Pubs and Bars / A-Z Bristol pub crawl
A-Z Bristol Pub Crawl: NQ64, Baldwin Street
On a recent evening after work, two colleagues met at NQ64 on Baldwin Street for a midweek pint.
The ‘arcade bar’ had just opened for the evening and the pair are excited about visiting the venue for the first time; one for reliving his childhood on the SNES, the other for playing video games for the very first time.
NQ64 first opened in Manchester’s Northern Quarter (hence the name) and opened in Bristol in a former Greek restaurant in 2023.
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Before heading to the bar, it was time to explore this labyrinthian venue, with new gaming delights discoverable around every corner.
On one wall, there is a mural of UFOs flying over the Clifton Suspension Bridge.
Nearby are the oldest machines: Pac-Man, Donkey Kong and Space Invaders from the late 70s and early 80s.
For liquid refreshment, a vending machine has an ample supply of Asahi cans along with energy drinks to prepare you for a long night of gaming.
Pinball machines from across the decades can also be played at NQ64 alongside the video games – photo: Milan Perera
After soaking up the sensory explosion, the two co-workers headed downstairs for a pint.
The bar area is spacious with a range of drinks including house cocktails, an NQ64 beer brewed by Northern Monk in Leeds and bottles of Hooches in a variety of flavours for anyone wanting to discover or rediscover alcopops.
‘Don’t be a cunt’ is rule number one of the bar’s house rules. ‘Don’t shag Ms Pacman’ is number three and ‘Jason Donervan is king’ is at number nine.
‘Drinks off machines, dickheads’ is another of the rules with 20 tokens available to buy from the bar for £10 to spend on the machines inside.
There are also consoles including a SNES that can be played for free and include dozens of different games that can be enjoyed without the need for any cartridges.
Dozens of games from the SNES including the classic Super Mario World can be played in NQ64 – photo: Milan Perera
As the two colleagues left, a steady of stream of people were making their way towards the bar to buy more tokens.
This time capsule of retro games and neon-splattered walls had captured more gamers within its grasp.
NQ64 opened on Baldwin Street in 2023 – photo: Milan Perera
NQ64, 14-16 Baldwin Street, Bristol, BS1 1SE
www.nq64.co.uk/bristol
Main photo: Martin Booth
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