For the club goers, how do you decide which one?

[Option84]

I live and work in the North of the city so I'm far away from all the most exciting places, but once in a while my co-workers ,who go out way more than me, will take me out to random places, usually around downtown. But I never get which ones get picked on certain nights and so on. Most of the time, they don't even seem to care about who's playing at different places either.

edit: my favorite one so far is the Bamboo place on 17th. It was the most laid back, or maybe it was just that night. Last one we went to was Rhyno something. It was pretty crappy. (Oh and I forgot to mention, it's almost always a new place, every time.)

[CMPunk]

I go where I like...usually the Alley, where the drinks are cheap and the girls are cheaper

[drewboy12]

clubs in calgary suck. Alley is always fun tho. Melrose is fun to, not a club tho. Just a large bar... Better in summer

[Ozy_Flame]

Calgary is slowly switching over to a pub scene; the days of the really awesome clubs seem to have been at the turn of the millenium. That, or maybe I'm just getting older. I was at Vinyl a couple of months ago, first time in a bar in about a year...I was amused for all of half an hour, and then wanted to bail and grab a pint of ale.

I do admit though, if I have to go to one, I'll go to Hi-Fi or Amsterdam Rhino....Although if I had my choice I'd want the Night Gallery back.

[PyramidsofMars]

Ozy_Flame, do you think a pub scene is a bad thing? To me, the pub seems the perfect social atmosphere. And Calgary has some wicked pubs, the Ship is the obvious one but you've also got a couple of pretty good brewpubs, the Hop In, Rose & Crown, Bottlescrew Bill's, and really a whole bunch of others.

[AFireInside]

Originally Posted by CMPunk

I go where I like...usually the Alley, where the drinks are cheap and the girls are cheaper

DING DING DING.

I'm in the exact same boat. Music is alright as well... At least better than every other NIGHTCLUB!

[Addick]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

Calgary is slowly switching over to a pub scene; the days of the really awesome clubs seem to have been at the turn of the millenium. That, or maybe I'm just getting older.

I'm sorry, I think it's the latter or just personal preference. When I was in Calgary I thought it was more of a shift from club towards restolounges. I honestly think Calgary has the highest restolunges per capita in North American and large parts of the world. It was like a new lounge was opening every couple of weeks or weekly in the summer.

[Maritime Q-Scout]

I'm not much of a bar goer anymore. I'm more into the pub scene. I much prefer to sit, drink Keith's Draught, and chat, talk and carry on. I never liked the loud music because it takes away from the social atmosphere.

That said, where I come from where you went was decided based on the day of the week.

Tuesday: Daniel's
Wednesday: Steel City
Friday: Chandler's then Capri
Saturday: Smooth Herman's

Afternoons in the winter: The Pit
Afternoons in the summer: Bunkers

If you liked live music (not cover bands) that would shift to Maple Leaf or Bunkers or Chandlers depending on the night and band.

Now a city like Calgary is much bigger so competition is bigger, various types of bars, I'm assuming drink specials every night or other night. Not to mention the scene shifts. Watering holes back home are different now. A few of the bars I mentioned are no longer in operation or changed names/owners/format.

But at least for me, the choice of drinking establishment was determined based on the day of the week. Most Maritime cities/towns are the same as well.

[icarus]

Originally Posted by Addick

I'm sorry, I think it's the latter or just personal preference. When I was in Calgary I thought it was more of a shift from club towards restolounges. I honestly think Calgary has the highest restolunges per capita in North American and large parts of the world. It was like a new lounge was opening every couple of weeks or weekly in the summer.

What is a restolounge? What are some examples in Calgary? How does it differ from a gastropub?

[Addick]

Originally Posted by icarus

What is a restolounge? What are some examples in Calgary? How does it differ from a gastropub?

As the name implies it is pretty much a combination of a restaurant and lounge. During the day it likely functions more like a restaurant and during the evening it transitions towards its lounge functions (i.e. it may stop serving food), and some could even be described as a small or intimately-scaled nightclub/event venue. Examples of restolounges in Calgary would be: V-Bar, Opus on 8th, Seven, Tangerine, and Wild Ginger. It would differ from a gastropub in its presentation (i.e. usually more up-scale) and its focus (i.e. a gastropub is a pub focused on providing quality food whereas a restolounge is focused on providing an all-round high quality experience be it dining and/or entertainment).

[Muta]

Cowboys all night, everynight FTW.

[Sainters7]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

Calgary is slowly switching over to a pub scene; the days of the really awesome clubs seem to have been at the turn of the millenium. That, or maybe I'm just getting older. I was at Vinyl a couple of months ago, first time in a bar in about a year...I was amused for all of half an hour, and then wanted to bail and grab a pint of ale.

Bingo, that's exactly what it is. Happens to the best of us my friend, I made a similar transition a couple years back. I for one, welcome our new pub overlords.

[Starfishy]

Start hitting the pub scene instead of the club scene and you will not regret it. I have been forced into a few clubs lately and have yet to really enjoy myself. Overpriced everything, cold people, no ability to have a conversation... bahumbug!

[Phaneuf3]

Originally Posted by PyramidsofMars

Ozy_Flame, do you think a pub scene is a bad thing? To me, the pub seems the perfect social atmosphere. And Calgary has some wicked pubs, the Ship is the obvious one but you've also got a couple of pretty good brewpubs, the Hop In, Rose & Crown, Bottlescrew Bill's, and really a whole bunch of others.

Speaking of which.... Bottlescrew Bill's has really gone downhill the last few years. I need a new place to hang out. Any good suggestions in the same vein? The Hop in Brew and Rose & Crown are good suggestions. I also enjoy the Bear and Kilt from time to time.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by Phaneuf3

Speaking of which.... Bottlescrew Bill's has really gone downhill the last few years. I need a new place to hang out. Any good suggestions in the same vein? The Hop in Brew and Rose & Crown are good suggestions. I also enjoy the Bear and Kilt from time to time.

The Unicorn. I firmly believe the Unicorn is one of the most underrated pubs in Calgary.

As far as the OP; if I'm forced to go to a club it's usually one of Bamboo or Hi-Fi. Although the last two times I went to Hi-Fi the same bartender tried to rip me off. I caught him the second time and he freaked out on me.

I'm also partial to Ranchman's. I have no idea why, but I love hearing bad country music when I'm drunk. Also, there are some pretty trashy girls there - which is nice.

[troutman]

Clubs? We didn't have no clubs. Friday nights there would be a sock hop in the gym, and if you were lucky you got to make out during Stairway To Heaven. This was before the internets.

[PyramidsofMars]

Originally Posted by Phaneuf3

Speaking of which.... Bottlescrew Bill's has really gone downhill the last few years. I need a new place to hang out. Any good suggestions in the same vein? The Hop in Brew and Rose & Crown are good suggestions. I also enjoy the Bear and Kilt from time to time.

Here's a different sort of suggestion even though you asked for ones in the same vein... the Kawa espresso bar. Wonderful beer list, superb coffee (best in the city if you ask me), and good wine list too (from what I understand, I'm a beer guy). Reasonable prices, too.

You pretty much named three of the really good ones. Another really nice space is the Kensington pub. The James Joyce (and its equivalent in the SW, dunno the name but they have the same menu) is nice too. Beyond this sort of elite pub most of the pubs in Calgary seem to be kinda samey, and relatively decent, a space to sit and the beer selection is around the same in loads of different pubs. So long as you avoid the really crappy ones (you'll know when you walk in) you can't really go wrong. Try the Brew Brothers brewpub if you haven't already. Robbie Stewart's in Kensington is really nice, it's focused on sports but is a LOT nicer than your average sports bar and has a nice atmosphere and good service. Plus it's cheaper than the pubs across the river in downtown. I had some other suggestions, but I gotta head to class now.

[PyramidsofMars]

Originally Posted by rubecube

The Unicorn. I firmly believe the Unicorn is one of the most underrated pubs in Calgary.

.

Underrated? The bartenders suck and it's ridiculously expensive considering the overall quality and selection.

[Phaneuf3]

Originally Posted by rubecube

The Unicorn. I firmly believe the Unicorn is one of the most underrated pubs in Calgary.

The Unicorn's a neat place. I haven't been there too much there's no point in even trying to get in on a Friday at about quitting time.

Originally Posted by PyramidsofMars

Here's a different sort of suggestion even though you asked for ones in the same vein... the Kawa espresso bar. Wonderful beer list, superb coffee (best in the city if you ask me), and good wine list too (from what I understand, I'm a beer guy). Reasonable prices, too.

You pretty much named three of the really good ones. Another really nice space is the Kensington pub. The James Joyce (and its equivalent in the SW, dunno the name but they have the same menu) is nice too. Beyond this sort of elite pub most of the pubs in Calgary seem to be kinda samey, and relatively decent, a space to sit and the beer selection is around the same in loads of different pubs. So long as you avoid the really crappy ones (you'll know when you walk in) you can't really go wrong. Try the Brew Brothers brewpub if you haven't already. Robbie Stewart's in Kensington is really nice, it's focused on sports but is a LOT nicer than your average sports bar and has a nice atmosphere and good service. Plus it's cheaper than the pubs across the river in downtown. I had some other suggestions, but I gotta head to class now.

Kawa eh? Never heard of it but it sounds interesting. I'll give that a try sometime. Thanks.

Is Brew Brothers still open?! I had heard they closed down or at least changed their name and style of place. I spent FAR too much time and money at that place several years ago. Ambush Ale FTW!

Never heard of Robbie Stewart's but it's now on my list.

[troutman]

Robbie Stewart's went out of business in record time. Looks like the owners abandoned the pub in the middle of the night to the landlords. That location is cursed - everything that opens there fails.

http://ugonnaeatthat.com/2009/12/24/...bbie-stewarts/

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/614882

http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/15/14491...ts-Pub-Calgary