via Ties Facebook
building in minneapolis
Quick: Think of a nightclub.
Bouncers, expensive cover charges, red ropes, bottle service, and exclusivity, right?
If you’re anything like me, nightclub culture is synonymous with who is excluded, not the other way around. The more exclusive the club, the cooler, the more you covet a gilded spot. Right?
Not according to the Minneapolis group behind Ties Lounge & Rooftop, a trio of Gen Z friends who came together with a simple charge, “We don’t care who you are— if you’re with us, you’re going to try to have fun.”
They’re a diverse group of besties: a Black guy, a white guy, and an African guy, with an upbringing that required each of them to get along, and get by in schools, neighborhoods, and social circles different from their own. Fate threw them together, and they decided they wanted to share what they inherently knew thanks to their own tight bond: it’s all about coming together.
It’s everything, as the kids say.
Each of the men, Stevie Moman, Tommy Joyce, and Gene Sanguma came ready with different educations and career goals (marketing, sports management, sales) but with a common entrepreneurial spirit, and party promotions seemed like a natural fit. Levi Strowder, a real estate dude and a fan of the brand showed up like a knight with shining brick-and-mortar keys, and suddenly they were now four instead of three, with their own nightclub in the making. Ties Mpls. opens mid-February.
With a knack for social media, Ties got its start by selling out already existing clubs like Pourhouse and Crave with their unique branding that serves up messages of diversity, casual fun, and a refreshing lack of pretense.
“Two hundred, two hundred and fifty people were coming in and not leaving,” remembers Moman.
For an entrepreneurial group barely out of college, they have an old soul mentality about their city. At the ripe old age of early to mid-twenties, they feel nostalgic about the way downtown Minneapolis used to feel prior to the pandemic and civil unrest that has rendered its streets often deserted, and feeling sometimes desolate.
But they see a brighter future for the city, and hope to be the “domino effect” sparking some change. “Downtown is still a vital part of Minneapolis. We can’t just desert it. We can’t just shun it. There are 60,000 people who live here. People still need this place,” says Moman.
Skeptical that a nightclub can be the salve for a wounded downtown? This is no ordinary nightclub. “I want YOU to come in here,” says Moman.
You, who?
That’s right: You.
“I would love it if I came in here and saw families, kids with crayons, a business meeting at the next table, someone studying at the next. It’s not all about nightlife and drinking. We want weddings, anniversaries, birthday parties. This is a community space. Not just a bar.”
How will they do it?
The former Rojo/Randall’s/Ling & Louie space on Nicollet Mall already had the bones for four floors, so each floor will offer a different experience, says Moman, and a different opportunity for whatever vibe you’re feeling that day or night. And yes, they want everyone to partake in every vibe. You could come in several times a week, or maybe even a day, and have a different moment.
No cover, no bouncer, no DJs. The first floor is a completely open concept with a prominently placed TouchTunes jukebox, so the crowd chooses the music. This is where you might find your families and kiddos.
One level up, a chill lounge, with an Instagram room and a large selection of local beer and ready-to-go cocktails. The rooftop, with a food kiosk that’s been designated for the culinary stylings of Justin Sutherland, is more intimate than sprawling, and even in the dead of winter feels welcoming.
The food in the main part of the experience—because we can only refer to Ties as an experience—is by chef Joshua Hedquist of Joey Meatballs. Ties wanted a chef with a social mission that aligned with their own, and Hedquist’s work with The Redemption Project, utilizing Second Chance Employment (employing those with criminal records) fit that call, as did Hedquist’s approachable and casual pizza, wings, and pasta lineup—a menu almost nobody can argue with. No arguing here, remember?
Finally, the basement will offer a “premium experience,” for those who want it, and yes, if you absolutely want bottle service, that can be arranged. While Ties may not be your go-to place for $500 bottles of Patron, they are also in the business of saying “yes.” So, they’re not going to turn you away if a $500 bottle is what you desire. Just know that they’ll go a step further, tailoring your experience to you, not to the club. Remember, this is inclusive, not the other way around. “Our demographic is 21 to 70. No drama, no issues. Everything is open to everybody. Everybody is going to be here to have a good time. Think of a group of people who never would get along—you’re going to have fun and smile here.”
Sound Pollyanna?
You haven’t heard how sincere, how earnest they are. You may have to see it to believe it. And since they want you, and your kiddos, and your colleagues and your study buddies to come visit, you can go and do just that.
Maybe it’s time to hand over the keys to the generation who has the most to benefit, and the most to lose in this society, and city, that they are inheriting.
“Having an ideology that's about coming together—there’s nothing bad that can come out of that,” says Strowder.
I, for one, will toast to that.
