Club Fetish
Address: 4 Vitosha Blvd
Tel: 981 36 63 [www.fetishstripclub.com]
Working hours: Every day 9pm-4am
Peep Show Bar
Address: Ploshtad Luvov Most
Tel: 981 36 63 [www.fetishstripclub.com]
Working hours: Everyday 10pm-5am
With no guns to check at the door, my three friends and I descend unmolested into Club Fetish, which advertises that “we bring your fantasies to life”. Red lighting, walls of mirrors and tastefully modern R&B music greet our arrival. Our waitress seats us at a corner table, directly below the raised catwalk. It is a poor location. With our backs to the catwalk, we have to turn our heads to see what’s happening behind us.
We quickly survey the drinks menu and discover that the 300mL beers are 10 leva a piece (both domestic and imported). There is a well-stocked bar, and our waitress is very attentive. Beer is the drink of choice among the other 20 or so patrons, mostly male. We order a rakiya and three bottles of beer and settle in for the show.
Above us is an attractive female dancer, slowly teetering up and down the catwalk and gripping the cat pole. She is scantily clad – but not naked. Thankfully, despite our seating, it is possible to view the dancers through the mirrors on the other side of the bar.
After one or two songs, each dancer leaves the catwalk and is replaced by another girl. Unfortunately, none of the hard-bodied, half-naked girls are very talented dancers. Instead, they rely on their physical beauty and colourful fetish costumes – a stick-wielding police officer, a busty French maid – to charm and woo the subdued audience members. The DJ keeps things moving along with a killer play list, and it’s fun to watch the other foot-tapping audience members receive lap dances.
The French maid approaches me. She asks me, in English, if I want a dance. I tell her I’ll think about it. Meanwhile, my friend is getting a lap dance from a beautiful girl in a long see-thru teddy – but she is not naked. The song ends. My friend wants to tip the girl 5 leva, but she presses him for more. He tucks 10 leva in her thong, and she moves on.
Things get more interesting when my other two friends receive separate lap dances. Their girls strip all the way down to their thongs, grinding and lap-riding my friends to the rhythm of the music. The blonde, bare-breasted police officer is especially friendly, her round, exposed bottom shaking before me as she explains which parts of her smooth, athletic body my female friend is allowed to touch.
We decide to leave. The beer is too expensive. Girls start pressuring us to buy bottles of Champagne for hundreds of leva. Then I discover that there’s also a 10 leva cover charge for each person. Our total bill for one rakiya, three beers and three lap dances is about 90 leva (excluding individual tips). We pay cash, but credit cards are accepted.
With its central location, great music, friendly service and erotic atmosphere, as well as some very attractive dancers, Club Fetish does not disappoint. However, you get what you pay for in this city, so be prepared to pay top dollar to bring your fantasy to life.
After the high prices and high-class atmosphere of Club Fetish, the more moderately priced and down-to-earth trimmings of Peep Show Bar come as a breath of fresh air. (When it opened in 1993, it was the first strip tease bar in Sofia.) Having each paid the 10 leva cover at the door, my three friends and I ascend a narrow, winding staircase to the main room. There aren’t many other patrons in the dimly lit space, which smells of sweat, perfume and smoke, but there are at least a dozen women sitting around smoking and drinking. These are the dancers.
Our waitress seats us at a main table opposite the glowing neon catwalk, giving us a great view of everything. A few guys sip mixed drinks at the catwalk. They’re within easy reach of the female dancer who strips down to her panties and works the cat pole. The music is even better than Club Fetish – a mix of modern R&B and retro ‘80s. The DJ behind the bar looks like he’s having the time of his life. Happily, the beers are only 5 leva. We tell the waitress to keep them coming.
A shorthaired, curvy dancer leaves the catwalk and comes to me. Before I can say a word she begins the lap dance, guiding my hands over her basically naked body as she makes small talk with me in broken English. Only a flimsy thong covers her soft, gyrating form.
She bends over my lap like she’s ready for a spanking, while her big bare bottom rises and falls before me. Before I can even think about tipping her, the song ends and she hurries off. I put 10 leva in my shirt-pocket, so that next time, I’ll be ready.
We each get a few more lap dances before the nightly lesbian show finally begins in the back room, in a place called the Circle. The Circle is a small, round stage, encircled by tables. More intimate than the main room, the Circle is where customers can come and watch close-up as topless dancers swing from a rope, or perform on the oscillating floor.
The lesbian show begins, and really holds our attention. Two very enthusiastic dancers strip down; one girl throws her thong at me.
The two supposed lesbians begin to kiss, lick and suck each other all over the slowly spinning floor. Highly recommended.
After reading the menu, two of my friends – one guy and one girl – decide that they want to get a private lap dance for 75 leva. They choose the girl of their desire – a beautiful, long-legged brunette – and the waitress leads them downstairs to a private room. Three songs later, my two friends return to the table very satisfied with their experience. You can also go alone and get a private lap dance for 50 leva.
Around 4am we decide to leave. The bill is reasonable, considering how much beer we drank. The friendly dancers and staff seem sorry to see us go.
Peep Show Bar feels like the kind of neighbourhood strip club you can return to again and again, where everyone seems really happy you came. Credit cards are accepted.
