The Good Stuff
By floor9 on Jun 16, 2006 in Downtown
So we’ve pretty much established that the area has room for improvement. And that’s a given; nobody’s perfect, and downtown — and the rest of central PA, for that matter — is no exception. Drink prices can always come down, the service can always get faster, the music can always be tweaked just a little bit more … you get the idea. With that in mind, what do you actually LIKE about area nightlife? No four-word limitations here, but I’ll start:
Max has his hands in Noma, and it’s coming back. Apparently it’s going to be very much like the first Noma — great.
We can walk — WALK — from lounge to Irish pub to restaurant to martini lounge to lounge to nightclub to … whatever Brick Haus is … to sports bar (Zembie’s, of course) to another nightclub to massage parlor another Irish pub. Assuming you can find a parking spot to begin with, of course.
And I’m going to buck the trend by standing up for Duke’s. I love that place. I’ve never had bad service, the food has always been “good” at worst (although I did get violently ill a few months back from their wings), and aside from the giant spiders that drop down and run off with your steak, it’s always been an enjoyable experience. There’s nothing quite like a 10-hour marathon session on the deck followed by a late-night run to HersheyPark.
I’m also going to stand up for The Quarter. Their issues are small and controllable at this point. Lower their prices, improve service, and add security. If they tackle them now, while they’re still new enough to be forgiven, they’ll be fine. Everything else is in place; building, location, size, design — they’ve just got to nail those three points and they’re golden.
Thoughts? Yours?
I think it’s wonderful for everyone that the “oh my god it was so bleeping great” Noma is being revived. Wonder if anyone will go and pay for $12 martinis this time around?
Hi | Jun 16, 2006 | Reply
dude, i’ll go back to noma in a heartbeat. i was a regular at noma almost until the bitter end (ie. the extreme shift in music that led to it’s lack of patronage, addition of wood planks, and crafty advertising for a bar when you are sitting at the bar). i’ve had loads of fun at noma, i’ve seen / done things that i cannot begin to describe - someone trapping themself in the elevator just inside of one of the emergency exit doors and being so intoxicated that they couldn’t find their way out was a classic (this was not me). i will gladly pay the price for atmosphere. i don’t calculate a good night by how drunk i get… i calculate it by how poor i get. the poorer i am by the end of the night, the better it was.
i personally like the quarter. i think people want to hate it because it’s big and the owner is kind of self-absorbed in every interview (the one in last month’s fly magazine? jesus). prices will ultimately come down. the hat policy will ultimately be relaxed (you may not remember that mars, at it’s start and through it’s prime, had a similar hat policy - even awesome, old man, pimping hats got shut down). the gin mill is great, whether people are there or not has nothing to do with how quality it is - i’d rather people not be there so i can hang out with my friends and not have to talk above loud music. i haven’t had a free minute to check out the 3rd floor yet, i may do that tonight.
i like ceolta’s, i didn’t think i would and initially did not - but every time i go there, i have a pretty decent time. nice atmosphere, very relaxed, and the clientele comes from the elusive mid 20 to mid 30’s demographic who don’t act the fool and put on plastic construction helmets. i think the staff is finally working into a groove and will soon operate like clockwork.
i love the red door, i always have. excellent service, excellent in house soundtrack, excellent decorum. again, prices don’t bother me - service does.
there is a conflict of interest, but i do dig jackie blue a lot. i’ve never had a bad dish there, the food consistently murders everything i’ve ever had in my life to that moment (i’m not big on gourmet food - gourmet to me is sun chips instead of pringles, so this may be an overstatement for seasoned veterans of high class dining; but it’s fucking class). nice in house soundtrack too *cough*. who would put 1970’s nigerean afrobeat pioneer fela kuti on a bar playlist? *cough*
i’m looking forward to the expansion of small restaurants into midtown. the new orleans themed place sounds like it’ll be proper. similarly, i don’t know why people don’t know about mangia qui and suba. that place is the shit, fantastic tapas and extremely knowledgable service. i think i pissed off the one woman by ordering a drink with cachaca in it and hating it; it’s not your fault - cachaca and i don’t get along… ever. do yourself a favor and catch oba oba brasil when they are at suba, amazing local act in a quaint space - off the chains.
most importantly, above all else, i now laugh at the idea that there is nothing to do. some days i wish there were less to do, because i could very easily go out every day of the week and find excitement. wednesday to saturday are jammed with nightlife activities week in and week out. there is definitely a ’so-so is playing at so-so’ vibe since information doesn’t get dispersed as it should, but the spur of the moment plan changes make things fun. in my opinion, harrisburg is more interesting than it ever has been since the start of the second street scene. it’s noticibally smaller in terms of overall patronage, but the amount of things to do and the diversity of venues is, so far, unparalleled.
cosby | Jun 16, 2006 | Reply
I got nothin’…seriously. I tried to find some good in the HBG scene over the many, many years but simply could not and hence why I left. I had more fun in the days when the Vault was around and DT wasn’t the in thing, so there is no hope for people like me at this point in time; DT caters too much to the mainstream (and I say that meaning the mainstream in Harrisburg), and there is just no way around that…
I also don’t like the fact that the big news in the area is when another Taregt/JC Penny’s/5th Ruby Tuesday’s is opening a block down from the other ones! I have been from coast to coast and I have never seen a place so completely saturated with the same crap…
Okay, the thing I DO like about South Central PA are the environs, no doubt about it! There is NOTHING like walking along the river, Wildwood Park, etc. I have never been so moved in my life as I have the many times I watched T-storms roll in over the mountains. But at the end of the day I am a city rat through and through and all of this doesn’t hold me over for too long, so…
Cosby: I see what you are saying but what you said here:
“it’s noticibally smaller in terms of overall patronage, but the amount of things to do and the diversity of venues is, so far, unparalleled.”
Is exactly what I DON’T like about it! I like to see and meet new people, and I always get the Cheers vibe when I step into the few places I like in Harrisburg. Yes, it is true that I spent 28 yrs. of my life there and this is bound to happen. But I do think HBG and all of its places should heed your suggestion re: marketing and try to bring some new, fresh faces in. I think this would happen for sure if 2nd St. got some DIVERSITY and different places opened instead of the same ‘ol same ‘ol (overall) all the freaking time…
And you can’t tell me there aren’t other people out there who want to open something in DT HBG. I respect Kamioka (sp?) and what he did, but he needs some competition, and I don’t like the monopoly he and his partners have on the DT scene. In fact I will go so far as to say this is exactly why DT is stale.
But make no mistake, even though I don’t agree many times and SC PA is just not the place for me, I TOTALLY respect your guys’ viewpoints and keep doing what you are doing, as this is exactly what HBG needs right now: people like you folks to stay and pump new ideas into it, and challenge the status quo!
Dave | Jun 16, 2006 | Reply
Okay, I thought of a few more GOOD things:
Like Dave said, I like how compact and walkable DT is.
The HBG skyline is not that bad at all for a city its size and getting better with each new building added.
The Capitol - Still my favorite in the U.S. and I have seen A LOT up close and personal.
Shipoke. God how I miss thee, floods and all. :(
Kipona/American Music Fest/Arts Fest/Riverfront Park in general (although I am a little upset about the City keeping so tight lipped about the attempted rape that occurred there last weekend, but this is another subject for another thread).
City Island - Not a bad little place to walk/jog at.
My friends - Yeah, I left a few behind when I moved. Although I still feel HBG is rittled with some of the most miserable, backstabbing people on the planet, there are some really good people there too and I miss my true friends that are still living there.
THE LOWER COST OF LIVING - SC PA is a bargain when compared to the rest of the region it is in. What I pay here in Philly in rent I could easily get a luxury apt. and/or a huge house in HBG. Of course we all know there is a reason for the higher COL here, but still, the point is HBG is a bargain (and not to mention I could be in Philly in just over an hour anyway, and if PA ever gets its act together re: high speed rail transit…).
That’s about all for now and I wanted to show there’s not total hatin’ going on here. ;)
Dave | Jun 17, 2006 | Reply
I agree with most of the above points. I am spending the weekend in a small town on the Hudson river in NY, and there is a small strip of bars on Main St that are off the hook. I have been commenting non-stop about how I wish Harrisburg would drop the ultra drunk frat party vibe in every freaking DT spot and get some ATMOSPHERE. it’s all about listening to good chill music, being able to talk without losing your voice, and being able to turn around and chat up a rewarding conversation with whomever happens to be next to you. CLEAN UP THE STREETS! One thing I don’t like is how un-friendly the vibe is out on the street when you are walking between bars or leaving for the night. I feel like fights could break out at any moment anywhere and that is just not cool. Stop condoning and promoting this vibe Harrisburg!
I’d like to see smaller bars open with unique lighting, music, feel, etc. Let it reflect the owner’s personality and not what the ‘mainstream’ (idiots) wants. I am proud and honored and happy to be a part of Oba Oba Brasila and Chesterattic. If you don’t know, the former is a big-a$$ Brasilian band and the latter is a 4-piece nu-jazz/funk/fusion group. I’d like to see more bands pop up with a different approach to music. Honestly, the approach each of these bands are taking is not that unique, it’s just unique in Harrisburg because there is NO DIVERSITY!
Check this site out for dates/venues/showtimes for both groups:
http://www.myspace.com/chesterattic
Thankfully, we are playing at the more diverse venues in town. My thanks to Jay and Cirus at Jackie Blue for supporting Chesterattic and now Oba Oba Brasil. Those guys are freaking awesome. I would also like to give a huge thanks to Qui and Gata, and all the other lovely ladies at Mangia Qui and SUBA.
SUBA + Oba Oba Brasil + beautiful Brasilian girls dancing = good times.
These club owners are making it happen and I hope the others catch on soon. I’d like to see more bands pop up that take a unique approach and play music they love. The pool of musicians is SC PA is severely lacking! 3/4 of Chesterattic is in Oba Oba! We can’t get enough of this stuff, so if any killer musicians are reading this, drop me a line.
I moved here from Miami about 2.5 years ago and I am finally starting to find a niche I like here. I think there needs to be some major overhauling of the vibe, though. I know there are enough cool people here that we can do something.
Erik | Jul 1, 2006 | Reply