Dinner at the Disco
In 2013, I went with my friend Aaron Monty to hear a secret Disclosure DJ set in a Hollywood parking lot. Settle hadn’t dropped yet, but even then, guest list spots were coveted, and I didn’t have one. Aaron promised me that this one fabulous friend of his would meet us there, and she’d get me in. That’s when I met Courtney Nichols.
The first thing I noticed about Courtney: She has a certain energy about her that makes people forget the word “no.” She wasn’t on the list, either, but she had no challenge whatsoever talking her (and my) way in.
That night, we danced under the stars. We confirmed our mutual shameless hedonism as we raged on asphalt. That was the first of many Courtney dancefloor sightings to come, including at Rhonda, Spotlight, the Lash, Bears in Space, and countless undergrounds east of Alameda.
When I think of Courtney, I think of a lot of things, but number one would be disco. The very topic forces her already articulate voice into sonnet. She’ll say something like, “As a child, disco sounded like adulthood. And as I grew up, disco became the very embodiment of a lifestyle drenched in confidence.” So, I was not at all surprised to learn she was working on a disco-themed event.
I remember when Courtney first announced the idea for Disco Dining Club—a dinner party steeped in the traditions of disco—and asked all of her extended nightlife family to save the date for the first evening of total excess. I marked my calendar immediately. Nothing makes a party better than running into Courtney, but a party helmed by Courtney herself, with a tagline as intriguing as “Consume Everything”? I wouldn’t dare miss that.
It was clear when I walked into that first Disco Dining Club that no one else would dare miss it, either. The first event was a takeover of a Silver Lake restaurant. All of the tables were filled tothe max with familiar faces—promoters, DJs, and party weirdos from the scene. Place settings were marked by mirror squares with each attendee’s name printed in white, and included personal poppers in unmarked bottles (Courtney buys in bulk). Servers delivered a progression of delicious courses, while diners milled about—back and forth between seats, outside for smoke breaks, and to the dancefloor for an all-disco DJ set.
With so many distractions and so much stimulation, most diners left their main courses behind. I’ve never seen so many untouched steaks in my life. We didn’t quite “consume everything,” but we sure as hell tried.
Just after the event, my friend Bo Matthew Metz posted on Facebook, “Courtney should just be in charge of scheduling/curating our lives. #discodiningclub #incourtneywetrust.”
Since that first night, Disco Dining Club has remained in a constant state of metamorphosis. The announcement of the second event revealed the theme—Italian—and that it would be held at a private venue with later hours, live performers, an open bar, and unlimited oysters.
Throughout 2015, Disco Dining Club presented five dinners in Los Angeles and one in Berlin. Attendance was presumed. When I couldn’t make it to the DDC Bathhouse edition, the last party of the year, friends assumed I was out of town or dead. I was actually in Amsterdam, not in Hell, but the FOMO from seeing the pics was something like fire and brimstone.
Over the holiday season, Courtney was especially vocal on social media with teasers of ridiculously extreme opulence for DDC’s first anniversary party on January 30. Loyal diners received printed invitations in the mail shortly after the first of the year, giving them first priority to confirm attendance. I reached for my phone right away, and it sounds like everyone else did the same.
“All my favorite people are involved,” says Aaron, who’ll be flying in from Nashville for the event. “It’s the one party I’ve always kicked myself for not going to, and I’ve made sure not to miss this. I have a feeling Courtney is going to really outdo herself.”
From the sound of it, the anniversary party is set to be the most debaucherous to date, with more everything and a completely new space. The lineup is stacked with Eddie C, Sleazy McQueen, Alison Swing, and TK Disko. Add to that the buzz among the cool kids of L.A. nightlife, and it’s safe to say January 30 is going to be a night we all remember as fondly as that first gathering one year ago.
“I’m hoping for the magic of the first Disco Dining Club—the intimacy where you felt you could do or say anything,” says attendee Gregory Alexander. “That mixes with the following she’s built over the last year to create even more insane memories—or lack thereof.”
The first anniversary of Disco Dining Club will be held January 30, 2016, starting at 8pm at a private venue in Los Angeles. To request a seat at the table, email [email protected].
