When Houston’s reigning LGBTQ+ nightclub South Beach shut its doorways in 2018, it was supposed to stay closed for simply two years for a much-needed renovation. When the pandemic hit, nevertheless, proprietor Charles Armstrong—affectionately referred to by many as “the Mayor of Montrose”—determined to postpone the membership’s reopening as a result of security issues. This Friday, after a break of over 4 years, the celebrated membership is lastly reopening.
“The remodel was already 80 percent finished in spring 2020 when COVID happened,” stated Armstrong, who can also be the steward of neighboring JR’s Bar & Grill, Houston’s oldest frequently operated LGBTQ+ bar, in a press release. “We remained closed as we waited for the majority of the population to become vaccinated for protection against COVID. Two years ago, we were in uncharted territory, and I had a moral problem packing a dance floor full of people in the middle of a health crisis.”
Crisis apart, the brand new South Beach was definitely worth the wait. When the membership initially opened in 2001, the part of Montrose that it calls house was decidedly much less posh than it’s at present. Its new design, which may finest be described as Restoration Hardware meets Miami Vice, displays the altering demographics of the neighborhood and is impressed by the proliferation of upscale lodging which have sprung up within the space lately. While the previous South Beach sported industrial interiors that had been stiffer than its drinks (and from private expertise, we will attest that the drinks had been certainly fairly stiff), the brand new South Beach incorporates a modern inside paying homage to an upscale condo—one which fortunately nonetheless gives beneficiant pours.
For the rework, Armstrong enlisted award-winning designer John Robinson of Houston-based Robinson & Associates, who beforehand labored with Armstrong on the look of now-defunct LGBTQ+ lounge Meteor. For South Beach 2.0, Robinson deployed high-end supplies like mahogany, Carrara marble, black granite, and oak flooring to offer the area a heat, residential look. To ensure that the heat gained’t be confused for quaintness, Robinson positioned within the middle of the dance ground a brand new, 450-pound, 8-foot quartz crystal chandelier that, in fact, rotates inside a 14-foot truss immediately over the dance ground—a pièce de résistance so luminous it will make Liberace pivot to probably the most main of keys.
South Beach has additionally been upgraded with the most recent in sound and lighting expertise, which can assist give the area main house-party vibes. Also returning are the nightclub’s well-known ice jets, which when triggered spray clouds of chilly and foggy air onto the dance ground—and in so doing lower the area’s temperature by 20 levels straight away (whereas additionally offering cowl for a stolen kiss or two).
“Technology may have changed the way people do things, but the human desire for life-affirming celebrations, complete with ice jets spraying out a thick cloud of air, remains the same,” stated Armstrong relatively cheekily of South Beach’s new tech however age-old mission. “People want to be together, and I’m going to give them just that with the ultimate house party.”