Well, having been out of the...

Well, having been out of the SC scene with the demise of Rick's (well, it's still open but who goes there?), I decided to finally try the Sands in Ballard on Monday afternoon.

This place... is interesting. Oddly, it's actually quite nice inside, since I expected "neighborhood dive" and instead it was more like a muted Deja Vu before it gets a few years under its belt. I think I heard it got a remodel a couple of years ago, and it shows: the place looks decent, clean, has a well-lit pool table, and a VIP room that's actually not visible from the rest of the floor! That's a novel idea... :)

When I went in on a Monday afternoon, there were only 3 dancers on shift, and no other customers out on the floor (there were a couple of other customers in the back who left shortly after I arrived). This place has no cover, but does require you buy 2 drinks @$5 each, so basically this place has a $10 cover and two free drinks. :) Compared to Rick's where even a slow weekday had 10+ women working, it's weird to have so FEW options. I did see a Rick's dancer there, can't remember her name but the older, very skinny Asian woman. The asian dancer said that basically The Sands wasn't really hiring, so the ex-Rick's dancers aren't going to be able to pile in here and get their clientele back, which is a shame. I'd love to see the cream of Rick's crop come here, be more discrete, and they and the regulars would be happy. :)