Inside: Club Whispers

Going out to clubs can turn into a robotic impulse. You dress up, pay a big cover, buy overpriced drinks, dance to generic beats and scope out all the other people who are doing the exact same thing you are. Aw yeah, party people! So you can do that, or you can take a tip from the revelers at Club Whispers (or JJ Whispers, as it was known in its heyday on Lee Road) at 4732 S. Kirkman Road, and dress for fun, dance because you can’t help it, and, well, pay for pricey drinks and a cover (because you can’t have everything, you know).

Décor: The cover changes from night to night, but expect about $10 to leave your fingers as you enter. There are three bars scattered a good distance apart in the huge space, but on a busy night each of them will be deep with thirsty patrons, so plan ahead if your drink’s running low. Speaking of the size, Whispers doesn’t believe in your physics and expands well beyond its strip mall enclosure, giving you plenty of space to find a place to party. There are some VIP tables along the walls, and a large VIP raised platform in the back, whose plush seating will cost you $30 upfront.

The Bar: Taking the cover charge into account, the drink prices are a little high. It’s not so much the good pour but the $6.50 price tag that makes a wells mixer a sipping drink. But no worries - drink specials do exist. Wine Down Wednesdays host music from 94.5 FM and two-for-one drinks until 9 p.m. (no mention of the eponymous wine, however). Thursdays are Latin nights, with lots of reggaeton and two-for-one wells, you-call-its, $5 shots, and $100 bottles all night. Because one night isn’t enough, Fridays are also Latin-themed, complete with two-for-one drinks and a buffet until 9 p.m., but with $5 martinis, two-for-one Brahma beers and mojitos taking over from 10 p.m. until midnight. Saturdays are kind of special-free, so just pretend $6.50 a drink is a good deal. Sundays wrap up with the weekend with live reggae, calypso, and soca music.

Sounds: Unlike many other clubs in Orlando, the music at Whispers is designed to make you want to move, and not just slither sexily to thumping beats, hoping someone notices.

Crowd: Much like its former Lee Road location, the crowd at Whispers is predominantly black, but this doesn’t mean that everyone else can’t join in. The ages range from newly-21 to nearly retired with the bulk of patrons in the young professional age bracket.

Tip: If your typical going-out dress is stone-washed jeans and a popped collar you might want to consider upping your game a little. Try a suit or pressed khakis, because Whispers requests that you dress to impress, and if you don’t take that seriously you’re going to feel (and look) like a fool.

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