Ping 20s / Affluent / Beer / Blazers / Button-downs / Cocktails / Conversational / Designer Jeans / Dinner / DJ / Fashion Forward / Good for Groups / Good Looking / Groups / Hip / In crowd / Locals / Ping Pong / Pizza / Trendy Casual / Young Professionals / Beer Pong / Bar

MY TAKE: Who knew playing ping-pong could be so swanky? Don’t let the name fool you. This place is classy—even if they do let you play beer pong instead of ping-pong on their tables. It’s a great place to go pregame before heading out to a club, or just to spend a fun evening with a group of friends. THE SCENE: Posh young professionals sip martinis while chatting with friends and listening to the mostly top-40 jams played by the in-house DJ. Note the choice of the word “listening:” people may sway to the beat, but they’re generally not dancing. The funky-yet-fancy décor and elegant mood lighting give the place the feel of a high-class bar, but somehow the pong tables in the middle of the main room don’t look at all out of place. COCKTAILS & CUISINE: For having a South Kensington address, PING does a good job at keeping things pretty economically priced. Their menu consists of a selection of amazing pizza’s and flatbreads. When I went there, we ordered several pizzas to share and ended up ordering more later on because they were so good we each wanted our own. If you’re looking for something sweet afterwards, try the PING Porn dessert… it is what it says it is. Also make sure to try one of their yummy original cocktails. The Ice Ice Baby and the Hey Hunnay! are my personal favorites. PRICES: Pizza £8. Cocktails £9. WHAT TO WEAR: Don’t make the egregious mistake of actually dressing like you’re going to play ping-pong (like I did my first time out). Girls play in heels, and guys play in blazers. Acceptable attire includes flowy designer tops with designer jeans for girls, and designer button ups with designer jeans for guys. WHEN TO GO: Whenever you can reserve a table. Regulars are all about making reservations in advance, so if you want to get a slot to play before midnight call ahead.