Is there room for two ice bars in the Twin Cities nightlife scene? The Freight House in Stillwater seems to think so.
So, it seems, do the people (700 of them, says the Freight House) -- some of whom paid $17.95 each last Friday to check it out. If the price seems high to you, don't worry, it did to the owner, too, who dropped the admission cost to $12.95 later in the weekend.
When the Chambers Hotel opened its ice bar in the winter of 2006, I called it absurd. Who wants to freeze their butt off to get a drink? But it was also kind of fun -- the ridiculousness being part of the intrigue.
With summer here, that wintertime ice bar is closed, making it a perfect time for the Freight House to debut its own.
Located 30 minutes east of downtown Minneapolis on the St. Croix River, the nightclub's version is discernibly more elaborate -- and thus more absurd.
The structure (about the size of a semitrailer truck) first appeared on the Freight House's large patio three weeks ago. Like a gigantic freezer, it's totally enclosed, except for a door and two tiny windows. It was brought here by Craig Ling, a New Zealander who has built six other ice bars worldwide. His company, Minus5, partners with existing bars to build and operate these icy enclosures. The Stillwater "igloo," as Ling calls it, opened last Friday after carvers finished work on 20 tons of ice. Inside the 23-degree chamber, the walls, chairs, bar, even the cocktail glasses, are made of ice.
The cover charge includes a free cocktail, gloves and a loaner parka.
Ling's only other U.S. location is in Las Vegas, where charging amusement-park prices is the norm. But c'mon, this is Minnesota.