The Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club

The wait is long on Friday night and Saturday night, but Saturday around 1pm is perfect! Shuffleboard, cards against humanity, giant jenga, bingo, and the Bimini ring toss game make it feel like being on a cruise ship with so much to choose from. We liked the cooler of cider beer and the welcoming staff. Very warm and happy experience. 5+ stars!

In order of importance:
1. Beer is super cheap (for the NYC area). $ ⁸⁄₂ mason glass sized beers.
2. The people who work there are into their jobs. Plus I just was amused by them– a jumpsuit? A large forearm Spider-​Man tattoo? And despite having explained the rules of shuffleboard many many times, they made it fun.
3. Shuffleboard!
4. Other games– connect 4, operation, settlers, etc. Waiting for a court is not a big deal at all when there’s so much to do!

Look for the self portrait artist. Also check out the mirrors in the restrooms.

Simply atrocious service all around. I really dig the vibe. I love shuffleboard. The games are great. All on all, I would have enjoyed the experience but I am completely and utterly disappointed with the rudeness of the bartenders all day. Additionally, on what might be unrelated in terms of service, the pasta food truck told me my order was complete after 45 minutes when the place was empty and then made me wait another 25 when they texted me my order was ready. Overall, I have not had the experience others had and honestly I don’t think I was the only one today.

This is really just a review of my experience hosting a private party at Royal Palms.
First off I love this place which is why I wanted to host a work event here.
We booked a party with over 20 guests and spent over $ 3K. One of the guests wasn’t drinking alcohol, but was still forced to buy the same bar package as the other guests. So essentially that one non drinker had to pay $ 100+ for coconut water.
A suggestion… Provide different colored wristbands for non drinkers! That way non drinkers don’t feel they are breaking the bank just to play!
The place is great, but I’ll never suggest to have a party there again. They were also very understaffed and disorganized when we arrived.
Took almost a half hour to get everyone’s wrist bands setup as our guests trickled in. Think this would have been solved if they had more servers.
Maybe staff up on nights with more private parties?
One server for our group alone would have been fine but she was covering two other large groups at the same time.
What are we paying a premium for then?!! Longer time to be on the courts? Common guys…
I will say our waiter was awesome and did her best, but with a packed bar and lack of extra servers it was hard to feel as if you were getting your money’s worth.

Giant jenga. Whaaat! This place is super cool – lots of fun board games, relatively cheap cocktails, and of course, shuffleboard. We didn’t get to play shuffleboard that night, even though our friends came at 6pm, grabbed a ticket, and stayed until midnight. Only in Brooklyn would people line up to play shuffleboard on a Saturday night. There were a ton of people but the place is big enough that it doesn’t feel crazy packed (although it was pretty warm – they either jacked up the heat or it was from all the bodyheat).

Really cool spot in Gowanus.
If you thought shuffleboard was only for retirement communities in Florida, then stand corrected. I walked in here this past Saturday afternoon with some friends, and it was like we entered some trendy warehouse party. Two to three hour wait to play… shuffleboard? Is this real life? Apparently so, and it was totally fine with us. We chilled at one of their two bars, drank dope cocktails, grabbed pasta from the food truck, played some board games, and jammed out to the DJ’s beats while we waited for our rightful spot on one of ten shuffleboard courts. Oh, and it doesn’t hurt that there’s a Dino BBQ within walking distance.
There are three ways to get on a court: walk-​in (like me), throw a cabana party, or join a league. You will likely have to wait if you come here on a whim, though there’s plenty to keep you busy while waiting (see the previous paragraph), and it’s $ 40 per hour to play. You will need to grab a ticket at the front counter to reserve your spot in line, and you get a buzzer (kind of like those at an Applebee’s or Olive Garden) that notifies your party when you’re up. NOTE — they enforce a maximum playing time of one hour per court when it’s crowded. Think you’re going to need multiple hours of shuffleboard in your life? I recommend grabbing multiple tickets so by the time your first hour is almost up, there’s another court ready for your group. My party did this and we were able to play for three consecutive hours. No idea if that’s commonplace or straight luck, but it’s worth a shot. Their website has plenty of details for throwing a cabana party, and I’m not the caliber player to be asking about leagues. Sorry to the young ones out there — this is strictly a 21+ scene.
Although my shuffleboard game wasn’t on point (factor being skill and/​or intoxication level TBD), our group had a lot of fun. I definitely recommend checking it out if you want to try something different and you’re not in a rush.

Probably the best NYE experiences I’ve ever had!
From beginning to end, the entire process was seamless and made the evening stress free.
We previously came here on a regular Saturday night and had such a great time that we decided to bring along our friends and book at table for NYE.
We spoke to Jonathan and he was very helpful and informative about the booking process.
We reserved a cabana for ten people for two hours. You have to two hours unlimited drinking as part of the booking, we were worried that it being NYE the bar might be busy and we might not get our money’s worth but Anna was so attentive to us and was very thoughtful– never were we without a drink! Which we paid for the next day! But seriously, all the staff we encountered we so friendly. Anna really went above and beyond and as we were finishing our time on the court made sure we had a new table to move to and even made sure we had a drink before our time ran out. She was brilliant. All my friends commented on how great and friendly she was– we loved her pink wig also!
The entire night was great! Thank you so much for giving us a great end to 2015!

The royal palms is so awesome that we’ve been here over 5 times in about 3 months. When it’s crappy outside and you want to just kill time, there are few better places to go. Cheap beer, $ 40/​hr shuffleboard (bring a team of 4), and awesome games. Get there early, or play some connect 4 and wait for a bit. Also, the food trucks are sometimes greasy, but good and got food. Also, a couple good eating spots nearby. Really, don’t hesitate to come and play for a day.

Came here for an office holiday party. Way more fun that I had anticipated! Dim lighting, and it looks more like a cozy lounge/​bar with all their black/​white cabanas, as opposed to a game/​hangout spot. Industrial feel, loft like vibe. Very hipstery, even the workers, but super friendly. Very attentive and aware — the guy kept coming back letting us know how much time we had, if we wanted to purchase more lane time or finish up the game, if he could get us any more drinks, etc. They definitely don’t disappear on you over here, and if by some chance they do, they are easy to find and flag down.
Food was delicious, but daaammnn was it pricey! The triple pork slider from Bolivian Llama Party was hot and fresh, spicy and juicy tender meat, with tangy sauce and some slaw. Wow! Excellent quality, but I was a little shocked to see the charge on my card $ 7.51. For ONE freaking slider?! At least it was tasty, otherwise I’d be pissed.
On a Tuesday night, not crowded at all. The entire left side of the place didn’t have any lanes reserved. Man, shuffleboard is harder than I realized. You never know when/​how to use more or less strength, but everyone had a lot of laughs. Literally, every lane that was occupied, people were really laughing and enjoying themselves.

Came here for our office holiday party — this place is bananas. So much fun. The staff was both helpful and friendly and we were shuffling in no time. They let us use a second lane which was great.
The food from Bolivian Llama Party was great and they didn’t get upset when I called the saltenas empanadas but I did get a really funny button so everyone came out on top.
Would recommend ¹⁰⁄₁₀ — cool spot for sure.

Come here to go back to your childhood and play board games with your friends! The catch is that you need to be 21+ in order to enter.
Expect a 3 – 4 hour wait on average for shuffleboard. The upside is that you won’t be sitting there twirling your thumbs as there are countless games such as taboo, cards against humanity, connect 4, bingo, ring toss, jenga, uno, etc. They also serve cocktails, beers and food. I had the truffle fries, which were very crunchy and tasty. They have cider for $ 6 each or you can get a pack of four in a cute ice cooler for $ 20… I definitely recommend the latter! :)
The only downside, in my opinion, is that the music gets substantially louder as it goes into the night to the point where you can barely hear yourself. So games like taboo should be played earlier on.

If you’re on the prowl for some senior citizens, fly to Florida cuz you ain’t gonna find ‘em here! Just some cool young katz taking over the retirement home scene.
Conveniently located between a casket factory and Ample Hills Creamery, this spot is anything but dead. Upon arrival you get the feeling of an old school bowling alley straight out of The Big Lebowski, but it’s so much more than a mason jar of White Russian. This referring to the full cocktail bar in the back serving up drinks in your grandma’s Balls… the mason jars, that is (a Brooklyn staple at this point). As you’re grabbing your drink, you’ll notice a long table extending through the center of the space topped with games such as giant Connect4. This table is flanked by several shuffleboard courts straight out of your grandparents’ assisted living center (hopefully not).
If you’re game to play some shuffleboard since that’s the whole reason you came, you’ll go to the counter next to the entrance where you’ll see a variety of board games and a numbered neon sign on the top left corner of the wall corresponding to the next in line for a court. You’ll then tell the guy how excited you are to play and he’ll proceed to give you a number and tell you it’s $ 40 an hour and it’ll be a 5 hour wait.
…what?
It’ll be 5 hour wait.
…yea that’s what I thought you said.
It’s a long wait folks, but it’s worth it. In the meantime you can rent board games behind the counter (free of charge) and stretch your wrist muscles with drinking (because no one wants to cramp up on the court). We chose to occupy ourselves with some delicious food from the Bolivian Llama Party, which is the food stand attached to the building serving salteñas (similar to empanadas), cholas (sandwiches), and extra crispy french fries. Folks… they were GOOD. We ordered the huacatay flavored fries, a triple pork cholita (mini cholas), and a oyster mushroom stuffed salteña. The salteña was so delicious. The outside looked very unassuming, but as soon as you crack that baby open, steamy sauce comes oozing out. It was so flavorful without overpowering the senses. The cholita was also delicious. It was essentially a fancy pulled pork and bacon slider, which I’m going to assume no one will be mad at (except our Jewish, Muslim, vegetarian, gluten-​free, paleo, and vegan friends. Sorry friends). The fries were so artfully fried. The skin shattered like thin glass leading to steamy soft potato on the inside. The seasoning was savory and spicy, but not too hot or salty. All of this was only $ 21 a.k.a. a steal. Drinks were below par. My rum and coke was pretty unbalanced and had to order a second coke to dilute it. If that’s a plus for you then great. It wasn’t for me, but it was only $ 6.
Back to the game. «150! We’re up!» «We’re up??? We’re up! We’re up! Let’s go!» The wait turned out to be only 2 hours. Imagining most people fled after hearing the initial wait time.
When we got to the court. An instructor rightfully assumed we didn’t know the rules and came to explain them like what a «tang» was and why we kept seeing the word «biscuit» everywhere. You’ll find out when you come. The game started out slow as we were figuring things out and adjusting our push strengths. Eventually, no one could help but gain the competitiveness of a college Freshman drunk on Natural Light playing beer pong for the first time.
This place is fun and the food’s great. ‘Nuff said. Just plan on staying a few hours before your 1 hour turn at the court. The wait and the drinks were what bumped this place down to 4 stars for me. Otherwise, highly recommend this place for a large party.

I’d been wanting to go here for some time and when my friends came to visit… we decided to make it our Friday night… and are very glad we did! We arrived right around opening on Friday (6 pm) to a nearly empty space. We were given a shuffleboard court right away ($ 40 for an hour) and the friendly owner (who is ranked #23 shuffleboard player in the world) came by to give us a lesson. Shuffleboard was so so fun! They have waitresses to come by and take your drink orders (wine and cocktails served in mason jars, beers too — everything is pretty reasonable too, $ 6 for a beer, $ 8 for wine, $ 12 or so for a cocktail).
There’s also tons of other games you can enjoy… large jenga and connect four, as well as 50+ board games (you can take out from the desk by leaving an ID). The ambiance is really cool here — makes you feel like you’re in Florida with the cabanas (which you can reserve/​rent, palm trees, plastic chairs, etc). There are two huge bars and a food truck (check their website for which food truck – it was Papaya King when we were there!).
Overall, a fantastic place to take visitors or to celebrate a special occasion!

I was very impressed by this spot. Upon entering, we were very graciously greeted by a food truck employee. He talked my us into getting a maple grilled cheese with cranberry and curry sauce, for less than $ 10, which was absolutely amazing.
On a Thursday evening, we waited less than a half hour to play Shuffleboard. As we played, bartenders walked around multiple times, teaching us the rules of the game and bringing as drinks as per our request. The one complaint I would have is that as it got closer to closing, we were pressured to finish our game quickly and were told they may have to kick us off the court before our game was up. Overall, it was a fun time!

Really nice and cool place to hang out for some drinks, shuffleboard, and games ! My first time doing shuffleboard and who knew it was such a blast! I’ve past here a few times before whenever I was at Ample Hill’s for some bomb ice cream and was always interested when I looked inside the place… Finally my friend threw her boyfriend a surprise birthday party here and it’s a really great place to do so!
We rented one of the Cabana’s and reserved two shuffle board lanes in front of our cabana, we probably had about 20 people and each paid $ 85 which comes with; UNLIMITED 2HRS WELL COCKTAIKS, BEERS, WINE AND SOFT DRINKS & 2HRS FOR THE SHUFFLEBOARD LANE. There’s also jumbo Jenga game to play with and connect four.
If you’re hungry there’s a food truck that serves souvlaki platter and such for $ 12, my friends said it was ok. Or just go next door for a good ice cream treat. The service was excellent around the place.
–Oh and go towards the right side in the back to play dress up and take cute pics! :D

I thought Shuffleboard was an activity for geriatric people on cruises.
Boy was I wrong!
Picture this:
Palm trees and turquoise blue courts transport you to another era.
Hip hop plays while you sip cocktails from a mason jar.
You lounge in black and white booths or vinyl lawn chairs and sip some God-​awful-​Chardonnay.
An ever changing rotation of One food truck is stationed inside to serve you either meatballs, Luke’s lobster, grilled steaks, grilled cheese or a surprise.
You play a supersized Connect four game while you wait for your courts.
You get to chill with friends and everyone gets super competitive from a game all of you just learned.
Then, in between shouting, jeering and cheering, you get to catch up with people you care about.
Shuffleboard at the Royal Palms offers me an experience that I can share with friends and new friends.
An experience that we are willing to pay for ($ 40/​hour).

I love this place! Felt like I was hanging out in the playground, but with drinks.
We got there a little after 5:00pm on a Sunday and we had an awesome time — it wasn’t crowded and there was no wait at all.
Prior to the visit, I did not know that shuffle boarding can be so much fun and I was actually decent at it. Although I must admit I was a little intimated at first — zero knowledge of shuffleboard. However, the staff did an awesome job at teaching shuffleboard 101 and my friends were great at coaching me.
We also spent hours on Giant Jenga, it was a lot of fun. Note: be careful of the splinters, I had to remove a few off my fingers by the end of the night.

Love this place! Came here for my sister’s bachelorette party and had a blast! We reserved one court and one cabana for the minimum 2 hours and boy did those 2 hours fly by! We were directed to our cabana and our server came over and let us know which beers and wines were included in our package — then immediately started us off with a round of tequila shots on the house! Our server was absolutely amazing and made sure we all had drinks in our hands at all times. Another guy came over and took us down to the court and showed us the ropes — showed us what to do and what not to do — it was very helpful!
One cabana and one court was plenty for a group of 10 ladies — we honestly barely used our cabana. They also had a food truck set up in the corner and we ordered a bunch of snacks to munch on while we were playing. They also have a cute corner where you can put on fun hats, glasses, etc. and take photos with your group. If you can’t grab a court, they also have board games — a giant connect four, mini shuffleboard, cards against humanity, etc. I absolutely love everything about this place and highly recommend it!

I came here for the Meatball Takedown and had a great time. This place is a trip. Think Borscht Belt Catskills Resort from the sixties meets hipster Brooklyn, I loved it. They put so effort into the décor, everything is perfectly retro.
There are two bars, shuffleboard (of course), oversized Jenga and Connect Four, a stage for bands, two areas to hang your coat, huge bathrooms, booths for big groups, tables and chairs scattered around for smaller groups and couples. Part of what I loved about this place was that it’s so big and they use the space nicely. There’s seating everywhere, and the big bathrooms and coat racks just make so much SENSE. It’s so rare to find a place in this city that doesn’t pack people in like sardines, it’s a great place for events and big groups.
After the event was over they had a lounge band come on. They had a sax player, and the lead singer was wearing a Hawaiian shirt, Miami Vice sunglasses, and a captains hat. I need more of this in my life.
Bartenders were attentive, staff was friendly, Bloody Mary’s tasty, nice beer selection. I definitely want to come back :)