Sunday, January 16, 2011

Club Reports: The Groove, Latin Quarter, Red Coconut Club

Flipping through old Blog pages yesterday I came to the realization that I had not been to CityWalk on a Saturday night since the Halloween party last October. I could not put that off any longer so it was off to The Groove I go!
DJ King was in the booth playing what one would expect at The Groove, Top 40, Hip Hop, Mashups, some Oldies and later in the night, even a few Dance hits.
As we're off-season for tourists, the upstairs was closed but that only made the downstairs more crowded than it otherwise would be. Everyone was having a good time.....
.....including this Bachelorette Party!

Of course a visit to CityWalk requires stopping by Latin Quarter. The club is usually more crowded than TG but last night it wasn't as jammed and the line to get in wasn't as long.
What makes LQ the great place that it is all comes down to DJ Leony (Sirius 36/XM 81, RadioDanz.com) who not only spins the expected Latin hits but also plays a few House sets later in the evening. When he does, any empty spots that were on the dance floor quickly fill back up!



The Red Coconut Club has its own popularity but the music you hear there is often the same songs you hear in The Groove. It's just a smaller space with a fun & different classic-Vegas vibe.
The evening kicks off with the Herb Williams Band and they play until midnight. I'm not a live band fan but I give them credit for the excellent music mix they play and the personality they bring with them.
When the band is between sets and after they finish, it's time for some recorded music and DJ Raoul was up in the RCC booth last night spinning mostly Top 40.
The upstairs was closed here too so that just made the downstairs more jammed.
And you could make your own dance floor wherever you wanted. Overall, a fun night at CityWalk but no real changes since my last visit.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I LOVE CITYWALK!!! Thanks for the update Bob...

Brian said...

City Walk is a CHEAP copy of PI!
now if they would make a club even just HALF of what Mannequins was! that would be great! I would go! I kind of Like the groove.

KingBob said...

Anon, I like CityWalk; I would not say I love CityWalk.

Brian, when PI killed off downtown Orlando night life options and was making excess profits, Universal countered with CityWalk as part of their expansion that added Islands of Adventure and the parking garages. It was a copy. Mannequins' copy was The Groove which played Techno/Dance originally. BET's copy was Motown Cafe. PI Jazz' copy was CityJazz that often offered comedy certain nights ala Comedy Warehouse. There was nothing like Adventurers Club or 8TRAX though but CW offered Margaritaville and Pat O'Briens, something PI did not have. There is one remaining spot available in CityWalk and they'd make a killing with an 8TRAX clone. I'd like to see The Groove return to its Techno roots at least once a week or if on a prime night, once a month! It would definitely bring a lot of new people out there.

Anonymous said...

Citywalk is a fun place to put an 8Trax disco based club.
It would bring alot of new people to Citywalk.

Brian said...

Yes KingBob I know all about City Walk! I still think it is a cheap copy! just my opinion.
and yes if the groove went back to it's roots I would go more!
yes there was other clubs that PI didn't have city walk also have the Latin Quarter!

Anonymous said...

Bob, where is the one remaining spot available at City Walk? I'm not sure they would make a killing with an 8 Trax clone though... 80's night at Groove isn't always packed or the best. I do have to say though, that when they get the DJ's in the Red Coconut Club playing 80's music, it's gets busy and it's a "clean" crowd...

Dj Smooth said...

City Walk is geared towards the tourists so you always have to keep that in mind.

From a Dj perspective, it's difficult to work there because the jury is still out on whether the managers know what they're doing. I've decided I'm done with it; no more for me. ;)

KingBob said...

The remaining spot in CityWalk is directly across from Bob Marley's. It's currently used as a storage space. 8TRAX was the only PI club that drew a crowd on the off-nights Sunday thru Wednesday. CW clubs are dead on those nights.

80's Night at The Groove has had a lot of crowded nights and has turned Thursdays profitable overall, sources say. But The Groove is themed as an old theater in various stages of renovation and in no way fits an 80's theme. A new venue for both 70's & 80's, decked out in the bold colors of that era with a dance floor to match would be a big hit. There is no competition in Orlando for that niche. The Groove could then be freed-up for a House night on Thursday; another guaranteed success.

DJ Smooth, missed you Saturday night at RCC!

Dj Smooth said...

Yeah that came up about the middle of last week...that someone else would do Coconut this last Saturday.

Strangely, that was about the time I decided I wanted to work somewhere other than City Walk... ;)