Play musical Bingo at 317 Main Street in Farmingdale
It’s Wednesday evening and Judy Corey, 51, of Massapequa, is ready to party. She’s gathering with her seven girlfriends at 317 Main Street in Farmingdale for Music Bingo.
“It’s Ladies Night Out,” she says. “We all have husbands and kids so sometimes we need a break.”
The themes for tonight’s game are hip-hop and freestyle. Within minutes, Corey is on her feet dancing and singing along.
“I love hearing all the old-school music,” she says. “In this day and age there are not many clubs to go out to anymore like there was when we were growing up. This fills the void.”
MUSIC BINGO
WHEN | WHERE Every other Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. or Sunday at 10:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m.; 317 Main Street, 317 Main St., Farmingdale
COST $20 (food and drinks a la carte), $45 (plus tax and service fee) includes brunch buffet with bottomless drinks. Tickets must be purchased in advance. 21 and over.
MORE INFO 516-512-5317, 317mainstreet.com
Music Bingo has become a popular draw at 317, hosting two-rounds of the game on Wednesday evenings and Sunday brunch every other week.
“We sell every session out, which holds 140 people,” says 317 general manager Josephina Oddo.
HOW MUSIC BINGO WORKS
The concept is easy. Like regular Bingo, participants use cards featuring a grid with 25 spaces, but instead of numbers in each square there’s a song title.
Participants enjoy the music bingo event held at 317 Main in Farmingdale on Jan. 10. Credit: Newsday/Steve Pfost
“Regular Bingo is like, ‘B-4! I-22!’ and you just keep rolling balls, calling out numbers. Here you get to see a clip of the actual music video on screen and sing along,” says host DJ Benny Minelli, of Signature Sounds Entertainment in Oceanside. “When people love the music, they get engaged in the game.”
Players have 15 seconds to name the tune and find it on their card. If they don’t know it — the title and the artist are revealed on a giant screen playing 25 seconds of the song’s accompanying video and DJ Benny also announces the song and title.
“I make the game simple,” says Minelli. “If they have the song on the grid, they color that box on their card. But you must follow the announced winning pattern, which is usually in the shape of a specific letter.”
Prizes include 317 Main Street gift cards and on Wednesdays Blue Point Brewery offers swag giveaways plus brewery event tickets.
Judy Corey, left, and Darleen Pellettiere, of New Hyde Park, sing with friends during Music Bingo at 317 Main in Farmingdale on Jan. 10. Credit: Newsday/Steve Pfost
For Lana Matrai, 56, of Seaford, Music Bingo on Wednesday evenings is date night with her boyfriend, Jeffrey Frankel, 56, of Brooklyn. They are regulars who play the game between bites of soup dumplings and corn risotto.
“I enjoy watching the music videos as I play Bingo,” says Matrai, who wears “I Love Bingo” earrings. “I’m into rock, disco and pop music so I sing along with the tunes.”
Frankel adds, “She wins more than I do because of her lucky earrings.”
DIFFERENT STYLES
Each Music Bingo event has a different theme ranging from country, '70s disco to '80s hits to Disney songs, hair bands and boy bands. Sometimes the theme zones in on specific artists like Billy Joel vs. Elton John, Queen as well as a mix of Miley Cyrus, Katy Perry and Taylor Swift. Perhaps the most popular is “Sing-Along Bingo,” which features recognizable songs like “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond, “Pour Some Sugar on Me” by Def Leppard, “Don’t Stop Believin’ ” by Journey and “Bye Bye Bye” by 'NSYNC.
“These are songs that you’ve heard on the radio from the '60s to today that are so super popular that everybody knows them by heart,” says Minelli. “This is what takes the crowd to another level.”
WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY
On Wednesday evenings, the food and drinks are a la carte from the Bingo ticket ($20). The limited menu includes ramen bowls ($26), truffle fries ($12), Asian short rib tacos ($19) and basil garlic shrimp ($27) plus cocktails like the pumpkin spiced martini ($16), rum citrus splash ($14) and apricot spritz ($14). There’s also bottomless red/white sangria or Blue Point Toasted Lager cans for $30.
Join the Boozy Brunch ($45 per person) on Sundays where two rounds of Sing-Along Music Bingo include a brunch buffet (scrambled eggs, frittatas, home fries, bacon, sausage, fruit, bagels, danishes, French toast) plus bottomless mimosas, champagne punch, Bloody Marys and screwdrivers.
Mostly everyone is seated at multiple communal style tables of 25. But some side tables of smaller proportions are available upon request as well.
“Different groups of people are seated together, which makes it sociable,” says Oddo. “I’ve even had players purchase solo tickets and they have fun meeting people. The music brings everyone together.”
Hillary Kesner, of Jericho, recently came to Music Bingo with her aunt to celebrate her upcoming 33rd birthday.
“This a real test to see if I can remember these songs,” she says. “I’m stuck in the '90s and 2000s. That’s what I enjoy the most.”
Dining on Buffalo mac-and-cheese plus chicken paillard with cocktails, Kesner was a bit shy.
“I’ll sing to myself, but I don’t dance because I don’t have good moves,” she claims.
However, Denise Badillo, 41, of Deer Park, boldly took the mic from DJ Benny and got up from her chair and started to dance and sing to “Tell It to My Heart” by Long Island’s own Taylor Dayne.
“I typically just sing in the shower, but I love all freestyle songs,” she says. “My mom raised me on it.”
BINGO LOCO AT MULCAHY'S
Imagine combining the game of Bingo with a trippy rave — that’s the concept of Bingo Loco, which comes to Mulcahy’s Pub & Concert Hall in Wantagh for two shows (5:30 and 10 p.m.) on Feb. 17.
This three-hour interactive party game has gone international, running at 200 locations around the globe. Originated by two college buds Craig Reynolds and Will Meara from Dublin, the event consists of dance-offs and lip sync battles with ‘90s and 2000s music spun by a live DJ plus confetti showers, CO2 cannons and conga lines.
Three rounds of Bingo are played throughout the night using the traditional cards and markers. Players who get one line, two lines or three lines win prizes ranging from trips to air fryer to lawn mowers. Midway through the Bingo Loco Rave Round gets introduced amping up the excitement where dancing and glow sticks are abound.
Cost Tickets range $30-$35
More info 516-783-7500, muls.com
David J. Criblez is a reporter for Newsday's exploreLI, covering entertainment-related events from local music to stand-up comedy to festivals.
