Arcata Theatre Lounge-- First Impressions

Went to one of the ATL's soft openings this week, and I was duly impressed. The interior looks terrific. It's got high airy ceilings (complete with those giant nipple vents I remember from childhood) painted like cloudy blue skies, reminiscent of the Venetian in Las Vegas.

The layout of the viewing area is great. Matthew and I sat at the bar the whole time (surprise) and we could see the stage perfectly, even over the people sitting at a table on the same level. There are three tiers of seating, and it's all small tables and chairs. A pretty expansive looking dance floor as well, though I didn't get a close look.

Absynth Quintet, who continue to defy any sort of definition (I think I'm going to go with neo-string-proto-lounge) sounded really good. The sound was impressive. The venue really has acoustics going for them.

I would guess there were about 150-200 people there and it was very comfortable. With a capacity of nearly 600, I could see it being a bit much, but I do think the layout is much friendlier than, say, any other venue in the area.

Pints were 3.75 which is pretty standard for micros, though domestics might be cheaper. No pitchers, and no booze. Oh well.

Matthew bought buffalo wings for 5 bucks and they were on par with PG or SRB wings, in my opinion. I saw popcorn and all sorts of other snacks going by as well.

Matthew was particularly impressed by the bathrooms, but he may have been more intimately familiar with them than I. They were clean!

Overall it looked crisp and clean, delivered on the audio front (visual, I have yet to determine), was comfortable and affordable. I got a good vibe and high hopes for the future.

Unfortunately, not everyone had such positive things to say... But I can't blame her.

Worth checking out:

Starving Weirdos & others Apr. 9

www.arcatatheater.com

Side note: Theatre or theater? Well, the website is theater but everywhere else I've read it lists it as theatre.... and arcatatheatre.com redirects anyway...