Getting together with friends almost always revolves around food and drinks. But what if you could spice it up with fun activities too? Knockout, in Sector V, is a sports bar and lounge that has arrived to fill this void.
The team behind Knockout has proved itself with the Jus’ Jumpin’ chain of trampoline parks around the country. Their first was in City Centre 2 in 2017, only for kids. Now they have nearly 30 parks for both kids and adults, including at ABC Square near Akankha More and at Axis Mall.
An instructor demonstrates archery for visitors
“We opened those parks as there were no play zones for adults. Now they’ve become so popular that HR teams host corporate meets there. But they would request liquor, which we could not provide,” says Sumit Bathwal, who has started Knockout to cater to this clientele in Srijan Corporate Park Tower 2.
Spread across three floors, the new address will release the inner child in even the most buttoned-up corporate executive. The biggest draw, perhaps, is the bowling alley right next to the dining area. “The bowling lanes are interactive and display player names, scores, and ball speeds in real-time,” shows Shikha Bathwal, Sumit’s wife.
Carrot Cheese Dimsum
A solo table tennis board has a rapid-fire machine shooting ping pong balls from one end while the player scores points by hitting them at squares that illuminate at random across the court. Golfers and footballers can hone their skills on life-sized virtual simulators, using real clubs and balls to drive shots toward floor-to-ceiling screens.
The adrenaline continues with archery and shooting ranges. One shooting game has you firing at enemies in a video game playing out on a three-walled projection before you. You can also settle the score at the basketball hoops, available for both solo shootouts and team games.
The laser escape room
If sports aren’t your thing, hit the LED dance floor, that pulses with light and colour beneath your feet. Or the laser escape room where you channel your inner spy and climb over or under a web of laser beams. Touch the beams, and you set off the alarm. There’s also a high-speed challenge game — a wall of glowing circles that flash in rapid succession. Tap the blue lights and gain points, hit the red and lose them.
The games are chargeable. “Guests would buy prepaid card for Rs 1,500 and redeem it against games or food. The cards can be topped up in denominations of Rs 500, and they will be valid for a long period, so guests can return the next time and continue using them,” says Sumit, a resident of Silver Oak Prive in New Town. Most games cost Rs 249 per session, but the bowling one game is Rs 499 on weekdays, Rs 549 on weekends. Golf is Rs 499 for 10 shots, while a full game costs Rs 899.
One of several shooting games at the lounge
The look of lounge is quirky, with motifs of sports, artwork with beer bottles, and car and bike models put up. The couple makes no bones about the fact that the games take priority over food here.
“After drinking and playing so much, most will not be up for heavy meals, so our tidbits have to be top-notch. Guests would return to the table to pop a sushi or a slice of pizza before heading out for a round of bowling,” says Shikha.
Chef Palash Corria is ready with north Indian, oriental, continental and Mexican fare. “We are big on seafood items like Honey Mustard Lobster (Rs 1,499), Dakkochi Crab (a Korean grilled dish), as well as dishes using squid,” he says. Try the thick Japanese wheat noodles Udon, Tibetan noodle soup Thukpa, Carrot Cheese Dimsum that are shaped like a carrot and covered with carrot-coloured dressing, and Parda Kebab, which has rumali roti dough as if hiding chicken kebabs.
