LIFESTYLE - Birthday Night Out in Cambridge

So this past weekend (Saturday 22nd of September to be precise) I grouped together with 4 of my favorite fabulous girlie's for a night out to celebrate my (dare i say it....28th Birthday) in the city center of Cambridge. My day was quite relaxed, even after my mischievous toddler raided the laundry detergent resulting in it being all over my utility room and hallway (see a mom cant even blow dry her hair). Then around early evening my best friend and her sister arrived having driven all the way up from London, but realized upon arriving they had forgotten their outfits lol. In a mad rush they headed over to Tesco and invested in the beautiful dresses they had on in the photos. So yes we fashionably turned up late for my own birthday dinner lol. We met with 2 of my other friends at Nandos for dinner, bless them they had sat there waiting for ages and were starved. Don't i have amazing friends? Yes i do.

Ugh i gained a few pounds lol. My dress is by All Saints

mmm yum yum, thats not booze in our glasses honestly its grape juice ;-)

I enjoyed my usual favorite of The Medium butterfly chicken, with their spicy rice and mashed potatoes. We also enjoyed a few sangria's each. It was kinda cool being the only people in Nandos really dressed up but we did receive some dodgy looks lol. As for this particular restaurant i am becoming a regular here. Being old fashioned good manners & polite customer service are important and this Nandos store has got it down to a T. I love the service here, i have been to about 5 different Nando restaurants now and have found this the most efficient and friendliest one so far. Despite it being busy and in city center. I always enjoy going to this particular restaurant to eat, and the food is always amazing and brought out quickly. Nandos customer for life.

Instagram 

So on from Nandos we headed to our favorite first bar of the night The Regal. We had such a laugh here, i swear men were coming at us left right and center and i didn't know why lol. I mean i didn't have that Ann Summers pheromone perfume on like last time in London lol, (it was for research not to get men by the way lol). Anyway i treated myself to 2 Jager bombers straight away (well hey they were 2 for £5, so i couldn't resist) not sure it was such a good idea necking them, and the moment i walked into the bar some guy in a grey shirt was following me around lol. I did find him cute but im just not ready for any men at all at the moment, (he even wormed his way into one of our pictures lol) Picture Jackers lol.

So i enjoyed a bit of attention from him and his friends (awkwardly) and other men in the bar and left it at that. We met lots of cool people and enjoyed mixing our drinks (or silly old me did). My best friend and her twin sister had a goldfish bowl cocktail with straws in it, it tasted like mint (which i hate yuck) but they were drinking too slow so i helped myself to it (being my birthday and being a tad tipsy by this point of course). 

yes they are twins

The only bad part about this crowded bar was a bouncer. One particular bouncer was really violent with 3 people attempting to get them out of the bar. He was pushing and shoving them around with no word of warning or even shouting "get out the way". It was very unprofessional and in the process lots of people got hurt, knocked over and their drinks spilled. Most people were mentioning what a prick he was, and i didn't see him coming back to help people up off the floor or to replace the drinks he knocked out of peoples hands. The regal needs to work on this particular member of staff, its not hard to say "excuse me please". From what we all saw in the bar they had done nothing wrong nor had they even put up a fight while he was forcing them out abruptly. The 1st man looked like a backpacker (how did they let him in anyway?? if they were doing their job) and the 2nd were a dirty backpacker couple making out (seemed like making a statement) near the bar, it was definitely gross to watch, but the whole thing was a bit bizarre. Needless to say after 1 of my friends got elbowed in the face, and another had her foot trampled on by the bouncer resulting in a huge bruise that prevented her from dancing as the night went on, we decided to leave and head to Baroosh Bar. Once we arrived there a couple of my friends decided it was too packed and suggested we headed over to Lola Lo's like last time. Now if you read my last nightlife blog i had mentioned that Lola Lo's was super packed and i was hoping the next time it was not. But i was so wrong. 

We saw promoters in these amazing Jackets (This lady was so nice too)

Having worked in clubs before i know night clubs have a limit and requirement they are allowed in for health and safety reasons, but this was so packed i could not move. If there had been a fire broke out, a lot of people would have been severely hurt getting out seeing as no one could move. Like many clubs tables are reserved for V.I.P only apart from the smoking area. I am sad to say i am now officially put off of this club and so are my friends. If you type into Google, you will find several bad reviews on this newish (in Cambridge) club. The drinks are expensive and not worth it for the being pushed around and groping from men you get, not to forget the lung cancer of having to sit in the smoking area just to rest or have some space. It is really cool up there with the star canopy over head and the bar. However the floors are smaller than what Huntingdonshire people call The dirtbox (The music box) This club just reminds me of an expensive Dirt Box. The DJ's and all members of staff are awesome i cannot complain one bit, the promoters even had cool jackets, but many people left this club to head to others. 

I think they need to count carefully how many people they let in because not being able to stand without being knocked over anywhere is ridiculous and a fire hazard. So i am sorry to say but Farewell Lola Lo's i have heard great things about this chain but in my opinion the Cambridge one is not to my taste one bit. I like many human beings like to be able to have 1-2 inches of personal space at least around me at all angles. I just could not move at all and had to result in being asthmatic inhaling in smoke on the top floor in the smoking area. I can only give honest opinions and this is my first negative review, its a shame because this club has huge potential. Even all the American clubs i visited (Including the Tiny Library Club in Albuquerque New Mexico) was never this overcrowded. I just don't feel this club is worth paying for the V.I.P seeing as even VIP areas are crammed that they cannot dance either. So for those bouncers in my last nightlife post who once said we are Lola Lo Girls, i beg to differ. We have class, enjoy not having other peoples body parts rubbed up against us at all angles everywhere we go and we like to be able to enjoy ourselves and dance which we could not here. Shameful. We did however mange to capture a few amazing photos. taken by the Amazing Mikael Boateng

All Photo's C/O Mikael Boateng Via Lola Lo's

So after only not even a couple of hours here we made the decision to leave and head to an event i went to last time, i was unsure about (i now realize that is because we headed there too early) Which is Motion  held at Ballares nightclub. As i mentioned in this post before, the man who runs it Gareth is really nice, he meets and greets a lot of his regular clubbers who attend his events and sometimes even with his girlfriend, who is just as nice and friendly too (She is also one of the beautiful faces on his flyers and banners). I had informed him it was my birthday and i received a free bottle of champagne which Birthday guests receive (Totally awesome right?). The other great part was the space, the club was packed and it had VIP Tables, but there was also areas for people who were not VIP to sit and stand. This is what makes a good club as no one is out casted, unlike at Lola Lo's. The music was a nice mix of Urban, Hip Hop & R&B, and there was a good vibe, no pushing and shoving or groping, which is exactly what i needed since i had already had a bit to drink. I blame my friends (bad influences lol) as i usually don't drink much, usually 2-3 drinks. The bouncers were again friendly (sssshhh i was told not to say that lol) but friendly is not soft, its always a pleasure speaking to them when i head out. Overall i had a fantastic night in fantastic company. Ending up at Motion at the end of the night just topped off a wonderful special day. I look forward to going back. 

Followed By This....Shame...

Im not drunk....Honestly...

                                   

Motion is held at Ballares every Saturday night and has even had celebrities appear to perform like Angel (Sirach Charles) last month. So they are worth checking out if you are in the area.

I'm starting to think Cambridge is a pretty big city but with such small clubs, and lack of nightlife venues in the city center. More people are heading out of the city for a better and cheaper time. I think there needs to be more night venues in Cambridge. It is ridiculously priced in many places for an average (not great) time out with a hint of stress. So it's time to start branching out. One club i do like is in Newmarket (not far from Cambridge) Its called Innocence. Gareth of Motion is holding an Amazing night there on Saturday 6th October to celebrate 4 years of his business venture of SPANK Parties. 

So if you like to dress sexy, enjoy fine Urban music and would like to have your photo taken by a professional photographer, whilst watching fire eaters and having a laugh off of laughing gas, then this is the spot to head to. Join in with the celebration. Here are all the details below: 

Held at: Innocence Night club, Newmarket

Date: Saturday 6th October

Music: R&B, Hip Hop, Funky & Garage

Open from: 10pm - 4am

Entry costs: £7 before 11pm £9 after. 

Photos being taken by: Anna Elizabeth (Facebook, Fan Page & Website)

Entertainment & Extras:  Laughing Gas, Fire Eaters, VIP tables & much more. As always the night promises a fun atmosphere with good music, good prices and a good time.

Event Details held in Full here: So go on click going and i will see you there :-)

Also find links to all the events mentioned:

Lola Lo's Cambridge: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Motion: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

The Regal (Wetherspoon): Facebook

Nando's Cambridge: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Innocence: Website ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

S*P*A*N*K parties: Website ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

All Saints: Website/Shop ~ Twitter ~ Facebook

Thank you for reading. 

Have you found it hard to do a not so positive review even though you wish you could but just cannot lie? If so Comment Below...