Ballantyne Big Dog wants you to come party

An Alternative to Uptown

Down in Ballantyne, when the weather warms up, it means two things:

1. More stay-at-home moms/trophy wives clog up the roads in their gas-guzzling SUVs.
2. The nightlife gets much better.

If you've grown tired of the uptown crowds (also known as DudeFest '08), it might be time to mosey on over to Ballantyne one weekend night. Forget what you hear about it being the wine and cheese scene, there's a few spots that will change your outlook.

This past weekend, I visited On the Roxx, which has now been open for about five months (the original one is up near Lake Norman). The first time I went (with Yup-Town's author, Mike G.), there was only a handful of people inside. At the time, the bartender promised more action once spring rolled around, and he was right. When my friends and I walked in, we were greeted by a bouncer and the sounds of Lil' Wayne's "Lollipop."

Definitely not what you'd expect from a Ballantyne spot. But also definitely welcomed. A diverse crowd of young and old, black and white kicked back with beers and specialty martinis and even made a mini-dance floor when the DJ spun "Cupid Shuffle." Almost made me want to join in. Almost. (Although I've been known to cut a rug on occasion, I've never really been into the whole "do what I say" dances. But they are fun to watch).

Across the street from On the Roxx lies Villa Antonio and Vesuvio, two other Ballantyne nightlife spots that have grown in stature in the last year. Again, these are places where it's not overflowing with people (as uptown can get), but still a decent crowd to party with. And there's less likelihood you'll be bumped into by some dolt with his collar flipped up.

And since this blog often ventures into the cougar discussion, yes, Ballantyne is still the area where you'll more often than not run into attractive older women—which isn't entirely a bad thing.

Come out for a night at these three spots (aka "The Cougar Crawl), and you'll be back.