At least try to make this place enjoyable whoever owns it! Smells horrible when you walk in, no food or drinks. Could really use even just one upgrade, owners much not like the place themselves. Go elsewhere, hopefully this place cleans up. read more

Only reason 2 stars instead of one is because I have fond memories of having my birthday parties here 20 years ago. Unfortunately, this place doesn't appear to have had any updates or upgrades in those 20 years. Apparently a lane can accommodate up to 8 people, we had 5 people (4 adults and a kid) but there were only 3 permanent seats. No tables to hold your drinks nor chairs to move around. We were crammed. Other lanes around us seemed to have too many people too. Lack of space mixed with a lane that kept resetting... or trying to reset each time, caused us to leave early. My advice, don't prepay for 2 rounds because we didn't get a full refund even though our lane was a dud and we were over it. We don't plan to return unless they invest in some serious upgrades/updates. read more

Came here on a Sunday night and was able to get a lane right away. This is what you'd expect of an old school bowling alley. Pop music from multiple decades is playing, they have pizza for sale, and a few lanes have TVs with sports games on. It isn't a cheap night out though. It's more than $4 pp to rent shoes and then $5.50 pp per game, which can add up. They are in the 2018 Entertainment Book for a slight discount. Service was friendly and fast and the place was clean. There were all ages here and felt like good old fashioned fun! read more

Horrible customer service- go to Bowlero. Forgot to post this earlier in the year before covid. Just passed by and see they have "not open" up and remembered how horrible they were to begin with. Need a new operator read more

Despite some of the negative comments I see here (maybe some have a legitimate reason) my experience is good. Monday and Wednesday are to me not the best time to bowl because of leagues, but they are fun to watch. What's interesting is in my observation seeing people (some coming week after week on the same days) complain and even hassle the front desk personal because the leagues on those days take up both sides. I guess that can justify how important it is to call and confirm whether there are leagues playing or not, but ironically if some know this already, why continue coming to bowl those league nights and sometimes with more people? Crazy. Machines may have issues at times during play, but at least the mechanics seem to correct matters promptly. Have to give credit to them because at least they try to keep the flow of play moving. Snack bar has great food, and the Bartenders, Security, and Customer Service do a great job dealing with the public also, but sometimes it's incredible at times how poorly the staff gets treated on occasion. I guess some people feel that they are entitled to bring outside food and drinks in when there's clearly a sign stating that it's not allowed (FDA reasons). Some endanger themselves by walking down the middle of the lane which has oil just to get a ball (usually when people throw two balls down the lane against the rules and is smacks the sweep). Some instead of just acknowledging it get mouthy with security or customer service about it though it's about their safety. I heard one use this excuse: "They're just kids" Well do the parents have control of the kids?, or do the kids control the parents? Those who are warned about the consequences of giving their under aged friends (or those who don't have a valid I.D.) alcoholic beverages to drink. Not only do some lie after being caught on surveillance, but sometimes make a scene and cry foul because of it. "Oh I work the food and beverage industry/I'm a bartender" REALLY?! Then you should know the rules. Some have expired licenses (three, six, or nine months past) which are not considered a valid I.D. Sure complain about it all the time, but why don't you go to the D.M.V. , pay $30.00(?), stand in line for maybe an hour or two, and get a California I.D. card. How hard is that? lol "Oh the customer is always right!" well to an extent that is true, but then some customers cross the lines of respect? I wonder how some would react if the rolls were reversed and some of these people have to deal with working with the public under these conditions. It would be interesting to see this, because there are others that may be extremely demanding. Extreme bowling is always fun. The only claw to get a free game is not only telling an employee prior to bowling a strike with a colored pin in the front, but also paying the $20.00 unlimited fee. Some people do know this but it's funny how even some will try and pull a fast one when the lead gives the conditions, but yet they want to ask other employees when they know better about the terms and conditions of getting a free game (says a lot about them). Keep up the good work surf bowl staff. Also thank you for taking time out of your families to accommodate the public during the holidays when most people have the entire day off with their families. I look forward to returning. read more

I love this place it would have got five stars if the snack bar was open more than just the weekends but yeah this place kicks ass the snack bars should be open more often people that work there are great I just love them read more

Bowling was ok. Layout was what u expect. Problems were across the board. Could not play video games because token machine was broken. Lanes 13 and 14 the balls wouldn't return so paying by the hour gave us 1 game ( not worth the money) . But the worst part was the bartender! She was awful! Kept spouting off things about Abc laws to old women while giving her friends a break on identification. She was terrible. read more

Lots and lots of problems. The place honestly doesn't look the best. Bad experience with the staff. Guy in the front probably thought of me as a customer who wanted to cause problems but in reality I just wanted things to be set right. I wanted an extra 30 minutes for the 28 minutes that it took them to fix my lane. (I timed it by checking the time they billed me, it was exactly 28 minutes) the guy only gave me an extra 10 minutes and still tried arguing with me that it wasn't any more than 10-15 minutes read more

Its Saturday night, its bowling. This is America. Nice time. Teenagers, little kids, community groups, etc, all here having fun, smiling, laughing and restoring my faith in humanity. Played some pool, bowled, drank some beers, ate some greasy food. Love it. Salute on Veterans Day. read more

Not recommended. Lacking in bowling balls. Not friendly. $20/hour and $4/shoe rental. They're overly strict on how you play here. I've been to many bowling alleys and this is probably the worst I've ever been to. We chose to come here late on a weekend night for my mom's birthday after work, and we had our family with us. We had like 7 people and some were new players, so they were trying to figure out what ball weight works for them. That was until one of their vato security guard goons decided to come tell one of our guys "Aye. He can't use that ball." as he picks up some of our balls and firmly states that we're not using them when we just did. So I said "What do you mean? Why not?" Cause it's just a ball.. I thought he was making a joke about it being pink or something. Then he decides to be a d**khead and says "CUZ I SAY SO" and I look at him like wut? Are you serious right now. It was a simple question.. I wasn't questioning your manhood. Tf is wrong with you. Then he starts up again, "ONLY WOMEN AND CHILDREN CAN USE AN 8LB BALL. GUYS CAN NOT." Okay..? Sounds like a sexist thing to say, you saying women are categorized with children now? Or what is coming out of your mouth. And at this point, I wasn't going to ruin a family night over some guy trying to test his abuse of power. So I left it at "Okay. I guess." And he walks away looking at me like he's going to jump me in the restroom later. I mean I could make this about race but I literally only saw him constantly checking on our lane. So we played 1 game and left for good. They're also lacking in bowling balls. There was about 6 lanes playing and only 8 bowling balls available for the other 14 lanes. Lol wut? Smallest was a 6LB with finger holes for a newborn baby. So 8LB was useable but apparently only female and children are allowed to use it while their security guards are working. Not recommended. read more

Wanted to say first the bartender and the guy that is usually at the front counter at night time are great people and deserve kudos. Unfortunately my ball suffered multiples scratches and dings bowling here. I brought the ball to them and they said they would resurface since it was because of their lane conditions. Left my ball there on Tuesday. Called to see if I could pick up the ball on Friday and they said sure come down after 3. Drove 50mins to get there and it's not ready! Great wasted my time, and gas. Decided to pick the ball up today on Sunday. One of the marks was taken out and the rest of the damage on the ball from their lane they didn't even bother to resurface. What a terrible experience. read more

This is the bowling alley version of a dive bar. It's outdated but it's a lot of fun if you come with a group of friends. Speaking of dive bar, they have amazing pricing on pitchers of IPAs etc. Make a reservation for around 930 - they turn the lights off, turn the lasers on and play fun throwbacks. read more

Nice staff, friendly and clean. Would come back. Shoes are clean. Bowling balls are clean.

EXPENSIVE, AND BEWARE THE LANE SHUTOFF Nothing wrong with the venue itself but it is pricey. $4.50 to rent shoes and $5.50 a game which is among the highest I think I've seen. And this was on an early Saturday afternoon. They have an hourly rate of $24/lane which is a little better but they shut off our lane mid-game. We were in the 9th frame of our second game with three people and "boom" no more. NOTE TO MGT. It might be a nice courtesy to have some sort of shutoff time , like the 7th or 8th frame, to let parties finish their game. Also, step pricing would be nice - most alleys are cheaper at less-demand times. read more

Good experience over all one the lanes kept having a problem returning the ball after knocking the pins down so I had to get up a few times and request for assistance so that's one thing for them to look at as a heads up but over all good experience decent prices compared to a lot of other places especially with the inflation over all of recommended it especially on the Tuesday special read more

We came here for a kid's birthday party. It looks like this place has been here for quite some time. It's obvious on the outside and the inside. There wasn't very many people working here but I suppose there doesn't need to be. The lady helping with the shoes was a little rude to us but we got our stuff and moved on. The only thing that really counts here is the alley. It's obviously there and was working fine. It always brings back memories to see the old screens and all that for bowling. The kids had a blast though. The party ordered some pizzas through the bowling alley but holy cow were they expensive! $15+ a piece. That's just insane. The pizza was ok but a $5 from Little Caesar's would have been better. It was also weird too since the kitchen was closed to everyone else. They only have certain days and hours it's open. So when other people came by they were turned down and you could tell quite a few were a little angry about it. Overall, this place was alright. There's some newer alleys with better service that I'd rather go to if I went bowling again. If you're just looking for a decent place to bowl and that's it, then it's not bad here. They also have league and military discounts. read more

I came here to go bowling with my friends one night and since we were already in the oceanside area, we were too lazy to drive to the vista or san marcos bowling alleys. so we came here and for about 4 people to go bowling was about $50. I can't believe that we spent so much money just to play a few games here. the service and the people at the counter were crappy and rude. the interior of the place was horrible and run-down. it looked like it was about to all just break apart soon. I couldn't believe that we went here when the vista bowling alley was just down the 78 freeway. Honestly people, don't make the same mistake that my friends and I did and come here, go to the Vista Entertainment Center bowling alley!! read more

Despite a lot of negative reviews as of recent, family and I had a great time with great service. The only negative is that the kitchen wasn't open. read more

Total dive but one thing I can say, is their Bartender (pt the older guy) was awesome. He was helping us check in and putting us on the wait list because they were full and closing one side for league night. We told him we'd be waiting in the bar. He laughed and said he took care of that also. The bartender didn't come on until 5. He was sweet, we tried to keep it simple for him. No ice yet, a skinny marg was of the table, the guys order beers and we had a shot because they have a machine that dispenses cold Patron. Lots of lime, salt and sipping. We told him we'd wait but he insisted on taking care of us. We ordered real cocktails once the girl came on. She was also so friendly. The guys at the counter were a bit rude and had a bit of an attitude. We had to look for balls, no one seems to replace them once a lane is finished. We each found what we needed. The air on the ball machine didn't work which sucked especially in the humidity. Hard to throw a ball with sweaty hands. The score was messed up more than a few times, and the when the pins were dropped a few times the machine left one or two out so that score was also messed up. We had to reset more than once. Frustrating especially when you throw a good ball and it didn't count. This place definitely needs some work. San Marcos is nicer, nicer bar, escondido has great food and better atmosphere too. Won't revisit. Dirty divey. read more

See all

Surf Bowl is in terrible need of a renovation. It smells so old and bad when you walk in. The bar is dark, smelly, and depressing. The bathrooms are icky. I love bowling and I love Oceanside so I would love nothing more than to see this place taken better care of. I've been coming here since I was kid a have so many fun memories. I would love to be able to just drive down the street to bowl, but instead we go to Vista. My recent visits have been plagued by greasy balls, lane glitches, rude service, and overall disappointment. Also, I wouldn't eat here if I were you. read more

In these dark days of vanishing Bowling Alleys, it is hard to give any intrepid business that soldiers on despite the proliferation of LeBowlski nights and whatnot. Surf Bowl is a classic. Classic in every sense. It is old. That makes it classic. It has gaudy lighting and color displays. Classic. It is not too expensive. Classic. And you could get a lane on a Sunday afternoon. Classic. There is even some pretty good beer on tap in the bar, though I felt obliges to go with the mundane and enjoyed every minute of it. Surf Bowl is awesome. A classic. read more

There's a reason why there's not many people, and lanes also is always empty.. Cuz the customer service is not nice. And the place is a little pricy too. $5.25 per game $4.00 Shoes Rental So maybe like $10 per game for ONE person. I'm too poor, couldn't afford that much for just one game. read more

Reasonable rates, super nice staff, clean, fun for family or groups, have not tried their grill but will at some point. I like the feel of an older bowling alley. in New Orleans we frequented a place called "Rock-N-Bowl". Live music venue as we bowled, had a couple toddies, then proceeded to the dance floor. Great thing about that was those with well behaved kids were able to have an evening out and take the kids. I wish Surf Bowl would offer something like this. It would increase usage of the facility and be a great addition to our now thriving community! read more

Not worth the bullshit. The manager is more passive aggressive than any other woman I've ever met. She states that hours are "earned" : How is anyone going to improve with 5 hours of minimal work, & nobody around to help? & how are we to earn hours if nobody watches what we do? The manager alone, is disrespectful & doesn't own the knowledge to run a facility like that of a slimy bowling alley. The bathrooms smell horrid. The snack bar: There are so many flies in the area where the utensils are cleaned, it IS impossible to keep things sinitay; they are living in the rotting wood, and go from the bathroom, (I promise you, you'll want to go to the one AWAY from the snack bar, it smells like something died in the one next the the snack bar) to the food area! So Gross. Then, there are is the sink & drying area, which are just, really bad.... like rotting eggs.... The soda machine leaves little black specks from bulk up in your drinks. Simply needs a health inspector to thoroughly go through there. The management is terrible. The manager would literally say that hours are "earned"? She would also rather work my shift & tell me to go home than talk to me about the problems I had with the shifts & staff. Wtf? You are too busy to take 10 min to talk to me about my problems, but not busy enough to take my shift? Pathetic. lol All the machines take tokens, & all of them are a rip off, most of them don't work & will randomly stop working. read more

I came here for a work party. I can't speak to the reservation process since I wasn't involved in that, but the group had a lot of fun. There's off street parking, and the bowling alley offers a food counter, arcade games and bar. read more

We came here to bowl via a Groupon we had purchased. We arrived at 2:55pm on Saturday, which was acknowledged by the supervisor, Rose. However, we were denied because in the fine print it states that it needs to be redeemed before 3pm. Apparently we made the mistake of buying a pitcher of beer before we checked in at the bowling counter. I totally understand the importance of "policies" and "rules", but the crazy component of it is I'm staring at 20+ empty lanes. All we wanted to do was bowl with our family and friends, and spend additional money at this establishment. I'm not surprised that nobody is here. A manager's #1 role is to ring dollars through the register, and in this case, our sweet friend Rose has failed. read more

Surf Bowl - Empty Alley - Bowling Near Me - Oceanside, California

This place is a great deal on Sunday. They do not tell you on the website that there is a $5 cover charge to get the special Sunday bowling prices. So that is false advertising! But overall, it's a good deal. They over oil the lanes , so bring a towel to wipe off your ball. read more

Surf Bowl - Sunday specials. - Bowling Near Me - Oceanside, California

I *LOVE* Surf Bowl! I think that it's a nice, friendly place to hangout! The staff has always been kind and friendly to me and my bros! They always have the same method to how they do things at Surf Bowl, so you can expect things to happen like clockwork. The staff have always been kind, resourceful and hardworking! Some people say that Surf Bowl is oldschool, but really, I've never been to a bowling alley that's different than Surf Bowl. It's true that sometimes the lanes get a bit glitchy, but the staff always ends up fixing it. The food is generally pretty good and the prices seems fine to me. I think that if you want to have some fun and hangout with your family/friends, this is the place to go! Especially, if you're looking for a place with a lot of bargains! Tuesday's are 25 cent bowling, Thursdays are a dollar! Friday, Saturday and Sunday they have special prices. I think the key to having an enjoyable experience at Surf Bowl is to just remember that the staff are people too. They are kind and will do their best to help you, but in return, you should try to be respectful and kind too. [That's at least, what I think of, after reading all the bad reviews with regards to the staff! I've never had a problem with them! In fact, one of the reasons we continue to go back to Surf Bowl is BECAUSE of the staff! Nothing else really ties us to this place. ] read more

Dear surf bowl: I love you. Your thursday nights are the best. $1 games, a classic bowling alley, what could go wrong? (5 stars for cheapness and nostalgia) I hate you. What could go wrong? ordering food here. A burger that tastes alright in the moment, but the next morning is leaving me queasy... :(. (1 star for making me speed home that night to go to the bathroom...) Let's just be friends, surf bowl. read more

Decided to bring my little one & husband bowling to this specific bowling alley only because it was conveniently not as busy as my local one. Entrance is pretty sketchy. Barely any parking right in front so you have to take a sharp right turn passing the train tracks to go park behind the alley. Usually smells like cigarettes right as you walk in! Blehh!! You have to walk past the drunken pool players to get to the cashiers. Prices are okay! Depending on what day of the week you go and time. They offer military discounts which is good even when they have specials going on. I think the inside could be updated as far as the flooring goes. Looks pretty worn out. Wasn't a lot of people but felt very crowded! And cramped. Not many chairs to sit on without sitting pretty close to another party. Easy to place the child railings up but they definitely need more slides for the little ones to use when they're bowling. We had to share ours with a party next to us who had many child bowlers which made it inconvenient to wait for them to stop using it for my baby girl it use it. Of course it's good to share! But when there's that many kids, it's pretty annoying. Vending machines are convenient. Bathroom was DISGUSTING!!!!! There was throw up all over a stall that looked like it had been marinated for awhile. Grosssss!!! Customer service was fair but not great. We did have someone check on us which was nice but others look like they didn't want to be bothered. I would only come here if I desperately wanna bowl. Other than that, I'll take my chances at a different bowling alley. read more

DO NOT go to surf bowl if you are young (mid-20s) and looking to have a good time with a group of friends bowling. I came here for my most recent birthday and Surf Bowl ensured that it was not one of my better celebrations. We called ahead of time to check on reservations and Amy said, "they take names at 9:30pm." When we showed up the next night (Saturday) promptly at 9:00pm to partake in extreme bowling, a woman with the same name said "we don't take names or reservations." Even though they knew we were celebrating a birthday, they proceeded to treat us poorly with attitudes and rude remarks, actually insulting one of my friends. The lane we were given was malfunctioning. Employees refused to turn on the lights and didn't offer much help fixing the scoring system that was off for the lane too. **We were all of drinking age but this bowling alley WILL NOT allow you to drink in the lanes. They forced those who were drinking to separate from our group and sit at booths further back in the bowling alley so we couldn't interact with our friends. Eventually, the bowling alley thought that a party-member with an expired id was a reason to kick out our whole group. Waste of money and a birthday!!! read more

After going to my normal favorite bowling hot spot and finding that they had reserved the entire bowling alley to some company, I headed over here to take my son bowling. I like this place, it has a more local family friendly feel. I have not tried the food. They have a great arcade for the kids and I'm thinking of signing my son up for a bowling league. It was fun bowling, my son had a great time as did I. It seems that the bowling alley is devided into half, one half has the pool hall and the other has an arcade and bar, in the middle is the help desk. And on Saturday nights from 10pm to 1am is rock'n'Bowl. For $99.00 you have unlimited bowling for up to 6 people. Try this place, it's awesome. read more

My wife and I went here for a friends Birthday party. This is an old school bowling alley. It is divided into two sections. One, I will refer to as the serious or league bowlers and another which I considered the playing for fun bowlers. We were in the playing for fun section. There were plenty of balls to choose from, the shoes were adequate, the electronic scorekeepers worked and the graphics that played on the score screens was entertaining. Overall it worked perfectly for the birthday party. We had fun and our friend had a great birthday. Thank you. read more

My BF and I had a bittersweet experience here. 1) We got assigned to a lane that was not working. We had to press the rest button each time we bowled, and as a result it would not score the correct pins knocked down. They switched us to another lane, but then that lane started to malfunction as well. 2) They do not give refunds. I asked for a refund after needing to rest the lanes 2 times, but they do not give refunds. I am not a fussy customer. I simply wanted a refund because what is the point in bowling if you need to reset the lanes over and over, and you can't keep score? 3) The bowling ball would jump out of the glutter at times, wtheck? 4) After drinking half of our beer pitcher we noticed a gunk of who-knows-what plastered inside the pitcher. What an experience.....However, I will say that the best part of this bowling alley was the atmosphere and the people (customers). It was a good crowd, very fun and entertaining. read more

Worst bowling alley ever! It seemed like everytime we were starting to have fun the lady at the front desk would come yell at us. She say you're using the wrong size ball or you can't use the bumpers you're to old. It got so bad by the 5th time the old wanda sykes look alike came by to yell at us i just got up and left. Never again will i visit this old outdated establishment. read more

Exactly what I look for in a bowling alley. Old school, everywhere you turn. Dated decor. Dated flooring. Cheap drinks. Classic rock on the PA system. My only knock is the price seems a bit steep to get a lane. That and there isn't much of a head's up as to when your time is going to run out, shy of a slight color differentiation in the screen with your score--but who's really going to notice that when you're a couple of pitchers deep? Otherwise, this place is pretty rad. I'll be back to roll with some of my Lebowski loving comrades in the future. read more

My family and I wanted to go bowling because it was my brothers birthday. The elderly African-American lady that worked there was fairly rude when I asked her a simple question. I work in customer service and can understand one can get frustrated with the customers, but she treated me so so poorly to the point my family felt awkward towards how she was being towards us. We ended up letting it slide because we wanted to have a god time overall. There isn't much variety in bowling balls especially if you are smaller or have small children who want to bowl, they are also all really greasy. The place overall seems outdated but I mean you get what you pay for. read more

This bowling alley is preeeetttyy run down, but I'd much rather skip the neon lights and snazzy decor if it means I don't have to pay $10 a game. How ridiculous have other alleys gotten around here?! On Tuesdays and Thursdays, bowling is only $.25 a game after $5 or $6 cover (depending on the night) and a couple bucks for the shoe rental. If you're not drinking at the bar, you can spend the whole night here for less than $10! And I would actually advise skipping the bar unless you're just buying pitchers...the mixed drinks are by no means potent. Definitely give this place a shot during Quartermania if you're considering it for a different night out! read more

We play here in a league every Monday. This isn't the newest bowling facility, but it's definitely full of character! There may be some issues with equipment at times. But the staff is always helpful and quick to fix the issue. The prices are great: they always have deals! They also remodeled and opened a Bowl shop inside. Lots of bowling ball and any equipment options. The only downside is they aren't open on Mondays! Food is good too. Lots of options and decently priced. There's also a good bar. Great place to hang out and have some fun with friends and family! read more

I can not believe how unwelcoming the staff are! My husband and I have taken our kids and friends here and something always seems to go completely wrong. The bowling balls feel like they haven't been cleaned in forever. I always give second tries thinking that maybe they'll update there food and everything else. Surfboard bowl needs a complete makeover! read more