Club NV

SoMa, San Francisco –

One of a handful of SoMa clubs that cater to the eighteen and over crowd, Club NV – aka “Club 525” – attracts a markedly younger set of college-age revelers with its ever-changing rotation of special events and loud dance music.

A décor awash in shiny chrome and multicolored strobes gives the warehouse space the look of a European discotheque crossed with a laser tag arena. Organized around a central dance floor rimmed by two bars, the club’s first level tends to fill up by 11:30pm with a writhing mass of late teens and twenty-somethings, drunk either on booze or the fact that they’re still so young.

DJs get the party started spinning mostly heavy dance or hip-hop, while ever-present fog machines billow smoke across the rowdy crowd and go-go girls gyrating on the balcony above.

Four elevated suites provide respite for the night’s VIPs, though even less-moneyed patrons can usually find a cozy nook for sitting out a few tracks or snuggling with Mr. or Mrs. Right Now. Once the ground floor reaches critical mass, the upstairs area can open to reveal another dance space and bar, as well as a second booth from where a different DJ takes charge of the floor.

It may not be posh and fancy, but for the city’s fresh-faced and doe-eyed clubbers, Club NV is a coveted late-night scene.