In 2021, Swingers Crazy Golf opened its first U.S. location in D.C.’s Dupont Circle, taking over the former popular spaces of The Front Page upstairs, and Buffalo Billiards downstairs.
This Friday, Swingers opens its second D.C. location, in the Navy Yard neighborhood inside The Kelvin luxury apartment building on Half Street SE near Nationals Park.
“This new concept is mini-golf with cocktails and gourmet street food in a very upscale environment,” CEO Matt Grech-Smith told WTOP. “We’ve been open in Dupont for over 18 months and people love it. It’s a great way to socialize and have competitive fun … we’ve got this incredible space that’s 25,000 square feet, Dupont is a bit more compact at 19,000.”
The company opened its first two locations in London before opening the spot in Dupont Circle, followed by a fourth location in Manhattan, and now a fifth spot in Navy Yard.
“Initially, when we came to the U.S., we were looking for great cities on the Eastern Seaboard because obviously proximity to London was something we were looking for,” Grech-Smith said. “We discovered D.C. and fell in love with the city. It’s got a very discerning population who likes to go out, have fun and enjoy good food … the reaction has been fantastic.”
The Navy Yard venue offers three nine-hole mini-golf courses at $19 per person.
“Each of them have got a whole array of different moving obstacles: tricks, jumps, loops, you name it, we’ve got plenty to keep you entertained and slightly frustrated as well,” Grech-Smith said. “It takes about 30 to 40 minutes to play through each course and the cool thing is we have caddies on the course to give you tips and tricks … and they’ll also bring you drinks.”
You can also grab a drink at “The Swingers Arm” bar, which is styled as a classic English pub. You can also grab a bite of gourmet food from D.C.’s KNEAD Hospitality And Design, including Mexican street food from Tu Taco, a southern take on burgers and sandwiches from Lil’ Succotash, oven-fired pizza from KNEADZA Pizza and sweet treats from Mah-Ze-Dahr.
Listen to our full conversation here.
