Barfly: Step into Liquid, a New Club in San Jose

The new Liquid Restaurant and Lounge sits between an apartment building and a parking lot near San Jose State University, occupying an ordinary orange and yellow building. The exterior looks nothing like the typical nightclub: no flashy neon signs, crystal-clear bay windows and glitzy entryways. Liquid looks more like a Bohemian art gallery than a new nightclub and restaurant.
At 9pm on a recent visit, the club was still relatively empty, allowing for a good look at the interior—a stark contrast from nondescript facade outside. Liquid has an expansive and seamless interior. A black tile dance floor stretches unobstructed to the rear of the restaurant; flanking the floor is a seating area, one long row of dining booths and white upholstered couches. Glowing, cube-shaped plastic footrests float on the floor like ice in a drink. The bar glows with same ice-blue tint as the footrests.
The bottles at the bar are arranged in two columns and lined neatly on rows of blue, LED-lit shelves. Liquid-filled pillars rise up from the center of the display while blue-and-white-striped lantern covers hang over the bar counter. Uniting the whole “liquid” theme is the mesmerizing light show; the walls shimmering and rippling like the surface of the sea.