[Cool Bars ]Dance & Shout
What happens here doesn’t stay here
Blue Martini
Blue Martini is one of those rare dance clubs that is age neutral, with 20-something bar-goers partying with the over-40 crowd in a flirtatious atmosphere. This is where older-but-you-would-never-know-that-by-looking-at-them women hit on younger men and players work the room. High-energy bands performing Top 40, Latin or R&B standards give Blue Martini a Vegas vibe, but what happens here likely won’t stay here: Everyone seems to be recording YouTube moments with camera phones. To escape the packed room, step into the adjoining patio bar, which favors a laid-back tropical scene. 4200 Conroy Road, Suite H-246, Mall at Millenia, Orlando. 407-447-2583. bluemartinilounge.com
Dance to classic rock
Dexter’s
The live music isn’t as good as it is loud, but when everyone in Dexter’s is singing along to “Jumping Jack Flash,” the lead singer could be lip synching for all anyone knows. Dexter’s brings to its Winter Park and Lake Mary locations barely average white bands that play rock tunes at full volume. Dancing to AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell” isn’t easy—or maybe it is if you’re two quarts low on rhythm (and maybe a quart high on fluid). The Winter Park site gets a dressed-down baby boomer crowd while the Lake Mary location draws a markedly younger and dressier clientele. 558 West New England Avenue, Winter Park. 407-629-1150.
950 Market Promenade Avenue, Lake Mary. 407-805-3090. dexwine.com
I want to flaunt my money, myself
Bliss Premiere
Ultra Lounge
If you’re still lucky enough to be among the conspicuously wealthy, Bliss Premiere Ultra Lounge is the place for you. Relax on a plush couch in a VIP room, order a $3,100 bottle of Louis XIII de Remy Martin Cognac and leave those worries about the plunging economy to others. The two-level dance and entertainment nightclub is Orlando’s answer to the socialite and celebrity hangouts in New York and Los Angeles. The clientele is young, well-dressed and conspicuously uninhibited on the dance floor—and with their money. 123 West Church Street, Orlando. 407-849-5060. blissorlando.com
I want to get loud, raunchy and wasted
Howl at the Moon
When only a raucous party will do, head for this I-Drive mainstay that’s as popular with locals as it is with tourists. Here dueling piano entertainers take requests (no stinting at the tip jar, please) and play jump-up-and-boogie versions of familiar tunes, sometimes improvising bawdy lyrics as they sing. The rest of the staff also gets into the act, keeping patrons primed to sing along by serving drink specialties of the tube shot and Jell-O shot varieties. Howl is a favorite hangout of former *NSYNC star Joey Fatone, who stops in to sing with the house musicians. The loud and tightly packed room doesn’t allow for idle conversation, but what would you expect from a place called Howl at the Moon? 8815 International Drive, Orlando. 407-354-5999. howlatthemoon.com
