Manhattan Night Clubs?

[GordonCooks]

No clue on this end - I'll be in the Man-Hatty next month celebrating my girl's birthday with a boatload of her friends. I’m pretty sure a hot spot will be on the agenda as all are currently kibitzing over shoes and outfits for that Saturday night. Help…Please…??

Near Times Square would be helpful but not a must.

[slkinsey]

What exactly do you have in mind for a "night club?" Are we talking about a luxe cocktails lounge like Pegu or Flatiron, or one of the Chelsea B&T dance clubs?

Others may know better, but I'd say that any place in the Times Square area will be very tourist-oriented.

[Sneakeater]

Especially now that Siberia has closed.

[GordonCooks]

What exactly do you have in mind for a "night club?"  Are we talking about a luxe cocktails lounge like Pegu or Flatiron, or one of the Chelsea B&T dance clubs?

Others may know better, but I'd say that any place in the Times Square area will be very tourist-oriented.

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Somewhere where the girls can dance a lot and me a little. Cool but not cheesy - the last few "clubs" I remember were cocktails and the Hudson, the place in the Gansevoort, Underbar, Lotus when it was hot, a few "bottle service" places chock full of runway modes and C- list celebs. Not my speed anymore so think along the lines of........err......20 something ??

Edit - I heard the bar at the W Times Square is good - true?

Edited December 26, 2006 by GordonCooks (log)

[Nathan]

unfortunately, your description applies to every NY dance club, at least on the weekends.

Cielo would be ok...but good luck getting in if you don't know someone...especially on a Saturday. Salon is sometimes ok on a weekend.

But quite frankly, NY has the worst dance scene of any major city in the world (to the best of my knowledge). the weekends are amateur night.

during the week is far better but some of us work for a living.

maybe they'd be satisfied with salsa at Son Cubano? or at Barossa in the EV (very tiny though).

everything's cheesy on the weekends. just the way it is.

I had some friends who were just in from L.A. that went to Plumm (the hottest thing going right now)...they were appalled.

[Nathan]

I was at the bar at the Times Square W to meet a friend a few months ago. heavy out-of-town business crowd. no dancing.

quite frankly, locals don't go out near Times Square (that doesn't mean you won't have fun doing so)

[rich]

But quite frankly, NY has the worst dance scene of any major city in the world (to the best of my knowledge). 

I had some friends who were just in from L.A. that went to Plumm (the hottest thing going right now)...they were appalled.

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New Yorkers don't need to dance. The rest of the world needs to dance - we observe.

Who told those people the definition of "appalled?"

[Nathan]

they were "appalled" because they had been informed that this was the "coolest" club in NY (which was true -- at least two months ago).

granted, they were there on the weekend.

[slkinsey]

As a generality, people who live in Manhattan do not go to Manhattan dance clubs. Rather, these clubs are populated largely by B&Ters from Jersey and the Outer Boroughs ("guidos").

Here's a blog from a Chelsea club bouncer that describes the scene in some detail.

[GordonCooks]

This is what I'm afraid of

Don't want jam packed, more along the lines of martini bar with DJ and busy enough to fool some out of towners. These girls like to dance but aren't "great" at it by any means.

No B&Ters would be preferred (funny coming from a po-dunk tourist) - I'm prepared to run a big bottle tab to avoid them. Many of my "goomba - Vegas-once-a-month, Miami-twice-a-year, Escalade-driving, friends make fun of so-called Jerseyites themselves (cousins included)

[Nathan]

by definition, bottle service attracts a B&T crowd.

your options open up if you're willing to forgo the dancing part (NY has a tough "cabaret license" regime which limits the number of places where dancing is allowed)

[Sneakeater]

No no no no no. Bottle service dosen't AVOID B&Ters. Bottle service gets you CLOSER to B&Ters.

Edited December 26, 2006 by Sneakeater (log)

[slkinsey]

Gordon, I think you'll have a difficult time finding any place in Manhattan that does "bottle service" (i.e., charging a 1000% markup to sell you a whole frozen bottle of Grey Goose at your table) that: a) you will be able to get into (and I say this with no offense intended, as I couldn't get in either), and b) isn't overrun with B&T guidos.

[Sneakeater]

You don't dance there, but I've always thought that Pravda was, like, remarkably non-douchey (we might as well drag out all the snarky cliches if we're gonna talk about this) for a non-cocktailist lounge.

[slkinsey]

your options open up if you're willing to forgo the dancing part (NY has a tough "cabaret license" regime which limits the number of places where dancing is allowed)

Exactly.

The bad news is that the dance nightclub scene in Manhattan is absolutely horriffic, unless you're into swing dancing or something (in which case, check out Swing 46).

The good news is that, if you're not married to dancing, New York City is the international capital of cocktail culture and offers several of the best cocktail bars in the world.

Unfortunately, the bad news for you may be that your companions may be more into clubbing and dancing than a decent drink.

[Nathan]

flocks of women always seem to have a good time at Stanton Social.

it's a genuinely mixed crowd (some B&T but mainly not these days as it's been open over two years now).

no dancing though.

[Cpalms]

wow, so salty on the out of town crowd. Frankly, if your goal is to avoid B&T you are avoiding virtually every good place in manhattan, Including restaurants. Basically on a saturday night there is no getting around it. (there are never any B&T in Babbo, Per Se, Le Bernadin etc not to mention Pegu, no never)...my suggestion would be to jump right in and make a reservation for bottle service/table at one of the big clubs, Marquee, Tenjune, Cain, Pink Elephant, Plumm. The reason you mostly pay the astronomical prices for bottle service is for the real estate inside the club, not really for the booze. You will have your own table so you know you will always have a place to sit and relax without all the mo mo's bumping into you. Reservations are a must, don't wait until you are at ther door.

One other suggestion would be the bar at the Gramercy Park Hotel. Super cool trendy place that is a mellow lounge, i've never seen anybody dance there but you never know. Don't even bother going if you don't have a reservation.

[Mayur]

You don't dance there, but I've always thought that Pravda was, like, remarkably non-douchey (we might as well drag out all the snarky cliches if we're gonna talk about this) for a non-cocktailist lounge.

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Yeah, but they have no dancing.

As for the B&T issue: Well, this is why lots of us don't go to clubs, fancy bars, OR high-profile restaurants on Fridays or Saturdays.

I also despise bottle service, *but* I'm not really into this type of thing to begin with anyway, so YMMV. It *is* true that bottle service is an easy way to avoid the usual door attitude, and really, $300-500 is a small price to pay for avoiding a wintertime wait in line, especially if you're a sizable group. Besides, you can always go for champagne and feel festive; just don't get more than one bottle!

I would seriously contemplate not being in Manhattan at all. There may be some excellent parties in Brooklyn or LIC that would provide a far more satisfying experience. One option would be to subscribe to the e-mail list at Nonsense NYC, which has reasonably high quality control. Another would be to see if there's a decent band playing anywhere. Famous concerts are an obvious option: If you're going to see P-Funk or Blackalicious, you know what you'll get, of course. Joe's Pub, Pianos, Northsix (williamsburg), and Galapagos (williamsburg) also tend to host pretty good shows, and there's usually a good crowd and dancing any night of the week, provided the music is an appropriate match.

For something located right in that hellhole... er, nightlife center known as the Meatpacking District, I think you really will be best off with either Cielo or Son Cubano; as Nathan mentioned, Cielo can be a bit tricky to get into. The Park (10th Ave. btw 16th & 17th sts.) is also possibly worthwhile, depending on what exactly is going on there.

Good luck!

[Live It Up]

If you're not wedded to staying in Time Square (and really, you should be wedded to avoiding it) you should check out some of the new bars/clubs in LES/Chinatown. I don't club much, but I was just reading this article in the village voice today which seems like it has some stuff that might fit your bill. I'm not sure if these places are technically clubs (they may not have cabaret licenses) but it seems like they encourage dancing.

[Mayur]

Regarding the Voice article: I certainly can chime in a note of endorsement for Home Sweet Home or 205; the not-so-new digs of Kush (Chrystie btw Rivington and Stanton) are also good for this sort of thing.

In general, you'll do not so badly on the Lower East Side, although the roster of good places tends to change very frequently. Lolita is pretty good; Home Sweet Home and 205 are also quite good. Belly tends to be decent for a pre-dancing drink, as does the Slipper Room. I will reaffirm, though (and I say this as someone who lives in this neighborhood), that the best weekend action is across the river in Brooklyn.

[EDIT: Another not-necessarily-so-bad option in the Meatpacking District is APT on West 13th Street, which, while PACKED, is reasonably cozy, dancing-friendly, and often features excellent DJs.]

Edited December 27, 2006 by Mayur (log)

[Nathan]

this probably isn't a bad way to go.

it does indeed change there very frequently (i.e. every couple months)...to the point that since I moved away from NoLIta to the WV a couple months ago I have lost all familiarity with the scene (cause most of these places weren't even open then....I didn't especially care for Belly or the Slipper Room)

[Sneakeater]

I don't know which way this cuts, but as a non-clubber, non-dancer, everytime I go to APT I'm surprised at how much I like it. The DJs really are often excellent (even to a non-dancer) (once I stumbled upon the guy who's Isolee there), and it really is amazingly, um, comfortable for this kind of place.

[Mayur]

this probably isn't a bad way to go.

it does indeed change there very frequently (i.e. every couple months)...to the point that since I moved away from NoLIta to the WV a couple months ago I have lost all familiarity with the scene (cause most of these places weren't even open then....I didn't especially care for Belly or the Slipper Room)

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Belly and the Slipper Room aren't really places that I *especially* care for, either (I more care for one of the bartenders at Belly ); that's sorta the point to me, actually! They're quite mellow places for a medium to large group to assemble for drinks pre-party action.

Also worth mentioning are:

-Bowery Ballroom (if there's a decent act playing that night)

-Subtonic (the lounge below Tonic, a jazz club on Norfolk Street; often interesting DJs)

-That place that used to be Idlewild on East Houston Street (you'll have to forgive me; I can't think of the name)

[GordonCooks]

Gordon, I think you'll have a difficult time finding any place in Manhattan that does "bottle service" (i.e., charging a 1000% markup to sell you a whole frozen bottle of Grey Goose at your table) that: a) you will be able to get into (and I say this with no offense intended, as I couldn't get in either), and b) isn't overrun with B&T guidos.

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No offense taken - I figured that's how it worked anyways. I've got a club owner friend in Toronto making some calls for me. I remember being at some model hot spot with my ex step sister (she is a working catalog model and her hubby is in tv production) I don't mind being the poorest guy in the joint but the ugliest too?? sheesh

So...bottle service is out, dancing is unlikely...I guess I'm looking for cool type martini lounge then by default.

Thank everyone for their info btw

[Mayur]

Regarding dancing, you still really might want to consider APT or 205.

For martini lounges, a reservation at Milk and Honey or a table at the Flatiron Lounge might not be amiss.