Ahead of this year’s Toast the City Awards, celebrating the best of the Square Mile, we go inside Boulebar Spitalfields
As the experience economy accelerates, with axe throwing, darts and cricket themed bars launching, the latest brings the French game of pétanque to Spitalfields.
Boulebar Spitalfields offers Londoners new ways to drink and socialise while playing interactive games, the type popularised in the town squares of regional France.
The bar has 10 pétanque courts as well as authentic French food and Parisian themed cocktails in an underground space beneath the Victorian cobbles of Spitalfields.
Boulebar Spitalfields: the classic French game in London
The game of pétanque is easy to pick up: it involves throwing metal balls called boules in the direction of a small wooden ball called the cochonnet, or jack.
Its simplicity is what makes it attractive to diverse groups of locals in town squares, who bond over the game no matter their political views, jobs or upbringing.
Dishes on the menu include the ‘Tour De France’ cheese and charcuterie selection, moules marinieres, steak frite and steak hache. Cocktails include one described as a “Solero for adults”, a watermelon picante and a lillet rose spritz.
Food and drink packages are also available for bigger groups of corporates, friends and families.
Encouraging “friendly rivalry and laughter”, pétanque is the latest experience to be ‘gamified’ in the Square Mile.
Other ways to drink and socialise while playing a game include the Dabbers Bingo club and the Fairgame arcade at St Paul’s.
Dabbers brings cabaret and comedy to the traditional game of bingo with eccentric themed nights, and Fairgame is a modern version of the type of arcades you’d typically find at a beachfront, with games like hook-a-duck, Derby horse racing and alley hoop.
For more on Boulebar Spitalfields go to the website