Uptown Alley, Winnipeg

Lanes, lasers and a bistro on St Matthews

Thirty lanes make up the bowling side of Uptown Alley at 1301 St Matthews Avenue in Winnipeg: 20 for five-pin and 10 for ten-pin. Around them the centre has built a wider entertainment complex, with an arcade of more than 80 player stations, a Cyber Battle laser tag arena and a 100-seat bistro with full table service. Glow bowling, leagues for adults, youth, seniors and special-needs bowlers, and a pro shop complete the picture.

Parties are a large share of the business. Packages cover kids' and teen birthdays, adult birthdays, corporate events, sports team wind-ups, school outings, bachelor and bachelorette nights and fundraisers. A nut-free cake or dessert brought from home is fine for a birthday, but no other outside food or drink is allowed. Groups of 20 or more can ask for an opening as early as 9:30 AM, and the party line takes phone bookings on weekday afternoons.