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He began playing it when he was five years old and wished he could've had coaching — especially when he discovered he could beat his friends and even best his father.
The 31-year-old Tenafly native is making his wildest childhood dreams come true, as he has become the CFO of a ping pong company open to users 24/7 called PingPod.
The company markets itself as "the future of ping pong, and just opened its ninth location in Fort Lee.
Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, PingPod has landed at the Shops at Hudson Lights. PingPod has other locations in New York City and Philadelphia
All players need to do is make a reservation online or in a mobile app and then use their phone to enter the facility. There are no employees on-site at the 1900-square-foot facility, which offers four tables.
In its New York City locations, Silberman has seen people playing ping-pong at all hours, especially weekends. He said people have come in after a night at the bar and seen people arriving with their luggage while they wait for their hotel room.
"We think Fort Lee is the perfect home for PingPod to see if this idea can work in a non-urban market," Silberman said. "I've had my eye on Fort Lee for a while. My parents live here. It's a bustling, vibrant place."
While many have fond memories of playing ping-pong in their parents' basement, Silberman said there simply aren't enough places for people to play if they want to go out with their friends, family or for a work outing.
"We've created a comfortable cool environment for people to play at," Silberman said. "People can come together and do something social and fun. Ping-pong gets people off their phones for an hour or two and forget it exists. When you're playing, everything melts away. It provides a respite from life."
PingPod also plans to offer coaching lessons, group clinics, kids programming for when school is out and community events.
Silberman said his PingPod venture is a "dream come true."
PingPod, 2025 Hudson St., Fort Lee.
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