Located right in the middle of Atlanta’s convention district, the Switchyards Ping Pong Club could easily be overlooked amid the sea of corporate buildings, hotels, and conventioneers. So if you find yourself at the corner of Williams Street and Ted Turner Street in the heart of downtown, look down.
As a big blue mural with a downward-pointing arrow proudly proclaims, you’ll be looking into Atlanta’s only subterranean ping pong stadium. Recessed about 10 feet below ground, the table can be easily viewed from street level. (If a player’s ball goes on the street, they owe the house a dollar.)
The stadium hosts club tournaments, and the floors have been painted to resemble Wimbledon in the final rounds, rubbed clean of paint where the players stand. While the signage states that the ping pong club has been here since 1928 (the age of the building), the club itself was actually established in 2015.
Other interesting characteristics at this downtown intersection include CNN founder Ted Turner’s Atlanta home, where he lives when he’s in town, located across the street above the restaurant that bears his name. The world’s largest waffle house is around the corner. And living up to its reputation as a poorly planned urban city, there’s a one-way street that goes *both* directions depending on which side of the street you’re on.
The table can be seen from the street, but you must be a member of the Switchyards Ping Pong Club to play. Located right in the middle of the new Atlanta Street Car, about a two-minute walk from the Luckie Street Station. Also close to some of the best cajun food in the city (the Food Shoppe).
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Edward Denny
