Possibly the coolest hospitality concept of the year to date, GlowBall Hong Kong is a ball pit cocktail bar just for the big kids.
We’ll forgive you for not knowing that the humble ball pit – originally called a ball crawl – has been around since the funky 70s. Eric McMillan is credited with creating the first ball pit back in 1976 at SeaWorld Captain Kids World. However, as with any urban icon, there’s always those that claim credit for creating what will later become a beloved playtime – IKEA says they had a ball pit in the early 1970s in one of its Swedish stores, and those savvy Socialists just might be right. In fact, there’s even a short story by China Miéville about the ghost of a kid haunting a ball pit at an IKEA so, who knows.
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At any rate, we think you’d probably already accepted that, along with movie marathons, cape wearing and bouncy castles, your ball pit days were over. But you’d be wrong.
Introducing GlowBall Hong Kong, the city’s first ever ball pit cocktail bar (we can’t believe it took so long!). Boasting a mega pit packed with 750,000 glowing balls, this six-month-long pop-up on Hollywood Road is bound to stoke the fires of nostalgia. Catering just to adults, the venue features the 700-sqft LED-wreathed ball pit, a cosy social area, and a dedicated cocktail bar for when you need a breather.
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Fresh, modern libations range from the Guava Boba G&T and Pandan Highball through to Murder in the Ball Pit, with Aperol, passion fruit juice, Prosecco and soda. You can even order the Soft Ball, made with marshmallow-flavoured vodka (below), if you really need a little communing with your inner child (and who among us doesn’t?). There’s also mocktails, iced teas and beers for those looking to maintain a straight head in the pit.
Open every Tuesday to Saturday from 4 pm till the witching hour, Glowball is dressed with black walls to bring the light of the orbs into play, an effect accentuated by customised digital wallpapers projected to set the mood, while a guest DJ spins tracks every Friday and Saturday from 8 p.m.
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Even better, Glowball, which is kept cleaner than a Japanese airport by highly trained ball pit supervisors (let’s be honest, they’re there to stop ball pit hanky panky), is only limited to 30 grown up kids per session, with tickets available for 60 or 90 minute ball pit plunges, so be sure to book ahead to avoid tantrums.
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