by Arlena Janowiec on The Park is a sprawling restaurant/bar/club that I never want to go to. However, I seem to end up there quite often. It's a place where the ladies get to dance, the guys get to creep on the ladies, and due to its size, there is never really that much trouble getting in. On my last venture, I arrived late to the party at around 1 am on a Friday. I wandered around looking for my friends. The entire, enormous downstairs area was sparsely populated. The upstairs bar looked and sounded packed; I thought to myself, I hope they aren't upstairs. My text: Where are you? Hers: Upstairs. So I trudged wearily up the steps, waited at the bar to buy some liquid tolerance (it was $42 for two well drinks and two tequila shots, which could be worse, but could also be much better), and pushed my way through the crowd to a table in the back. Once there, I did have a good time. But is it just me? It makes no sense to squeeze through the crowded, sweaty mass of people to hang out near the insanely busy bar where I need to wait for drinks and can't hear myself think, when there is a perfectly good bar downstairs with no one waiting and places to sit. Am I crazy? Or...Oh, right. I'm an old man now.
by Inocencia Ruegg on This place is like no other I'd been to before... Imagine a night club crossed with a circus crossed with a carnival! It's a crazy hybrid and it works pretty well as a novelty. Unless they have any special programming it's definitely a place to take visitors to but not necessarily to keep going to otherwise.
by David L. on I used to be afraid of this place, but then a few years ago for a hot minute, in the groups I run and with the acts I follow, it was the place to be -- to hear and be heard -- and then it seemed to fall completely off the radar... Recently, it's once again re-invented itself as the place to be for pretty much every taste -- big rock bands, small rock bands, pop performers, world-famous djs, and legendary yet relatively unknown djs. A few months ago I was dating someone, but noticed such luminaries as Xavier (from Justice) and Felix da Housecat were starting to pop up on the roster -- I tried to the best of my abilities to get both of us here, but somehow it just never happened... Ugh... But now, it's just me, on my own, without anybody else's prejudices or slothenness holding me back, and when I want to do something I do it -- Thank You God. Last night I saw Green Velvet... GREEN VELVET... I've worshipped him for over a decade -- he's probably my second favorite DJ, after Switch (aka Solid Groove), and it's rare that he ever plays live sets, especially in NYC... And how was it, you ask? Absolutely incredible, phenomenal, ridiculously amazing... The lines outside can be a little bit crazy, hectic, frenzied, chaotic, and unorganized... The bouncers can be a little pushy, brusque, and impatient... The crowds can be a little over-zealous and in-your-face, perhaps even obnoxious... Even though I wasn't drinking (alcohol) last night, whenever I went to the bar I noticed that drinks aren't cheap (whereas my glasses of ice-water were free, thankfully)... But, honestly, any place that can bring in big-name acts/attractions like this, and have a sound system as good as this, then who cares, to hell with all of it -- I'm a fan -- although perhaps I'd avoid coming here on just any given random night without making sure in advance that I really wanted to see the person/group that's playing.
