Yeah! Girls' Night Out!

On Friday night, KP, AK, and I went downtown. We had planned to go to the Lounge to see AK's DJ friend spin. Since his set didn't start until midnight, we made a pit stop at the Refuge.

The 'Fuge used to be my favorite bar downtown. For those of you who know it, you're probably laughing right now. It's barely a step up from Brother's (which, ironically, is in the basement below) but I used to love it. I spent countless nights with my girls dancing our hearts out on the small dance floor to top 40s music. We were usually the first ones dancing. We'd literally get the party started.

Then a few years ago Drink opened across the street. We tried to go dancing there, but there was too much hype around the place and it was always packed. (PS - I blame Drink for starting the ridiculous cover charge era of the First Ave bars. $3 to get in. So stupid. They're not clubs. They're bars.) So we tried the 'Fuge again. Nope. Drink took away all the normal clientele and left us with the creepy riffraff and short guys. They were always there before; we just couldn't see them behind everyone else.

On Friday we decided it was time to go back. The crowd was the same as it was 4 years ago. Only they were still 21 yr olds. We were old. So old. (I mean, I'm only 26, but have you seen 21 yr olds lately??) We danced for a while and made the most of it. I even waved at the Christian kids hanging outside Club 3 Degrees. They were trying to bend this small tree over on the street. I waved at them from the window on the dance floor and signaled for them to stop until they understood. Even Christian kids can be punks.

We headed to the Lounge around 11:30. None of us had been there before. You enter by going through this garage type door and up zebra-print carpeted stairs. AK's friend put us on the list, which made us ultra cool. No $8 cover for us!

I expected the Lounge to be this mod-hipster, dark-lit, sit down bar filled with beautiful Euro-trash. I figured the music would be too cool for anyone to recognize and no one would be talking except those actually from Europe.

Boy was I wrong! The room you enter into is pretty mod looking. A DJ with live bongos playing on one side. White couches everywhere, a dance floor, and a couple making out next to the bar. We headed for the back to the "Cathedral Room" to see AK's friend. I felt like I was on a bad set for a Meat Loaf music video. The walls were painted to look like stone, but they were sparkly. There were also fake stained glass windows and huge chandeliers. I loved it. I think the bartenders should dress to match the room decor.

We danced like crazy for over an hour before exploring the rest of the bar. Oh, and btw, our room was filled with Euro-trash hipster wannabe's. I loved them as well.

The other room in the Lounge is your basic dance bar/club. Still mod decor (everything was from IKEA. I study the catalogue - I know these things), but top 40s music instead of house and everyone was dancing. On the way to the bathroom, KP showed me the other room towards the back. We walked through a hall into what seemed like another world. We were the only whiteys in the room. They were playing some intense hip hop and it almost looked like we were walking in a door propped open for air - not an entrance. So we went back to the Cathedral Room. Later I realized we had actually wondered into Spirell Bar. One of the new clubs next to Pizza Luce and apparently connected to the Lounge. Who knew?

To conclude - The Lounge is pretty awesome. I should have know that even the "coolest" of bars in Minneapolis are still going to be filled with Minnesotans. I had a lot of fun, but I probably won't go back for a while.