Reflex Arcadian

I came here for the Master of Flair Birmingham competition. The venue was easy to get to from the city centre as it’s located in Chinatown and a 5 minute walk from Birmingham New Street Station. So very easily accessible. It is essentially an 80’s club and you can see this clearly throughout the venue. It isn’t the greatest venue as it had sticky floors, upstairs men’s toilets had no lights, drinks were very limited and didn’t have much choice. You can forget cocktails as they wouldn’t have a clue how to make them. Bar staff weren’t the friendliest as throughout the whole night I didn’t see them smile once. As I was there for a competition the atmosphere was great, can’t comment on a normal night though. I would come back strictly for the competition as it catered very well for that. Wouldn’t come back for a night out.

Oh dear god… Why do I do it to myself? Now, I’m going to be as fair as I can in a two star review (seeing as this venue clearly isn’t geared up for people like myself), but I have to be as honest as I can.
Reflex is an 80’s themed nightclub catering to the clientele of the Arcadian, Chinese Quarter and Hurst Street. The kindest thing I can say about it is that it’s a meat market. You want to go out, drink lots and meet a partner for the evening? This is probably for you. If you’re looking for a civilised place to take a group of friends for a chat and a nice cocktail, avoid this like the plague.
The DJ’s play a mix of cheesy 80’s music (think Bön Jovi as best case scenario) and the drinks served here are the sugary type things that normally come out of 330ml glass bottles. I believe they do serve cocktails, but these are a mix of the aforementioned sugary type things with additional cheap spirits chucked in for good measure.
The venue is dinghy and dark, but if you like Disco lighting… This is the place for you! Honestly, as you can see, this isn’t my bag. If you’re on a night out and looking for somewhere to fling yourself around a dance floor to Chesney Hawkes and wake up with a raging head, you might want to think about hitting Reflex… If that isn’t your bag, walk on by and hit up one of the clubs in Hurst Street for a more fun and varied evening.