Opens in the Market Common June 14
by Melissa LaScaleia
In 2014, Mike Siniscalchi left the world of finance and NYC, and relocated to Myrtle Beach with his family.
“I wanted to start a business, and in thinking of ideas, I had great memories from my times in New York and Chicago at upscale bowling alleys with my friends. But they were very expensive outings. The concept has gained in popularity over the past ten years, but it’s been focussed on dense population areas and people who can afford high prices. When I moved here I thought, ‘why can’t we take this concept and make it more affordable to people in this area?'”
At the end of 2014, Mike purchased a traditional bowling center in North Myrtle Beach that needed a lot of attention and love. He cobbled his upscale bowling alley idea together with food and other experiences that would appeal to a South Carolina market, and after a thorough renovation, reopened it in 2015 as 710 North Myrtle Beach.
The venue was an immediate hit with area residents and tourists. Mike spent the next year or so refining the concept, fine tuning the operations, and reworking the menu, until he felt good about what he was offering the community. Then he began looking to expand into new locations.
“The first location was different because we were trying to figure out what was going to work best, and wanted to rebrand with our new model going forward,” he says. “710 is a reference to a 710 bowling split, which is the hardest split to do in bowling. But we discovered that not many people understood what this was.”
The Market Common venue is called 810 Billiards and Bowling, a reference to eight ball billiards and ten pin bowling— two things that are at the core of their entertainment offerings.
The theme of 810 is summed up in two words— be social.
“What that means,” Mike says, “is that we avoid video games and screens and focus on interactive games that enable people to spend quality time together.”
The Market Common location has a dizzying array of games and entertainment options— shuffleboard, billiards, ping pong, darts, air hockey, and corn hole to start.
There are twenty bowling lanes— sixteen public, and four that are part of a larger private room for parties and functions. They also have shelves filled with scores of board games for both kids and adults.
“The central theme of what we offer is to have actual interactions with your friends and family,” Mike says. “And to make this experience affordable for everyone.”
In keeping with this mission, many of the games are free. For the ones that are expensive to maintain, they charge a reasonable rate— around $4-5 per hour to rent.
For those who enjoy watching more than playing, they also have a great sports bar environment.
To complement all the entertainment offerings, 810 Billiards and Bowling has a big focus on quality foods and drinks. There won’t be a snack counter, or the types of foods you would expect from a traditional bowling center. Instead, there’s a complete scratch kitchen with full waiter service everywhere in the building, no matter where you are. They offer house-cut french fries, short-rib Angus chargrill burgers, and scratch made dough for in-house, brick oven pizza.
“We just want to offer a fun night out for people, where they can have a good time, and feel like they got a lot for their money,” Mike says.
“The other new and unique addition the Market Common location is that we built a stage here and we’ll be hosting live music,” he continues. “It’s something we’re not able to offer at our other locations, and we’re excited about it. We want to hear from people in the area who they want to hear play, and we’ll try to give them what they want.”
In the spring of 2017, the city of Conway approached Mike to build a location in their area. He purchased a property and is currently building 810 Conway, which should be completed in the fall of this year.
After this, the Market Common approached him about putting an entertainment venue in the former Piggly Wiggly space.
“I thought the Market Common was a great location,” Mike says. “It has a strong community, and a community of many pedestrians; it’s a great destination place, and aside from the movie theatre, there isn’t much in the way of entertainment. I thought we would be a great fit.”
810 Billiards and Bowling will celebrate its Grand Opening on June 14 and officially welcomes the public on that day. Come and join the celebration.
810 Billiards and Bowling
Open daily 6:30am-2am.
Serving full breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as a full coffee bar.
