Night life might be a young person’s game, but that doesn’t mean that those born before the Reagan years can’t go out clubbing anymore. For one thing, they can go to Retroclubnyc, a mild but entertaining dance club that opened in Chelsea in late summer.
The nostalgia-laden spot caters to a more mature crowd longing for familiar music, less raucous ambience, and old-fashioned cocktails served without irony. “I wanted to bring people back to the day where they enjoyed dancing to great music,” said the owner Jeff Wittels, 57, who previously worked in music entertainment, investment banking and wine sales. “People want to hear things they’re familiar with. ‘Oh, I remember those songs. I was younger.’”
The Place
The club, which is next to the Malibu Diner on West 23rd Street, is fronted by a glass window encasing three disco glitter balls, the word “Bar” jutting above the entrance. Inside, the narrow banquette leads to a long bar, the walls featuring a butterfly-and-floral motif that looks borrowed from a TV movie version of a 1970s uptown disco. Farther back is the dance floor, where three more glitter balls hang over the crowd, as strobe lights and sometimes fog effects recreate that old disco feeling without any of the decadence.
The Crowd
Groups of female friends seem to be a specialty here. On a December Friday, Jessica Dixon, a 40-something producer with three children, admitted she got tired of realizing she was among the oldest people in clubs. She was loving her first trip to Retroclubnyc. One of the friends she was with, Jeanette Monniger, a child psychologist, said, “I like that I get home before 12 and I still have a good eight hours sleep.”
The Playlist
You won’t hear Kendrick Lamar or Childish Gambino. The Friday night D.J., who goes by Monica, prefers the ’70s hits of the Bee Gees and the ’80s ones of Madonna. “Disco Inferno” by the Trammps gets the crowd boogieing a little harder.
Getting In
The doorman favors people over 30 in business casual attire, but basically anyone who wants a part of this throwback gets pulled in for $10.
Drinks
Even the cocktails here are old. The full bar includes retro favorites like cosmos, margaritas and Harvey Wallbangers. There are familiar snacks, too, like a shrimp cocktail for a very current price, $18.