The BLVD is a 45,000+ square foot venue and celebrated its Grand Opening on April 19. This is Bakersfield’s newest destination hotspot for families and friends to explore entertainment and dining within a social environment. It is located on Buck Owens Blvd.

The entertainment setting is designed with fashionable furniture and lighting and includes spaces that range from chic dining areas with personalized dining service options, to bars, where visitors can enjoy themselves during lunch and dinner.

The space is also designed to offer up fun. There are 22 bowling lanes with eight lanes that can be turned into an enclosed private VIP area that has its own full-service bar. There is also an 8-minute, two-story laser tag course set to black lights with painted themes to resemble Bakersfield oil derricks and landscape, according to Mira Patel, a spokeswoman for the BLVD.

Patel said that the entertainment aspect of the venue will appeal to every age. They offer a karaoke studio for up to eight guests which provides a more private experience amongst family or friends, and a ropes course that reaches high into the rafters and tests the skill of those who are harnessed in. The ropes course has an aerial view of the venue and is directly above an arcade of modern and 90s era arcade games.

According to Patel, The BLVD features “High quality cuisine with gastro pub style farm to table cuisine.”

The menu is expansive and includes burgers with Applewood bacon, aged cheddar and smoked gouda. They also have slow-roasted tri-tip steak and offer grilled chicken on a toasted brioche bun. Appetizers include dishes like their signature style “Wild Fries” with cheddar jack, Applewood bacon, ranch and scallions, and their Ahi Tuna Poke Stack, is a dish of marinated raw tuna with avocado, roasted corn, crispy wontons and red chilies, just to name a few.

The BLVD also offers three full-service bars that feature more than 50 handcrafted beers.

She said that the bowling lanes have “couch-style seating,” along with an assigned hostess at check-in, who will provide food and drink services while guests bowl.

Their outdoor patio and beer garden has a fireplace, a firepit, piazza lighting, and a roll-up window bar that allows patrons to enjoy an outdoorsy bar atmosphere, said Patel.

They also offer an outdoor game of bocce ball, a popular game that is played in Europe. As little as two players can play against one another, and as many as two teams can challenge themselves while enjoying drinks from the bar.

“We have a full kitchen and we also have a fire-wood pizza oven,” said Patel. He also mentioned that diners can watch their pizzas being baked when they are sitting at the pizza bar

The owner David C. Bynum, and 30 local investors conducted market research. Patel said that part of the exploration process for the BLVD, included finding out what kind of concept-driven venue was desirable in Bakersfield that wasn’t being provided. Once they were able to isolate what was needed, they asked themselves, “how can we bring those dynamics here?”

Additionally, the owners wanted to explore how to best design their kitchen space and also isolate what kinds of dishes might appeal to the community of Bakersfield that weren’t available in similar demographics. After partnering with Trifecta, a local management company, David and BLVD’s investors collaborated to create the largest family-oriented entertainment space in Bakersfield which focused on quality food, beverages, and gaming entertainment, said Patel.

The location was formerly occupied by HomeBase, which was a popular destination for home-improvement.