Saratoga Lanes — Attraction in Maplewood

It truly pains me to write this review. We chose Saratoga for our wedding because of its nostalgic charm and the vibe we wanted to create. During the planning phase, all of our interactions with Paige (the owner’s daughter and manager) were positive. The wedding was casual, so planning was minimal.

However, when I (the bride) arrived the night of the event, I was greeted by the bartender with, “I don’t know what’s going on— is it open bar or cash?” I explained we’d arranged an open bar and asked her to notify us once we reached $1500 so we could decide whether to switch to a cash bar. She agreed but repeatedly said she hadn't been told anything. With guests arriving, I asked her to just keep the bar open and we'd handle details later.

There were only two kids at the wedding—my 10-year-old sons. One was called a “brat” by the bartender when he approached for a soda. I assume she was joking, but he didn’t take it that way and avoided the bar all night. When his brother asked for two Sprites, she told him to share and said she wasn’t making “kids’ drinks all night.” Her attitude made my kids uncomfortable at their mom’s wedding, which is unacceptable.

When the ceremony started, she interrupted and told us to move everyone to the opposite side. The DJ had already started, and our guests were seated. We had intentionally chosen our setup to avoid the American flag in photos—an important choice for us as a queer couple. Rather than ask the flag be removed, we arranged around it out of respect. Her loud interruption in those final moments was jarring and unprofessional.

As the evening went on, her behavior became bizarre. She appeared very intoxicated—claiming to be a ninja, rolling on the ground, kicking, and laughing hysterically. I personally saw her take 4 shots of Fireball, and based on our tab, I believe some of her drinks were charged to us. As a bartender myself, I understand staff having a drink—but this was excessive and inappropriate. Many of our guests are also in the industry and were shocked.

Our rental was from 7:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m., but I was told at 11:30 she had started kicking people out. Friends arriving late were told not to come. Even after I reminded her about the rental time, she told my family to leave at 12:30. Cutting our event short by 2 hours is unacceptable, especially after we paid for the full evening.

She also invited her regulars to our private wedding. One came over to give me cash, saying their drinks had been put on our tab. I repeatedly dismissed her behavior to enjoy our wedding, and thankfully, the second bartender, Nick, was professional and repeatedly apologized for her conduct.

In the days that followed, guests told us she was rude, overly intoxicated, and charged every mixed drink as a double. We were never told when we hit our spending threshold. This felt deceitful and exploitative.

I reached out to Paige on May 19 to explain what happened. She was mortified and assured us we’d be refunded. After a month of back-and-forth, we were offered a $400 credit toward a future party. We declined, as we had no desire to spend more money there. My wife followed up, letting them know we’d consider disputing the charges. Paige then said we’d receive a refund and even requested our Venmo. Hours later, she said her dad had AC issues and they would not be issuing a refund. She told us it was out of her hands and wished us well. This was 6 weeks after our initial conversation.

It breaks my heart to have had this experience at a place we chose with so much care. What should’ve been a joyful, affirming celebration was overshadowed by unprofessionalism, intoxication, and a complete lack of...

I stumbled across Saratoga Lanes when searching for a bowling alley for my daughters 9th birthday party, and I'm SO glad I did!!! Hands down the BEST party experience!! ALL the kids had so much fun! Plenty of lanes (8), so you don't have a bunch of kids per lane sitting around getting bored. Multiple pool tables for those who aren't as interested in bowling. One big open space, so it's easy to keep track of everyone and round people up for pizza, cake, and gifts. The bowling balls look like pool balls, which the kids got a kick out of! The only "downfall" would be self-scoring, but I printed sheets for wacky ways to bowl, bowling bingo, and bingo jokes to keep the kids occupied. It's actually nice they could keep score and compare their scores. EVERY kid had a GREAT time, and each parent stopped me on their way out to tell me how much fun they had. I HIGHLY recommend Saratoga Lanes for a kid's birthday party! You...

A STL classic. There is something famous about this place, but I can’t remember what. Maybe it’s the oldest, second floor bowling alley west of the Mississippi.

No score boards, you have to keep score yourself, but that fits the motif that looks original from like the 50s. The ball returns are super retro. The bar area looks like an okay finished basement and the whole place reeks of 100+ years of cigarette smoke. In a good way though. The American flag they have hanging we think only had 49 stars. “I’ll be deep in the cold cold ground before I recognize Missourah.”

Be forewarned, because they don’t have automated scoring you are going to be charged on every 10 frames bowled through their old analog system. That means you are getting hit up for practice throws or any screwing around you do at the end...