A new addition to Kitsap’s nightlife scene opens later this week.
EDEN Nightclub & Lounge in Bremerton opens its doors Aug. 25 and 26. The brainchild of local residents Chloe and Zachary Beach, the club is the culmination of considerable effort — and passion.
Chloe said entrepreneurship runs in her family. She and Zachary own a roofing company — Next Level Roofing — and her parents and grandparents have owned various businesses as well. The couple had been brainstorming ideas for opening a new business — “always good to have more eggs in different baskets,” Chloe said — when she began to wonder why there wasn’t a nightclub in Silverdale or Kitsap County.
“There has to be some kind of law that doesn’t allow you to open up a nightclub at all,” she figured. “Because otherwise, somebody would have done it.”
It turns out there was no such law but, as the pair discovered for themselves, taking the idea from fleeting thought to an up-and-running business wasn’t an easy process.
They started by trying to find a suitable space for a nightclub. An old pawn shop on Callow Avenue seemed like a perfect space, Chloe said, but it turned out it didn’t have a sprinkler system — a must-have for a nightclub — and she was told putting in a new system would cost around $150,000.
That was a no-go, so they kept looking. Chloe said her real estate agent told her about a space that wasn’t on the market — a former pool hall with nearly 7,000 square feet, a wide open area and both a bar and a kitchen. It was perfect and, after getting in touch with the owner of the property, they were able to lease it.
Chloe said she and Zachary initially wanted to open the club for spring break, but acknowledged that was ambitious. It took four months just to get the liquor license, she noted, and it’s taken a lot of work to design the club’s interior to give off the vibe they’re going for.
“As soon as you go in, it’s like a neon jungle,” Chloe said. “Almost every single wall is floral: ivy walls, fern walls; everything is just to the max.”
“I really wanted to make it feel like a very peaceful atmosphere,” she added, noting that they’re seeking to invoke “PLUR” — which stands for peace, love, unity and respect — a concept developed in the rave scene. “The whole vibe comes from that — just to keep the vibe really light and fun,” she said.
The club will enforce a dress code, both so people can feel comfortable dressing up for a night out, and to avoid any of the problems that may accompany gang-affiliated wear, Chloe noted. Generally, the dress code requires “cocktail attire,” she said. The full dress code is available at the club’s website.
So how will the nightclub be different from the current crop of nightlife venues in Kitsap County?
“The vibe is a lot more outgoing,” Chloe said. “A lot of the people I’ve had in there for private events have said they feel a lot more comfortable on the dancefloor because that’s what’s expected — to go and have a good time, and not feeling like you’re being watched by the people at the bar.”
The dress code also lets people feel comfortable dressing up, she said. Outside of the nightclub environment, “if you’re a female and want to wear a nice cocktail dress or something fun, you get all the eyes on you like you’re a piece of meat,” she said. “Everyone else is wearing jeans or a T-shirt or whatever, and it makes you feel uncomfortable.”
The club’s interior aesthetic also takes things up a notch, she said.
“A lot of people feel like they enter a whole different world; an oasis,” she said. The furniture lights up with LEDs, and there’s an expansive lounge where people can relax apart from the dance floor.
A recent staff training event that served as a test run for the club confirmed the versatility of the space, Chloe said.
“People were able to go with their group and sit … there’s always a spot for you to go and not feel overwhelmed in the crowd,” she said.
Security for the club is a priority: Staff will perform checks upon entry and will be equipped with wand-style metal detectors, Chloe said. Security will patrol the parking lot to make sure people aren’t doing things there they shouldn’t be, she added.
And the club will feature several live DJs per night, each doing different genres of music, Chloe said. Some are local, but have moved here from scenes like Las Vegas, she said. As the club grows, they hope to attract more nationwide DJ talent.
In addition to drinks, food is available at the club courtesy of its full kitchen. Eventually they’d like to expand to include a more extensive menu, but for now the offerings are typical bar food, Chloe said.
The club recently passed its final inspections and is ready to open this weekend. “It’s been quite the journey with it all and we’re really excited to finally be open to the public,” Chloe said.
EDEN Nightclub & Lounge
Eden Nightclub & Lounge’s grand opening starts 8 p.m., Aug. 25, at 2817 Wheaton Way, Bremerton, and continues on Aug. 26. $10 cover until 10 p.m. $15 cover after 10 p.m. 21+.
Stay up to date by visiting the club on Facebook and Instagram, or on its website.
