Forward Lanes

Nice bowling lanes. Had a really good time!!! Friendly atmosphere.
Their web site says it all. Yes, Yes, Yes, Everything they said.
I went on Thursday night and bought the two hours all you can bowl for 11 dollars. Good value and a nice way to spend two hours of the evening with friends.
They serve beer out of this coat room with the guy behind the pass through window looking like the jailer of arrested beer gone bad! Lol
Cozy, quant, inviting neighborhood bowling lanes.
They don’t take debit cards. Only downfall. But, the have an ATM. Didn’t use it so don’t know if they charge.
Fun Place. Recommend!!! :-) :-)

Overall, this is a good place to spend a night with some peeps. I went here off of a Groupon once and while I feel like this place pales in comparison to Arsenal Lanes in Lawrenceville, it still has its own character (even if it is a little bland). I unfortunately went here on a night where a huuuuuuge group of CMU undergrads were having some sort of party here, so that tainted my experience a bit. However, I would probably stop in here again sometime.

It has a nice retro feel to it.
The employees? They seemed miserable and acted like they were doing us a favor by helping us (side note: employee at concession window was friendly).
Very not inside with an odd odor.

My friend and I were looking for something different to do instead of our usual dinner and drinks so I suggested bowling. After pulling up Unilocal,I suggested Forward Lanes in Squirrel Hill which seemed to have much better reviews when compared to Arsenal Lanes in Lawrenceville. Forward Lanes has no parking lot so you have to find street parking which wasn’t so easy to do on a rainy Thursday evening. Eventually, we did find parking on a side street and we made our way inside. They seem to run various specials throughout the week, with the Thursday special being 6pm-​11pm $ 11 for two hours of unlimited bowling. It included shoes too. The employee helping us said that if we were going to play more than 2 games this was the way to go. We ended up getting 3 games in the two hours, but we also did a lot of talking (and some partaking in adult beverages :)
With a Unilocal check in you get a free soda. They have a little snack shack that has some beer (Rebel IPA, yuengling, Miller Lite, etc.). It wasn’t overly crowded and I had a great time so I’m looking forward to coming back here soon!

Really bad customer service they tried to trick us into paying ten extra dollars for a game that was only 2.75

Came here in the afternoon for a bachelor party. It was super retro and very cheap. Also, it was a nice touch to have you pay for the games AFTER you’ve played them. Good stuff!

I have not been bowling in years, but this happened to show up on my nearby places on Unilocal one night. I did not even realize that there was a bowling alley in Squirrel Hill! I took my brother here for his birthday on a Tuesday night. There was a special for $ 11 that you could bowl unlimited for two hours, and it included shoes! For $ 22 total, we bowled 12 games. So worth it!
The alley seemed to be pretty nice to me, and there was some league practice going on while we were there. The shoes I borrowed were fairly new and comfortable. It appeared that every lane had bumpers so if you have little kids, this could be a fun things to do. Also, the guy running the lanes was placing groups every other lane, which was really nice. There was a little snack area, and I saw people with soda and beer. Honestly, I had a great time, and I plan to come back to bowl again soon!
The only downside is there is no parking so you have to drive pretty far to get parked since this is a busy part of town.
Cash only.

This is my favorite place to bowl in Pittsburgh, and lucky for me it’s right in my neighborhood. The lanes are bright, clean and properly oiled; they also feature the excellent Brunswick 2000 scoring system, which must have sounded quite futuristic when it was produced in the late ‘80s. The prices are very good, especially during their specials. Staff is friendly and helpful. I only wish they would expand their craft beer selection beyond the bottles of Sierra Nevada that are always way past their prime.

I came here with a large group of late 20s/​early 30s on a Saturday night. We had to wait for lanes (first come first serve) but they put you on a waiting list and the waiting area has tables and you can order beers (buckets of RR ponies!) while you wait. The staff was very nice about giving us 4 lanes next to each other and had no problem accommodating a large group. Earlier in the evening it was a mix of families and locals there to enjoy the bowling, but it slowly transitioned into a 20s/​30s crowd (lots of hipsters) and almost a party environment. I stayed until after 11 and it was still very busy. I’d recommend this as something fun and different to do with a group of friends on a Saturday night. Plenty of bowling balls to choose from, the shoes seemed relatively new, and the staff was very friendly and helpful. I also noticed that the ball return was the fastest I had ever seen so the games kept moving along at a nice pace and didn’t drag on with 6 players. I’d go back!

Everything here is old. The owner is a dick. He treats his employees like trash (I was a larger kid and he told me to lose weight instead of getting me an XL employee shirt). And he still owes me $ 5 from unpaid time. Not worth going back for though. I would never patronize this place after meeting this man.

close and quiet. My kids go for birthdays and always have fun!

A group of 11 of us met up at Foward Lanes last night for a surprise birthday gathering for a friend. Not only was the company great, but the venue was a lot of fun, too! Yes, it’s a little divey — and I was mildly concerned that the stairs leading to the bowling alley were going to collapse as we entered and exited — but it’s actually pretty swanky compared to other local bowling alleys (such as Dormont Lanes).
Though the beverage options were limited, there was a little something for everyone with options such as Bud Light, Yuengling, and Woodchuck Cider. The staff was very nice and polite, and the bathrooms were even (shockingly!) clean.

I’ve been here many times with family and my little cousin even had a birthday party here. It can get busy here but it doesn’t get crowded. I took my brother here (newbie bowler) and we had a great time. Today is Monday so we paid $ 1 for shoe rental and $ 2/​game for each of us. We looked at the price list on our way out and the prices go up as the week goes on. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays seem to be the most reasonably priced days to go, especially Mondays.

This alley was my first in the Pittsburgh area– yes I’m a newbie. We ended up having a really nice time.
I enjoyed the old feel that it had. character I’d like to call it.
The mini Coronas were adorable and they even had limes… I’ve been to bars that didnt have a lime for my beer so this was a plus!
it wasn’t too crowded at all.
I’ve ventured out to other alleys in the city since coming here a year ago but this one is closer to home & i doubt that there would be a wait time for a lane on Saturdays.

It’s not fancy, there are no disco balls nor cosmic light shows, and it’s forevermore 1970 at Forward lanes. I hadn’t been bowling since elementary school, but I’m positive Forward Lanes hasn’t had a facelift since before that, so we’re even. After being told that Arsenal Lanes had a ridiculous 3+ hour wait, we had a lane at Forward not even 20 minutes later (yes, including drive time).
There are 16 lanes. The shoes have velcro. The bathroom was surprisingly clean. The crowd was mostly non-​drinking college kids on a Saturday night – definitely no serious bowlers. There are, however, locker room and storage rentals for those looking for a bowling league experience. FYI, ladies, the lightest bowling ball size was 9lbs, which I used okay – but was told that a lighter ball would have been better for me.
Concessions include 7oz mini beers by the bucket ($ 8.50 for domestic & $ 10 for Corona), Woodchuck Cider ($ 4), Mike’s ($ 4), Slim Jims ($.99), and a full vending machine. Just about what you’d need.
CASH ONLY. There is an ATM inside.

Games are cheap, old school feel that sets a cool vibe. I think we were expecting more of a snack bar selection other than just nachos and hot dogs, but the beer made up for it. They have a good selection of house bowling balls and who doesn’t dig velcro bowling shoes?
Only downside was that everything is cash only, but there is an ATM inside so not to fret if you find yourself cash-​less.

Hidden bowling alley that is much larger than it looks on the outside, though still smallish. They have 16 lanes. Been here on the weekday for the special and most of the lanes were still free.
During the summer, they have SPECIALS where you can bowl as many games as you want for about 2 and half hours including getting shoe rentals for only $ 10 (Tue — Thurs 6 to 8:30 PM or 9 to 11:30 PM). They still have this outside summer though it is reduced to two days per week. Check their website for up to date information about when their specials are. Otherwise, games are $ 3.50 each and $ 2 for shoe rentals.
They have a computerized scoring system like pretty much all the bowling alleys now.

MUCH better than the bowling alley in Lawrenceville. The tiling, wood paneling, and the way the balls are shot back hark back to the 1970s. The staff were pretty friendly and we didn’t have to wait for 2 lanes at 8 pm on a Saturday. You also can’t beat the price.

Bowling & brews. How can you say no?
The crowd is a mixture of all types.
We had a lot of problems with the automatic scoring machine and were charged for an extra game and told us they couldn’t take it off. Our machine quit working like 5 times during our 3 games and the place was busy so it took forever to locate someone to fix the thing.
If we ever get the urge to bowl I think we will take our business elsewhere.

Can’t beat the price. And the service is great. Went on a weekday afternoon and did not have to wait for a lane at all. Fun times will be shared by everyone!