On Saturday, I reported the unfortunate news that Bowled Restaurant had closed. Well, due to an overwhelming response via social media, the owners of Bowled Restaurant decided to stay open, writing on their Facebook page:
We are not going down without a fight! Bowled received numerous calls, emails and Facebook posts requesting not to close. It may not be the easiest week ahead, but we’ve decided to try to push through. We are open for lunch and dinner today and will resume regular hours tomorrow. WE can’t do it without YOU! We’ll do everything we can to persevere! If anyone knows where to pawn a kidney, that would be helpful!
I wonder if this is the first example of a restaurant being saved by social media. After all, it was word of mouth that kept Bowled open, it was word of Facebook and Twitter. It was this blog that brought this issue to attention and it was sites like Eat St. Pete that sprung into action once the news broke. It was online media specialists like Ester Venouziou who wrote about keeping Bowled open.
Will all this attention keep Bowled open? Maybe. It’s not my type of spot, but it’s in my neighborhood and the owners are my friends, so I’ll be dining there more often. I hope you will be too.
