Square Club, Bristol with Sophie Yardley
The Square Club’s Sophie Yardley guides us through the sought-after Square Club and gives us an insider’s view of Bristol’s unique offerings, ambiance, and experiences. Make sure this one is on your next UK trip!
1. What does the perfect day look like in Bristol for you?
The day starts with a delicious breakfast served in our Square Kitchen restaurant. My current favourite is eggs royale, which is new on the menu, alongside our smoothie of the day! After breakfast, it’s time to get some work done. We have an amazing community of really talented creatives so it’s such an inspiring space to work. When 12 o’clock strikes, it’s time to have lunch out on our terrace – a real treat when the sun is shining. It’s such a haven in the city; our members are often found out here with an afternoon tipple. At the moment, the chicken Caesar salad is my go-to. Our location on Berkeley Square is a stone’s throw from Brandon Hill, which is a beautiful park with views across the whole city so lunch is often followed by a short walk around the park. If it’s not a walk, it’ll be a lunchtime Pilates class with our instructor Charlie over at our workspace Square Works. In the afternoons, I often have tours with potential members, which I really enjoy as it’s fascinating meeting the new creatives in the city. The day will end with one of our member’s parties. Our next one is our Spring Ball. We bring over a hundred of our members together, the drinks flow all night long, there’s a delicious banquet, and plenty of entertainment playing into the night! Those who’ve thought ahead will book a room in our adjoining hotel to roll into bed in the early hours!
2. Tell us about the Square Club’s community and membership model?
Here at The Square, we’re a club for creatives. Wealth and status carry no merit here, instead our membership consists of people with one key thing in common – a creative soul. Our community is constantly evolving as the arts and media scene grows and changes within the city. All of our members are so inspiring, and are constantly pushing the limits of their creativity. We were founded in 1990, and we now have over 1000 members and are connected worldwide via our network of reciprocal clubs. At the club we offer under 25, standard, partner and corporate membership. The Square is a dynamic space with our members utilising the club as somewhere to work from, hold casual meetings, socialise, and host events. Next door to the club is Square Works, which is our high-spec serviced workspace. Complete with offices, meeting rooms, kitchenettes and a fitness suite, members could not want for more!
3. What’s in the Square Club’s pipeline for 2024? We’d love to hear about your key business plans and updates.
In 2024, we’re hoping to continue growing our membership, along with our reciprocal club relations around the world. We’re also going to be developing our events programme to bring more events to our members. Last year we ran a series of tasting evenings where our talented team of chefs prepared seven course tasting menus which were served alongside a wine flight, so we’ll be hosting more of these in 2024.
4. Bristol’s growth and appeal is definitely growing. What do you love most about your city and its future?
Bristol is such a thriving city and truly is a leading hub for creativity. I find that it rather feels more like a village than a city sometimes as everyone is so connected – you constantly bump into someone you know! It’s so easy to walk everywhere, and each neighborhood of the city has its own personality. There’s Clifton Village which is full of beautiful Georgian townhouses with an independent bakery or boutique on every corner, and of course is home to the iconic Clifton Suspension Bridge. Then there’s the harbourside where you can enjoy drinks on one of the moored boats and watch the sun go down whilst listening to live music. There is an abundance of independent businesses and restaurants in the city, and we’ve even earned the title of the vegan capital of the UK! It truly is a foodie haven. The Bristol music scene is top tier, no matter what day of the week it is you’ll be able to find somewhere to listen to live music. It’s so easy to access our beautiful coastline from Bristol too, with Clevedon only 20 minutes away, or the beautiful sandy beaches in Devon just over two hours away. It’s a mere 40 minutes into the Cotswolds, another iconic countryside location. The future is looking bright for the city, there’s plenty of development and investment coming into the city, and we’re seeing many people make the move out of London into Bristol. There’s a reason that we consistently voted one of the best places to live in the UK!
5. Favourite local hotel and restaurant that you would recommend to Mountain Club members visiting Bristol?
My favourite hotel has got to be our Conde Nast award-winning Berkeley Suites, located on the corner of leafy Berkeley Square. They’re the perfect base for exploring Bristol, complete with a kitchenette and private lounge which even have a projector and pamper packages in the room. The interiors are so quirky, and are full of locally-sourced antique finds! I would recommend for everyone to try a Sunday Roast at our Square Kitchen restaurant. We have earned ourselves a reputation for being the go-to destination for Sunday lunch. My favourite is the dry aged rump of beef with all the toppings including duck fat roasties and Yorkshire puddings! You really are spoilt for choice with restaurants in Bristol. Pizza on the Park does the best pizza in the city. Wapping Wharf on the harbourside is a buzzing spot made of old shipping containers and is home to over twenty independent restaurants. Salt & Malt does proper fish and chips, Gambas serves authentic Spanish-inspired tapas and seven lucky gods is a critically acclaimed Japanese bar and restaurant.
With your Mountain Club Global Membership, the world becomes your playground. Expand your horizons, forge new connections, and indulge in unparalleled experiences. Visit our website here for more information on how we can take you here, there and everywhere.
