Pub Games in London

Pub Games in London

02 September, 2009
by: Sandraleong

You might be a card shark looking to practise your p-p-poker face, a footballer with a broken metatarsal itching for a non-strenuous game or heck, just someone really really bored. From poker to foosball to dominoes, pub games have long had a following among fun-seekers looking to add a dash of competition to the regular night out.  Wondering which game to conquer next?  Spoonfed's got some ever-helpful suggestions:

Poker
Take it from us at Spoonfed when we say poker is the new golf. In the dark ages you might have needed a decent handicap and a Callaway to bond with the office chaps over the water cooler.  That was until an enlightened soul realised that golf and English weather don't always go together – and organised a poker night instead. True story.

Foosball
If Bill Shankly reckons football is more important than life and death, then foosball must be er, pretty darn important too.  Bar Kick is pretty much the home of table football (or 'baby-foot', as the French prefer) in London, with regular tournaments and social nights. Best thing about foosball? If you're skilful, you can play it with a beer in hand.

Skittles
Not to be confused with the sweets you can buy from your local Tesco, though you get to fling a cheese.  Oh, never mind. Skittles is a pub game that's like bowling, only with nine pins instead of ten. If you fancy a go, the Freemasons Arms in Hampstead Heath has its own underground skittle alleys where members of the London Skittles Club gather regularly.

Chess
Garry Kasparov once called chess 'mental torture'. Relax, Gaz, there are easier ways to enjoy the game.  The Loose Cannon does a lunchtime chess round with a meal, while old-timers from the King's Head Chess Club meet weekly at the Wargrave Arms for a social session.

Games night
Yawn. Is there anything else to do on an weekday night apart from stay in and watch Eastenders? Oh, there's always Blush. Tuesday nights there are all fun and games, with free poker, pool, othello, chess, backgammon and more. Gay-friendly venue too.

Pool
Make some slick shots, humiliate perfect strangers... yeah that's why we love pool. The Elbow Room has weekly tournaments every Monday in each of its three locations across London. A £50 bar tab is up for grabs for the triumphant pool shark.

Daiquiris and dominoes
This sounds wonderfully decadent. The very swish Artesian Bar at the Langham Hotel organises a weekly night of dominoes, with daiquiris and posh grub thrown in at a cost of £55 for two. That's this week's wages gone then.

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Sandraleong