Top Five Strip Club Restaurants in the United States

samsung1
Ohio
There once was a time--so I'm told--when the only feast at strip clubs was for the eyes. And when food eventually popped up it was in the form of a lunchtime buffet: the greasy fried things, limp hot dogs, and meatballs of questionable provenance sitting for hours in a hot dish left visitors with a flaccid appetite. But that's changing, as strip club owners have realized that all that ogling can build up quite a hunger. And why deprive these "dance aficionados" a good meal.

As a result high-quality, titillating grub has emerged in various strip clubs around the country. Sure, some eaters might have a hard time taking any restaurant seriously when it's served a few feet away from where women named "Roxy" and "Cherry" are gyrating against a chrome pole. But a few strip clubs have added some edibley enhanced menus that could rival restaurants where people (normally) keep their clothes on. So, here, without further ado, is the highly subjective list of the top five strip club restaurants in the United States.

Just to get you in the mood, click here for a striptease soundtrack for your reading enjoyment--if you've never seen someone remove their clothes to this song then you haven't been, uh, eating at enough strip clubs yet.

[Flickr photo by PinkMoose]

•Robert's Restaurant at Scores, New York City

"Where else can you have a hot topless woman literally feed you a great piece of steak?" said Scores manager Edward Norwick when he was explaining why having a great in-house restaurant is an excitable experience in more ways than one. Welcome to Scores, where topless women from three elevated pole-studded posts writhe and chef Will Savarese cooks up hearty man-food for the big-spending clientele at Robert's Restaurant, located inside the club (with views of the rest of all the action). Savarese, who has manned the stove at acclaimed restaurants Le Cirque, Aureole, and Le Cote Basque, is masterful with brick-thick cuts of juicy steak as well as creamy truffle-oil risotto, miso-glazed Chilean bass, and tender Moroccan-spiced lamb chops.

•Alluvia at the Cheetah, Atlanta

Sure, some randy Atlantans are lured to this strip club for reasons other than eating (food), but get a whiff of chef Bill Toro's dishes and another part of your body might soon be rumbling. Think pan-seared duck with caramelized garlic risotto, pastrami-crusted tuna and lobster dumplings doused in a Vietnamese pho broth, and, of course, what's stripclub grub without a juicy 16-ounce filet mignon--all in a white-table-cloth atmosphere. Reserve the chef's table for some special attention and eye-popping sightlines of the main stage.

•Delilah's, Philadelphia

Skip the evening buffet of finger foods and go directly to the restaurant at this Philadelphia riverfront strip club, which takes itself seriously enough to lure the Zagat folks in for a rating (at least we assume they stopped by to dine). Dishes like lobster ravioli sprinkled with a Cognac-cream sauce, steamed little neck clams, and--fittingly enough--a melt-in the-mouth 12-ounce strip steak will dazzle even the most impotent taste buds. And if that doesn't do it, the gooey, decadent warm lava chocolate cake is the happiest of endings.

•Casa Diablo, Portland OR.

It's not as demonic as you might think at this Portland, OR club/restaurant where Girls Gone Wild and PETA have collided to make one of the coolest strip club dining experiences in the country. The club's motto, "The meat's on stage, not on the plate," should be a clue as to what you're getting into here. As the tattoo-clad ladies gyrate in their sexy pleather getups, guests munch on things like veggie burgers, "meatball" sandwiches, and tofu nachos. That's right, no animals were harmed in the making of libido-laden experience. The fare here isn't going to win any Michelin stars (and let's face, it vegan cuisine never will), but Casa Diablo wins points for having the courage to eschew the meat = masculinity formula.

•Sam's Hofbrau, Los Angeles, CA.

As with the case of Casa Diablo, not every restaurant--or, strip club restaurant, for this matter--needs to serve highly stylized, elevated cuisine to get the attention of flesh-loving foodies. Enter Sam's Hofbrau. Located near downtown Los Angeles, Sam's, as the name suggests, serves up a hearty bite of mitteleuropa to go along with the dancing Heidis. But it's not all Teutonic all the time. After all, this is southern California, so guests can indulge in a carne asada burrito or variations on the theme of taco while ogling the dancers. Wash it all down with one (or two) of the 24 beers available, but leave your lederhosen at the door.

http://www.gadling.com/2010/11/30/top-fi…

Nov 30th 2010

11 comments

Latest

shadowcat
14 years ago
I don't care what they say, I am not ever going back to the Atlanta Cheetah. The only real thing on the menu is eye candy.
MajorBoobage
14 years ago
The food at The Men's Club in Reno looked pretty impressive when I was there last year, but I did not partake.
samsung1
14 years ago
The Penthouse in Detroit advertises as having the only executive chef in the city. Not sure what "executive" chef means but I am guessing it is a type of certification/qualification.
vincemichaels
14 years ago
LOL, samsung, it justifies (in their eyes) ripping off the public for overpriced meals. Merry Christmas to one and all.
runnoft
14 years ago
Actually, I don't see fine food in strip clubs as anything new. Many clubs in Detroit have been serving fine food for years. And as far as being a rip off, I don't see this either. Most strip clubs I have lunch at are very reasonably priced. Just don't order a lot of drinks, because that is where the mark up is. For example, there is a club called the Traffic Light close to where I work that has a Prime Rib lunch complete with soup, potato, and vegetable for $10, and it is very tasty, and very filling.
txtittyfan
14 years ago
The St James in Houston has a busy lunch crowd. Good food reasonably priced, with many attractive women available for dessert.
samsung1
14 years ago
Detroit clubs can be a rip off to eat at if each member of your party has to pay a $15 weekend cover and $20 to sit at a booth.

There is only one club left in columbus that still maintains a full service restaurant (kahoots). Some other clubs have food promotions on certain days or certain times but kahoots is the only one where you can go pretty much any day or any time and order food. Their menu has improved over the years from being just pub food to now having a menu similar to restaurants.
vincemichaels
14 years ago
Yes, runnoft, that is true about the Traffic Light. I've enjoyed lunch there on a number of occasions. It is currently Macomb county's only strip club, and it serves decent food at reasonable prices. The Penthouse, as samsung1 notes, demands and gets the table charge being the high end club it is. They also charge the $15 door charge at night per person. That's the price of doing business there. That's why I eat elsewhere on the way if hungry. I'm retired, I don't have an expense account as some of the high rollers that patronize The Penthouse club have. I like the babes at Penthouse, I just don't accept the business model Penthouse wants me to spend to achieve my goals.
farmerart
14 years ago
I dined only once in a SC - Coliseum in Detroit. Simple meal; a BLT very, very well done. But the dessert? Lovely, moist, sweet!! I have been back to Coliseum twice but that dessert is no longer available.
vincemichaels
14 years ago
How nice, farmerart!! I'm glad you had the sweet treat once, at least. Continuing on with my rant about overpriced food at Penthouse. The food is exceptionally expensive. I looked at one of their menus once. Sheeesh, rip me off, Al !!! I can think of many places I'd rather spend my food money than a strip club, I'll spend what I save on lap dances.
samsung1
14 years ago
Here is the 2008 list from CHOW:

1. Camelot Show Bar, Washington, DC. Near embassies and government buildings, the upscale Camelot attracts a lobbyist lunch crowd. CHOW contributor Alexander Lane (see sidebar) enjoyed a Greek plate featuring oregano-seasoned steak tips, pickled peppers, feta, olives, and pita triangles arranged in distinct quadrants. James Gandolfini (of The Sopranos) was reported to have stopped by a week earlier, which in the strip club world is equal to a papal visit.

2. Casa Diablo Gentlemen’s Club, Portland, Oregon. Owner Johnny Diablo is a devout vegan who bans fur, silk, and wool on his stage. His menu at Casa Diablo is cruelty-free as well, including such specials as barbecue “rib” sandwiches (made from soy protein) served with onion rings (made without eggs). You can get homemade apple crisp on the side for only $6. Though in an article in the New York Times he admits to coming under fire from the vibrant Portland community of “feminazis” (his term), Diablo happily reports that his clientele of mostly blue-collar, male workers doesn’t complain about the lack of cooked animal flesh.

3. Alluvia Restaurant at the Cheetah Lounge, Atlanta, Georgia. Executive Chef Bill Toro (who has worked with Richard Blais of Top Chef) runs one of the only kitchens in Atlanta that uses all USDA Prime beef. You and a friend could even share a 38-ounce Prime porterhouse for two. Toro has also attempted some ambitious ice cream flavors such as lemon basil, but his most popular offerings are the homemade chocolate and vanilla.

4. Coliseum, Detroit, Michigan. It has 14,000 square feet of space. It has won awards from the local paper. It has a helipad. And the Coliseum also has a respectable selection of seafood options (including grilled salmon and pan-seared ahi) and sources its lamb from New Zealand.

5. Delilah’s, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Delilah’s isn’t short on strip club industry awards, but it has also been rated in Zagat. Though branded as a steakhouse, Delilah’s will soon launch a small-plates menu, including braised short ribs, lobster tail–infused mashed potatoes, and a fried Caesar salad (flash-fried hearts of romaine tossed with sun-dried tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, and vinaigrette). The club also offers bachelor party packages featuring a three-course meal, a full open bar, and no cover charge.

6. Nove Italiano, Las Vegas, Nevada. Though the Playboy Club and the Nove Italiano are separated by two floors in the Palms casino, the restaurant’s manager estimates that 70 percent of diners who eat at Nove Italiano ride the escalator behind the bar to the gentlemen’s club after dinner. Try the black ink squid–infused homemade pasta in tomato fennel sauce, mixed with lobster, scallops, shrimp, and calamari. After your meal, just let the server know you plan to go up to the Playboy Club, and you’ll get whisked to the front of the line.

7. Robert’s Steakhouse, New York, New York. Located in the Penthouse Executive Club, Robert’s has a respected executive chef (Adam Perry Lang, previously of Daniel) and the only chef de cuisine at any of the clubs included here. The results are tasty free-range brick-roasted chicken, imported Kobe beef, and sesame-crusted yellowfin tuna. Those on a budget might need to decide between a lap dance and a steak (the former costs $20, plus the $30 cover; the latter costs $50, and the cover is waved if you’re eating at Robert’s). Judging by Frank Bruni’s rave about the food in the New York Times, it wouldn’t be a mistake to go with the steak.

8. Sam’s Hofbrau, Los Angeles, California. Unlike the others on this list, Sam’s Hofbrau isn’t going for the fine-dining crowd. But its burgers, pizza, and spicy Buffalo wings still get high marks. With the addition of a new pizza oven, the kitchen has even added such non-hofbrau offerings as carne asada pizza with marinated meat, jalapeños, chiles, onions, and Monterey Jack cheese.

9. Shotgun Willie’s, Denver, Colorado. Though the Shotgun Willie’s website looks like a cartoon for kids, this home of “entertainment for adults” serves bar food with flair. Word is the Shrimp Fernando is a must-have: eight large shrimp wrapped with bacon, stuffed with cheese, and deep-fried.

10. Sizzle Lounge & Grill, San Francisco, California. Part of the Broadway Showgirls Cabaret, Sizzle offers fresh tuna tartare, New York strip (with lightly buttered julienned carrots and broccoli), and creamy, lump-free mashed potatoes with a hint of pepper. Daily specials have included fettuccine with spinach, bacon, and grilled chicken ringed with fresh Roma tomatoes and lightly topped with shredded Parmesan. We’re sure the restaurant’s name refers to the food.
http://www.chow.com/food-news/54582/stri…
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