When you hear the words "country club," what comes to your mind? Golf. Old white men. Pretentious attitudes. Khakis and a button up.
Those phrases represent my most censored way of describing a space that, in certain circles, is viewed as the "good ol' boys' club." I know, I know, #hatersgonnahate, right?
Nevertheless, according to Google: a country-club is a privately owned club, often with a membership quota and admittance by invitation or sponsorship, that generally offers both a variety of recreational sports and facilities for dining and entertaining. *insert Quinta B's "he got money!"*
Now that we've gotten logistics out of the way, let's talk about Midwood Country Club (MCC).
Have you heard of it? I legit just started hearing about MCC within the last few months, and after all of the hooplah surrounding "memberships" in Charlotte almost two years ago, the last thing I was focused on was joining a country club and paying any more than $1 for a membership. Little did I know...
This past weekend I discovered that one of my boo's friend's partner worked at MCC and the crew was going to go.
By this point, I'd asked quite a few people who'd mentioned the spot what to expect. I'd imagined an upper echelon Charlotte nightlife venue: picture Fahrenheit or The Punch Room. A dimly lit room, deep red rugs, a cigar room and maybe a pool table.
I remember a friend asking me if I wanted to come with them and I responded, "No, I'm not dressed for that type of occasion."
They responded with a giggle but if I knew then what I know now it would make complete sense why they wore a face of confusion.
But I digress. Saturday I was drinking butterflies away at "the new-ish" Jackalope Jack's in Plaza Midwood with one of my friends.
That same friend was supposed to pick me up and accompany me to this month's Sofar Sounds secret live music gig, but alas, he fell asleep. So there we were getting lit before I was off to meet my boo thang who would soon be heading to MCC.
I looked up Midwood Country Club on my GPS and, even though I was pretty sure I could make the walk from Jack's, I decided to err on the side of caution since I wasn't 100 percent confident I knew where the venue was.
My Uber drove past Resident Culture Brewing and there it was. Immediately, I had Thirsty Beaver dive bar patio vibes. There was a post-and-chain situation happening outside cordoning off the patio but I didn't see this at first and had the stars not aligned and a fine, young gentleman alert me, I would've have cleared. that. patio. out!
Upon entry, I couldn't believe I'd stressed myself out about the "expectations for attire." This was no country club at all. If giving this divey watering hole-meets-sports bar the name "country club" wasn't a middle finger to "the man" and the "good ol' boys," I don't know what was, and I fell in love.
We were post-snowpocalypse so, as you can imagine, there weren't very many people inside the bar. In fact, the only features I noted in the spacious venue were a covered bar to the left, a few high-top tables, a TouchTunes and a couple pool tables.
And yet, the dive vibe was something I could get down with.
Later, I learned that not only was I late to the party hearing about Midwood Country Club, I was over three years late to be exact.
That's right, it's been open since 2014. I clutched my pearls in shock and awe that I could call myself a nightlife guru and yet, hadn't stumbled upon this spot right around the corner from everything I call home.
Not to mention, as is the case with most divey joints around Charlotte, I could tell in less than an hour that this spot has its own regular characters.
Just like the Corner Pub has regular passersby like Will and "Pretty Eyes" that add the seasoning that makes CP everything that it is, I can't wait to discover who those gems are at MCC.
I christened one of my new favorite spots when I accidentally took over TouchTunes and played my favorite Lil' Wayne song "Lollipop." And now that stuttering chorus that anyone and everyone recognizes will always be connected in my mind with my late discovery of a new favorite country club for the real "good ol' boys" (and girls).
Side note: I see a "must-see dive bar" list in the near future, faithful followers.
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