6 things to know about Smash Social Club, Raleigh’s newest nightlife playground
A new bar on Glenwood South in Raleigh looks to raise the bar on the Triangle’s eater-tainment trend.
Smash Social Club opens Thursday, Dec. 11 to the public, offering games, drinks and elevated pub bites. Owned by LM Restaurants, Smash Social Club replaces Raleigh’s most prominent Carolina Ale House location, the expansive third floor sports bar space overlooking Glenwood Avenue.
We checked out Smash this week in a special media preview, taking in the revamped space and endless games.
1 Eater-tainment
Bar games have always been a thing, but spots are going far beyond Golden Tee and Big Buck Hunter these days. With the rise of Eater-tainement, bars have added games and activities to the menu, filling spaces with fewer tables and more things to do. Smash joins places like Jaguar Bolera in combining food and drink experiences with things to play.
2. Lineup of games
It’s fair to call Smash a ping pong bar because you’ll most likely see a ping pong table in any direction you look. There are nine ping pong tables in all, plus two digital dartboards, two shuffleboard tables and two beer pong set-ups (the cups are filled with water). By our count, you’ll never run out of balls — each table seems to have more than a dozen colorful ping pong balls.
“People want more than a meal these days,” said Amber Moshakos, president of LM Restaurants, in a news release. “From electronic shuffleboard and darts to table tennis and beer pong, Smash Social Club is all about bringing people together to play, connect and have fun.”
3. You got next
All of the games can be reserved online. Each reservation is for an hour and a half and prices vary based on time of day.
Ping Pong tables are $20 for 90 minutes and $30 for “peak time” after 6 p.m. Darts and shuffleboard are $8 per person and $10 at peak. Beer pong is $10 per person and $15 per table at peak.
4. It’s huge
Smash is nearly 10,000 square feet, with two bars — a narrow horseshoe and a wraparound bar overlooking Glenwood below. Like Carolina Ale House before it, Smash has TVs and projectors throughout. There are several game rooms off of the main barroom, including the Paddle Room, with three tables and a projector TV that can be reserved for private events.
The main barroom and entryway feature walls painted by Durham muralist Gabriel Eng-Goetz.
5. Pub food
In replacing the Carolina Ale House and its traditional lineup of sports bar favorites, Smash takes a more global approach to its menu. There are Korean style chicken wings, three varieties of tacos, personal pizzas and nachos. On the bar side there are more than a dozen draft beers, craft and domestic bottles, cocktails, and THC infused drinks.
6. Adult swim
Smash is open 4-11 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 3 p.m.-2 a.m. Friday, noon-2 a.m. Saturday and noon-11 p.m. Sunday.
After 10 p.m. each night, Smash is only open to those 21 and older.
Smash Social Club is located at 500 Glenwood South, on the third floor.
This story was originally published December 11, 2025 at 2:14 PM with the headline "6 things to know about Smash Social Club, Raleigh’s newest nightlife playground."
