Saturday, May 29, 1999
Sports bar bets on 'bowlingo'
Banana Joe's new on Main
BY RANDY TUCKER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The latest addition to downtown Cincinnati's bustling Main Street entertainment district is pinning its hopes on bowling to attract patrons.
Banana Joe's Sports Bar and Grille, a suburban Columbus-based chain, is to open in Cincinnati next month at 1120 Main St., just two doors from the Have a Nice Day Cafe.
In addition to food, dancing and televised sports, the brightly colored, Caribbean- themed bar and restaurant will feature bowling.
Yes, bowling.
But not the type of bowling designed to appeal to hard-core rollers who carry custom-made bowling balls.
Banana Joe's will introduce to the Tristate “bowlingo” — a coin-operated, 10-pin bowling system that uses smaller balls, pins and lanes than conventional bowling.
Unlike standard bowling, no special footwear is required to play bowlingo, a brand-name product of Mendes Inc. of Quebec, Canada.
“Anybody can play this game,” Tony Gattillo, international sales manager for the bowling division of Mendes, said. “It really does offer fun for players of all ages and skill levels and it has proven very popular in pubs, clubs and arcades.”
Executives at Field Bros. Development Group, which operates Banana Joe's, were in Minneapolis this week attending to the opening of a club in that city. They could not be reached to discuss the Cincinnati restaurant.
But Mr. Gattillo confirmed Field's plans to open the sports bar sometime after June 10 and has signed a contract with Mendes to install a two-lane bowlingo unit at the new location.
Reaction to the new bar was mixed Friday along the Main Street entertainment district. Some neighboring bar and restaurant owners have expressed concern the Main Street district is becoming saturated with night spots, spreading the area's clientele too thin.
Others, however, hope Banana Joe's succeeds with the new concept.
“It will help make Main Street more of a destination spot during the week, when we could all use some more business,” said Tony Cafeo, owner of the nearby Jefferson Hall Saloon.
In addition to bowlingo, Banana Joe's differs from other sports bars in another way — its appearance.
Instead of sports memorabilia, Banana Joe's will have a tropic-like environment, complete with live palm trees, wall-mounted trophy fish and nautical flags.
But don't be misled. There will be plenty of attention paid to sports.
Banana Joe's locations in Columbus, Chicago, St. Louis and Kansas City feature as many as 50 video monitors tuned to live games.
The clubs also offer interactive sports games, such as simulated skiing.
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