Brooklyn Bowl — Partnership
Partner: Brooklyn Bowl (founders: Peter Shapiro & Charlie Ryan; Live Nation partnership from 2019) Type: Exclusive food & beverage provider Relationship start: 2009 (day one of Brooklyn Bowl’s founding) Active Locations: NYC, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, Nashville
About Brooklyn Bowl
Brooklyn Bowl is a music venue and entertainment complex combining live music, bowling, and dining. Founded July 7, 2009 by Peter Shapiro and Charlie Ryan in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Rolling Stone called it “one of the most incredible places on Earth.” In 2019, Brooklyn Bowl entered a partnership with Live Nation to fuel expansion into new markets.
The Blue Ribbon Partnership
Blue Ribbon food has been part of Brooklyn Bowl since the day it opened in 2009 — the food program was built into the concept from the start, not added later. Blue Ribbon provides the full food & beverage operation at each Brooklyn Bowl location.
The menu leans into Blue Ribbon’s comfort food range — fried chicken, wings, catfish, barbecue, pizza — rather than the sushi/fine dining end of the portfolio. Brooklyn Bowl is one of the primary platforms for the Blue Ribbon fried chicken program outside of the standalone BRFC locations.
Locations
| Location | Opened | Venue Size | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brooklyn, NYC | July 2009 | 16 bowling lanes | Original; Williamsburg |
| London (O2) | 2014 | — | Closed January 2017 |
| Las Vegas (The LINQ) | 2014 | 32 bowling lanes, 78,000 sq ft | Largest location; Strip |
| Nashville | June 2020 | — | Overlooks First Horizon Park (Nashville Sounds) |
| Philadelphia (Fishtown) | November 4, 2021 | 24 bowling lanes | Opened with Soulive / Questlove |
Strategic Significance
Brooklyn Bowl gives Blue Ribbon a recurring presence in music/entertainment venues — a category entirely separate from their restaurant portfolio. The Las Vegas location sits at The LINQ on the Strip, distinct from the Cosmopolitan location (now closed). The partnership also expands the fried chicken and comfort food brand into markets where the full sushi restaurant concept wouldn’t fit.
The Live Nation connection (2019) means Brooklyn Bowl’s expansion is now tied to one of the world’s largest entertainment companies — giving Blue Ribbon food an increasingly large-venue distribution channel.