Austin360 blogs > Out & About > Archives > 2007 > October > 09 > Entry
Pangaea pandemonium
Our Page 1 story Sunday on the new safari-themed ultra-lounge, Pangaea, and its owner, Michael Ault, unleashed the types of responses one expects when anything substantially different comes to Austin.
Not all of the opinions represent our city’s “live and let live” philosophy. Here are but a few. Yours are welcome in the commentary box.
“The velvet rope thing is snobbish but, hey, if that’s what (Ault) wants he’ll (hopefully) be paying the city taxes to do so.”
“Give me Saxon Pub any day over that type of place.”
“Austin has plenty of room for a place like this. It certainly doesn’t detract from anything, it just adds something else to the mix.”
“It could work if the music is banging and they take it the bohemian route … keep it accessible … but clearly they dont intend to do that… they better recognize if they wanna survive in the ATX.”
“I hope Ault succeeds there, and makes lots of money. And I hope that the Austinistas that work for him make good money too. What’s not to like about that?”
“The guy obviously has enough $ to keep it afloat for some time … but hopefully, after the luster wears off in 1-2 yrs, sales will dip so low that he’ll just yank it out.”
“Why do people insist on glorifying people like this Ault guy? What is the point of this article? None of this is new to Austin, it’s the same thing as Cuba Libre, Vicci, Belmont, etc etc etc. Clearly this guys ego isn’t big enough already. Why are you people so excited that you are about to give him lots of your money to wait in line with a bunch of douchebags and buy overpriced weak drinks? He’s a rich elitist who opens lame clubs so he can make money off other rich elitists.”
“I have visited Michael Ault’s concepts all over world. Each location is exceptional in its own way however Pangaea is by far his best. Downtown Austin is very lucky to have this kind of quality establishment. Can’t wait!!! Good luck Pangaea Austin!!!”
“I have mixed feelings about this. I tend to go to places like Antone’s and La Zona Rosa to hear good music. I doubt the bands I like would play at such a place or even be asked to play. I guess these folks need a place of their own but you won’t see me standing in line at Pangaeas.”
“I personally think anything that draws people to consider moving downtown metro Austin is a good thing. If you don’t like these types of bars then stay out and be thankful that it’s drawing the people you dislike out of your bars. Austin needs to accept that it’s growing and if we’re going to grow then it’s better to grow up rather then out. It’s better for the environment, traffic, etc. So I’m in favor of anything that draws people downtown whether it’s my taste or not. Next we need baseball.”
“Another step closer to Sodom & Gamorah. Another useless waste of time. Thanks Mr. Ault for putting our carpenters to work building this memorial to decadence.”
“I wouldn’t really call Austin a modern day Sodom & Gamorah just yet. For one, those were two cities — the analogy works much better for Dallas and Fort Worth. I see Austin as more of a contemporary Nineveh — a mighty capital city whose downfall was a result of its own pride. And let’s face it, Austinites are nothing if not unbearably proud of the bohemian lifestyle here. I was talking about this very thing the other day with the barista at Whole Foods over some organic loose-leaf yerba mate. But who knows, you could be right. If the first person to get turned away from the line outside of Pangaea on opening night looks back and turns into a pillar of salt, I’ll apologize.”
“Is it illegal to throw tomatoes at people in line for this place? Maybe it will go away…FLIP FLOPS FOREVER!!!”
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Comments
By David
October 14, 2007 8:56 PM | Link to this
Austin is no longer weird....It's now trying to be Dallas or Houston.
Mr. Ault should have taken a trip to the domain on any given day to see how empty it is. The demographics of this city are misleading....Just because people have money here doesnt mean they are going to spend it on trying to get around a velvet rope. This guy will never make his money back.
By eugene
October 10, 2007 11:08 AM | Link to this
Not sure what the controversy is about. Obviously, attendance won't be cumpulsory for anyone. What's the big deal? Sounds like reverse snobery