Hotel Chambers (Red Room) Review

Review by Dannielle Jaram

Trying to find a decent Hip-Hop and RnB night club in Sydney that doesn't require you to wear a snapback, skinny jeans and Jordans apparently is like trying to find that elusive needle in a hay stack or pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Coming from New Zealand where nearly every second night club plays an array of RnB tunes that will get even the most strobe light, bass loving, house disco freak bumping and grinding, this was a serious problem for me! But after being introduced to what I have to say as being one of Sydney's finest RnB night clubs that I have been to so far I can finally start to relax and feel like the search is finally over.

Located in the heart of Sydney on Martin Place, step down into Red Room at The Hotel Chambers and be transported back into a time where David Guetta and Calvin Harris weren't featured on every RnB artist's track, 2Pac actually had more songs than California Love and Boyz to Men weren't just backup singers for the Biebz. This, my friends, was the 90s where RnB titans reigned supreme and this, my friends, is Red Room.

Initially I thought $20 was a fairly steep cover charge, but again as a still semi-fresh Kiwi girl where such door charges are about as mythical as the pot of gold referred to earlier, I hear this is a pretty standard fare, and for the night you will have at this place it's definitely worth it.

Long and narrow with a bar that almost runs the length of the club, Red Room is most definitely not a place to go to if you want to climb into a small nook with your number one, look into each other’s eyes and whisper sweet nothings while listening to the melodic RnB tunes floating in the air. The club is packed! And the DJ is just too good for you not to get up and show the world how you used to dance in front of the mirror holding onto your hair brush while belting out heart breaker at the top of your lungs! (Come on I know where all guilty of doing it at least once in our lifetime).

There are however for those who wish small booths where you can sit and relax along the side and at the back of the club. And yes, there are most definitely some lucky blokes who utilize these thanks to Whitney for inspiring the throngs of girls to just go and "dance with somebody."

Also when dealing with the fact that the dance floor overflows everywhere throughout the club, getting to the bar can be an absolute mission so take your barge bar and New York taxi whistle because you're going to need it in order to get a drink. When I finally managed to make my way to the front of the queue I looked along the bar at my fellow patrons just out of interest to see what the popular drinks being served were. As one not to diverge from my usual vodka and cranberry, to my surprise I discovered that for $30 you could order jugs of Smirnoff and orange. Split that between two or three of your friends and you've got yourself a reasonably cheap way to fuel a fun filled night of dancing.

The crowd that Red Room and its old-skool style of RnB attracts are young people in their early to mid 20s, and judging from the multitude of people who would walk through the club’s doors and be stopped every two steps by someone calling their name, most seemed to be frequent visitors. My only complaint about Red Room would have to be the women's bathrooms. After downing all those jugs of Smirnoff and orange after the dance floor the bathroom is your next favourite place. Unfortunately I discovered like most clubs, the bathrooms are a bombshell. The floors are wet and muddy (god knows how) and with all the paper towels scattered across the floor I was in a constant state of paranoia that I would walk out with it stuck to my heels.

Overall, though, if you are a music lover who enjoys mixing with a great crowd and dancing all night to the sounds of your adolescence then Red Room is definitely for you! By far it has been my favourite place to venture out to on a Saturday night and I can already feel myself being drawn back to the mayhem of its dance floor by the DJ’s fine tunes.



Make a Function Enquiry

A Second Review of Hotel Chambers (Red Room)

Review by Aimy Chen

Even for twenty bucks, Red Room wasn’t worth the cover charge. My good buzz disappeared the moment I stood in line. It should have been free of charge. There were probably more people waiting outside then there were inside. The bouncers made the young crowd of predominately one culture (except for me and my friends) wait like as if the club was packed. But we could see through the windows. It was half empty or some would say ‘half full’, LOL. If you’re looking for old school R’n’B, lock yourself into Hotel Chambers.

No pun intended but red flags went up in my head that this was one of those wannabe-classy-overestimated clubs in a city known for its’ pumping nightlife. Ironic? Definitely.

Sure enough, as soon as we went in, I thought it almost impossible for a club like this to survive in a city as vibrant and loud as Sydney. Compared to the many clubs I’ve been to with the likes of Miami, Vegas and Rome where multicultural posses and free entries are a norm, Red Room barely made par.

No questions about the glamorous dress code or the sophisticated lighting and deep reds and greys splashing the walls. A friend of ours booked a table of bottle service which was handy and in good viewing of most of the dance floor. But the old school R’n’B jams just didn’t justify nor match the contemporary décor, which bought the mood down a notch. It’s not that I don’t like R’n’B, it just felt like the DJ was institutionalized back in the late '90s.

And the toilets. Oh, the toilets. If I remember correctly, two of the half decent cubicles ran out of toilet paper and the sink was clogged.

The drinks were average price. No surprises there. You get what you pay for. Have to note however, that the bartenders may have gotten the men’s panties in a twist but when someone asks for lemonade, don’t give them soda water.

To be completely honest, I am always out to have a good time. Regardless of the scene, I appreciated the relaxed atmosphere of everyone else plastered on the small dance floor including my friends and I. Yes, I still danced. In an attempt at fairness, I do recommend the club – but only to those who are die-hard R’n’B fans. And to those who don’t mind paying $20 to hear it other than on their own iTunes playlist.

If you’ve read this far and remember nothing else I said, just remember that I rocked up on a good buzz, looking forward to a dance and left sober looking forward to my bed.

Make a Function Enquiry