Cocktails and crazy golf swing into a bunker beneath the City

Crazy golf, street food and cocktails in the City as Swingers finds a permanent home at the foot of the Gherkin
CGI: This is what crazy golf in an underground bunker will look like
Ben Norum28 October 2015

Popular Shoreditch crazy golf pop-up Swingers — which was visited by more than 90,000 Londoners during its run from last September to February — will make a return next year, in a former WWII bunker beneath the City.

Founders Matt Grech-Smith and Jeremy Simmonds, former politics students and events organisers, started looking for a permanent home before the pop-up finished its run and have now secured a 16,000 sq ft subterranean site at the foot of the Gherkin.

It is due to open in early April and will incorporate two nine-hole crazy golf courses, four bars and three street food stalls in residence.

These will include an offering from Pizza Pilgrims and a brand new non-burger concept from Patty & Bun, which operates burger restaurants in Marylebone, Liverpool Street and London Fields.

Swingers: How it will look

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A focal point of the space will be a two-storey 1920s-themed clubhouse, complete with trophies on the walls and a gin terrace that overlooks the golfing action.

There will also be a street food bar and private dining room run in association with Cava brand Freixenet, which is a sponsor of the new site.

Bunking off: Swingers founders Matt Grech-Smith and Jeremy Simmonds

The venue will open daily from midday until late and will be free to enter, though tickets for golf will cost £13 in advance or £15 on the door.

Speaking of the enormous appetite for the project, Mr Grech-Smith said: “Crazy golf is part of British culture — there’s a lot of nostalgia attached to it because everyone remembers playing it as a child on holiday. More than anything, though, I think people are craving different experiences from their nights out; especially if they can do those experiences with a drink in hand.”

He also denies that the new site will feel more corporate than the last, despite its move from Shoreditch to the City: “We see this as a destination venue that people from across London will be interested to come to — and after all, we’re only a 10 minute walk from our previous site.”

Swingers will be at Brown’s Building’s off St Mary Axe, EC3A 4AF. Visit swingersldn.co.uk.

Follow Ben Norum on Twitter @BenNorum

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