Club entertainment in North America
-
A
Florida Room at the Delano
‘Wanna buy me an eight-dollar beer?’ asks an out-of-towner, gazing awestruck at the sheer mass of model-types packed into this den of iniquity. The Florida Room is as exclusive as they get, plus a popular dancehall/samba piano lounge for local scenesters who eschew the tourist trap megaclubs further down the beach. Show up before 11pm or be on the list (or be Lenny Kravitz – who helped design this place) to get in.
reviewed
-
B
Love
Socialites line up for Love, upstairs from the fusion restaurant Ixchel, in a typically ornate Colonia Roma mansion. You’re unlikely to get in without reservations, and even then it’ll depend on your looks. Once inside the velvet-draped lounge, order an apple martini and party like it’s 1983 – the DJ will help you remember what that was like.
reviewed
-
C
Space
This multilevel warehouse is Miami’s main megaclub. With 30,000 sq ft to fill, dancers have room to strut, and an around-the-clock liquor license redefines the concept of after-hours. DJs usually pump each floor with a different sound – hip-hop, Latin, heavy trance – while the infamous rooftop lounge is the place to be for sunrise.
reviewed
-
D
Pacha
A relative newcomer that’s hyped for big-name visiting DJs, Pacha is definitely a massive and spectacular place: 30,000 sq ft and four levels of glowing, sleek spaces and cozy seating nooks that rise up to surround the main dance-floor atrium.
reviewed
-
E
440 Castro
The most happening bar on the street, 440 Castro (aka Daddy’s) draws bearded 30-something dudes in tight T-shirts, and an odd mix of Peter Pans for Monday’s underwear night.
reviewed
-
F
Ashkenaz
Ashkenaz is a 'music and dance community center' attracting activists, hippies and fans of folk, swing and world music who love to dance (lessons offered).
reviewed
-
G
Andale
Party hearty with throngs of young vacationers to very loud classic rock.
reviewed
-
H
Club Mallard
This place has outdoor seating, tiki torches and hourly pool tables.
reviewed
-
I
Cafe Citron
So here’s the thing, ladies: when guys want to go out dancing, that’s usually because they’re trying to pick up girls. So here’s the thing guys: when girls go out dancing and dress up really hot, they’re usually just interested in dancing (or ‘letting off steam, ’ ‘chilling with my chicas’ etc). Sociology lesson finished, nothing personifies this dichotomy of affairs more than Cafe Citron, one of DC’s most popular Latin music bars (in fairness, it plays everything, but the focus is salsa, samba et al). Girls dance; guys watch; night goes on. Then guys come in who actually can dance, local guys grumble, girls get happy, realize their dancing partner is …
reviewed
-
J
Dungeon
Got to admit, this place made us a little nervous at first. It doesn’t open till the witching hour, and some of the bouncers have filed their teeth into pointy vampire fangs. Then we observed the words ‘Ye Olde’ in small type on the sign out front. So this is really just ‘Ye Olde Dungeon, ’ which doesn’t sound so threatening after all. Having descended into the club’s basement chambers, we found Goths outnumbered by yuppies and bikers. DJs keep things throbbing until dawn’s early light (egads! sunlight!) and several barkeeps serve up ghoulish cocktails (with creepy names like the Witches Brew and the Dragon’s Blood), which the bar promises will help you ‘leave your troubl…
reviewed
Advertisement
-
K
Rose’s Dream Bar & Lounge
Go-go, the DC style of local music that’s a cross between funk and an improvised drum line, occasionally dusted with a bit of hip-hop, has been a fading genre in the District. But Rose’s keeps the beat alive. It’s one of the few go-go clubs left where a white out-of-towner won’t feel like they’re interloping in someone else’s territory; the clientele is primarily black, but this is a mixed crowd as these things go. Coming here is a DC cultural experience – go-go really is the city’s own brand of music, resented in cities as close as Baltimore – but beyond that Rose’s is plenty fun, with good bartenders working the line and karaoke, dance nights and live shows blowing up t…
reviewed
-
L
Love
Where does Beyoncé play when she’s in DC? Yo, where is the Love? If you’re going to go to a multifloor megaclub in DC, make it this gorgeous spot, where you’re basically the star of your own Usher video. Dress to impress (the code is strict, no sneakers or baggy jeans allowed) as this club attracts thousands and lines form out the door. Friday nights see a predominantly hip-hop-heavy menu and African American crowd. Saturdays are more diverse, with international electronica pumped through the speakers and a mixed crowd. You need to drive or taxi out here.
reviewed
-
M
Fiesta Land
That ostentatious white castle on Punta Camarón at the south end of the Zona Dorada is the undisputed epicenter of Mazatlán’s nightlife. Inside its walls are a half dozen clubs, including several of the city’s most popular dance spots: Valentino’s draws a mixed crowd to three dance floors throbbing with hip-hop and Latin music; Bora Bora is popular for its open-air dance floor and lax policy on bar-top dancing; and Sumbawa Beach Club is the perfect after-hours spot for dancing in the sand, lounging on a oversized mattress or cooling off in the pool.
reviewed
-
N
Felix
Lines form early on weekend nights when the beautiful people flock to this beautiful lounge to drown beautiful sorrows in beautifully constructed martinis. Yes, Felix is a swank place where the attitude has attitude and the bouncer behind the velvet ropes can be a little too selective in his entrance policy for some people’s patience. Plate-glass windows, neon letters and super-sleek decor give it serious character. Live jazz and funk bands set up on a stage against the front windows on Fridays and Saturdays.
reviewed
-
O
Left Bank
The Left Bank is a hip, modern lounge with stark-white walls and orange chairs and booths. It’s the perfect dark cave in which to escape a hot summer afternoon’s mounting heat. The prime location, smack in the middle of 18th St, is perfect for people-watching from open windows if the place is quiet; which often is not the case. Left Bank attracts a sophisticated, international crowd that comes to sip martinis and listen to DJs spin mellow vibes. There’s a menu, but the food is only OK.
reviewed
-
P
Ruby Skye
The city’s premier-name nightclub occupies a vintage theater reminiscent of classic NY clubs, with reserveable balcony boxes above the floor. The who’s-who of the world’s DJs play here – think Danny Tenaglia, Dimitri from Paris, Christopher Lawrence and Paul Van Dyk. The very-mainstream crowd sometimes gets messy (hence the gruff security), but when your fave DJ’s playing, who cares? The Funktion-One sound system is state-of-the-art. Ruby Skye is sometimes open Thursday and Sunday (check the website).
reviewed
-
Q
Temple
The city’s greenest club is a restaurant before 10pm, when it turns into a nightclub, serving drinks in biodegradable cups. The sleek-looking, all-white upstairs room has huge Thai statuary and slick stone floors; downstairs are two smaller rooms with midsized dance floors that get packed. Occasional big-name DJs spin the gamut from house to trance to techno; Fridays are consistently good for house. It’s $5 before 11pm if you’re on the guestlist. Check the website for weeknight openings. Dress hot.
reviewed
-
R
Patrick Miller
People-watching doesn’t get any better than at this throbbing disco founded by legendary Mexico City DJ Patrick Miller. With a clientele ranging from black-clad ’80s throwbacks to colorful cross-dressers, the fun begins when dance circles open up on the floor and working-class regulars pull off moves that would have made Tony Manero of Saturday Night Fever proud. You can dance to the ‘Hi-NRG’ and Italo disco mixes if you want, but most outsiders tend to stand back and watch.
reviewed
-
S
Harlot
Back when SoMa was the stomping ground of sailors, alleys were named for working girls, to whom Harlot pays homage. Velvet curtains glow purple under intense red lighting, rendering the brick-walled space a sort of goth-erotic-chic vampire’s den. Before 9pm it’s a lounge, after 9pm it’s a club. The killer sound system pumps house on Thursdays and indie-rock on Wednesdays – our fave nights. Weekends get suburban, but everyone cuts loose, so who cares? Dress funky to get past doormen.
reviewed
-
T
Caprice
Originally a movie theater – hence the giant screen evoking its Tinseltown past – upscale Caprice is one of the best mainstream haunts on the Granville Strip. The cavernous two-level venue is a thumping magnet for all the local preppies and their miniskirted girlfriends, while the adjoining resto-lounge is great if you need to rest your eardrums and grab a restorative cocktail and bite to eat. Expect to line up here on weekends, when the under-25s visiting from the suburbs dominate.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
U
Bukom
Come see DC’s West African expats get their weekend going, and be prepared for sore but happy hips the next morning, ‘cause these cats can move. There’s an interesting vibe here when the African clientele gets joined by ex–Peace Corps types who’ve learned their dancing chops in the continent; this is one of those very DC moments when immigrants plus an internationally experienced population merge into one happy scene of dancing goodness.
reviewed
-
V
Feelgood’s
Co-owned by Motley Crue frontman Vince Neil, this 8500-sq-ft rock bar/dance club has shiny choppers, rock memorabilia and a mammoth snake slithering into the rafters. Heads up: the place is packed with girls, from bartenders in skimpy outfits, to dancers on the poles, to customers coming to get wild – some visitors will love it and some will loathe it; bypass this place if you are of the latter variety. Not enough big ’80s hair, but it’s still good, cheesy fun.
reviewed
-
W
Le Drague
The star player on the city’s tiny gay scene, Le Drague comprises a front outdoor terrace, a two-level disco where drag shows are held, a slightly more laid-back tavern –and then there’s Base 3. The men-only Base 3 is…well…let’s just say it turns the capital’s conservative reputation on its head and has even seen-it-all Montrealers saying ‘I didn’t know they had that in Québec City.’
reviewed
-
X
Zihuablue
This huge club is spread over three levels; the top two include a hookah bar, an outdoor terrace with canopied beds and comfy couches, and an outstanding restaurant (mains M$135 to M$260) run by French chef and Zihua gastronomy pioneer Edmond Benloulou. The lower level features La Valentina, a Mexican restaurant recently transplanted from Mexico City. Frequent live music invites dancing on the open-air terrace. The drinks are strong and the views superb.
reviewed
-
Y
Home
Most homes aren't multilevel, cavernous spaces with dark leather couches lining nearly every wall and eerily lit passageways taking you from nook to nook, but maybe that's a growing trend. Either way, there's lots to make you feel comfortable at Home – ample seating and space, and deep electronic, funk and pop coming from the live DJ. Sometimes the doors between Home and the neighboring club Guesthouse are opened and you can pass from one to the other.
reviewed
