Last year standing behind the velvet rope outside WET nightclub was worth the wait, but lately the promotion around the nightclub is more hype than anything else. A trip to WET is not a total let down, with enough cash in your pocket to keep drinks in your hand you can have a fine time- just don’t expect anything spectacular.
WET has found a home in downtown Chicago, an area that is notorious for rotating nightclubs on a biannual schedule. Walking into the nightclub when it is still void of smoke can be a surreal experience, the club is meant to look like the inside of an aquarium. Deep blues and silver fill the club while the two story wall behind the bar changes color all night long.
The first floor is occupied by two bars, the main bar caters to the general mass of clubbers and the back bar serves whatever birthday and bachelorette parties end up at the club each night. In between each bar the dance floor occupies the rest of the club, a second floor VIP section conveniently overlooking any dirty dance moves taking place.
Getting into the clubs VIP section requires money, pre-arranged bottle service or the right friends. I suggest passing on the VIP section for two reasons, the first being, the life of the party is usually downstairs. Secondly, when any part of the party does move upstairs, there literally is nowhere to move. I am guessing the section’s limited space is the reason for the super-vigilant rope opener.
The crowd control issue in the VIP section seems to be mirrored throughout the rest of the club on any given night. Depending on the weekend WET can be filled to capacity, wait a week and you can polish the dance floor yourself. The inconsistent crowd might be a result of the ever changing music selection. The DJs always play dance music, but it’s anyone’s guess as to the type each night. Saturday nights will hear House, Hip Hop, the Top Forty, a little Techno and even 80’s dance music.
Considering the fact that the dance floor takes up about fifty percent of the club it really does not see much action, people are on it they just aren’t dancing. The large majority of the action takes place at the bars which are staffed by friendly bartenders. On slower nights one or two of them might come out from behind the bar to have a dance of their own. If you do decide to partake, expect to pay the normal downtown price for a drink- $8 on average.
As a whole, this Chicago nightclub is alright. WET caters to the crowd it attempts to attract, trendy newcomers to the downtown area- read barely twenty somethings with money to burn. If you do go one word of warning, avoid the bathroom in the middle. Holes in the wall provide eyeballs on the opposite side a clear view, toilet paper hole plugs will be quickly done away with.
