If you like to run or want to start, check out Charm City Run! They have training groups that meet regularly and you gain some awesome friends

I had a friend meet his wife in this group

Highly recommend going to Movement and doing some rock climbing The community is very open and super friendly

My husband is a 27-yo Korean guy, been living in the states for about 3 years. He also doesn't have any friends in the area and is interested in making some new friends. His English is not great yet so he'd love to just hang out and practice his English. If you're interested in computer games he can also hang out on Discord. lmk!

I love mustang alley in Baltimore!

I've been to the duckpin alley in Mt airy when I was a kid. It was really fun. Haven't been in years, so I'm not sure how good it is anymore, but I have fond memories.

If you don't care about food and drinks, then Bowlero in Columbia would be fine (though a bit expensive). Their food service is the worst.

Main Event at the Columbia Mall has bowling lanes. Not sure the cost since my company paid for us as a team activity, but it was a good time.

If you like card games, comics to Astonish off snowdeen used to have a excellent Friday Night Magic group. I met a few of my best friends playing there years ago.

If you're into games, you should check out Gritty Goblin Games. We've got a great group with tons of people who come to play. We've got different games every day of the week, so there's probably something you'll like! We've got a discord if you wanna hit us up

Im a 29(m) same situation. I also signed up for that Meetup thing so cheers!

I second this, seem way safer than meeting random people on Reddit.

Hi! I’d be down to hang out! Could always use more friends. PM me if you’re interested!

LA mart, its a local chain that focuses on international foods (mostly asian and latin american) so not only are there a lot of good brands and options, but the prices are much cheaper compared to many other grocery stores in the area. Especially for produce and raw ingredients.

I'm not aware of any mold issues. The place is old but seemed clean enough, just all original. Give them a call

I actually don’t live in Columbia. I live in Hanover, but still in Howard County. So it’s only a few minutes away and when we we’re looking to buy our house last year we looked all over Columbia.

Might want to try the meetup app, looks like there are some hiking groups in the area. https://www.meetup.com/marylandhikinggroup/

There are bowling alleys in Main Event in the mall. I have no idea if they are good or not. Don't know about price. Just don't order food. It will take a year and a half. We are still waiting for a salad we ordered in 2019.

Best old school duckpin lanes I’ve ever been to in the area weren’t in Howard County, but in Towson, Stoneleigh Lanes on York Road

Really appreciate your thoughtful answer about schools. We want diversity and a rich experience, not just test scores.

Oooh which grocery store?

Can I ask what neighborhood you live in?

I went to the Columbia Bowlero not long after getting vaccinated when the wife and I started getting out more often and I couldn't believe how much it was when I booked a lane online on a weekday night. Granted, it is nice, we had a great time and when we got there, they basically treated us like royalty: manager came around, checked on us, even bought us a round of drinks. But I think that was mostly just because it was the beginning of the the world opening again and they weren't that busy.

And even then, it still wasn't worth what we had spent.

Did they ever recover from the double whammy of covid and black mold?

I go rarely and I heavily heavily prioritize not smelling like a damp nicotine rag when I am done, so bowlero off of Snowden. I am sure it costs too much. I know you can’t smoke in bowling alleys anymore, but you can never get that smell out.

There are amazing groupons for bowlero almost constantly. Keep an eye out. Like $10 per person for 2 hours deals.