February 26, 2024 · Culinary Journalist
Anyone who wants to really let loose after having drinks at the pub is in the right place at Party Bar Shooters You've come to the right place. Open every day until 5 in the morning, and the roof is guaranteed to come off—that's policy.
The entrance is located right in the middle of Groningen's nightlife street, the Peperstraat, of course. Once inside, you climb the famous narrow staircase upstairs into the party atmosphere. Many a shooter-goer has had a less-than-pleasant encounter with that staircase. But in all those years—almost 25 by now—that staircase has resulted in only one broken leg, says owner Marcel Levee. Let's just say your body might give way a bit more in the dead of night.
Marcel is no stranger to the hospitality industry. He is the founder of Shooters in Groningen, as it is popularly known, and also owns several other hospitality businesses in the city. ‘Shooters was a completely new concept,’ he explains. ‘At the time, Groningen certainly had cafes and discos. Yes, and perhaps a few après-ski venues too, but a real party bar was still missing here.’
‘A party bar is a party bar for a reason,’ Marcel explains. ‘A night at Shooters is a night of letting loose completely. It is a real old-school party bar that is truly accessible to everyone. They play songs of a maximum of 1.5 minutes to keep the tempo going. Basically, all kinds of music are played. So from Dutch hits to danceable Top 40. As long as it enhances the atmosphere.’
‘The bartenders have to be a bit crazy to work there too,’ Marcel continues. ‘Complete with all the bells and whistles, energetic DJs, and wearing shorts, together they ensure it becomes a madhouse.’ Naturally, the shots cannot be missing. The ‘Koetje’, Sambuca with Kahlua, is still a favorite at the pub.
Although the pubs within the inner ring have no closing time and are all allowed to stay open 24 hours a day, Marcel has chosen not to do so with Shooters. ‘We don’t want to become an after-party place. So we are open until 5 every day, but by five-thirty it really has to be completely empty.’ And should you have consumed anything other than alcohol, you can count on not getting past the bouncers. ‘We really hate that,’ Marcel emphasizes. ‘I really don’t want that here in my establishment.’
Party bar Shooters is located on Peperstraat and is open seven days a week until 5:00 AM.
For more information, see www.shooters.nl.
