Art of Billiards

Wednesday, 09 September 2009 09:51

If you’re looking for a night of first-class pool, great drink and food specials, or your favorite teams on wide-screen, just head south a bit on 13th Street.

At the corner of Williston Road, you’ll find Art of Billiards, Gainesville’s newest pool hall, and a place that is already earning a reputation as a fun place any night of the week.

By Elizabeth Leva

SETTING

The first thing you’ll notice when you step into Art of Billiards is the look of the place. Everything is clean and classy. Royal blue glass-covered lights illuminate a sea of bright aqua pool tables, periwinkle walls and navy carpet that is vacuumed nightly and shampooed twice a month. Overhead, smoke sifters waft away fumes so you can enjoy your games and meals smoke-free. And the owners know most patrons by name.

THE MAIN ATTRACTION

Avid pool players for years, owners Art and Dana Rogers have competed in tournaments from Ocala to Las Vegas. They opened Art of Billiards because they wanted to offer Gainesville a venue fit for American Poolplayers Association tournaments, along with a pleasing restaurant and bar.

And while Art holds 8-, 9- and 10-ball tournaments on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays, one of the 12 9-foot-long Diamond Pro-Am tables or the 8-foot-long coin table is always available. The tables are open all day for $4.50 an hour for one person, and $9 an hour for two or more people.

MORE THAN BASICS

Don’t think you have to be a cue-carrying billiards buff to enjoy the scene. Art of Billiards also offers a mini-arcade of golf, bowling, darts and boxing video games for non-pool shooters. And don’t forget to bring a couple bucks to keep your favorite tunes pouring from the digital jukebox. That is, unless you find yourself there on one of the nights Art and Dana bring in live music.

If you like to watch sports, Art offers nine 40-inch LCD flat screens and two jumbo projection televisions. Stop by for NFL Sunday Ticket, UFC and boxing, or (of course) Gator games, during which drinks specials are always offered.

THE DRINKS

Art of Billiards features different drink specials every day of the week, including shots, beer pints, frozen drinks and martinis. On Saturdays, ladies can enjoy two-for-one wells and all customers can have five-for-$10 domestic beer buckets. A favorite of many customers is the $3 “honey shot,” a shot of Wild Turkey bourbon infused with sweet American honey.

THE MENU

If you’re looking for something scrumptious to complement your mojito, martini or margarita, Art of Billiards has a full menu featuring everything from appetizers to desserts. In addition to tasty yet traditional bar food like onion rings, mini corn dogs or jalapeno poppers (each less than $5), for $9 you can enjoy Gator bites with French fries. Art and Dana use farm-raised alligator for a less chewy texture and fry the bites in a light, buttermilk batter. For $2.50, fried bananas foster bites tickle the taste buds of anyone with a sweet tooth or late-night craving.

“Being competitive pool players and people who love a good time, we wanted to make sure we reached out to everyone through our equipment for the pool players, and our food and drinks for the rest of our friends,” Dana said.

They definitely succeeded. The variety of drinks, entertainment and food provide a casual, fun and wallet-friendly environment for patrons of all interests and ages.