Lane7’s Manchester branch occupies the former All Star Lanes unit in Deansgate's Great Northern Warehouse, offering a ten-pin bowling and all-round entertainment experience.
Bowling and games aren't mandatory, you could just come for a drink in the bar and seating area near the front entrance.
Beyond the bar, there's beer pong and two computerised dart boards with screens displaying various games and challenges to test your skills with the arrows. There's also a couple of shooting booths and table football.
Behind a hatch you'll spot the chefs from Fat Hippo stacking up the patties as the instagrammable burger joint is making its Manchester debut with a concession at Lane7. You order and pay for food and drink through the QR code on each table and they bring it all over. Fat Hippo are well-known for their dripping, roll-your-sleeves-up, get-it-all-over-your-face-don't-even-care food. Double patty are standard but you can double double up for a few more quid if you want to.
There’s a second bar, decked out like a giant ultraviolet stereo, and beyond that, a more private bar area and pool table with two red neon 'Premium' bowling lanes.
Traditional lanes take up most of the main back space along with retro video games and an air hockey table. Tucked away in a back corner, there are semi-private 'super premium' lanes decked out in graffiti. The visual cacophony comes with pumping rap music, so this is not a space for the faint hearted.
Lane7 is a really fun way to while away a couple of hours. You could just come to eat or drink and then (if they're not booked up) take it from there, adding a game of bowling here, a bit of beer pong there, some pool, maybe darts, a bit of shooting. Or not, whatever takes your fancy.
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See: Gallery - Take a look around Lane7, Manchester's brand new entertainment venue