(Credit: Robert Jacobs)
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Located on the quiet outskirts of Highlandtown in a windowless building on the corner of East Lombard and South Haven streets, Club Gypsies feels like a speakeasy or jazz club from days of yore. The denizens of Gypsies are interested in fun without any attached drama. This means no fights, no guns and no monumental silliness. If you're looking for a mellow and friendly place to chill with some fellow travelers and maybe groove on some weekend dancing, Gypsies might be for you. However, if what you have in mind is more along the lines of star-crossed Romeo and Romeo action; replete with daggers, young breathless love, fatal loins and throbbing Europop—well this isn't the place for you.
Decor: Gypsies has a cavernous interior with a black and white checkered floor, candles, Christmas lights and ceiling fans. The combined ambiance is that of an after-hours club. There's just one bar here—unlike some of the multi-tiered gay clubs found elsewhere in Baltimore and D.C.—but as this isn't really a dance club, it shouldn't hinder your ability to find a drink. There's also a small dance floor with the requisite sparkling disco orb hanging from the ceiling. Mirrors line the walls so you can watch yourself doing those "Saturday Night Fever" moves.
Crowd: This place might look like a speakeasy, but there's nothing illicit or dangerous about it. The crowd is predominately made up of gay and black men in their 30s and older. Overall, Club Gypsies exudes a friendly live-and-let-live attitude.
Drinks: There's nothing on tap here, but there's a tolerable selection of bottled beer, if you can tolerate Bud, Bud Light, Bud Ice, Yuengling, Corona, Corona Lite and Miller Lite. There's also a fully stocked bar in case you want to cut straight to the chase. Specials include happy hour on Fridays and Saturdays from 7 to 9 p.m., which translates to beer and wine for $1 a bottle or glass.
Service: The service comes with a smile and you won't have to elbow your way to the bar. If it's Sunday, the bartender might be playing pinochle, so you may have to wait an extra minute or two before your drink arrives. Just relax and enjoy your surroundings.
Sounds: Though hip-hop and R&B videos play on a constant rotation on the TV, Fridays and Saturdays are the big nights to get busy on the dance floor. Sunday nights used to be reserved for live jazz, but not enough people showed up, so Sundays are now set aside for games. A little five card stud perhaps?
Bottom line: Gay, black, straight, white...whatever. If you like R&B and you like escaping into bars where you never know what time of day it is outside, look no further.
