New Year's Reprieve

January 3, 2006’s “New Year’s Peeve” blog entry, a full feature devoted to the debacle at South End Brewery’s annual year-end celebration, generated the most email response in my three year stint with Charlotte.com. One hundred percent of the reader replies agreed with my position, echoing the opinion that year nine was a year to forget.

Certainly, not all revelers were miserable, but the lack of any dissenting vote was a good indicator that many investors in the evening were not paid a fair sum of party consideration in return.

General manager Steve Vocke, a five year veteran of the restaurant and microbrewery chain, recently agreed to a brief interview to set the record straight. No, we are not getting refunds, but his sincerity was genuine and year ten has a plan of action set to avoid any repeat of this performance.

Questions and answers have been edited for brevity and clarity.

What went wrong?

It was like a perfect storm of people. Probably forty percent of our clientele were N.C. State fans. Ninety percent of them purchased tickets in advance and the other ten percent just showed up at the door.

How did they know about this event? Did your Raleigh location promote it?

Not a single bit. Not at all. I have no idea how they [N.C. State fans] knew about it. The Raleigh restaurant wasn’t advertising ours at all.

How many tickets did you sell?

925. Previous years it’s been 750. We got to 750 on Thursday before New Year’s and I said ‘Alright, we gotta figure something out. We’ve got a tent, and nine hundred would be perfect.’ And that was our goal. We got to 925 when people showed up without tickets and said they were with five other friends who already had tickets. What killed us was the overflow of people coming in that said they had reservations and we didn’t have any record of them at all.

What is the capacity of South End Brewery?

900 without tables. We were within our fire marshal occupancy. Total at the end of the night was right under 1100 [tent occupancy included].

When you co-sponsor an event such as this one with promoter John Lineberger, who is in charge?

John and myself. I take full responsibility for the night. John doesn’t control the staff whatsoever. All he does is emails and promotion. He has a huge database and was in touch with the Charlotte Sports Connection. We had no idea this party was going to be this big.

Was anything different in this year’s organization of the event that was different from years before?

Absolutely not. John and I have worked together for five years. I’ve only had one complaint in five years; one woman said we didn’t have closed captioning on the TV and she was deaf.

Were there any complaints that evening this year?

Yes. We dealt with one person on her way out and I gave her my card and we got everything straightened out. She was very appreciative of the call.

Were there any reported problems with staffing?

We had a hard time getting the bar stocked up. If I knew this was going to be a thousand person party, I would have added another bar, but honestly, I don’t know where I would have put it at that point. We’ve never had to deal with a crowd that size before.

Did you finally turn people away at the door?

Yes. There was one point early in the night, around 10:30, and I’m looking in to the restaurant, thinking, ‘we’re crowded, look out, and there’s still a line a football field long in the parking lot, and I’m thinking this is scary.’

Do you think the drink lines were too long?

Honestly though, you only want to serve so many drinks. I don’t mean that financially, but from a safety standpoint. Anytime you have an open bar situation, and people are going to drink as much as they want to, people get sick too early. To a point, you have to have lines. You’ve got to be responsible. You give people carte blanche ability to drink, and it’s dangerous.

Let’s talk about how you plan to prepare for next year. Are there any changes planned for admission?

We’ve already established an opportunity for people to purchase their tickets online. The phone calls, the calling to order your tickets, people saying they bought tickets and they didn’t buy tickets, that’s eliminated. People will print their confirmation and show it to us.

Restroom facilities?

We will add port-o-potties but I don’t know the exact location where it’s going to be. I want to make sure it’s convenient enough for everybody to get to but it doesn’t become a stinkin’ mess. We’re going to put up a heated double tent for the CIAA’s and experiment there.

Do you plan to sell a similar number of tickets?

Not at all. If we do a double tent we’ll consider 900. We might have seven bars and 18 bartenders. We’ll convert the entire pizza bar to serve drinks. Additionally, we might hand out some beers to people that might have to wait in line. We’re not going to do wristbands since we’re checking ID’s at the door.

"Cans"-Do Attitude

I've finally obtained the press release for the long-awaited opening of Cans Bar and Canteen in the refurbished Cotton Mills building in the Fourth Ward. Construction delays disabled their previous attempt at serving the public by January.

Although subject to change, keep an eye on this very column for any updates to a soft start on Wednesday, March 15th, and a formal dog and pony show on Thursday, April 6th.

Promising "old-school, laid back fun," expect an array of eighties and nineties music nostalgia (please spare us anything already accomplished at Breakfast Club), tabletop video games (you bring Galaga, you have me at hello), and college grub like mac-n-cheese and Spaghetti-O's.

Since their name emits no irony, the signature item is predictably their variety of canned beers, and this location will also be the first of its kind to brew its own. Compared to glass, canned beer usually has all the appeal of drinking out of a clay pot, but I'm intrigued to sample a fresh brew of their Light, Dark, Amber, or Belgian White.

A formal review will be forthcoming.

High scores:

Square footage: 12,000 (two heated floors and a rooftop deck)
Canned beers: Over 50
Ceilings: 17 feet (loft-style)
Location: #3 (Chicago, Milwaukee)

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Six years later and some six hundred strong, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's "Guys and Dolls Bachelor/Bachelorette Auction" was a smashing success, having raised at least six figures at press time.

Saturday night's event, hosted by the downtown Hilton, was dripping in Charlotte's finest talent, who paid as much as $85 each for unlimited booze and buffet. Fueled by the engaging Matt Harris and Ramona Holloway, WLNK's afternoon drive-time duo, the marathon event probably went about an hour past its prime.

Forty-six year old Charlotte firefighter Jim Dedmon played to about half a late crowd, but still amassed an impressive $1200 offer while wearing his complete gear.

Top bids were acquired by Fox Charlotte's Kelli Bartik ($3100) and Dean Pawlowski ($4000), a Metlife Auto & Home Project Specialist, who didn't hurt his cause by shedding a few layers of his tux at Ramona's gentle prodding. Or, perhaps it was the round trip to LAX to sit on the set of Grey's Anatomy (lead actress Ellen Pompeo is his sister).

Kelli went toe-to-toe by offering a guest spot on her Fox Got Game sports show, but it might have also been Matt's obsession with her derriere.

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Speaking of charity, the Fifth Annual "Beads for Needs" Mardi Gras celebration will be held at B of A's Founders Hall this Thursday, February 23rd at 6 p.m. Proceeds will benefit First Tee of Charlotte and the New Orleans Tourism Rebirth Fund.

Their website offers no explanation just what the $25 ticket ($30 at the door) guarantees the buyer other than admission, but I have some ideas just what they might not be telling you....

• 2006 Bobcats' playoff tickets (please tell me you get the joke)
• All-you-can-eat corn dogs!
• Busch Light Ultra out the wazoo
  
• A fractional timeshare in Gastonia
• Light rail tokens, but in Baltimore

Email Bryan at charlottenightlife@hotmail.com. All emails will be answered. Join his friends list at www.myspace.com/brneil.

Guys, Dolls, 'n Balls

With the weekend's festivities bookended by the Sports Connection's Guys & Dolls bachelor/bachelorette auction and the 5th Annual Bartender's Ball, my inability to score media passes so far has me considering minting my own cash.

Respectively, admission fees of $75 and $60 (in advance; any delinquency at the door will require an additional sacrifice of your pinky finger) are all-inclusive. But last time I pursued the flat-fee arrangement, an embattled South End Brewery was disgraced with a New Year's fallout that will be the subject of a future rebuttal piece.

The events are semi-formal. Gratefully, fellow Charlotte socialites generally adhere to the attire requirement, as opposed to some women in the workplace who now consider sweatpants and no make-up as business casual. If you elect to attempt a creative black tie, please do us a favor and seek anything other than a tuxedo t-shirt, anything Hawaiian, or anything previously worn by a rap artist. We get it, funny guy.

Enjoy the 35,000 square feet of party space before the Merchandise Mart completes its sale to the University Park Baptist Church in 2008. Their members will probably frown on this stuff, you know.

For additional information, contact:

• Sabrina Watt with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation at swatt@cff.org (B&B Auction tix), or
  
• Steve Caldwell at steve@elevatecharlotte.com (Ball). Tickets available at http://www.bandtastic.com
  

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Thursday, February 16th, marks the grand opening of The Attic, the latest venture from the boys of Connolly's, Madison's, Tyber Creek--you get the idea.

Perched above Brick and Barrel at Tryon & 5th, its intimate setting is basked in Old World decor, five HD televisions, with subtle lighting to accentuate yet another investment in an ol' fashioned drinking establishment.

While wine and liquor selections are expected, owner Kevin Devin wants me to emphasize it's "all about the beer and shots." A full review will be forthcoming.

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Is anyone aware that the 2006 Guinness Toast is this Friday, February 17th? I've seen exactly zero press, and a visit to Guinness' website says nary a thing, laddy.

The marketing move is simply brilliant. It's the drinking equivalent of a Hallmark holiday invention (uh, Valentine's Day?) hawking the beverage more than anyone else, for that one day a year. Why not triple, or quadruple it up during the fiscal year?

Because no one cares about it anymore. Remember when you raised a glass and filled out that slip of paper with a fake name to help authenticate the World Record? Who counted all those things, anyway?

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Buried in my notebook are eight unused passes good for free weekend admission at Coyote Ugly Saloon. I'll pair them up into four groups; the first four to email me their mailing address with "Coyote Ugly passes" in the subject line can have a set.

Please, no repeat offenders and this writer makes no promise they're still legal tender. But hey, they don't cost you nuthin'.

Is the Guinness pour an overrated tradition? Bryan thinks so. Tired of waiting for ten minutes to get your stout? Post your replies. Email him at charlottenightlife@hotmail.com and join his new friends list at www.myspace.com/brneil.

Urban Brawl

What’s with all the late-night violence anyway? A tragic shooting at Liquid Lounge, reported incidents at the Disco Rodeo on Albemarle, Malibu Club on North Tryon, and Rick’s Cabaret on Old Pineville are seriously jeopardizing the right to enjoy one’s evening.

Before you check your maturity at the door and elect to settle your differences in a bar, take a chill pill, watch Dr. Phil, and go say something nice about your enemy. Leave us out of it.

My bio references my crime-fighting after dark, but I am not omnipresent. Even Spiderman has to sleep every once in a while, you know.

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While we usually embrace tax season with all the affection of an annual prostate exam, it is awfully kind to this nightlife columnist. As an independent contractor of Charlotte.com, I have no expense account. Accordingly, my business expenses are tax-deductible.

A shoebox full of receipts indicates another busy year on the Crawl, with bar tabs accounting for—you guessed it—research. For the record, 2005’s total checks in at $2,909, and that’s just what I can document.

Doing the math:

$55.94. Average spent per week, which seems low.

727. Rough estimate of total drinks purchased, at average $4 each. (I’m a cheap date.)

$1,000.00? Undocumented behavior, like cash tabs, Panther games, out of town trips, etc.

$0. Amount I will deduct for parking, due to crappy record keeping, with many thanks to those Bobcat games eating in to our prior garage freedom.

3. Other deductible expenses associated with this gig (internet service provider, mileage, Observer subscription).

I’ll let my accountant take it from here…

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Capitalizing on brisk business thanks to word-of-mouth (and, perhaps, a prior plug on this page) Loft 1523’s Adam Whalen is experimenting with a weekend DJ to freshen up the audio.

Adam’s a savvy young Wake Forest grad, but Loft’s cramped confines almost make it seem unnecessary. Then again, it works for Tutto Mondo…

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Hoops & Dreams is putting up drywall, and appears to be heading in the right direction with an interest in moving the projection screen to the back room.

Admittedly, I’ve been a bit vocal over the current display, which is blasted right on the drywall and obscured by every patron that walks in front of it. During the daylight hours, it’s nearly invisible.

It’s a terrible setup, and a waste of an expensive piece of video equipment. A sports bar should know better, but then again, “H&D” is probably better suited for pre-flight drinks at Douglas International Airport.

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On a lighter note, does anyone else notice that their Lazyday.com weekly emailer has a lot of exclamation points!! !!! !! !

It's a journalistic sin surpassed only by TYPING IN ALL CAPITALS. It's the equivalent of yelling, and it's worthy of breaking the copywriter's fingers. I don't need you to exclaim that Tyber Creek has $2 Guinness pints on Tuesdays!! !! (But the management probably loves the enthusiasm.)

Email Bryan at charlottenightlife@hotmail.com!! All emails will be answered!! Join my friends list at www.myspace.com/brneil!!!