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 Breonie Baylov and Black Key owner Sean Morgan

Portland and Seattle seem to be engaged in unspoken but friendly competition with each other—a sort of sibling rivalry. I think we can all agree that Portland wins on the point of mass-transit, but their respective citizens can rather hotly debate who is superior in terms of arts, music and entertainment. I'm not one for these sorts of debates, but I do enjoy "researching" these things for myself, and so here's my look at the nightlife in both cities.

Portland

I found myself in Portland a weekend ago, and to my delight I was invited to experience the VIP nightlife, Black Key style.

I met the handsome owner, Sean Morgan, at Limo Peruvian Restaurant. His team was there as well, a talented, sexy group (with sexy dates) that I immediately loved. I had been in the possession of a Black Key card since I met Morgan at a Seattle event, but never got around to checking out what the high-end entertainment card could do.

Before dinner, I happened into The Dapper Cap, a great boutique filled with nothing but hats. Well, I suppose they sell a few other things too, but chapeaus were the main thrust. The awesome selection had me walking around the store about ten times, but the guy behind the counter, Richard, must be used to it- he good naturedly asked if I was looking for something specific. I asked him if he was familiar with the Black Key card. He pulled up the website- turns out The Dapper Cap is one of the boutiques belonging to Black Key, and as a Black Key card holder, I get 20 percent off. That was exciting news, but the list of boutiques and perks just kept getting better. I was especially enthused over the spas connected with Black Key. By the time I met with Morgan, I had a mental list going of BK stores to hit.

What I didn’t realize, was that Black Key is a lifestyle. The company hosts charity events, fashion shows, private parties and some of Portland’s most exclusive events. It’s a marketing and ad group by day and a concierge group by night. Most importantly, (for moi), it is extremely useful for the club set. A Black Key card not only gets you discounts on drinks, free cover, no lines, it also means VIP upgrades and special treatment-that’s pretty much priceless in packed Portland hot spots.

We hit the Crown Room first. Getting there required my sitting on someone’s lap, but that’s usually not a bad way to start the evening. Upon arrival the VIP treatment began. Before I knew it I was sitting in a plush booth on the stage, local rapper Kenny Mack performing in front of us. Sipping champagne (on the house bottle service was excellent) I enjoyed watching the crowd. Let me just say, the girls in Portland dress pretty damn cool. My favorite of the night, (I wish I had a photo) was a gorgeous girl with an amazing afro wearing gold sequin pants and a white tank top. I could’ve sworn I was in LA.

Dirty, our second stop, was my favorite maybe because the dates and I sneaked away to the dance floor for the kind of fun you can only have when you’re dancing with girls. I’m always severely disappointed when I hear the last call, but I guess it is better to leave when you are giddy and ready to dance all night than to leave because you want to. With Morgan and his crew, I definitely could have partied all night.

A couple of things I loved in Portland….

Seattle

This weekend, I did make it an all night affair. Blame it on the long work week, the long absence from college cohorts, Capitol Hill, a Canadian and finally, the Seattle Police force...

I should have known the night would be extra special—I reunited with my college roommate Katie Wood, whom I hadn’t seen since graduation and another Gonzaga friend Megan Arpin. We started off at Cha Cha, where I saw this cool blonde and obsessed over her awesome hair for the duration of our partying there. Few chicks dare to sport the boyish teenage heartthrob style; it was so sexy on her! She was a little embarrassed about being singled out, so her cute friend jumped in the shot.

A couple stops later we found ourselves at The Comet listening to a live band next to a sexy Canadian. Noah? Nowel? Oh whatever, he was cute. The Comet was a blast, and I found my favorite fashionable couple of the weekend on the sidewalk outside. London chic anyone?

I’ve never picked up a guy at a bar before, but it was collective pickup- us girls drove our sexy Canadian to Belltown Billards, the site of Seattle club promoter Yekta Levent’s going away party. I literally danced my behind off, thanks to my girlfriends and Nowel- I’m ridiculously sore today.

 

The best part of the evening was when on our way to drop the Canadian off, I made a couple of quick, unintentional and slightly illegal driving decisions trying to get him home home. As a result, I met a cute cop who administered a sobriety test (I passed) and let me go without a ticket after my explanation.  “I’m lost. I was just trying to get that &#%$*^! Canadian home, sir!”

The Canadian and moi. 

There’s something refreshing about getting home as the dawn breaks. I like to think of Audrey Hepburn in her party dress, walking down the sidewalk with her coffee, looking in the shop windows. Keisha would be proud. Looking at his business card in the daylight, I’m pretty sure that %$&*#@ Canadian is from Idaho.

Thankfully, the fun didn’t end graduation day. Katie, Megan and I make up for lost time.