Electric Shuffle: A unique concept meets Christmas
By Ruby Filleul
Electric Shuffle’s festive menu is out but can they make onto our nice list this year?

From the people behind King Street’s popular Flight Club, Electric Shuffle have been in the city for almost a year and a half now, providing a similar idea to Flight Club but with shuffleboard instead of darts.
For those of you that haven’t had the pleasure of playing shuffleboard before, it involves hurling metal pucks down a shiny wooden table with various different ways to play. Electric Shuffle also provides players with a running leaderboard for your group — allowing you to celebrate (or mock) your friends — and live action replays of any particularly good shots, which honestly was one of the worst jump scares I have experienced in a while.

We thoroughly enjoyed our 90 minutes of shuffleboard and found that this makes a great activity for larger groups. Whilst 16 people is the maximum number of players for one table, five to eight people is probably the optimum number for the game. Walk-ins are welcome at the bar, though booking ahead is an essential for shuffleboard.
Shuffleboard is not their only offering, however, as Electric Shuffle also boasts a distinctly comprehensive cocktail menu which has now expanded to include those from their new festive menu: Driving Home for Christmas, Baby it’s Cold Outside, Santa Tell Me, and Jingle Bell Rock.

We were able to try all of these drinks and if there was one thing that we could all agree on, it was that Electric Shuffle does good cocktails.
Baby it’s Cold Outside is the bar’s take on mulled wine and is made with apple juice, festive spices, and either Singleton whiskey or a mulled gin liqueur. We went for the gin liqueur which was just strong enough to be warming without overpowering the delicate notes of cinnamon and cloves.

Santa Tell Me felt essentially like a Baileys on the rocks, an excellent drink but not quite as exciting as some of the others on offer. Driving Home For Christmas, however, was one of the best non alcoholic cocktails we have tried in a while and a great option for those who are trying to cut down on the booze whilst still enjoying themselves.
Jingle Bell Rock might have been our favourite of the four. Despite being slightly disappointed that it didn’t come with an actual mince pie, one of the ingredients listed for the cocktail, we were quickly mollified by its flavour which was tantamount to the taste of Christmas itself.

After some great drinks we had big expectations for the food which unfortunately weren’t wholly fulfilled. Options like the Chicken and Chorizo Skewers and the Buttermilk Chicken Burger were perfectly nice without being anything to write home about.
However, we also tried the Camembert Sourdough Wreath from their festive menu which had all the makings of a great dish, but unfortunately was not cooked properly, leaving us with a mass of raw dough underneath the cheese — not very jolly.

The Brie and Cranberry bites were better but we did find that the cranberry sauce was a bit on the thin side and so struggled to cling to the brie, making this a somewhat disappointing plate as well.
At between £9 and £16 per person for shuffleboard (depending on when you go) and cocktails at around £10 each we would recommend Electric Shuffle for something a bit different this Christmas. A great option for groups with a mix of people who do and don’t drink, this is a great location for Christmas parties or flat nights out — just make sure you eat before you go.
Electric Shuffle is open during their festive season (17 November to 24 December) Monday-Wednesday from 11am-midnight and Thursday-Saturday form 11am-2am.
More Coverage
The Mancunion’s ultimate Freshers’ pub crawl
From post-lecture treats to big nights out, pubs are social glue at university and a great way to see more of a city. Here’s our student-friendly crawl, featuring ten of the most integral to student life in Manchester
Freshers’ guide: eating and drinking in Manchester
From good ramen to twee study spots, here’s our guide to sampling Manchester’s rich and fulfilling food scene
The best cafés in Manchester to study in this exam season
Cafés can be the ultimate middle ground between hanging out with friends over good food and getting that revision or assignments done. But how do you know where to go?
Shoryu student deal review: I’ll take this over a meal deal any day
Somewhere between deadlines and dwindling cupboards, a £10 ramen deal starts to sound like a very good idea






