Voodoo Tiki Bar News Blog

Holy cats!  I can’t believe it’s time for another Jazz series! Once again, we’ve got some awesome talent lined up for your listening pleasure: Legendary local Jazz ensemble “Gradual Lean” will kick off the series, then it will be one rockin’ act after another until we wrap it up in March! There will be no cover charge for regular Tuesday performances, and we’re pulling out all the stops for our 5 day Mardi Gras celebration! Arrive early for lounge seating or get there late and listen from the bar.

That’s right everybody, we have two more upcoming events:

1. October is Breast Cancer awareness month, or as we like to call it, “Save the Ta-Ta’s Month”. On Thursday, October 22nd, the Business Community of Avondale Point is hosting a “Pink Party”. Coming out that night accomplishes two great things: All businesses involved (they have pink ribbons, boobs, etc painted on their windows) will be donating a portion of proceeds to the Susan G. Komen Foundation to fight breast cancer; You also help support our local neighborhood businesses. If you’re in any doubt about how special our little corner of the world is, with it’s collection of bars and restaurants, boutiques, salons, and professionals, please drive around Mt. Pleasant, Summerville, or any of the new housing tracts out by the dump
2. Thurday, November 12th: Garage Cuban Band makes their triumphant return to West Ashley! Last time they played for us we couldn’t have fit any more bodies into Voodoo, and the folks that were there witnessed a fantastic Jazz Concert. Those of you who have seen them before need no words of encouragement to come out, but if you’ve never heard these guys, listen up: GCB is five young guys from Charleston who sound like 5 old-timers from Havana who learned to put Michael Jackson and Patsy Cline songs to an afro-latin beat and sing through a megaphone! The effect is spectacular and is our favorite and most talked about show of the season. Not every band member still lives in Charleston, so we take our GCB shows whenever we can get them all together in one place! Don’t miss it!!

Lastly, look for our Thanksgiving Turkey Give Away, coming in late November.

Voodoo Mike

Boo! That’s right people, it’s time for Voodoo’s 2nd annual “Elvis is Alive” Halloween Bash! On Saturday, October 31st, We’re busting out all the fake cobwebs we can find, re-animating everyone’s favorite shock jock, DJ D-Rock, and scared to death of our new professional emcee- Amy Hutto, of the late 98X (R.I.P. local radio).

Our blood-letting, er…  bar-tending staff will be whipping up some ridiculous concoctions for all of you to enjoy, and you know we love to pull out some good cheap drinks and shooters at our parties! For those of you who don’t fill up on candy before you get there, Chris and the kitchen staff will be knocking out some ‘killer’ food specials.

We will have two categories in the costume contest this year: Best Elvis, and best Elvis Inspired. So come as young skinny Elvis, old fat Elvis, vampire Elvis, or a very scary peanut butter, banana, and bologna sandwich. Do it well and you’ll be taking home a wad of cash and a bunch of Voodoo fun-tickets.

August 4th, 2009-

Well, all good things must come to an end, and so it is for Voodoo’s critically acclaimed Summer Jazz Series. Our second-to-last show, tonight, will feature peerless Brazilian Guitarist and Vocalist Duda Lucena in his only performance this season. Charleston jazz fans know and love Duda and his music, and he has played to a packed house every time he’s been in West Ashley: arrive early if you’d like to sit! Also, look for Charleston Jazz luminary Quentin Baxter to supply the rhythm for tonight’s performance.

Next week, our final show will feature Quiana Parlor. Any of you that spent Mardi Gras with us will remember this talented Young Lady and her band playing for four hours straight with no break! They blew the roof off the joint and people didn’t stop dancing until well after last call. Look for that same energy on August 11th as we clear out the tables to make some booty-shaking room for you all!

On a final note, I get a lot of questions about why we don’t offer live Jazz all year round. Really, I’m flattered that you all are so happy with our production, and it is a success for us on every level. There are several reasons that keep us from running live music all year long, but the biggest and most important one is that we want our Jazz Series to remain special and unique. By offering a limited schedule, we give you (and us, for that matter) something to look forward to without the worry of it becoming stale or ‘old-hat’.

OK, I hope to see you all at Voodoo for the next two shows, If you don’t make it, you now know what you’ll be missing! Oh, if you’re interested check out these kind words from the City Paper Music Editor regarding the GCB show.

Mike

Well allright people, sorry it’s been so long since the last update, but you know how crazy the Charleston Restaurant scene can be during Spoleto! We debuted the new Voodoo Food Menu two weeks ago to great fanfare, so if you haven’t been in yet for Gourmet Bar Food like Lobster Corndogs, Foie-Gras Burger sliders, or our Truffled Tater-Tots, the kitchen is open late ’til 1:00am every night!

The other big news: Tonight is the premier of Voodoo’s Summer Jazz Series, that’s right- it’s the return of Live Jazz to West Ashley! We’ve changed things up a bit since the winter series: Shows are now free, and they will be on Tuesday nights at ~9:00 from now until mid-August. The Quentin Baxter Quartet is headlining tonight, so arrive early for seating as he always draws a great crowd!

Sorry for the lack of updates my loyal reader(s), but I really needed to slack off for a while. While the blog hasn’t been updated in a little while, we have been staying busy booking events and working on tons of food and drink specials for your enjoyment.

Coming up tomorrow night, Doug Walters (formerly of ‘The Secrets’) headlines a two-man acoustic show co-starring Jeff Caldwell. This is something new for Doug as well as us at Voodoo, and I’m glad I’ll be there to check it out. The show starts around 9:00pm and is only $5. What, you got something better to spend five bucks on on Wednesday night? Come show your support.

Next Saturday is a real hum-dinger of a night. The evening begins with “Through the Decades”, Avondale’s first Fashion Show and Boutique walk. The event showcases the style and selection of Avondale Point’s hippest shops and salons such as Strawberry Blonde, Wink, Consigning Women, and more. Fashion Show begins at voodoo at 6:30, and the shops will be open late (8:00 ’til 10:00pm) for shopping afterwards.

Immediately following the show, we’ll kick off yet another Lunacy Party! Our monthly Full Moon Party features great DJ’s, break dancers, body-painting, cheap drink specials, and all the black light you can handle! Show up in costume and we’ll waive the $3.00 cover charge.

Lastly, Chris, our kitchen manager, has been working his tail off on our new menu. You may have noticed some our recent specials such as Truffled Tater-Tots, Chipotle Buffalo Burger Sliders, and the ridiculous Foie-Gras Burger Sliders. Look for the new menu late this Spring, and don’t worry- all the favorites will still be there.

Hope to see you all Soon!

Mike, Jen, and the Voodoo Cru

So, it’s Ash Wednesday, the traditional day of repentance following Fat Tuesday. I don’t know about you, but I feel pretty repentant about all the rum and beer I knocked back on Mardi Gras! Well, we had a lot of fun over the last week with all our special events, and we are worn out! Of course that doesn’t mean much- we all just slept in a little longer today.

Fear not! We might be tired, but we are energized by the turnout and the enthusiasm y’all brought to us this week, so we’re planning even more stuff! Our Winter Jazz Series continues Saturday night with The Kevin West Project, our most contemporary artist this year, blending  Jazz, Hip-Hop, and Blues. Plan to arrive early because at only $5, seats don’t last.

For all you Party People out there, the next Lunacy Party is on Wednesday, March 11th. Mark your calendars people! Plan on being part of the party: Show up looking sexy, in costume, or wearing nothing but knee socks and a top-hat, and you can walk right to the front of the line and pay no cover charge! We’ll see you there.

Mike, Jen, and the Cru of Voodoo

Good God Y’all! We got even more stuff coming up! Most of it is free, and the stuff that ain’t don’t cost but five or ten bucks. Check out the posters below for all the details. Here’s some of the high points:

• Mardi Gras Parade on Friday at happy hour.
• Elise Testone at Saturday Night Jazz- Yowza is she good!
• Marie Laveau’s Brunch on Sunday Morning.
• Art Show, Benefit, and Burlesque on Monday
• Giant Crazy-Ass Mardi Gras Party on Fat Tuesday.

Wow, we have been busy! February will have 3 Saturday nights of our normal Winter Jazz Series, plus Voodoo ‘Jazz Fest’ on Saturday the 21st! ‘Jazz Fest’ is a part of our ‘FIve Days of Carnival’, which concludes on Mardi Gras, Tuesday the 24th!

What else is happening you ask?

• Monday the 9th is Lunacy, so look out West Ashley! In addition to all the usual craziness, we’ll have the ‘Bizarro Girls’ burlesque act for your entertainment.
• Our Valentine’s Night Jazz show is Elise Testone. Elise blew the roof off the place when she performed last summer, and packed Voodoo full of people who already knew how good she was! You’ll want to show up early for a seat in the lounge ’cause this is one show that will be packed to the rafters!
• On Sunday the 15th, Charleston’s Roller Derby Girls, ‘The Lowcountry High-Rollers’ will be hosting a fund-raising bingo happy hour.
• We kick off Carnival on Friday the 20th with a Happy Hour Dixieland Band Parade around Avondale point. You are not gonna wanna miss this!
• Saturday the 21st- Jazz Fest. Live music from 7pm ’til close.
• Sunday the 22nd- the rebirth of Marie Laveau’s Brunch at Voodoo from 11:30 to 2:30 (or until we run out of food!)
• Monday the 22nd- Voodoo Art Show and Benefit: A great cocktail of local artists and performers will have their work on display and for sale. Drink specials and a silent auction will help raise money for our favorite charity,  The St. Bernard Project- dedicated volunteers working tirelessly to rebuild a community that is still suffering from the effects of Hurricane Katrina.
• Tuesday the 23rd- Mardi Gras Bash!! Beads, beads, beads! Food and drink specials, live music, and a giant-ass party! You can’t handle what what we’ll be throwing down!
• Just as in the Big Easy, our bar will be closed the day after Mardi Gras- (Ash Wednesday) – Go to mass and repent, you sinners.

Last week’s show with Quentin and Kebbi was unbelievable! We expect to be blown away by Kevin and his band this Saturday. As we have limited lounge seating, we recommmend that you arrive early. You’ll thank me for that advice when you and your friends score a couch for a show!