Meet Jamie, A Champagne Loving Club Goer for 40 Years

Meet Jamie, a Boston resident and longtime club goer: too bad Whale Week doesn't have a best-dressed award. Jamie frequently holds court at his reserved table at Emerald Lounge in the Revere Hotel, where he often goes to partake in a bottle of bubbly. "The ladies love him," notes a representative from the club, who says Jamie is known for coming in and buying magnums of Ayala Champagne multiple nights a week. Since he's been a regular presence on the Boston club scene for forty years, Eater spoke with Jamie about his favorite places to live it up, past and present.

Where do you like to go out? I go to Emerald, I go to the Liberty Hotel, I go to Bond. I used to love - what's the rooftop down on Kneeland Street? It's closed now - I used to hang in there a lot. Then the old Saint, which is Storyville now. That [Storyville] was my favorite place before Emerald. And I used to like Descent, before they closed, which was in the W Hotel. I also like Top of the Hub, because I really do like jazz. And the reason I chose these places is the accomodations are really, really nice. People are nice, the people at the door are nice, and these aren't those clubs or lounges where you can go in and see some of the people with their pants down on their butt: dressed improperly, that's what I call it. The places that I named, I get treated pretty good

What do you like to order? All I drink is champagne. I used to drink Bacardi and Coke or Tanqueray and ginger ale, but I'm really not a drinker. I buy drinks, but I'm not what you would call a real drinker. I used to drink Moët, which I really like. And then the manager at Emerald came over with a new champagne called Ayala, which is which is really, really good. And so now, that's what I drink. And it pretty much didn't make any difference what the price range was. The price range was anywhere from say $60 to $150 a bottle, it depends on what you got. But at Emerald, that's all I drink is champagne.

How often do you go out? Used to be every night. Now, it's like Thursday, Friday, Saturday and then sometimes Sunday. Most of the time Saturday is date night for me, so if my lady wants to do whatever she wants to do, Saturday is the day. That's her night.

What first turned you onto the club scene? I used to be out and about. I've always been out and about. Even when I lived in Florida. I mean, when you're in Miami, that's all it is! So I work hard in the daytime and I have a good time at night. And like I say, most of the places I go in, they know me. I mean, my dress may be a little different than everybody else, but that's the way that I've always been. I've always worn suits, my clothes always match. That's not a big thing for me. That's just like an average person going out to dinner or something like that.

Can you describe an typical outfit for a night on the town? With me, an average outfit would be a two or three-piece suit, a top hat, velour, sport coat or a fur coat. I wear a lot of jewelry. I have special-made glasses. I'm one of those guys that you would say are "out there."

Can you share a story from your years on the scene? It happened that I was in Las Brisas, Mexico, me and my girl. And we happened to go to this club called The News. They wanted to sit us way up in the nosebleed crowd. And I said, well, what would it take for me to sit down there, where everyone else was? And they said I'd have to buy a bottle or something like that. Well I'm used to doing that! We got down on the floor and all of that and I guess that's the time when Patrick Swayze had Dirting Dancing out, and he was there and everything, and we were in proximity with them.

I used to go to this place called Limbo here in Boston, which was a jazz place, and Samuel L. Jackson, all those guys used to come there, because they were doing movies. They were doing Mystic River: Sean Penn, all of them that you could name were here. I've met a lot of musicians here, so every time they come in town I'm right there. I get a pass to go backstage and see them and all of that. And it's not like you're on a one name basis with them, but you're in the same atmosphere. You don't ask them for an autograph or nothing like that: they're out just like you're out, to have a good time. The only difference is they may have three or four bodyguards.

When you're out at club, how does the night usually go? Right now, Emerald is about the best club-lounge that you have in the city. When you come through the front door, if you look and you see two chairs and a table, normally that's my table. I sit no place else. If by some chance someone is sitting there, then I just kindly wait. They do have a reserved sign there, but they let whoever is sitting there finish their drink, then they say the person who reserved this table is here.

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