The first set of photos on this page come from a club in Ybor City called Lotus. Last I heard, Lotus had closed because of poor business and rough elements. It's a shame, because as you can see in these photos, the venue was very well designed and took nightlife to a new level in Ybor. Our first visit to the club was on behalf of the owners and general manager. We were taken care of nicely, but noticed the venue wasn't committed to successful local DJs. They quickly turned their style to the standard hip hop found throughout Ybor. As we all said, the last thing Ybor needed was another hip hop venue. Unfortunately we weren't the only ones that felt that way.

We continue with four photos from Mangroves, a lounge-style restaurant in the Hyde Park neighborhood of SoHo. We went to Mangroves often but because it was more of a "be seen" gathering spot instead of a club, I rarely had my camera handy. The images here reflect an evening where myself, Dan and Sonia enjoyed a night of house music produced by DJ Eyeball.

The next six images come from a local pub in Ybor with amazing character called New World Brewing Company. I don't believe they brew beer at New World any more, but they boasted one of the largest selections of micro-brews on the Gulf Coast. The six images that follow New World come from The Masquerade, a live music venue in Ybor that hosted big-name bands, local artists and DJs. I can't remember the bands performing the night I shot these images, but I can tell you almost the entire crew of Dan, Nick, Nikki, and Joshua showed up.

And finally, the last two images come from the Tiki Bar at Threshers Stadium. This litte bar was the last drinking establishment I wrote about in my Clubland column for the Tampa Tribune. Tiki Bars in Florida aren't very unique...but Tiki Bars in a baseball stadium added something new to my diverse nightlife landscape.