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| - The Prohibition era is making a hot comeback right now. After all, what makes us want to do something more than being told that we shouldn't do it?
Velvet's another nighttime spot capitalizing on the trend. Here, however, Prohibition goes chic - the club is located in the basement of a rustic-but-modern auberge (Auberge St-Gabriel) in the Old Port, and has one of the coolest club spaces in Montreal. With a long hallway leading you to the party, stone walls on all sides and candles everywhere, the place actually up kept its reputation as the city's best kept secret long after its secret was out.
Smoke fills the underground room as the fashionable crowd made up of high-rollers, nightlife regulars, the slightly eccentric and the hipster-ish dance the night away. The 18-to-40-something year-olds are quite good-looking, or, at least, that's what I gathered from the little I saw through the smoke. The music is usually a mix of minimal tech, house and electro - don't count on any Rihanna here - but it seems to please even the pop-lovers despite the few lapses in momentum. Unfortunately there are only 2 bathrooms for the entire club. It makes the wait relatively long, especially when they're also being used for extracurricular activities. (If you're willing to go up the stairs, there are more bathrooms there!)
The barmen/maids are fast, and their drinks are good. Their specialty drinks ($8-$10) are actually really good - try the cucumber Hendrix (Hendricks' rose petal and cucumber infused gin, dry vermouth, fresh cucumber) - and strong. After paying a 10$ entrance fee, free-pouring and generosity are key. Or hey, you can always get on the guestlist and enjoy the strong drinks just for the hell of it.
Music 7.5/10, Pretty people ?/10, Service 8.5/10, Drinks (strooong) 9.5/10, Dancing-friendly 9.5/10.
Pictures: http://belledenuitmontreal.com/posts/velvet/
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