Open: Wednesday and Thursday 4:30 p.m. to midnight, Friday 4:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., Saturday 5 p.m. to 1 a.m., closed Sunday to TuesdayAccess: Fully accessibleIf, during the last three decades, you frequented one of the businesses at 34 Clarence St. in the ByWard Market, then you’re a lot cooler and clubbier than I am.
Her topic was the launch of Marsbar, yet another nightclub that followed such tenants as Diva, which catered to goths and fetishists, she wrote, as well as the more mainstream Yucatan Liquor Stand, The Zoo and Alcatraz. My colleague concisely described the latter two as “baseball cap bars.” Post-Marsbar, more nightclubs opened here in the 2000s, including The Other Side, Suite 34, Kavali and Medusa. That makes nine venues I never visited. Just call me Mr. Sheltered Life.
“Everything you see in the restaurant is brand-spanking new,” co-owner Arash Zadeh told me this week. The 120-year-old building, which had been vacant for more than two years during the pandemic, underwent an extensive renovation, including the addition of a kitchen that cost about $270,000, Zadeh said.
When I visited last month, Alora’s rooftop space which will hold about 70 seated or 180 standing had yet to open. Zadeh said it’s open now and that it’s vibrant and green, with a lounge vibe and “no loud music. We’re gearing toward an older crowd that wants to be outdoors.” In other words, goths and ballcap bros might want to mingle elsewhere.