Right Up Their Alley : For Fans of Midnight Bowling and Rock Tunes, Torrance Has Just the Place

“Yes!” yells Chris Carlson. He’s just knocked over eight bowling pins and is leading the game against his pal Louis Mendes. If Carlson can pull off the win, Mendes and his wife, Michelle, owe him dinner.

Electronic scoreboards hanging from the ceiling flash the bowlers’ names in bright purple and teal. The lounge is filled with pool tables and video games. Plastic tables and chairs are scattered throughout the area where bowlers on break snack on nachos and hot dogs.

As David Lee Roth’s “Just a Gigolo” reverberates off the walls, women get up on the chairs and dance.

When they started coming to Rock N Bowl six years ago, Carlson and his friends were in high school. Now that they’re married with children, the midnight bowling spree at Gable House Bowl in Torrance has become their salvation. As Carlson puts it, between the hours of 12 and 3 a.m., the kids are sleeping.

Rock N Bowl also makes for a cheap night out on the town. For $10, not including what they spend on beer, Carlson, of Torrance, and his 10 buddies can bowl all they want as a DJ plays classic rock, old-school funk and disco tunes of the ‘70s and ‘80s.

In Jack’s Place, at the back of the alley, vinyl booths surround a wide-screen TV where sporting events are the dominant feature. Some weekends, there’s a band. Todd Bausch passes out raffle tickets to win a free bowl, CDs and gift certificates. DJ Marc Bochner plays a music trivia game for prizes.

“Rock N Bowl is a lot of fun,” says Michelle Mendes, 24, of Torrance. “It’s a place where responsible people can come and be irresponsible for a little while.”

Gable House Bowl started Rock N Bowl eight years ago to keep the alley’s 40 lanes busy. League bowlers packed the place on weeknights, but on weekends there was hardly a soul to bowl.

So the owners opened the lanes from midnight to 3 a.m., hired a DJ, and legions of bowlers turned up. Rock N Bowl has since become so popular, the management now takes reservations and those who arrive after midnight usually have to wait about 30 minutes for a lane.

Most of the patrons in the wee hours are in their 20s. Close to 130 turn up each night. For crowd control, Tim Stevens and his burly buddy Riley Bahling prowl the alleys, keeping disgruntled bowlers in line.

It’s obvious which bowlers are serious. They bring their own shoes and bowling balls and tune out the music. The amateurs rent the $2 shoes, drink lots of beer, and sing and dance.

Emile and Cathy Rivera of Torrance have been regulars for three years. They carry brown leather bags and wipe rags. Their names are engraved on their bowling balls, and they wear their own shoes. Emile Rivera, 22, hates the music. He prefers country. Wife Cathy gets annoyed by the folks who are clueless about bowling etiquette.

But the Riveras usually have a good time.

“We really like to bowl,” Cathy Rivera, 19, says. “At Rock N Bowl, we can bowl a lot of games without spending a lot of money. It’s a lot of fun.”

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Where: Gable House Bowl, 22501 Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance. (310) 378-2265.

When: Fridays and Saturdays, midnight to 3 a.m.

Cost: $10, all you can bowl; $2, shoe rental. Nachos, $2.25; domestic beer, $2; imported beer, $2.50.