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I fail to understand how having a more established / diverse nightlife conflicts with family-oriented-ness. It is not like cities with a larger nightlife scene have developed that atmosphere at the expense of family-oriented activities.
Atlantic city, Las Vegas, Reno, LA, NewYork City, Miami
Great Night Life's.. I don't think I'd want to raise my kids there.
Atlantic city, Las Vegas, Reno, LA, NewYork City, Miami
Great Night Life's.. I don't think I'd want to raise my kids there.
Where in Charlotte do you live? Because some of Charlotte's suburbs are technically in the city limits (ex - Ballantyne). Every city has it's suburbs where most families choose to live. You don't see as many families in Uptown, South End, NoDa, Plaza Midwood. It's all relative, Charlotte is just on a smaller scale.
It's not a good thing if you're a young professional. Cities all over the country are trying to attract that demographic in order to continue to prosper. Austin, TX is similar in size to Charlotte, is known for having lots of young, educated people and a vibrant, diverse nightlife yet it is still a family friendly place at the same time. However, unlike Austin, Charlotte lacks in the "creative class" department, which is probably why Charlotte gets an image of being kind of "stale".
I know some people tend to blame the person when that person says the nightlife here isn't all that great, but having traveled to lots of other places (similar in size and bigger) and going out, it's easy to see that the nightlife here is definitely lacking. Everything here seems to be either a sports bar or a club, with the same music and same type of people. If you fit that mold, then yeah, you probably think the nightlife here is awesome and you probably don't understand why people who don't fit that mold complain about it.
However, the good news is that the nightlife has gotten better in the last few years, and as Charlotte continues to grow, hopefully the nightlife will continue to get better too.
Obviously many have not been to the NC Music Factory. I can't help but laugh at some of the writers that consider themselves authorities of night life and compare with other places. This sort of indicates their own lack of real hands on knowledge. I have lived in London and Rome and visited all big European cities. I can say without a doubt that there are more clubs and bars in Mecklenburg County than in most European cities. People that build venues build what is in demand. When a person finds something that is not in place, it is likely that there isn't that high of a demand for that certain form of entertainment. How many places can one person visit? I am sure that we can all go some place and find something that is lacking. I have to disagree with anyone that says the the city is boring. Because, it AIN'T!
Las Vegas and Reno certainly are not anything close to most cities. Their whole economy evolves around tourism. They are definately destinations to visit for a few days and leave.
Obviously many have not been to the NC Music Factory. I can't help but laugh at some of the writers that consider themselves authorities of night life and compare with other places. This sort of indicates their own lack of real hands on knowledge. I have lived in London and Rome and visited all big European cities. I can say without a doubt that there are more clubs and bars in Mecklenburg County than in most European cities. People that build venues build what is in demand. When a person finds something that is not in place, it is likely that there isn't that high of a demand for that certain form of entertainment. How many places can one person visit? I am sure that we can all go some place and find something that is lacking. I have to disagree with anyone that says the the city is boring. Because, it AIN'T!
Las Vegas and Reno certainly are not anything close to most cities. Their whole economy evolves around tourism. They are definately destinations to visit for a few days and leave.
OK, first of all, you're comparing Europe to America/Charlotte. It makes more sense to compare cities similar to Charlotte in this country. Second, I never said I was an "authority on nightlife". I'm sharing my experiences other places and comparing them to here in Charlotte. Experiences and comparisons... that's how you make informed judgements...
Also, the only thing open at the NC Music Factory right now is Halo, a nightclub. The Fillmore, etc. are only open during concerts. I think the Music Factory has a lot of potential though.
Finally, I never said Charlotte was boring. There's lots of stuff to do, but in terms of nightlife, it is mediocre. It's not horrible, but it's not great either. I'm not really going to argue it anymore because:
1) It's my opinion
2) I'm not the only person who shares this opinion
3) My opinion is based on my experiences elsewhere and here
Atlantic city, Las Vegas, Reno, LA, NewYork City, Miami
Great Night Life's.. I don't think I'd want to raise my kids there.
DC had quite a booming nightlife when I lived there....so did Baltimore. Are those cities non-family friendly?. I work in Miami and know a fair number of people raising kids there and I've never heard them complain about a lack of kid-friendly activities.
All of those cities have burbs away from the central downtown areas and I doubt any are hurting for family-oriented activities (heck - plenty of parents bring their kids to Vegas on vacation...although that is pretty stupid).
I would be hard pressed to think of any large, metropolitan city with a thriving bar / club scene that does not also have a large suburban population of families with children. And I would doubt that the existence of that scene comes at the expense of more family-oriented activities.
Having been to the Breakfast Club I can say that that is probably the cheesiest place in town.
LOL , the 80's were known as the Era Of Excess , which makes it cheesy in it's own right. One thing about it , it brings back memories.
Another venue not mentioned here is Extravaganza on Tryon and Dalton.
I went to the flagship party in 2003 - 2004(?) and I can truly say it was an experience I'll never forget. Not a drop of alcohol , and still had a ball!!
From my perspective, I'm in my 40's. When I think of doing something at night that's outside of the usual activities, my idea is a place to see live music, play pool, go bowling, or to do something a little different. The Epicenter is probably my speed (I haven't had a chance to go there yet). I'm not looking to just sit in a bar and get wasted or to troll for someone to hook up with (I think there are better avenues for that). I think that the live music scene is pretty good, especially compared to other cities I've lived in before, although I'm bummed about the Neighborhood Theater closing, since that's my usual go-to spot. I think the closing of the Comedy Zone uptown has created a hole, but I can compensate a bit by going to Lake Norman Comedy Zone instead. Parking for some of the venues is a persistent problem that needs to be addressed.
Went to Luna Lounge last night and here's what I found.
- The Music was hip hop
- The crowd was a mix African American professionals and some hip hop types
- Parking was difficult because the place gets packed (I got there at 10am)
- The lounge itself is like a a narrow hall with chessy seats on the side maked Reserved
- THERE WAS TOO MANY PEOPLE IN THE LOUNGE - like being in a subway.
- THE RATIO OF GUYS TO GALS WAS SUPRISING. There was like 4-5 guys to 1 girl
- This biggest problem was there is just not enough adequate space in that place.
- On a positive note, although the ratio was about 5:1 Guys:Girls, 2 girls actually intiated conversations with me after I just walked in the place. Maybe I'll return based on that.
Went to Luna Lounge last night and here's what I found.
- The Music was hip hop
- The crowd was a mix African American professionals and some hip hop types
- Parking was difficult because the place gets packed (I got there at 10am)
- The lounge itself is like a a narrow hall with chessy seats on the side maked Reserved
- THERE WAS TOO MANY PEOPLE IN THE LOUNGE - like being in a subway.
- THE RATIO OF GUYS TO GALS WAS SUPRISING. There was like 4-5 guys to 1 girl
- This biggest problem was there is just not enough adequate space in that place.
- On a positive note, although the ratio was about 5:1 Guys:Girls, 2 girls actually intiated conversations with me after I just walked in the place. Maybe I'll return based on that.
Here's my take, first of all, Charlotte is a growing city and a relatively new "Big League" city compared to other well-established cities, even cities comparable in size to Charlotte, so Charlotte may be lacking in some things compared to cities that have been established much longer than Charlotte in terms of "Big City" status. I feel that as Charlotte continues to grow and become a more established "Big" city, more venues will open up that caters to everyones different interests and tastes, b/c there will be more demand for those places a lot of you have mentioned that doesn't exist right now. Also, don't just settle on Uptown, venture outside of Uptown and visit some of the places in NoDa, Plaza Midwood, South End, or Dilworth if you want something more than what Uptown offers, b/c Uptown is only going to cater to a more high end clientale and will probably remain that way, whereas these neighborhoods will offer more variety. Having said that, I think Charlotte is getting better. I don't necessarily go out a lot, but I have noticed a big difference in the last 5 years in the number of new establishments that have opened, all of which came on line with the opening of EpiCentre in NCMF. Be patient, more options will eventually come.
Last edited by prwfromnc; 01-28-2010 at 01:30 PM..
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