New VIP Room Inauguration

Don’t even think about trying to talk your way past these guys.

Last night the whole city seemed to be lined up outside 188 Rue de Rivoli, with scantily-clad ladies in their mini-dresses and stilettos pressing at the velvet ropes and a whole fleet of black SUVs blocking traffic. It was the official opening night of the new VIP Room, which closed its old location on the Champs Elysées earlier this year to move into the old premises of La Scala. Last time I went to La Scala was for an Elvis Tribute party. It was an old club on two levels with a lot of carpeting. It looks nothing like that anymore. In fact, it looks just like the old VIP Room — but bigger — with the same exact tables and oversized LED panels, super sexy bar staff and a steady stream of Champagne bottles with sparklers making the rounds.

The DJ warms up the dance floor (before the masses arrived).

Amazingly, only 24 hours earlier the club still looked like a construction site. The walls and ceilings were covered in a shiny, plastic looking material that looked solid unless you touched it. The glass railings keeping people from falling off the upper level onto the dance floor below were still slightly wobbly. The restaurant is not yet open. The floors were still unfinished and a strong scent of fresh paint welcomed the crowd that began piling in around 11:30pm. By 12:30am, it was already standing room only, and the crowd outside was twice as large as the one inside – maybe 1200 people?

Meow…

The DJ, with a futuristic silver curtain behind him, played mostly Madonna mixes. The female bartenders wore sexy black leather masks while the men wore black leather kilts and driving gloves. I stayed long enough to chat with friends, have a drink, and spot a few “famous in France” VIPS, before heading back out. Or at least trying to. Compared to the quick entry, it was almost impossible to get out without climbing over people still trying to get in. The club certainly started off with a bang.

Zee fashion pipole.

A server waiting for his tables to fill up (which they all do, in about ten minutes flat).

If you’d like to get a peek at the new digs, you won’t have to wait long. The gentlemen of www.Urban-nights.com will be hosting one of their after-works parties at the VIP Room sometime in October, stay tuned!

“Lord Brett” of Urban Nights et moi.