Posts Tagged ‘door issues’

Clubs & Relationships: You Ain’t Partying Here No More

Tuesday, May 13th, 2008

If your New York relationship was good (and by good I mean was able to last longer than the customary three months), it can be exceedingly difficult to let go of. City breakups are rough, and if you partied together, splitting up can also lead to a lot of awkward encounters and hardcore game playing.

So here’s my question: If you have clout at a nightlife establishment i.e. you know the doorman, the owner, the investor who mattered or the security dude, is it socially or morally acceptable to have your ex-significant other banned from the place? Setting up an infrastructure with the powers of the locale so that when your ex walks up to the red rope they’re automatically turned away? A nightlife blacklisting of sorts?

I think the answer to this question is more complicated than it seems. On the one hand, this is spiteful, childish, and clearly illustrates that you still like the person and haven’t moved on. On the other hand, aren’t all relationships, at their fundamental level, a power struggle? And what better way to showcase your power than by excommunicating the former object of your affection from a place that you used to both go to together? And with New York being as large as it is, is it really so much to ask that they party somewhere else?

Just like a messy custody battle, it’s not that easy to divvy up your spots versus my spots. What are former couples supposed to do? Create some sort of calendar that clarifies you can go to Goldbar every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday and he can have full reign of 1 Oak on Saturdays? When there is no tacit agreement, and your request for personal space at Cain is disregarded (meaning your ex shows up and flaunts their new diet and girlfriend in your face) is it okay to use your connections to make sure the club’s staff keeps them out?

Anyone who’s ever had a disastrous clubbing event with an ex, cast your vote here.

Rose Bar: Still Swanky and Impenetrable

Friday, April 18th, 2008

In case anyone’s wondering, Rose Bar’s still impeccably decorated and still impossible to get into. If you have a friend staying at the hotel or can find a name that works on their mysterious list, this place is worth checking out. Just make sure you’re with someone who really knows what they’re doing, because this isn’t one of those doors where name dropping ‘I’m with so-and-so’ will help. If someone’s first name, last name, and birthplace is not typed on the clip boarded list, you ain’t getting in and no amount of schmoozing will help.

The irony here is that while turning away over half of the clientele who approach the door, Rose Bar has the friendliest, most well-mannered staff in the city. They manage to be perhaps the most pretentious locale in Manhattan while never seeming mean. How they pull this off remains an enigma. It’s hard the hate the place because the staff’s warm and smiling even as they outright reject you. And the space itself is irresistible as it resembles a movie set for an 18th century French melodrama.

Pros: Celebrity sightings, magnificent people watching (patrons seem to dress in order to reflect the décor), intimate, living room-type feel, billions of types of bourbon, Warhol prints and Schnabel artwork that put Goldbar’s paintings to shame, spotless bathrooms, service so impeccable it’s creepy.

Cons: If fortunate enough to get in, you receive the privilege of being able to buy $20 cocktails plus an automatically added 15% gratuity (4 drinks for $100, yeay!).

Keep in mind there’s absolutely nothing to do in Rose Bar except drink, play pool, watch other people play pool, and sway to their uber-cool retro soundtrack. There’s no dancing, no dance floor, and joyous rowdiness is in no way encouraged. You will however, get in touch with your elegant alter-ego. For $20 a cocktail, some would say that’s a steal.

Miss Model Behavior’s the new nightlife writer for theBlaqlist.com. Feel free to post any nightlife comments or questions on our forum or contact her at MissModelBehavior@theBlaqlist.com