Level V

Wow… I’m trying to review this spot and got lots of surprises.
First surprise: it’s closed?! really?! Been here twice. And both twice was fucking awesome!
Second surprise: lots of shitty reviews from my fellow Unilocalers.
Maybe my past 2 experices at this place was just pure luck. Who gives a damn, i had a good fucking time. Bottle service all the way! Vodka was like Poland Springs those two nights.
Who knows, maybe i had an extra good time cause the bottles we’re free & i was feeling extra confident with the chickens.

Nice basement lounge, dont think its makes for a good club because of the dungeon layout, prob a fire hazard. Promoters try very hard to, pretty diverse crowd, nice people; drinks are reasonably priced for that area. There really ain’t much abt the place to talk about.

It was what I was expecting.

UGH I really can’t say enough bad stuff about this place. I would know, I always end up there when the rest of the meatpacking district is filled to the brim (in other words, ALWAYS). This place has bouncers who obviously don’t mind that girls flirt with them to skip the line (again, I would know as I never wait in line here and am shameless) and the music I suppose is pretty solid (no unrecognizable songs, everything is pretty danceable).
That being said, there are always the WORST human beings in there. All the girls are B&T and the guys are the ones who think buying bottles and being DB’s are awesome. I always leave feeling like someone threw up in my brain.
I have made an ’09 resolution to not come here for a full year. with the exception that I may need a drunk dance party spot at least once…

Uh, what door policy? Even NYMag rates this as hard to get into … I’m not sure if they sent a man in a monkey suit or if the doorman last night needed a new prescription, but this was not a challenge. Actually, I wish it had been a little stronger. Or maybe that they had a «please show us your dance skills before entering».
Crowd on a Friday was really weirdly white for NYC. I mean, if I want to see all of that swivel and sway I’ll go to Ohio. Drinks were okay, my long island was strong enough to make me a little less critical, but only temporarily. My friend needed two drinks to kill the pain though. Really it was some of the worst dancing I’ve ever seen. It got better as the night went on, however, until the DJ started sucking real bad and playing some sort of eighties B-​list artist mix. He also had a habit of playing the first minute of a song and then switching it out. Maybe he was just trying to find a song that these people could successfully dance to.
Lots of Europeans and I danced with a German guy who looked just like my ex-​boyfriend, so that was cool. And the coat check girl gave me the wrong ticket for my coat, somehow blamed me, then spent ten minutes looking for it. At least it was free.

I’m going to avoid being biased since I was with a couple promoters who hooked us up with a private booth and free bottle service. I’m not going to lie; that ruled.
Seems like kind of a small spot that gets packed pretty quickly. I walked around the «dance» floor and could barely move. I’m pretty sure it’d take forever to get a drink. The music was pretty good. Mostly top 40. Some of it was kind of hit or miss for me though.
The bathroom had an attendant… but the place was a mess. Seemed kind of unnecessary to have her there.

It’s great if you’re into the whole dungeon scene. i can’t decide if I think it’s cool or just plain claustrophobia-​raising.
I came here for a friend’s birthday and although it was fun, I wasn’t that impressed. The drinks are mediocre and the space is limited.
The music isn’t that great but I do love the circular private rooms and the comfy seating.
It’s nothing to brag about and if you’ve already made it to meat packing, you should really be checking out something a little cooler.

Just like any other club in the area, there is a bouncer outside. We tried to get into the club under my friend’s name who was on the guest list. The bouncer gave us the impression that we were not allowed in since we were all guys and had to wait for the birthday girl to come. After waiting about 20 – 25 minutes, we finally got in. Walking down the stairs, you enter into a dark nightclub, the walls looking very cave-​like, and very dimly lit. We were told there was a coat check around the corner by the entrance but we were unable to find it. One of the workers there was not very helpful and just as easily gave us a shrug and ran away. This place was very crowded, with only one area for cushy red seats, most of the people were here standing and drinking, must blasting, and not a lot of dancing. There are also some private VIP rooms along the corridor for small parties to hang out. Bartenders were well-​dressed, but drinks were very expensive here. There was a photographer going around taking photos for their website, which he apparently seems to do quite often. We were only in here for less than an hour because of how crowded and dull this place was, we decided to go to another club down the street.

+1 because it’s a nice place
+1 because the music is alright
–1 because the crowd is kinda stiff
–1 because the drinks are kinda expensive
–1 because of the unattractive girl in red freaking a girl unattractively, and that they let the creepy old guy in with us. not really the fault of level v, but i just thought i needed to use it as validation for my 2 stars.

The first time I went to Level V, I was a little peeved that it was so hard for group of good looking girls to get in on a late Saturday night. Last night, I dropped in with my cousin for drinks after dinner and it was a breeze getting in. Granted, it was a Tuesday night and a bit on the slow side. They also had complimentary chair massages there which I didn’t take advantage of. They play great music here and last night it was more loungey than I remembered, which I liked. Aside from the dungeon like entrance and basement feel at first, the place is elegantly decorated and overall cool. Two drinks cost me $ 28 (gratuitity already included) but I suppose that’s the price of hanging out in the Meatpacking…

Had my share of way too late evenings and fist pumping at this place. Not a fan of the low ceilings around the DJ/​dance floor but in the back they have these cool cave like rooms (I heard it used to be a torture chamber…) so you have this private little place to dance and make bad decsisions.
It’s fun if you’re with a good group, but if you’re a picky club/​bar patron, give it a miss.

Went to a birthday here last night. Had bottle service, private room, all that good stuff.
Well, we arrive and the room (if you could call it that, not really…) wasn’t ready. No problem, we’ll head to the bar and get a drink. Then, we all start shivering. It seems like this place doesn’t heat the bottom floor. It’s cold in the winter. When the room is deemed «ready» we head over to coat check, get our coats, and move them in case we start shaking profusely once again. Well, we get to the room and have tons of mixers (a big plus) and an ice bucket, but no booze. After talking with two of the bouncers, the situation is handled and the night continues.
Be sure to check out the lighting. For some reason, candles=cool with me and this place had cool swiss cheese like coverings for the candles. This is one of the reasons this place manages two stars.
Not having rooms ready, it being really cold, over priced drinks (i know, i know, to be expected), and really old music (2003 maybe?) lead to a one star review. If you want to keep your «trendy» image, get some heat in there and a new DJ. Good thing I like candles.

Some questions that passed through my mind while here:
1) Why are the picky about who they are letting in if this girl (ahead of me in the restroom line) looks like she just woke up and threw on some sweats and tennis shoes?
2) Hmm… feels like a dungeon. Wonder how long it would take for us to get out of here if there were a fire. Wait, I wonder if we’d all even make it out.
3) Will the DJ play that song once more? Oh wait, he already played it and the other few songs I liked 3 times (and counting).
4) Thank God our friend got us a table. Now what is this stuff in the small glass jug? The rest is tonic and cranberry juice. Oh YUM! Why did they give us such a small amount of the best juice ever? There isn’t enough for everyone to mix with their alcohol!
5) Did someone say that is some kind of jungle juice? Louisiana juice… what?
6) That girl has a lot of nerve asking us if her sloppy (and obnoxious) boyfriend can sit in our seats. Does it look like any of us want to give up our seats at the moment?
6) Can we go now?
3 stars. 2 for the venue, and 1 for the mystery juice.

This trendy little basement party is what i like to call a good last resort. After a long saturday night out in the meatpacking district. when the crowds are getting to be too much and the drunks are starting to get sloppy… its time to pack it up and head to Level V. Much more room to dance and socialize with your friends without being knocked over every five seconds and the DJ plays a good mix of new and old school songs. I’ll definitely be using this place as my secret getaway spot for partying after 3am in the district.
Sky*

To set the scene, count how many pairs of fake tots you see – I bet you’ll hit double digits! Although the ladies that frequent here need to eat a sandwich, they sure made for hysterical people watching.
Thank you, Mr. DJ, for spinning some oldies but goodies: Bön Jovi, the dance stuff you hear while working out at Bally’s, and some Puffy (back when he was actually known as Puffy).
Great cocktails rounded out our lovely time spent at Level V.

I feel like this is what would happen if your gay teenage brother moved into the basement of your suburban house at 14 and wanted to prove more than anything that he could be an interior decorator. Yes, the décor is lovely — I especially love the lighting fixtures, but let’s call a spade a spade here. This is a basement. Yeah, I guess it feels small and sexy and exclusive and all the Meatpacking District whatnot, but sadly, the whole time I was there, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was in someone’s overly decorated basement. And that’s not a good feeling.
On the plus side, good drinks (though, they’ll cost ya), loved the DJ the Thursday night I was there, and my man Russ W does pack the house with some fun peeps. I also think the little caves in the back are a cute way to do VIP tables. Be careful of the last one though, you never know what or who you might find in there. ;)

Fun vibe, good drinks, pricey but you’re out, right? I like this place much better during the week late at night. The lower area seating with the ipod connections make for a comfortable set up if you’d rather listen to your own music than the DJ. That said, DJ talent is generally good.

Actually, I think it shoul be 4 stars, but I’m feeling particularly picky right now. My gf and I went for some cocktails after dinner — around 1030 — and got right in. Soon enough, it was packed and the line was way too long. We had a lot of fun here — mostly due to the no line and fun dance music — but not sure it’d be worth waiting in a 1 hour long line to get in. However, it wasn’t pretentious and a decent crowd, so that should be considered.
I say go here if the night is young, you want a couple tasty cocktails and want to get your dance moves on before heading out to the next stop.

If you’re with girls, you’ll usually get right in. The bouncers are pretty nice. With a bunch of guys… hmmm we used to sneak in the back door, but last time it was locked. They’re onto us I guess. This place is fine for dancing and more fun than a bunch of other places in the Meatpacking District. But, it is only really ok. It depends alot on the night. It can be alot of i-​bankers and the fashion victim women who love them, and lots of the B& T crowd. Or it can be some really chill folks, some celebrities, fashionistas, and people who can really dance. Sometimes it’s a mix of both.
I feel the same way about the music. Sometimes great, sometimes not so great.
But, I do really like the interior. It’s a bit like a really cool dungeon, with stone walls, lots of winding hallways, and cushy red pillows. If nothing else looks good, take a gamble on Level V.

Though I’ve had some great, somewhat fuzzy, memories at this place, not sure I need to go back. On my last visit on a Sat night, I found it surprisingly easy to get in. Usually it’s a total bitch at the door with lame bouncers ego trippin’ and skanky girls barely covered getting through. As with so many of these trendy meatpacking «exclusive» clubs, they’re only bound to stay hot for so long. And since Lindsay Lohan is no longer a regular here, I guess it’s no longer the place to be. :)
What I still like about the place is that it still has a fun vibe… not too pretentious like the crowd at PM or some of the other neighboring joints… and they’re usually playing great fun, dance-​y music. Once you have made your way in, the ambiance of this subterranean club with low ceilings, some yummy watermelon shot that always seems to do me in, and the young, energetic (though cheesy) crowd gets me going for awhile. But once I’ve had enough $ 15 cocktails and enough sweaty B&T or banker guys ogling me and my girlfriends, I get sick of the V. Most people don’t even have that much patience to stand the place though.