaurants and Bars of the Triangle, 2021
  • Index of Reviews
    • Cary – Restaurant and Bar Reviews
    • Chapel Hill and Carrboro – Restaurant and Bar Reviews
    • Durham Restaurant and Bar Reviews
    • Raleigh Restaurant and Bar Reviews
    • NC Video Reviews
    • Travel Reviews
  • Food Photos
    • Food Event Photos
  • About
    • NCTD Blogger- Ron Wen
    • NC Triangle Dining Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
    • NC Triangle Dining Blog Policy
    • Working with NC Triangle Dining
    • NC Triangle Dining Blog and Social Media Statistics
Restaurant & Bar Reviews » Raleigh » A Visit to the New Kings Bowl North Hills for Charity, Fun and Good Food!

November 1, 2014 by Ron Wen Leave a Comment

A Visit to the New Kings Bowl North Hills for Charity, Fun and Good Food!

Flyer for Kings Cares, North Hills- NC Triangle Dining
Flyer for Kings Cares, North Hills- NC Triangle Dining

I gotta confess, I’m not a very good bowler.  Maybe because I grew up in New England where we would throw these little balls at little candlepins instead of what the rest of the country uses!  So I was not a frequent visitor to the departed Sparians bowling alley up in North Hills.  But recently I heard that a small chain of upscale bowling alleys called Kings and based out of Massachusetts was taking over the venue and refreshing it.  And yes, they had a charity event called Kings Cares on the calendar so I figured it was a perfect time to visit and see what up at the new Kings Bowl at North Hills!

Their mascot Woody at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining
Their mascot Woody at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining

From the outside, Kings is pretty unimposing and plain, located at the side/entry along Park at North Hills Street.  The staff was already out front checking ID’s and getting people ticketed for the event.  “Woody” their mascot bowling pin was out front for pics and yes, I’ll try not to make any naughty jokes about his name as much as I want to.  Inside we paid our charitable donation, got three drink tickets and we were off to have some fun!  Kings Bowl was well-staffed and probably in shake-down mode with limited hours.  I’ll be interested to see what final pricing is like and if they’re able to nail down a better wait queue/bowling operations since wait-lines at the old Sparians was a huge part of its demise.  The entry-way seems a bit more open with a traditional counter to request a lane and grab your shoes which I already see as an improvement from the old place.

Crimson bar at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining
Crimson bar at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining

Straight forward you’ll find the first bar and 8 or so lanes and to the right you’ll open up to the main Kings Bowl area!  Another bar decked out in crimson, two gaming areas and then another set of lanes in back.  The overall space seems opened up and better laid out.  You can see people and activity all around which gives the place a more energetic feel.  Inside there are definitely some changes in the space, but some of the old neon remains, enhanced with the Kings Bowl starburst theme.  There’s also a modern retro feel with prints of Jeff Bridges as the Dude from the movie the Big Lebowski, very kitschy and cool!

Bowling lanes at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining
Bowling lanes at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining
Retro, neon interior at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining
Retro, neon interior at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining

We first head off to the front bar where Kings has a shorter selection of craft beers, house wines and house cocktails.  Definitely lots of fruity on the cocktail menu, spins on classic drinks but I wouldn’t expect anything too fancy!  As the Kings Cares event started off, the staff came out with hand-passed appetizers ranging from fried mac n cheese, spring rolls, fried won tons, sliders, seared scallops and hummus.  Unfortunately, trying to stand and eat is pretty tricky so I forgot the food pics!  But suffice it to say, everything we were served was above average for bar food and enjoyable.

Gaming area at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining
Gaming area at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining

As the night wore on we moved to the fun and play side of the evening.  Things were livening up so we grabbed a lane for a couple of strings of bowling.  Very modern and high-tech scoring system, Kings does some really colorful balls and the pin set-up/machine is super fast making for much quicker play.  Just be aware that some lanes do not have markers and the lighting makes it tough to see where you need to put the ball.  And our lane had a tight approach meaning you had to shorten up your strides or roll your ball more quickly than usual.  So if you’re a serious bowler you might want to double-check before grabbing any lane.

Quad air hockey at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining
Quad air hockey at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining

In addition to the bowing, Kings has added quite a few additional games like foosball, shuffleboard, ping-pong tables, air hockey and even one quad air hockey table, cool!  The event had free games so I’m not sure how pricey they are but it was certainly a great diversion from bowling.  As the evening slowed down, we were brought out cake-pops and mini smores which was a great way to end the event!

Big, shiny bowling balls at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining
Big, shiny bowling balls at Kings Bowl North Hills in Raleigh- NC Triangle Dining

All in all I can honestly say I had a really fun evening at the Kings Cares events and I think they are headed in the right direction.  If they can resolve lane reservations/wait times and keep prices within reason, I think this new version of hip and retro bowling will have some staying power.  Good food and lots of fun sounds like a winning recipe for North Hills and the families in the area. So welcome to Raleigh and the Triangle, Kings Bowl!  And maybe add some candlepin bowling for us ex-New Englanders?  I’ll even promise to “pahk my cah in a wicked good space” the next time I visit…

 

Kings Bowl at North Hills

141 Park at North Hills Street, Suite 120

Raleigh NC 27605

919.600.5700

 

Kings Bowl, North Hills menu

Location on Google maps      

 

   Save

Related

Filed Under: Raleigh, Restaurant & Bar Reviews Tagged With: Arcade-Games

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe to NC Triangle Dining

Popular Reviews

Torchy’s Tacos – Tingling Tastebuds with Tex-Mex Flavors in Raleigh

Two Roosters Lands in the Bull City and is Dishing Out Great Ice Cream

Locals Oyster Bar in Raleigh for Some of the Freshest Seafood Around

Don’t Miss

  • Coming Soon to the Triangle – New Restaurants and Bars
  • New Restaurants and Bars in Cary and Morrisville, Now Open
  • New Restaurants and Bars in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, Now Open
  • New Restaurants and Bars in Durham, Now Open
  • New Restaurants and Bars in Raleigh, Now Open
  • New Restaurants and Bars of the Triangle, 2021 Edition

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube

New Reviews!

  • Brandwein’s Bagels, Chapel Hill – The Classic Taste of a NY Bagel Shop near Franklin Street and UNC
  • Mitch’s Tavern in Raleigh is BACK with authority and better than ever
  • Thai 54, Morrisville – Delivering Tasty Thai Food That Covers Many Options
  • News: Social and Drinking District for Raleigh, Live on August 15

Connect with NCTD

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

NCTD Email Subscription


Handcrafted with on the Genesis Framework