Retro nightclub Superfly Disco has brought its bright dance floor to the old Alhambra Lounge digs
The next time you head out for a big night out at Fortitude Valley, it might make sense of history in more ways than one. Hope you have the kind of wild fun that cements lasting memories in your brain. But if you make a date with new nightclub Superfly Disco, you can also dance and drink at a throwback new venue that adores the tunes, attitude and decor of five decades ago – and which just happens to be nestled on the site of an old Brisbane favourite.
That vanished but not forgotten place: the Alhambra Lounge on McLachlan Street, closed for eight years. Now, his former McLachlan Street space has gone retro with vinyl, boomboxes and old-school vibes, plus an illuminated dance floor that’ll make you live your Saturday night fever dreams (or curious to watch the 70s hit with John Travolta if you’ve never seen it).
Forget DeLoreans; spending a night at Superfly Disco will take you back in time, although disco classics will play through the speakers alongside recent party hits. The rest of the layout matches the vibe, with record walls, neon lights, disco balls galore – including in the bathrooms – and murals of famous musical faces from the famed era of the bar.
Whichever disc jockeys in the venue are spinning at any given time will be doing so from a DJ car, another element of Superfly Disco’s retro aesthetic and vibe. The space has been completely gutted of its Alhambra days and given a whole new look, including raising the floor an inch and a half to accommodate those lights below.
Yeah, when you’re not hanging out in private booths, you should be dancing here – and feeling the town shatter and everyone shaking, and obviously thinking about other Bee Gees disco tunes. Unsurprisingly, the team behind Superfly Disco sees a big future in functions and parties; it is no coincidence that the opening of the place, on Friday October 7 after having been announced a few months ago, is scheduled just before the end of the year celebrations.
This crew? The Drunken Monkey Group team add another venue to their portfolio alongside the Brooklyn Standard, Fat Angel Sports Bar and Suzie Wong’s Good Time Bar. Suzie Wong’s venue manager Michael Pattison has become general manager of the band’s Valley venues, while Queens nightclub owner Kyle Weir oversees DJ bookings.
When it comes to drinks, cocktails are the drink of choice, all with themed names. Try the Hollywood Divorce with whiskey, chocolate, orange and bitter; Lula’s Disco Daiquiri with white rum, orange, pineapple, guava, lime and falernium; and the From Shaft theme with 12-year-old Chivas, heering cherry, dark cocoa, honey and egg white. Or, there’s also a sizable range of champagne, sparkling, and red and white wines.
Entrance will cost you a $10 cover charge at the door – and wearing flares and platform shoes is completely optional, but would fit the atmosphere.
Find Superfly Disco at 12 McLachlan Street, Fortitude Valley – open 8pm-3am Friday-Sunday.
