Bounce Farringdon

Love the idea of having a bar with table tennis tables, as it makes for a more fun, interesting evening than your usual night out. However, it’s a bit pricey and I didn’t rate the cocktails — maybe I just chose badly, but found mine had quite an artificial taste. Food and wine were good though.
Definitely need to book in advance as it gets packed, particularly at the weekend.

Bounce is a great place to go with a group of friends/​colleagues or even on a date! Bounce offers you an opportunity to get on a sweat and forget about the week you’ve had.
You can book the table for ½ hour slots at a time and bats and balls are provided with the rental of the table. But the best is yet to come… the staff come around every now and then to check you are well stocked up with alcohol. They take your debit/​credit card, but don’t worry, they keep it behind the bar and give you a token/​key just so you don’t run away without paying ;)
Do try the restaurant if you go to Bounce. They offer a wide range of starters, sharers, mains and deserts for any number of people. From what I’ve seen its great for parties.
Make sure you book well in advance as this place can get busy, very quickly!

Ping Pong, also known as table tennis, is what you get here at Bounce. Play is supposed to be fast with quick reactions, but that’s really only for the serious competitor. Here, it is mainly about fun. Tables are dotted around an open plan bar space. The bar is inspired by a Gin Palace with an emphasis on cocktails. There is an open counter pizza restaurant for something hearty, but also light bar and canapé option to snack on while you play. Bounce is a great location for a date or group outing. Playing with balls has never been so much fun

This place just amazes me — I had to stop a minute to take it all in when I arrived last Friday eve. I just loved the atmosphere (the gin probably helped with that) — the place is huge and heaving and everyone seems to be having a great time whether they’re on a table or not.
I have particular love for the DJ who I wanted to hi-​five for the excellent old school tunes they were playing, and also whoever it is that flips the on the UV lights later in the eve. As if it wasn’t tricky enough playing table tennis when you can see the ball! I have to say I actually surprised everyone (mostly myself) by being pretty good on my first go. My later performance at the table showed it was a bit of a fluke though!
I didn’t think much of the cocktail I ordered but switching to (strong!) G&Ts was a good decision. A couple of us also shared a goat’s cheese and caramelised onion pizza later in the eve to line the stomach which was delicious — I’d eat goat’s cheese off just about anything but I especially enjoyed this lovely light dough.
Your only issue is going to be getting a table — make sure to book ahead to avoid disappointment, and I recommend a later slot in the evening than you think you’ll need in order for everyone to get warmed up at the bar. Other than that, my tips would be to use the cloakroom (it’s free, hurrah!), watch out for flying balls heading into your drink and avoid white underwear for when the UV lights come on. Enjoy!

Excellent fun in a very large location. There are loads of tables here. Whether you’d like to eat, play or just watch, there is an activity for everyone. We were here for a corporate event which was structured by splitting us into two groups competing against each other.
Whilst not entirely appealing to those who like table tennis it did help to balance enjoyment for those that were new to the game and others who had played more than a few games.
Food was brought out and was pretty good. We had tapas style initially followed by pizza and the usual bar food. The great thing is that there are millions of balls so you never need to go far to hunt for one. Plus the staff have these excellent tools to simply scoop all the balls up into a net saving you and them the trouble!
I did look at normal prices and it can get a bit pricey. If you’re playing doubles that can bring the cost down quite a bit.
In all I would recommend this place for the cool atmosphere and vibe, good food and fun staff, and most importantly it’s proper ping pong on tables that aren’t falling apart. The only real downside are the prices, but given the location and the crowd it’s to be expected.

I am a big table tennis fan so absolutely loved my friend when she said she had a voucher for a free hour at Bounce.
It was fantastic! It was table tennis but better as you didn’t even have to chase after the balls! You’re given a little bucket of balls and they’re filled up by the people walking round scooping up all the stray ones.
A word of warning though. An hour goes too fast in this place. Blink and your time is up as you’re just having too much fun. I’d say four people is probably ideal for one table for an hour. Many more and you wouldn’t get to play much.
The reason this place lost a star from me is because I do think it’s a little pricey and they didn’t make it easy for us to use the voucher. They did let us eventually but it did take a bit of hassle.
If there’s an offer on here in the future I’d definitely be up for another visit. It’s reignited my table tennis passion!

This place is awesome, probably explains why it was so rammed full of people!
We were out celebrating my good pal RP’s birthday and fortunately she had booked 2 tables for us to play on. Tears were almost shed at 11 when we were told our time slot was up, but the waterworks were prevented by copious amounts of gin and luminescent tonic!
The UV lights got turned on at some point, and everyone went wild, I knew my drink was going to glow because of the last time I was around ping pong tables and lots of gin at the Unilocal Elite Surprise White Party… so much gin! #Ginpong
anyway…
Bounce is very cool, the drinks are strong and the staff are friendly, and the atmosphere encourages fun!
And this comes from someone really terrible at table tennis!

Yay for the atmosphere, level of fun and customer service, but nay for the prices. Great place to lose your breath trying to bat the ping pong ball every which way and the waitresses were lovely. Plus, Bounce entices you with the smell of food and prospect of pizza sharing its space with a restaurant section (which also happens to mask your lingering sweaty odours.) I’d definitely recommend it for a rainy day or any day really.
My two tips would be:
1) If you’re counting the pennies, round up about four friends as opposed to two to bring the cost of hiring a table down.
2) Get there EARLY as they’re VERY punctual and you’ll lose out on some precious ping pong time allotted to you.

Really great fun for table tennis. Fab craft beers and pizzas to die for! Best to book tables before hand to guarantee being able to get one.
Enjoy

Such a fun place!
We went as a group of around 12 for a work social and booked two tables for a doubles tournament. The atmosphere is lively with music playing and ping pong balls flying!
Also had dinner there after and the staff were really helpful and patient with our large group. Food was tasty — particularly the pizzas.
Perfect for work outings, birthdays, night out with friends etc

Absolutely great fun, love to do something different.
Even though I wasn’t very good at ping pong I still had a laugh.
Drinks were quite reasonable also
I would definitely recommend going!

The food is surprisingly great! I didn’t expect much considering it’s where Ping Pong was originally born! They have several ping pong tables that are reserved until the wee hours of the night in a regular basis. Best known for their pizzas, they also have a great selection of starters and other main dishes which you must try. Service always comes with a smile, and drinks are served cold. I recommend the local pale ale from Meantime! However, it can get a bit loud at times, and they often have a live DJ spinning tunes for the ones playing games… so, be prepared for that. I wouldn’t come here expecting a quiet evening out. Otherwise, come here, and plan to have fun and enjoy the food, service and a game of ping pong where it originally started.

We went here as a large group and shared 2 tables swapping in and out of ‘games’, if you can call them that! The atmosphere was great fun while you were at the tables although I wouldn’t go there just for drinks as the balls do tend to fly all over the show and the drinks are very pricey! Overall I’d say ping pong then move on!

Great fun be u! I went there on a sat evening with a small group of friends for dinner and ping pong. We only played for 30 min but it felt just right about.
The restaurant had a good selection of simple food and cocktail menu is quite extensive. Ping ping area has great du with very nice, easy going crowds… had an evening with great music, fund round of ping pong and fund conversations. Highly recommend it for slightly more active night out.

Ping Pong, Check
Good beer, Check
Awesome pizzas and Flatbread, Check
Lots and lots of ping pong balls? Check, check and check
This is an awesome space in the often empty Holborn Circus area of London. It’s entrance sandwiched between a Boots and the entrance to an office block (and behind a pillar) it can be easily missed. However, head downstairs and you find yourself in a large open room with lots of ping pong balls flying, a restaurant and a large bar. Book a table and it’s yours, with your ping pong ball bucket helpfully refilled by various staff members running around with nets. I gather from those sitting at some of the tables (there are some amongst the the tables themselves) that the orientation of the ping pong tables could be improved, having the seats at the end of the tables meant that balls would quite often hit people when someone got a little over exuberant with their strokes… They serve Blue Moon on tap, which is one of my favourite US craft beers and the food is generally very good, we ordered various different pizzas and flatbread which all arrive very quickly and went down a treat!

Do you want to go on a date that won’t be filled with awkward silences?
Group of friends organizing a night out?
Bored of going to the same bar or pub with your work colleagues?
BOUNCE is for you!
A fun filled night of ping pong awaits at this excellent central London bar and restaurant. Go for dinner or drinks and book yourself in at a table for 30 minutes or one hour (or maybe the whole night!). Staff are friendly and efficient and the space is bigger enough to book a large group for a special function or just turn up with a small group on the night.
Warning: Not for the faint-​hearted. You are highly likely to get hit by a table tennis ball at one point or another during the night

Bounce is exactly that — a lot of bouncing ball… EVERYWHERE!
Lots of table tennis tables and white balls flying everywhere.
You can also book out sections for larger groups or corporate team nights out.
It’s a great fun place… though I wouldn’t make it my regular.
It’s great for a crazy night with a good group of friends, as you could imagine, it’s very loud!!! Though tons of fun.
It is definitely not a place for a date or a business meeting.
If you’re a tourist, it’s also a great place to meet others and socialise.
Enjoy the bouncing action !

I wouldn’t make this place my regular but for the novelty factor alone, this place is great and worth a trip once in a while.
I was here with a work function and we had tables booked, and food and drink ordered. All were top notch. I enjoyed the food, the drink, the atmosphere, and most of all, the table tennis.

We went to Bounce with some colleagues for a team night out — and reading the comments below, it seems that’s a lot what this place is about.
It’s a surprising place in terms of atmosphere: big, lots of room, and full of ping pong tables.
The food was okay, and spent most of the evening avoiding the ping pong balls. It was a fun experience, but probably wouldn’t go there by myself.

I came here with a few friends Tuesday night and had a great time!
I think 13 pounds for a half hour is quite reasonable and the cocktail I had (The Pink One) was delicious. I also found the staff very friendly. This is a great place to catch up with friends and spend a fun, relaxed evening away from the pub scene.
Tip: This place shuts at midnight on weekdays, so don’t do what we did and make the mistake of not showing up until about 11:10! This is the kind of place you want to spend an evening in: you should have ample time to eat, drink, and play ping-​pong.

I went to Bounce as part of a team night out with my colleagues. We had a great time, but it wasn’t cost-​effective fun. It was different, we did have a really good time, but I don’t think I’d go with friends as the drinks were a bit overpriced and it was £18 per hour for a table (bit steep).
I was a bit baffled by the people who were there just to drink or eat and weren’t with anyone playing ping pong. Surely there are better bars to hang out in where ping pong balls aren’t flying at you from all angles :-p. I would only ever go back to play ping pong, and I don’t know that I liked it enough to pay £18 an hour for it.

When I think of ping pong (table tennis), I picture either college kids or start-​up workers blowing off steam, or the furious combat of fast-​twitch phenoms. It’s either silly or serious.
Bounce pays homage to the serious game while surrounding it it with a club-​like atmosphere and restaurant/​bar. In other words, it’s a swank, ultra modern nightlife venue. But with 14 ping pong tables and «art» that celebrates the game’s history.
And these aren’t the crappy, particle board fold up tables kept in your parents garage and dented by the car. These are professional-​level quality, including one table used for Olympic competition. Now is your chance to fulfill that dream of playing on the same table as Wang Hao or Ding Ning (and if you know who those people are, Bounce is your Wonka Factory). You can go there and not play, or rent a table by the hour. They plan on having leagues, tournaments and there are memberships available for serious aficionados.
The restaurant has a wood-​fired pizza oven and serves other fare, and there’s a separate bar if you just want drinks. I also snuck my head into a private room that can be rented for parties, weddings other events that might be enhanced with balls and paddles. Bravo to the owners for creating a palace for ping pong. I’d highly recommend you bounce by as soon as possible.