Sons of Johnnie LeMaster: Gotham Club (Part 2)

Earlier this season, we became members of the SF Giants’newest venture, the Gotham Club. A members only club where individuals can enjoy exclusive access to the park and some cool perks. At the time, only two of the three venues were open, the Bullpen and the Game Room. To be honest, those two venues were okay, the Bullpen is neat because you’re actually on the field during batting practice and you’re able to enter three hours before first pitch. Plus, they if there is a stadium giveaway, they have their own stash to pass out, so there’s no need to wait in long lines … score! The Game Room located on the Oracle suite club level is unique as well. The “GR” has two bowling lanes, billiards table, dart board and two bars to wet your whistle. Unfortunately, the “GR” has no direct view of the field, so if you want to watch the game, you’ll have to rely on the two big screen TVs. Also, depending on where your game seats are, it may take a while to get up there.

Last week, we received an e-mail from the Gotham Club, that the third venue, the Clubhouse was having a special sneak preview during the weekend series versus Arizona. The Clubhouse is the signature venue for the Gotham Club. It is situated behind the out of town scoreboard in right field. The team had to build a new second floor to create this unique space. And let us tell you, this is one helluva a space. The Clubhouse floor occupies the second arch way of right field all the way down to where the Coors Light party platform is. That’s how long this space is, and it has three unique sections.

The Sections

The first section nearest the right field pole is the bar. When you enter the Bullpen space, there is a staircase that leads up to the second floor. At the top of the stair case, you’ll enter a small seating area with leather chairs and a coffee table and big screen TV. Another element to the staircase will be the inclusion of baseball bats adorned along the walls. Each bat will have a Gotham Club member’s name inscribed on it (bats are on order now).

Once you make a quick right you enter the bar area, which is huge … our estimate is that there’s 25-30 seats at the bar, another 8-10 hightops (with four stools at each hightop), and a bunch of leather lounge chairs strategically placed between the bar and the out of town scoreboard. Oh yeah, the lads that run the out of town scoreboard are in here too, and they’re updating the scores and innings of the other games while you’re in there – very cool. Another great feature of the bar area are the windows behind the bar. The large windows provide a panoramic view of McCovey Cove, and you also have a clear view of the McCovey statue. At the end of the bar section, there are two booths that overlook the Triple Alley’s party area below, and the out of town scoreboard lads are stationed nearby as they have MLB.TV on their own private screen to catch scoring updates.

The second section, which was not opened during the sneak preview, is the lounge section. The plan is to have seating available for members and guests, while they enjoy a beverage and have a view of the game from the right-center field area.

The final section is the restaurant itself. This too was not open during the preview, but the restaurant will be located underneath the Coors Light party platform area up on the arcade. Also, the Giants built an elevator so members can access the Clubhouse area from the arcade level – that’s the new construction build out you see on the arcade section.

Final Thoughts

When we first joined Gotham Club, we thought the concept was cool, but didn’t think the two venues (Bullpen and Game Room) would generate much interest for others to join. However, after seeing the Clubhouse this past weekend, this is going to change the game. Once word spreads on how big, cool, and clever the space is, we can easily see the Giants reaching their membership capacity which is targeted at 1,000. This will be the place to be for pregaming, and having a drink and a bite to eat on those cold nights at the yard … the place to see and be seen. The Giants have hit a home run with this space, let’s hope the players on the field can keep up and hit a few more too.