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Queens, NY
I greatly prefer the clubs in Queens over those in Manhattan. The Queens clubs are less pretentious, less expensive, rarely have many tourists and are overall everything that the Manhattan clubs are not.
Below are some of the clubs that I have recently visited. These clubs represent about 1/2 of the clubs in Queens. Now a few of the clubs that did not make the list are bikini and/or don't serve alcohol, but there it is.
From worst to best, IMHO:
Perfection
The club is beautiful, with multiple levels and some cool lighting on the bar. From an optics and decor standpoint I have to rate it well - it was a neat scene. It was, I should note, also very busy in there, no doubt due to the high-end club vibe (or perhaps for other reasons that I never learned).
But everything else about the place sucked. First, the cover charge was $25. In Queens? Then, after a pat down, I was told that I could not take my cigarettes in (I sometimes smoke when I drink). I told security that I had no intention of smoking them in the club, but he insisted that I either bring them back to the car or dispose of them, which was the only real option as I cabbed it to the club.
Upon learning that the owners of this club are the same guys that own Rouge and Rush Hour (and used to own the now closed Cityscapes), it came as no surprise when my booze came out heavily watered down AND via a mechanical shot spout.
Also, there is virtually no seating, including at the large bar that surrounds the stage. It was quite odd to be at a bar that did not have seats, but there it is.
Oh, and the girls. Mostly 5-6s and most were very thick. They were primarily black and Latinas. Now I normally like Latinas very much, but these girls needed to ease up on the tortillas a bit. Not what I was expecting after the heavy cover charge and high prices for watered down booze. However, the bartenders were very friendly and MUCH hotter than the dancers.
I don't see myself returning very soon.
Rush Hour
This is a local watering hole, despite its proximity to the BQE. I have been in here a few times in the past several months, but nothing really changes. In normal Queens fashion, the bar is set in a square around the dance stage. This bar/stage setup actually takes up most of the floor space in this club, which is very small.
This place is ethnically mixed, with a couple of latinas, blacks and Russians. Most range between 6-7, with no pigs but no real knockouts either. There is a lapdance area in a room near the entrance of the club, but I have never seen anyone in there. The crowd is mostly local working class and I don't see many of them springing for expensive (and not very rewarding) dances.
This place is indeed owned by the same crew that own Rouge and used to own the now closed down Cityscapes. Unfortunately, the practice of watering down the liquor seems to have followed into this club.
This did not seem like a place for extras. Hell, the girls barely tried to work a hustle even to sell lap dances, and they tended to congregate with each other rather than the patrons when they were not dancing.
Overall ok, but nothing to write home about.
Secrets
This is a small club with a small stage behind the bar where a single dancer strips. The girls are decent looking and there is a mix of ethnicities in here, including a fair amount of Latinas. The LD's are $25 per song and are heavily monitored from two cameras that are looking right down on you.
I have had a decent, but not great, time in here. All of the trapping of a dive club with none of the benefits. ;)
Starlet
The last time I visited there were no customers. As I hit the bar, the bartender came out from somewhere, the DJ went into the booth from a seat on the floor and one of the dancers jumped onto the stage. There were only 2 girls on shift, though both were fairly hot. They were also both Russian, but that is no surprise in Queens.
My Jack on the rocks was $9.50 and was a mechanically measured shot. However, at least it was not watered down, which is a problem in certain other clubs in Queens.
Each of the 2 girls working had to do a 15 minute stage rotation, all for my amusement as I was the only customer there for much of my visit. I sat with one of the girls for awhile and she was very nervous about a large party expected at 2:00 am - very hard to entertain 15 guys with only 2 girls. I might have taken her for a few dances just to reward her for her time, but she was heavily perfumed and I did not want the scent on my clothes.
Anyway, it was an amusing and otherwise decent stop.
Rouge
In typical Queens fashion, this club has a main stage with a bar running around it on all sides. This club is not that big, but it has a very large stage, which dominates the center of the room, with a lot of barside seating. I went in on a Monday night and was not charged a cover, but would not be surprised if there normally is one.
Last time I visited there were about 15 girls on shift and they were almost all beautiful and virtually all had hot bodies. There were three girls dancing at a time, and each girl does a tip walk after her set. Most, but not all, were Russian or from the former Soviet countries. I was surprised to find a club packed with this much talent in Queens - even when considering Gallagher in the equation. I did not do a dance with any of them but one of the girls that I spoke with complained that it was harder to sell dances in this club than it was in her last club because the LDs are monitored more carefully. That was all I needed to hear to keep me out of the LD area ;)
I drank Jack on the rocks, with a single shot pour running at $9. They use a mechanical spout cover the pours a measured shot, so no generous pour in this place. In order to actually have a full Jack on the rocks I had to pay for a "double shot" drink, for which they charged me $18. Also the guy that owns this club is notorious for watering the liquor, which is also a problem at his other club in the area (Rush Hour) and used to be the practice at the now closed Cityscapes (also was owned by him).
Net-net, between the constant three girl tip walks and the stingy (and watered) booze pouring this place is low on the value scale, but the talent made it a good trip overall.
Gallagher 2000
I normally arrive around 7:30, near the end of the dayshift. I find the security procedures here to be funny because, at 7:30, there is often nobody manning the reception desk or the metal detector and one could waltz right in with a Howitzer, but at 8:00 you pay a cover, get I.D.'ed and are made to go through the metal detector routine.
The days are filled primarily with Latinas and a few Russians. At 8, the day girls start leaving and the night girls start walking in. There is a period of time between 8 and 9 or so when there are very few girls on the floor. The night girls tend to be quite hot and this can be a fun place if you like Slavic women.
The stage, like other Queens clubs, surrounds the bar. During busier times, there are often three girls dancing at once, which means triple the tipping on the tip walk. There are also some table seats sprinkled around, but I usually prefer the bar for quick drink service ;)
At night the hustle factor is high, with lots of "wanna dance" stuff. I am not a big fan of straight lap dances and have never done one here, but if a girl sits for a while I will tip for her time.
Overall a decent club but frankly I've never understood its hype. It may be due to the fact that, compared to Manhattan clubs, this place is a breath of fresh air where you can still see hot girls and get good lap dances without the Manhattan pricing grid. Personally, however, I find the Russians girls to be a little less entertaining than some other types and view this club as ok, but not mind blowing.
Goldfinger
This place is located on the far side of Queens (as measured in proximity to Manhattan). It is a small club with a fairly good mix of girls, including some Slavics and Latinas. It is more of a relaxed neighborhood club than anything else. The girls are generally 5-8s and a friendly girl can be found here.
In the last few months I have had a couple of good nights here – though not always ended on premises ;) I hear a lot about the lap dance and VIP areas, at least enough to realize the club’s name is not a misnomer, but usually other outlets present themselves. Good booze, relaxed atmosphere, some stage shows, and a great finale – what is not to like about this place?
Scandals
This place is in Long Island City and is very close to Manhattan. Oddly for Queens, this place has a mix of Russians and Latinas during the day but does not allow Russians to work there at night, apparently in order to draw people who do not like Russian dancers as many of the other clubs are loaded with them in the evenings.
This place can be fun, and the combination of a energetic atmosphere and proximity to Manhattan makes it a favorite of mine. It can be expensive here, but there are also opportunities to find friendly girls here if you play your cards right. And many of the night girls are very nice to look at, though not quite as nice as some of the girls in Rouge, Gallaghers or some of the top Manhattan clubs.
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Re: Queens, NY
^I also failed to mention the Riviera club, which I used to visit every now and again. This is usually a young crowd and the dancers were very young when I used to go there. What got me most though was the music - it was deafening. It is almost impossible to talk to the girls, so IME it was difficult to build raport or get to anything besides "wanna dance." This is the main reason that I stopped going to this club.
I would also welcome comments on the few clubs in Queens that I have not visited, including Port O' Call and a few others.
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Re: Queens, NY
Here I was expecting a comprehensive club report and we get...this? Next time, put some effort into it, dude.
Seriously, wonderful work. It is much appreciated.
CP
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Re: Queens, NY
the strip clubs in queens are all shitholes. I used to live there and never went. Actually in the 90s there used to be a club called NAKED CITY in the mid nineties and they had some hot ones there.
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Re: Queens, NY
To me the attraction of G2000 is the price of the private room. The value there can't be beat in Manhattan, at least as far as I can tell. That is especially true now that the nude clubs in Manhattan have closed.
I will have to check out your top two on a future trip to NYC.
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Re: Queens, NY
^A bit has changed since I originally posted this. Goldingers has moved and is now called Goldfinger Infinity, but I think it is still worth checking out. Scandals, however, has tightened up a bit and is now just very expensive and not overly fun, so I would move G2000 ahead of it now.
In any event, good luck.