To you Londoners. Somewhere gaming/comic themed + food - near the Shard?

Kristoph

Kristoph

Kristoph

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Vague question, but I'm in London later this month and I'm surprising someone with a visit to the top of the Shard. But before hand we'll have a couple of hours and I want to take them somewhere different, maybe gaming themed - or something along those lines. Basically, somewhere a bit different & geeky.

I've looked at the Trocadero and Namco Funscape but not sure how good/bad these places will be. I presume mostly full of small children.

I've had a suggestion for grabbing some food at Borough Market - so food could be a separate thing.
 
FARGO said:
AVOID the Trocadero... It's a right hole these days. It's really sad to see how neglected it has become :(
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Indeed, I remember when they had Sega World there, absolutely loved that place. They they just had the standard arcade/dancing games but that all gone too just a couple of rooms in the basement with a few pool tables and some old games left. :(
 
I thought the Trocadero arcade section is closed down now, essentially there's nowhere left in London to play arcade games, even the Leisure Casino in Tottenham Court Road is gone, renovated into a gambling den.

Not sure if Namco Station in the south bank is still alive
 
A2Z said:
Indeed, I remember when they had Sega World there, absolutely loved that place. They they just had the standard arcade/dancing games but that all gone too just a couple of rooms in the basement with a few pool tables and some old games left. :(
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Alien War and the Imaginator were awesome.
 
the trock is long dead, namco is all dance and ticket machines, the age of arcade gaming is long dead i'm afraid :(

Borough market is a good shout, as is monmouth coffee just outside it.
 
JBod said:
What about Fobidden Planet London megastore?

https://forbiddenplanet.com/events/for-location/london-megastore/
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This would be my recommendation. I took someone there who was a bit geeky and they absolutely loved it having not spent much time in London before.

It is admittedly just a shop but the merchandise they have there is phenomenal.

Upstairs (ground) they have a massive section of merchandise with things like the portal guns and replica swords and such like. Massive sections on dr who and stuff as well. Downstairs they have an incredible 'book store' kind of section.

It's not the closest thing to the shard, but personally I'd go there, and then you have an array or places around covent garden for food:

Food at borough market could be good, but it depends what you're into. American style burgers are all the rage right now and I think shake shack, and five guys both have places in covent garden. I haven't been to shake shack but have heard good things. Five guys was just as good as anywhere else but their drinks selection (soft, not alcoholic) blew me away. I think meat market(?) can't quite remember the name of that one (look up meat liquor and find the sister restaurants) is also in covent garden. The meat X restaurants vary in my mind for burger quality between establishments. That said their sides are always very good (have monkey fingers if you're ok with a bit of spice) and the alcohol selection is also very very good (grog and Their other drink that you can only have two of are amazing) but highly alcoholic (hence limits on how many you can have).

The other options would be Byron, breakfast club or patty and bun but the latter two have massive queues frequently and I don't think they have places in CG.

All of the above are actually reasonably well priced for London as well. Search for any on google and you'll find the menus. Alcohol tends to be where you get charged a decent amount . Expect to pay about £8 for a strong cocktail.

Oh, and if you're looking for something sweet then I'd go to laduree. It's extortionate but the macaroons are absolutely astonishing. Best I've ever had (providing you like macaroons)

kd
 
A2Z said:
Indeed, I remember when they had Sega World there, absolutely loved that place. They they just had the standard arcade/dancing games but that all gone too just a couple of rooms in the basement with a few pool tables and some old games left. :(
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I went there about a year ago while waiting for the cinema and it was really sad to see how run down it was. There were a few really old machines at the top which I played for nostalia. It felt a bit like that scene in Tron Legacy when he walks into the closed down arcade.

I remember when they had VR machines in there; four machine which you wore VR helmets for and played big robots shotting each other. I think that was back in the 90's some time when VR first became a big thing.
 
Thanks for the write up kd :) Meltdown looks good but its quite out of the way. May try and do both Forbidden Planet and Meltdown and work out a route.
 
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