Though out-of-towners often complain that the downtown nightlife scene dries up around 10 p.m. most nights, Vivo general manager Joe Kahn is hoping to change that attitude by converting his Euclid Avenue restaurant into a hip after-hours hangout this summer.
Kahn, a trendy 31-year-old who moved to Cleveland from Chicago last year, says he thinks Clevelanders are hungry for something different than the same old clubs and crowds in the Warehouse District. In May, he began transforming Vivo into an after-hours lounge with a relaxed atmosphere, a martini bar, hip DJ music, comfy couches and more than 100 candles. On Friday and Saturday nights throughout the summer, the party will rage from 10 p.m. until 2:30 a.m. with no cover charge and a limited appetizer menu.
"The concept is hot in New York and Chicago right now and I think Clevelanders are dying to hang out in a cool, energetic environment with a lounge feel," Kahn declares.
He hired party promoter Michael "Average Joe" Cardamone to publicize the gigs. Kahn says he is confident the restaurant's cool location in the Arcade, its outdoor patio and valet parking will encourage late-night partiers to venture outside their cosmopolitan comfort zones.
"We're setting a new trend in Cleveland," Kahn says, "and hopefully it will catch on."
