I've lost count of the amount of times my young sons have fleeced me for cash at arcades and funfairs, and this time I thought, Why should the kids have all the fun? My husband and I headed out for a date night at Fairgame - an indoor fairground that reinvents classic childhood carnival games.
The original Fairgame opened at Canary Wharf in October 2022 and proved so popular, they opened a second venue at One New Change near St Paul's Cathedral last summer. We entered from the street into a tunnel of colourful lightbulbs and under a rotating 15ft duck, we took an escalator down to more than 24,000 sq. ft of fun. From the moment we entered this funfair games attraction, we were hooked!
After scanning the QR code (emailed on booking) at one of the kiosks, we each received a contactless games card, which you tap to activate each game. Then we headed to the clockroom to leave our belongings free of charge.
Fairgame's interior is an explosion of neon and we loved how the design of the bar was in keeping with the retro fairground theming. There were prize pink teddy bears hanging about the bar, mirror walls, and tables designed to look like tin cans. But the venue strikes the perfect balance between novelty and elegance, with coordinating colours and sleek leather furnishings.
The drinks menu is extensive, with a wide range of cocktails, spirits, wines, champagne and beers (draught, cans, bottles) on offer. The cocktail menu itself took careful consideration, as everything sounded intriguing. There was a list of Classic Cocktails, Signature Cocktails and Seasonal Cocktails. For the novelty factor, I opted for the Fizz & Floss - a blend of Tanqueray London Dry Gin, Prosecco and citrus, topped with a turf of candy floss. My husband chose from the Seasonal Cocktails menu and selected the Frozen Jalapeño Margarita - tequila jalapeño liqueur, mango puree, mango syrup, triple sec, fresh lime juice and chillies. I had a taste and it was delicious! For London prices, the cocktails felt reasonably priced at between £11 - £13. A pint of Moretti will set you back £7.60. Keeping the theming running through the drinks menu, there are slushies of frozen margarita and frozen strawberry daiquiri on offer, or if you're on a group night out, you might be interested in the Drinks Ferris Wheel, where you can choose one of two bundles - 12 shots for £60 or 24 shots for £120. There is also a choice of mocktails, soft and hot drinks options.
We visited on a Tuesday and there was a bustling atmosphere, without feeling too busy. But it did start to get busier as the night went on. We had a 6pm arrival time, giving us time to collect our cards, drop belongings at the cloakroom and grab a drink before heading into the games area for our 6.30pm booked time slot. There were 12 games and we had 90 minutes to play each game once (but you play two rounds of each game, back-to-back). At the Canary Wharf venue, there are nine fairground games and you get 75 minutes.
Among the games at Fairgame City are Droppin Dimes (basketball hoops), Money Bags (a bit like cornhole but with a rotating board), Beaky Finders (a novel name for Hook a Duck) and Feeding Frenzy (a shark water-based target shooting game). Myself and my husband tried different approaches to Havoc in the Hive, where you put your arms through holes to catch flying balls. My husband tried grabbing each ball, whereas I tried a scooping technique. We both failed miserably at this game. But there is a leaderboard and my husband did scoop a prize at the end of our date night - a giant stick of bubblegum!
At each game you have your own drinks holder, so you can carry a drink around with you as you play. There are lots of other nice little touches throughout, such as a Zoltar fortune-telling machine, themed hand wash in the loos called Handy Floss, and hand sanitiser on the tables, cheekily asking if you've been touching balls. Every little detail has been thought through.
The time flew and after all the fun and games, we headed to the street food area to grab a bite to eat. There was a variety on offer from posh kebabs served on flatbread, starting from £12.50 for the veggie paneer option and up to £19 for the sirloin steak kebab. There were salad and mezze options. Another vendor specialised in burgers and I chose the Korean Chick 'n' Dip - a vegan burger dipped in Korean sauce, with gochujang mayo, fermented radish, and sesame and miso slaw. It was honestly the best veggie burger I've ever eaten! For groups, the £29 whole pizza (22in) looked like a great sharing option, and you could get novelty vodka cheese or vodka pepperoni flavour. Pizza was also available by the slice, from £5.50.
How much does it cost?
Tickets for Fairgame City cost from £22pp at off-peak times and from £25pp at peak times. Find out more here
Take a Break's verdict
We had a wheel-y great time at this funfair attraction and found it to be reasonably priced considering its central London location. It's your ticket to a great day or night out, whether on a date or a gathering with friends. As we were leaving the venue, a young boy seemed captivated by the lights and giant duck at the entrance and I overhead him asking his mum if they could go in before being told it was for adults only. It's an experience my 11 and 8-year-old sons would really enjoy, so I imagine it would be successful if Fairgame opened a family-friendly venue. But equally, it was a wonderful way to enjoy a bit of childhood nostalgia as an adult.