Why you should get drunk with your debit card

A few Long Island Ice Teas in Sakana kick-started a Saturday night on Peter St. Small and classy, the Japanese restaurant's bar makes a good starting place. We moved on to the recently opened Albert's Schloss, under Albert Hall and in the unit that once housed Brannigans. The décor of the club has been scraped back to the bare brickwork and the disco balls and lights give it a blend of 70s dance club and German-styled beer hall. Unique and with size and presence, (and Arabian-style performance dancers) it's a great starting place. The only problems I had were the 20-minute queues at the bar and the smelly cross dresser. Seriously, what the hell. Anyway. Oh yeah, and there's a bookable seated area that isn't properly cordoned off, and we strayed into it at one point in the night resulting in evil looks and a few stern words from the customers. The security should have been tighter.

Playing that night were The Turbans.

We then moved next door to Club Liv, the local celeb haunt. Great club. I didn't recognise any famous types but my mate pointed out footballer Tom Cleverley, who I'm assuming was the recipient of the giant wooden crucifix that the bar staff were carrying flat across the club. The frame's design held 10 bottles of Dom Perignon in circular holes cut into the wood paneling, each bottle adorned with a club sparkler.

I was not big-balling to that extent, being on a BSO's wage, so I was buying £5 shots of Wild Turkey instead. This isn't too bad a price, considering I payed £4 for a shooter and £12 for a shot of obscure whisky in Sakana a while back.

Re the title of this blog post: most clubs now allow you to pay on card. This means that you don't have to walk around with a huge wad of cash in your trousers / purse (you may need some on the door, I don't know. It depends on the establishment). It also means that you'll get home with a series of receipts detailing exactly where you've been and how much money you've spent. Just don't throw them away and you'll piece together every part of your night. Having said that, even if you do your bank statements will hold testament. If all you do is draw out cash, that's the only record you have. Everybody's memory gets a bit hazy after a few scoops, but if you've got memory difficulties like I have it's much easier to just log onto internet banking the next day and see where your money went. It also stops you from spending your taxi money (unless you're using Uber, which is contactless payment anyway). The only reason you'd need cash is perhaps for the entry fee, or food after leaving the club. Or if, say, you drunkenly spill someone else's drink and you want to give them the money for another.

It's perhaps not so good if you're the type who needs a limit on how much they spend.

LIV's Facebook pics from the night are here. 

The Facebook Snapchat video of the night is here.

I went with someone I met in the Party People group, showing the Meetup site works and allows you to meet the right people for you.