Zeppelin Bar & Lounge

Quality nights out were far and few when it came to Zeppelin. At its very core as a destination club, the only saving grace was the company I was with but everything else was a struggle from top to bottom. I am pretty certain it’s no longer around and for Houstonians everywhere, that might be a good thing.
If there were any pluses, it was the venue itself. Large and spacious with a multi-​level layout, it was a place where anything goes. A faux-​posh chandelier, plush couches, and velvet rope stanchions in all directions, the classy approach was competely dulled by the groups of lushes trashing it up. The other plus, was the music. Whether it was a rockin’ DJ or a live band, there was no shortage of good vibes in audio form at Zeppelin.
The problems were never so much money related, there is always a price to pay at places like this. Club life is one where bottle service, overpriced drinks, and even a ridiculous cover is more or less expected. In the end, there is a heavier price to pay and that was having to deal with the at times unruly staff and even more so, the unruly crowd.
Crowds come and go, but when they were happenin, it was lines out the door. Not exactly the friendliest crowd, but definitely among the most pretentious. It’s not completely eye candy land a la Vegas, but certainly in league for how Houston got down at the time.
Wait time aside, the ‘tude from the bouncers was never much of a welcome front — kind of like being cattle being branded prior to being slaughtered in the house. Bartenders were never one to throw together an amazing drink and their apathy was rarely solved with any generous gratuity. It was a virtual groundhog day for grumpy drink slingers; hence the bottle service was more or less the recommended route.

I am struggling to piece together 1 star for this place!!!
So I went in with about 8 or 10 girls, just cruis’n in the place,
and BAM! All these dudes just pounced on my group, they started
coming outta the load-​barring walls, coming in on ropes like mission impossible!
So that didnt make me feel comfortable, that only clued me in that this place was in desperate need of women. So I start talking to a cocktail waitress there, nice fit gal, outgoing personality, when suddenly a fight breaks out! How come I can’t go anywhere without a fight breaking out? Is it because I took that midget’s chair at Brian O’neils and gave me 7 years bad luck! ?
So I composed myself and thought I’d wet my whistle for a drink. My friends were happy that I took them away from the lonely wolves hungry for the prowl. I buy my friends a round of drinks, and more than HALF were watered down. UNACCEPTABLE!!!
So I turned to one of my friends who used to be a stripper, and said hey can you do this? I did a routine I entirely made up on the spot on the stripper pole showed her UP. then. after I had my fun with her, I left and vowed never to return to this place again!!!
Summary of Review
In the old days.
— Used to be the place to go, hard to get in
— Lots of minor celebrities walking about.
— Used to be VERY racist.
— No cover
Now. They have gone the opposite of that.
— Unusually Un-​racist.
— No celebs would touch this place with a 10 foot pole.
— Very easy to get into
— Now a 10 to 20 dollar cover.
Pros:
— Good décor
— Good bar setup
— Good music (usually)
— Inside and outside options
Cons:
— 2 bathrooms! wtf? And they are in the dark, so you can’t see whether its a hit or a miss? Where’s the fun in that?
— Upstairs which has a very cool look is always dead. They don’t even try to have the upstairs occupied by any wait staff or bar service.
— good décor but they need to renovate, there are random stripper poles everywhere in your face just when you are getting into a good conversation with a girl named Wendy. and it totally gets in your way. (true story)

It’s funny to read some of the previous reviews. What used to be a prestigious club that was «racist» with who was allowed to enter is now so bad that they actually have to have «AZN» night on Saturdays to stay a float. So I’ve been here a couple of times and on Saturdays it’s «Asian night». The place is nothing great. The crowd is nothing special. The drinks are expensive and the only difference is now they are the rope police from the bottom and top floors. It’s a small club inside with a really bad design. The bathroom line backs up and that line happens to be in front of the door. So people are already annoyed since they are waiting in line they get bumped by incoming people. It’s just funny how a club can be at the top and drop so low just a few months lower. I guess that’s why Roxy has been in business for so many years, they don’t care about your color just that you have GREEN in your pocket (or plastic).

Went to this place last Saturday while in Houston for business. I had heard about it from my old posse in Houston (lived there for 7 years) and decided to check it out. We went, didn’t wait in line, no cover, and immediately recognized the hottie bartender from my Crome days. there is a small bar set up outside, and small patio. Inside the upstairs was closed and was being guarded by two huge Mr. olympia looking dudes. The bar service was fast, and good, and actually not that $$. (After living in DC what is?) The crowd was your normal spikey haired Affliction wearing highlighted tan crowd. Nothing new there. The music was a good mix of house and deep trance, and it was a cool place to hang out. The bathroom situation was RIDULOUS, and we ended up leaving because it was just too darn crowded. May go there again a little earlier for a drink, but it was just too busy for such a little club.

3.5stars I liked the diversity of people here, and had no problems w/​line, did not have to pay cover and actually like the industrial downstairs. It makes for a great dance floor. The bar staff was prompt and nice. The location is great too, if you dont want to pay for parking no problem. The main issue I have is w/​the DJ. Mainly because the transitions to next songs are poor and your not going to hear any current club music unless it is rap, their house/​techno music is so outdated you think they are playing throwback.

I’m not going to be everyone’s favorite person for this one but. I had a great time at Zeppelin! We (a group of 4 guys and 2 girls) went here last Sat. night and it was great! I didn’t have any of the problems, the other people talked about…
We showed up early (i.e. before 11pm!) so the line was pretty quick. We had reserved the vip since we were also meeting a group there so weren’t charged a cover. I didn’t have any longer wait at the bar then I would expect at a place this busy. My drink was pretty strong and priced just a little more than normal ($ 8 for vodka and Grey Goose).
Yes, the interior is warehouse-​like, simplistic, but also trendy. The bathrooms (3 unisex ones in the front and a couple upstairs) were clean and yes, there was a line, but what do you expect when people are drinking that much all in one place! The bathroom attendant guy was even friendly and chatty, and not just to the girls! That was a refreshing change from the cranky guys who bang on your door to get you to hurry up!
The stairs led to the upstairs area and the outdoor patio which was actually pretty good sized for the midtown area. The noise level was lower here so people here able to talk, sit, smoke and hang out. There was also a fully stocked bar on the patio.
What I actually liked about this place was the diversity of the people here! Some places in the area are stereotypical of one «group» or another but this one had a good mix of people and types. Some in suits and dresses, some in jeans. And I didn’t see any drama– very cool!
I almost took a star away for the crappy valet service when we left. My friend paid $ 20 for a spot up front (and to skip waiting in line with everybody at 2am) but when we got out there about 130, the car wasn’t in sight. They moved in into the back lot to make room for someone who agreed to pay more. Yes, the valet guy actually admitted this, like that would make it ok! This didn’t go over very well, but after reasoning with him for a minute, he gave my friend his money back, and the car was pulled around in only 2 minutes. Not too shabby.

This place is a pretty similar to the L.A. clubs where it is Guest-​list only and the place is filled with Trance-​Hop. The DJ was good and was spinning really good music.
The crowd for this Saturday night was more Caucasian and partially Asian. The place has a rather large dance floor. The 2^nd floor also had a bar but was blocked off for a private party making the place seem even smaller. There is a patio on the upper deck where you can bask in the warm sweaty air of Houston and get cancer as everyone else draws tar into their lungs.
The restroom line for both guys and gals were horrendous.
It’s cool to just go once. I’ll not be going again.

STAY AWAY FROM THIS PLACE!
The list of negatives for this place is never-​ending! But the scam the waitress pulled on us had to be the worse. We had reserved a table for a friend’s birthday and ordered three bottles. When it came time to pay, I asked if gratuity had been added yet, She replied no, so I tipped her 20% of the bill. Later while driving home, I pull out the receipt and see that gratuity had already been added and we were charge for drinks we never ordered or received. Redbulls, beers and Fiji water. All together I figured she cheated us out of aprx. 400 dollars. Our bill for that night was 1500.00. So be forewarned this is a dishonest establishment, enter at your own risk.
Side note:
Even with table service some of our friends had to tip the bouncer to get in. At 20 dollars a head that came to $ 120.00 and one friend paid the valet guy 20.00 so he could take a leak behind the dumpster! That was one expensive night!

If you plan to get there before 11pm, the line isn’t bad. Any later than that, you’ll be in line for a while. Door guys weren’t bad, except for when they were letting random groups of people who just walked up (and had bad plastic surgery jobs) right into the club in front of the entire line, was a little sleezy. The DJ was awesome, i think it was DJ Bizz. He played really good remixes of popular songs, and mixed up the music videos on all of the flat screen tv’s all over the club. We never stopped dancing, but it’s pretty small in there, so there isn’t much room to move around… basically shoulder to shoulder.
Restrooms…gross! 3 rooms, unisex, and about 20 people in line for them at all times. I went in right after a guy, and walked into a toilet sprayed with urine and a wet floor with who knows what on it. Don’t plan on staying in there too long or the attendant will knock and shout, «a little quicker please».
OH, and I have to say it… about 85% of the crowd was over 30… and some women looked over 40, but wore cheap trampy tops to disguise I suppose… if that’s what you like =)

The crowd is decent now since its been opened for about two weeks already. A good handful of hot people, but I can feel its luster fizzling and turning ghetto in the upcoming months. I don’t know, last nite’s crowd was a little disappointing compared to the previous week. Yet, since Zeppelin’s the newest club in midtown the bouncers are ready to come up with any excuse to reject and give you a hard time. Dressy casual is a must. I can see the door guys giving some fellas a hard time even with designer tees, while others with a similar outfit just waltz right on in. I would be upset myself if I weren’t already inside.
The interior is decent enough for a supposed upscale venue (nice chandelier, columns, etc.) They have an upstairs patio and the music is a mixture of outdated trance/​techno and rap. Nothing really special about the place. So get here when the club is still new and happening. Otherwise wait around for a couple of months and see it turn «hood» before your eyes.