So, I thought the curse that plagued the space at 843 Lee Road in Winter Park was lifted after Duke's set up shop there three and a half years ago.

Not so much. Now there's a new name and concept in the space that has changed names more times than Diddy.

The new 11/12 Lounge Entertainment & Sports Bar does have a neat hook, though, that may help it outlast its predecessors, who along with Duke's include Aura, Cyberzone, Infinity, The Breakfast Club and Scores Sports Bar & Grill. And I'm not even mentioning the two restaurants that stood there before all of those bar concepts.

But back to the hook: 11/12 Lounge has an open bar every night between 11 p.m. and midnight. As far as gimmicks go, it's not a bad one. Even when it's not open bar, the prices are fair.

The other night a couple of friends and I stopped by during the club's happy hour, which occurs daily 4--7 p.m. A friend's two-fer on his Captain and Coke cost him $6, and a Riesling was $4.50 and heavy on the pour, which really worked out since that was also two-for-one. More like four-for-one, in my opinion. My domestic bottle was $4, which was the only part of the bill that I thought was out of line, but if they're going for a club atmosphere, liquor is usually the poison of choice.

That is, if they're going for a club atmosphere, because from my visit I wasn't completely sure. The predominantly black-and-red venue has all the markings of a club; first of all it's gi-normous, the hardwood dance floor alone could probably fit 500 people. The stage at the far end of the dance area could fit Sam Rivers and his Rivbea Orchestra comfortably, and the DJ booth at the opposite end could sleep a family of three. And that's just the dance area -- there are two VIP sections over by the octagonal bar located in the first section of 11/12, and that room could easily fit another 300 or so. Flat screens were set up throughout the space playing music videos; even though there's a ton of dance space there's also ample seating for those who just want to hang and drink. An outside patio allows for more seating for the smokers in the crowd.

But still, it looks like a club, which is why I'm puzzled by the "Entertainment & Sports Bar" part of the club's name. The bartender mentioned to us that a menu that included sushi and crab cakes was being brought in, and I had to wonder why? This is a solid club-and-music-venue concept. There's no reason to serve food, or be open so early for that matter, unless you have the money to have a space that big empty for a while. It seems 11/12 is trying to be something for everyone, when they really need to home in on being a fun nightclub.

There are things 11/12 has started to help them toward that goal. First, there is never a cover for ladies during its themed nights. Those include jazz, blues and R&B on Mondays and Tuesdays, '70s night on Wednesdays and '80s night on Thursdays. The weekends will see DJs and hopefully bands booked on that large stage, according to our bartender.

There is a dress code: no gym shoes, athletic wear, T-shirts or flats and sandals. Could you repeat that sports bar part of the name again? My friends and I were pretty lax in our wear, but it was only 7 p.m.

I'm looking forward to seeing if 11/12 has the stuff to make this space finally become a success. If they focus on what exactly they want to be, they just might have a chance.

11/12 Lounge is at 843 Lee Road in Winter Park, call 407-539-3410.

Remember when I told you guys about the city of Winter Park pushing around those fine folks just wanting to put on a St. Patrick's Day parade? Well, the community got involved to make sure that the parade took place, in fact it's happening this weekend. Kinda early for St. Patrick's Day but at least it's happening. If you want to check it out and show your support for the folks that fought to keep this Winter Park tradition alive, head over to the Winter Park Country Club and Golf Course at 761 Old England Ave. on March 2 at 2 p.m. where the parade starts and marches to Park Avenue, ending at the city hall. For those of you ready to continue the party after the parade, head over to Central Park for Irish music and dancing. For more information call 407-366-3402.

 

Column from Friday, enjoy!

I had forgotten just how stunning the Cheyenne Saloon & Opera House was until I stepped back into the building for its grand opening last weekend.

Then again, I wonder if I ever appreciated how beautiful it was originally, before the Church Street venue closed seven years ago. The last time I was there, I was freshly legal to drink, which is probably why the memory is a bit fuzzy. I remember a friend was meeting up with some guy who dug country music as much as she did -- me? Not so much. I hung out by the ornate staircase and kept company with a bottle of Bud.

Then again, did anyone fully appreciate Church Street in its heyday? We all knew it was a fun place to go when relatives were in town -- or, as in my case, if you wanted to escape the suburban constraints of being a teenager in Lake Mary. Most just accepted its always being there. And then one day, it wasn't.

Today, the place is a sight, from the three tiers of saloon seating overlooking the dance floor and stage in the center of the 20,000-square-foot wooden structure to the stained glass and brass throughout. The employees were in Wild West saloon period gear and all had smiles on their faces.

The smiles carried over to the packed house, there to see Collin Raye, the act rechristening the stage of Orlando's version of the Grand Ole Opry. A couple of friends in our group that evening are big fans of Raye; the rest of us are big fans of bars, and this was topping the list of one of the most beautiful I had ever seen. We sat on the second tier, directly behind the stage -- since we were facing the performer's back, the big screen anchored from the ceiling helped folks in obstructed-view seating get a glimpse of the show.

The crowd was definitely mixed, with fans of yesteryear packing the house along with younger country fans checking out what is a new venue to them.

Hopefully, they'll keep acts such as Raye coming, because the drink prices were a bit high for the dust bowl that is currently Church Street. With $7 Jack and Cokes, I had to double-check I was actually on Church Street and not Disney property. I know there are bills to be paid in a place like this, but you want the people to keep coming, and with prices like that it will be hard to justify no matter how beautiful it is.

Especially when the post-apocalyptic area that is 55 West's construction site is making Church Street look like it dead-ends smack dab in the middle of the street. But even without the music acts, the outdoor seating on the second floor and pool table and barbecue restaurant on the third give reason for people to stick around. We had a fabulous time talking about and gawking at all the antiques that adorn the building.

One suggestion though: The place really cleared out after Raye left the stage, and a house band came on playing "Brick House" and other wedding-reception faves. I'll dance to anything, but the majority of the crowd came to see a Nashville act -- as my friend Brad put it, "It would probably be a good idea if they kept playing country music, you know, since this is a country bar."

I'm not a big country fan, but he had a valid point. Who goes to a country bar to hear "Smooth" by Santana? And a club this size emptied by 11:15 on a Saturday night is not a good thing.

I only mention this because I really, really want Cheyenne Saloon to succeed, and hopefully breathe life into this area again. The fact that this beautiful building sat in dust for the past seven years is a shame; I don't want to see that happen again.

Cheyenne Saloon & Opera House is at 128 W. Church St., Suite 13 in downtown Orlando, go to cheyennesaloonandoperahouse .com

So, my friends and I were out at Sportstown Billiards last night, off of Bumby in Orlando. We like this bar -- for the most part.

On the plus side, Sportstown has reasonable prices for beer, a tasty Cuban sandwich (and pasta salad!) and Scrabble. On the negative side, you need to constantly keep track of how many beers you've had or how long you've been playing pool. The staff is friendly as hell, but they'll put the screw to ya if you aren't watching. Many a time, I've been overcharged for beers or pool time, as well as others I know. This is a major complaint about Sportstown, which sucks because it's such a great bar.

Well, that said, we all still go there, we just keep a watchful eye on our tabs. At the end of last night after a game of Scrabble and Hedbanz (imagine 20 questions with a silly headband on your head) we discovered another flaw about Sportstown, again a money issues. They charged my friend $3.50 to use his credit card. His tab was like $20 and they wanted to charge $3.50 on top of it. He had a valid point as he loudily voiced his opinion to the bartenders letting them know there isn't a business in town that would charge for use of a credit card, especially at that outrageous percentage.

And then to boot, he noticed they charged him for an extra beer. Figures. I'm not saying don't go there folks because it's a cool bar, just watch the amount you drink and keep your mind on your money and your money on your mind, because they'll make sure they get it if you don't pay attention.

Rumors are swirling that CityJazz is on its way out of CityWalk. Screamscape.com has a posting saying on March 16 CityJazz will close down and reopen as a new karaoke bar concept on March 22. Which wouldn't be too much of a shocker, since the big band movement ended like 8 years ago and there hasn't been much of a target audience for the venue sans the comedy club Bonkerz which sets up shop in the venue. I called Universal and got a quick no comment, which tells me there may be some truth to the rumor. I'll keep you updated, and hopefully soon Universal wont' be so tight-lipped.

So let's start the blog off with some good news, turns out a familiar face will be returning to Church Street in downtown Orlando next week. The much-loved Cheyenne Saloon will be opening its doors again on Valentine's Day. The country-themed nightclub will have LONESTAR play at 9:30 p.m., Collin Raye will play Feb. 15 and Lee Greenwood on Feb. 16.

I'm not a big fan of country music, but I'm a big fan of bars and many have colored me a bit nostalgic so I'll be stopping by for sure. For more info on the grand re-opening or the acts go to www.cheyennesaloonandoperahouse.com or call 407-839-3000.

Now for the bad, it seems the city of Winter Park is playing bully to some of its own folks and business owners. The city has come across my desk twice today. Once in connection with the Winter Park St. Patrick's Day Parade almost being canceled and another time for playing a role in an impending lawsuit against the city of Winter Park by Eli Tobias, owner of Black Chapel Tattoo on 2180 W. Fairbanks Ave.

First, the parade problem, that has now been resolved for the most part. For the past 29 years Jack Burbridge of the Irish-American Cultural Society says the parade has taken place due in part by donations from local businesses and the certificate of insurance being waived by the city. Supposedly, according to Burbridge that tacks on an extra $3000. That was until this year when the city didn't waive the certificate jeopardizing this Winter Park tradition (that's a lot of coin to raise). Thankfully, in the nick of time, beer distributor Schenck popped for the $3000 to make the parade happen. Yay Schenck, tsk tsk City of Winter Park.

Now worse, it seems the city is harassing a reputable and well-liked business owner Eli Tobias. You may remember Eli from his downtown ventures Eli's Cribb and Thee Grotto. Those businesses were pushed out by Cameron Kuhn, for real estate redevelopment. Have you walked by that building lately? It's been covered up for the past three years with no redevelopment or any kind of development happening at all. What a waste! But I digress. So now Tobias is a target again, but this time from the City of Winter Park.

Back in December, the Winter Park Police Department shut him down for an expired occupational license, turns out it's not the police department's job to do that and it's not grounds for closing a business.

The next day Tobias was informed by the city that he could no longer give away alcoholic beverages to his clients because he doesn't have a license. The tattoo shop has an occupational license (when it was reinstated) of "art studio/studio gallery. Has anyone been to an art or fashion show at any of the salons or galleries around Winter Park? Giving away alcohol is a regular occurrence. I bet if those Park Avenue types added a few tattoos and body piercings to their current look they would be getting warnings as well. Is that how it works Winter Park? You have to look a certain way and then the laws don't apply to you?

In early January, patrol cars parked between the sidewalk and the church parking lot next door started becoming a regular occurrence during working hours. The worst though, is what was stated in a letter from Tobias' attorney David I. Rickey, Esq. to the mayor of Winter Park David C. Strong. According to this letter the property owner, Matthew Thilmony, met with the Director of Planning and Community Development for the  City Jeffrey Briggs. This was the correspondence: "Mr. Thilmony asked Mr. Briggs if he know of his tenet Mr. Tobias. Mr. Briggs responded, in his exact words, ‘Yes, all too well; Eli has an answer for everything; are they still throwing “raves?”’ He then accused my client of being a drug dealer. At this point, the landlord, Mr. Thilmony asks Mr. Briggs if any arrests had been made, and where he came up with such a statement. Mr. Briggs replied “No, but it’s a tattoo shop, duh!”

A tattoo shop, duh? That's right Mr. Briggs anyone that would dare take a needle to another's skin and create what they call "art" on their bodies and listen to that crazy house music must be on drugs. Get a grip you small-minded twit. It's really sad the amount of ignorance that exists in this town.

Anyway, come out and support Eli and his business this Saturday night. Alternet, a new contemporary art gallery located inside Black Chapel will have its pre-grand opening party and art show from 7 - 11 p.m. with DJs and refreshments (as Tobias puts it "I'm giving away alcohol just like any other licensed art gallery in Winter Park does).

Good for you Eli, I'll be more than happy to drink it.