Padel Social Club, Earls Court

As I set foot into Empress Place I already knew what kind of place this would be. The first thing I noticed was the spotless green astroturf running throughout, like velvet, the sort of floor you'd happily eat off. Further in, past the pro shop stocked with Wilson gear, the black shipping containers used as toilets and changing rooms give the club a character no other venue I've visited has managed to replicate. A canopy runs parallel to the bar, strung with fairy lights and lined with exotic plants, closer to a beach club you'd find in Majorca than a padel venue in SW6.

Four or five separate groups were mingling around the bar, under the canopy, across the low sofas, cushioned benches and long communal tables. Beers were flowing and cocktails were being sunk. Burgers and flatbreads came through the kitchen, also housed in a shipping container, as though Captain Jack Sparrow were about to be served his death row meal. Moving to the next shipping container, you find the wellness room, a sauna and two ice baths. The finish isn't flawless, a few water stains are noticeable, but the concept is a lovely touch. Once you're done with your spa session, head upstairs to the rooftop terrace and the perfect view of the courts, the Empress Museum and a summer sunset. There's even a boardroom below the terrace if you needed to work, though with everything else on offer here, you probably won't.

If you're here to actually play rather than have a day out, the courts themselves are excellent: prime Mondo turf, panoramic glass, and surfaces in a deep black that gives the whole place its sharp, aesthetic edge. Scattered around the club are QR codes that let players join WhatsApp groups for their level, an open-matchplay community booked through Playtomic. Jake, on the bar, told me this is a hub for beginners and intermediates, and the padel proved him right: I overheard more than one player asking when to switch sides, the sort of question you only hear at the friendlier end of the level range. With three of the five courts outdoors, the venue naturally suits players getting into padel or having a relaxed hit with friends, though the women's number one drops in to play here too.

Near the end of my visit I sat with a couple who'd come for the Empress Museum and stayed for a drink because the club looked so spectacular. That was the moment it clicked: this is more than a padel club, it's a social masterclass. Stormzy has doubled down on his investment, guest speakers now come in to talk to players after games, and celebrity chefs will soon cook meals players eat on court, served at tables set up on the turf once the game is done.

And yet that same momentum is the problem. Jake mentioned PSC is going hard after the corporate scene, with weekly, sometimes daily, corporate bookings running alongside the socials. Which raises a fair question: where are the coaches to service all of it? Two left recently, including the head coach, and they haven't yet been replaced. Daniel Dios, the club's Head of Padel Development, holds the line, but the bench beneath him has thinned just as the demand on it is growing, and the club is still recruiting to fill the gap. For a venue backed by celebrity investment and priced at the higher end of even central London, you'd expect it to keep the coaching staffed to match what it's selling. It was the one off note in an otherwise outstanding visit.

So, to be frank: this is one of the pricier venues in London, with little give between peak and off-peak, £70-80 for the hour, £112-120 for ninety minutes. If you're coming purely to play, Racketeer's hire drops to £36 off-peak where PSC barely moves, and with three of the five courts outdoors, any serious player chasing the fast, clean indoor game is better served by Racketeer or Padium. The honest answer to the question this club poses is that it's tilting toward a social club with padel as the extra, brilliant at the first, letting the depth of the second slip while it chases the corporate pound. But if the social game is what you're after, a day out, a community, somewhere that pulls in people who didn't even come to play, nothing beats it. PSC is still the venue every other London club is measured against.