With so many new exciting places to eat and drink in Birmingham, it is sometimes difficult to know where to go for that alternative experience.
One option which is becoming popular, is a visit to a gaming or activity bar. Think baking cakes with mates, or baseball with your buddies! The variety of activity bars in the city has blossomed in recent years. Ideal for stag or hen parties, corporate events, birthdays, a celebration or just a fun night out with someone special.
Here is our take on the best bars to get your pulse racing in Birmingham right now!
The Floodgate
The Floodgate is an experiential craft beer and cocktail activity bar located in the Custard Factory, Digbeth.
Experience an action-packed, fun-filled adventure to a backdrop of cool music, graffiti and an explosion of colours. At The Floodgate you can get an immersive experience at every turn with some friendly competition of Baseball, Curling and PitPat Table Golf. Hungry? not a problem, the in house street food will satisfy your needs.
The Floodgate venue is also perfect for private hire, corporate/team building events, hen, stag, birthday parties and more.
Open 7 days a week
104-108 Floodgate Street, Digbeth, B5 5SR
The Big Birmingham Bake
Whether you are a pro-baker or a complete novice you can join in the fun at The Big Birmingham Bake and create your own personal cake master piece, battling it out against all the other bakers in the session.
Set in a beautiful marquee, instructions from a professional patisserie chef and everything already weighed out and set up for you! All you need to bring is your best baking buddies and your competitive spirit.
Bakers and passers by can also enjoy the Garden Bar. Come in, relax and enjoy a drink. The menu includes yummy cake-inspired cocktails, assorted cakes and classic bar snacks.
Open Wednesdays to Sundays.
110 Floodgate Street, Digbeth, B5 5SR
The Big Birmingham Bake & Garden Bar
MeetspaceVR
MeetspaceVR is a video game entertainment centre that brings the best of breed virtual reality experiences under one roof. Located in an old sports hall beneath Utillita Arena (previously the NIA), MeetspaceVR have taken advantage of this unique underground bunker to create one of the most exciting, dynamic virtual reality gaming arenas in the UK.
There are two large open spaces, one for the smaller virtual reality gaming experiences, with licensed drinks area and the full scale VR Arena. Take your friends, colleagues and family inside the game. This is not your usual VR. From terrifying Zombie apocalypse shoot-outs such as the multilevel next-gen zombie shooter Undead Arena with advanced storytelling, ultra-realistic zombies and an epic final boss battle.. to mind boggling virtual reality escape rooms.
There is something for all ages and abilities, however, the more advanced games are not for the faint hearted, from solo experiences to couples, to one-on-one and small groups fighting for survival, expect real life back packs, pump action gaming weapons, virtual reality visors, headphones and a games master to help you navigate virtual reality worlds.
MeetspaceVR, (beneath) Utillita Arena, Saint Vincent Street, Birmingham, B1 2AA
Open 7 days a week
DropShot Digbeth
DropShot Digbeth is a multi-use activity bar which features a full cocktail bar, an array of craft beers, six olympic grade table tennis tables, two shuffle boards, pool tables, wood fired pizzas and a sound system playing a mix of music to suit every taste. *Watch out for V-Darts coming soon.
Open Wednesday to Sunday.
60 Heath Mill Ln, Deritend, B9 4AR
Exciting Game
If you’re looking for a fun day out, try your hand at an escape room! Try to escape before time runs out – find the clues, solve your mission, and explore the different themes. It’s a great place to try different games for families in the UK, or even for team building with friends or company events.
Exciting Game is perfect for trying a unique activity and challenge for your day out.
63. Great Hampton Street, Birmingham, B18 6EL
180 Club
180 Club is Birmingham’s Underground darts bar serving up New York style food and sharer cocktails. 180 Club can be hired exclusively with food and drinks packages available.
Open Monday to Saturday.
180 Club at The Rectory, 50-54 St Paul’s Square, B3 1QS
Roxy Ballroom
A huge converted warehouse in Digbeth with Ten Pin Bowling, American Pool, Ping Pong, Shuffleboard, Beer Pong, Basket Ball, with pizzas, beer and cocktail bar.
Open 7 days a week.
58 – 60 Heath Mill Ln, Deritend, B9 4AR
Sixes Birmingham
Eat, drink and bat, smash some boundaries and tuck into a BBQ-inspired food menu, delicious cocktails and more! Inspired by the essence of English Cricket. Whether at Lord’s or the village green. The game, the decorum, the camaraderie, the people. Bask in the traditions of a game that’s been around longer than almost any other. Sixes Social Cricket invites everyone to test their batting skills against best-in-class technology. Scores are recorded on the global leaderboard in a relaxed, social setting.
Open Tuesday to Sunday.
174-176 Wharfside St, Birmingham B1 1RN
Roller Jam Digbeth
Welcome to Roller Jam! The second city’s first innovative Premier Roller Disco skating arena & Premier nightclub ‘on wheels’. Located in the heart of Digbeth this purpose built roller disco launches Friday 10th June 2022. With DJs and stage shows, guests can order drinks from the bars or have waiters skate them over. There’s also a dining arena with street food.
Open 7 days a week.
Glover Street, Digbeth, B94 BP
Ghetto Golf Birmingham
18 uniquely twisted golf holes and experiences situated within an old converted warehouse! With a venue covered in amazing street art and graffiti, DJs, street food, cocktails and beers, Ghetto golf offers a party vibe suitable for couples or large groups. An ideal place to have a bit of alternative fun come rain or shine!
Open 7 days a week.
Gibb St, Digbeth, B9 4aa
Chance And Counters
Open for indoor & outdoor drinking, dining and gaming! Head down to the heart of the iconic Custard Factory, Digbeth. It’s a massive, bright and industrial space with room for over 100 of you. Featuring over 500 board games to choose from, ten draught beer & cider lines, featuring the best breweries from Birmingham & beyond, wings, loaded fries, tacos, burgers & other filthy morsels.
Open 7 days a week.
The Custard Factory, Gibb St, Digbeth, B9 4BG
NQ64 Birmingham
NQ64 is a retro arcade bar situated in the Custard Factory. With a surprisingly decent selection of drinks, this cool little bar offers kids of the 80s and 90s a chance to travel back in time and play the arcade games of their youth, and for those who are too young to remember, there’s a wealth of immersive retro arcade games to educate yourself!
Open 7 days a week.
The Custard Factory, Gibb St, Digbeth, Birmingham B9 4BG
Tilt
Tilt is a multi-functional space that explores and celebrates the concepts of Craft Beer, Speciality Coffee and Pinball. Tilt was one of the city’s first arcade bars and has had a strong independent presence on the city’s craft ale scene with pinball as a main theme (there are two floors of fab pinball machines). Tilt also offer 10 different Loose Leaf Teas, 5 different Hot Chocolates, a range of soft drinks, wines and small selection of high quality spirits.
Open 7 days a week.
City Arcade, 2 Union St, Birmingham, B2 4TX