Pittsburgh newby's guide to strip clubs

Submitted by frailwords t3_ygd4ad in pittsburgh

- Spearmint Rhino - Don't go here - its $20 cover charge, its a tiny place with one stage (as far as I could discover), dancers seemed completely uninterested (ymmv). Didn't try VIP, probably too expensive as well. I went here on a Friday and it was completely dead.

- Cheerleaders - pretty good - dancers are best here - they do an amazing job. Downside - the seating arrangement is not great - the bar seating is too far away from the stage - at-least the main stage. VIP was not great - ymmv again. $20 cover, $125 VIP for 15 mins, super expensive (specially if you use. your card) and not worth it. Don't know what is the cost for a single dance tbh. This place is usually packed.

- Ricks Cabaret - $15 entry fee - friendly bartenders and all staff - have heard that the food is amazing here but I've always been here quite late. Dancers are super friendly, $30 for a song/dance. They have specials sometimes where you can do 3 songs for the price of 2. VIP is expensive again - $250 or more for 30 mins but probably worth it.

So, i'd recommend cheerleaders just for the amazing dancers and Rick's for. the friendliness and the small size of the place.

I am still to get to Tennyson Lodge, probably too afraid to go there given the reviews :)

I am pretty new to PGH and just exploring the city. Would love to hear some tips or places to explore.

PS: All these are on Friday nights, prices vary a lot on weekdays and timings.

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LostOldAccountTimmay t1_iu88n81 wrote

Don't be afraid of the Tenny. It's hilarious and amazing and serves the best steak in Pittsburgh

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thereandfatagain t1_iu8vtt0 wrote

The skirt is a little tough for me but every Mother's Day me and grandma team up on a pair of hangers.

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RIPDickcream t1_iu9an59 wrote

I’ve seen both the hottest and ugliest strippers at the Tenny. Old strippers with knee braces, the owners dog running around. Absolute grossest bathroom. But it’s a fun spot so 🤷🏻‍♂️.

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LostOldAccountTimmay t1_iu9hske wrote

It's such a down to earth place, juxtaposed with debauchery and gross bathrooms that you have to love it. And only partially ironically.

Also, I once saw them shoot a late- night (3-4am) music video there. It was a random weekend and when they were closing, we just said we wanted to stay and watch production, gave the bartender some cash, and they let us stay. Amazing in so many ways.... I wish I knew the artist or song so I could look it up on YouTube or whatever. Sadly, I only remember the event, and not the specifics. I'm not sure I've been back since, and this was probably 10 years ago, but still a very fond and ridiculous memory

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superm455ive t1_iu8jitw wrote

Ummm. There might be some beef curtains, but the Tenny definitely doesn’t have steak. The only food I’ve seen there was microwave pizza during Covid.

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Festival_Vestibule t1_iu8j1nf wrote

Erotica in Mckees Rocks. The only strip club for me.

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NonoYouHeardMeWrong t1_iu97bxn wrote

What’s it like in there?

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montani t1_iuatjgd wrote

Imagine a strip club in McKees rocks. That's what it's like

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yabitchkay t1_iu9bqil wrote

That’s the only one I’ve been too, I had a pretty good time there! Small place, but my friend knew one of the girls from her day job so we got hooked up a little extra 🤘🏼

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Lil_Phantoms_Lawyer t1_iu847zg wrote

I want you to go to Controversy. I need to know how bad it is, but not bad enough to go.

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ShoppinInDa412 t1_iu86kt5 wrote

It's been closed for over two years now.

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superm455ive t1_iu8gnca wrote

It’s open, only Thursday-Sunday. While they didn’t open back up during Covid as soon as everywhere else, they’ve been open most of the time since then. I haven’t been since before Covid though, it seems to be even more urban than it was before.

Edit: LOL on the downvotes for “urban” being some racist trigger or something. Some of favorite dancers over the years have been black. Whenever I go to clubs (usually during the week) a very sizable percentage of the clientele is black and I have no problem with it. All of the clubs generally play 50-80% rap music unless the dancer specifically requests rock or something else. When I did used to go to Controversy there were times when I was the only white person there (not counting dancers or staff) and a had good times and never felt unsafe or unwelcome. The only color the dancers care about is green, and I can certainly respect that.

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Pencilveinyah t1_iu8qd08 wrote

Does urban mean black people?

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superm455ive t1_iu9n2en wrote

More that the club is more about throwing money, making it rain, being a giant communal party, etc vs talking one on one with a girl you like and spending money on her in private.

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Pencilveinyah t1_iua9svg wrote

That is not what urban means and I suspect you know that. There is no stretch of the imagination that you can say that is what you meant by “urban”.

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superm455ive t1_iuae2ra wrote

It’s always been a predominantly black club, and I’ve gone there in the past and had a good time. Perhaps after being up nearly 24 hours working my day job yesterday and driving Uber all night I didn’t find the best shorthand way to say from what I’ve heard it’s become more of a wannabe Atlanta style make it rain club. Fine, I’ll straight up say it’s more of a black club. But by that I mean the vibe is different, not so much ethnicity of the people there. In fact I know a few white dancers from other clubs who dance there 1 or 2 nights a week. Anyone who knows anything about strip clubs knows that being a “black club” had different connotations than just the makeup of the population.

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hooch t1_iu8tvjy wrote

It’s actually not that bad of a place. Never too busy, seating layout is pretty decent, drinks aren’t insanely expensive. Everyone was super nice the couple of times that I went.

That was years ago so ymmv.

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tzeriel t1_iu84ohp wrote

These are all mainstream/chain places. All worthless and too expensive, they’re the kind of place you’d go for a tame bachelor party. You need to get into the smaller, local, shadier places to get your money’s worth and have a half decent time.

I miss the old Neverclean Hotel.

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ScratchMoore t1_iu86qjr wrote

Lol right! It’s like trying to decide between Friday’s, Applebee’s, and Chili’s

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peon2 t1_iu90aki wrote

Hey, don't disrespect the Honey Chipotle Chicken Crispers at Chili's!

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floppgh t1_iu8harb wrote

I’ll never forget the girl dragging her blanket around from each person sitting in steel chairs because there was no stage lol .

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kschmit516 t1_iu9crhk wrote

I (38f) went to the Body Shop off 80 up by clarion, bc a friend worked there. It’s the only place I have been, and I feel like I would be disappointed in anywhere else bc the girls were the sweetest, and one of them always made me ramen to have while I waited to pick up my friend.

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pangaea1972 t1_iu8pddt wrote

Is the Cricket still open?

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Costanzaslife23 t1_iu8ulf1 wrote

I live a block over from the cricket and haven’t seen it open for awhile.

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Sufficient-Lab-5769 t1_iub5pjt wrote

Is that drunken cricket still on the wall outside though?

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Costanzaslife23 t1_iub831n wrote

I honestly don’t even pay attention anymore. I blame the paper bags at the GetGo. I’m more focused on making sure the bag doesn’t rip open while I’m walking home.

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yakatuus t1_iu95s98 wrote

No. Covid killed it. There's a daycare next door and a massive residential complex across the street just went up. I assume those points did not help either.

Edit: The real estate right now is worth far more than Cricket ever could be. This strip is in an economic wave that can be seen hitting anything along the Centre/Baum corridor until it stops at the "We Fight Cancer" building..

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pangaea1972 t1_iu97d2x wrote

Damn; that's a shame. The Cricket was my first strip club 30+ years ago and, as it happens, the last one I went to (right before Covid.)

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yakatuus t1_iu9evzb wrote

Yeah you learnt there in one night the subject of hospitality better than two years at CCAC.

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NYLady13 t1_iuaoijz wrote

Aww man, loved Cricket! Great memories.

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Pencilveinyah t1_iu8qhxl wrote

I was just about to post this. It’s the only strip club I’ve ever been in.

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ravia t1_iu9jijr wrote

Cricket had great mozzarella sticks in 1987.

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contiguous t1_iu94b4k wrote

Cricket has been closed for awhile sadly. No activity happening to the building. In February, there was an account posting on IG “Medusa’s Lair” implying they were taking over the space and hiring dancers but no further posts

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superm455ive t1_iu8igps wrote

A couple corrections/clarifications…
Cover for Cheerleaders during the week is usually $7. This Thursday for the Halloween party it was $10. Single dances are $25, on Tuesdays they are 2 for $25 until midnight.
At Ricks, cover is usually $10 during the week. I’ve also paid $5 if I got there early, I think before 6. Dances are $35 each, not $30. The 3 dance “special” is $95 and it’s good anytime, not just sometimes.
I don’t understand how you can say $250 is worth it for 30 minutes at Ricks but $125 is not worth it for 15 minutes at Cheerleaders. FYI, 30 minutes at Cheerleaders is something odd like $236. Also the 15/30 minute rooms at Cheerleaders include a drink for you and the dancer, while at Ricks you have to pay for any drinks. When you get to the room at Ricks, the waitress is going to give a hard upsell to try to get you to buy a bottle of champagne or something else. They pressure some of the dancers to play along like they really want the champagne too.
IIRC, at Spearmint privates are 15 minute booth-$140, 30 minute room-$300, one hour room-$600. I don’t go there often, so I could definitely be wrong on those.

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frailwords OP t1_iu91h6e wrote

About the 15 min at Cheerleaders, I didn't really have a good time, maybe it'll be different on another day. These are just one off experiences, so definitely not a generalization. Thanks for your info for the non-weekend pices, I visited all these on Friday nights as thats when they have the most dancers usually.

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superm455ive t1_iu9pola wrote

FYI I’d recommend turning your post into reviews on TUSCL.net so you can get 30 days free VIP membership for each review. Make sure to add something to each review about the parking situation and club layout so the peer reviewers approve the review. The VIP will allow you to read all of the other reviews.

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superm455ive t1_iu9mn5l wrote

It’s really going to depend a lot more on the particular dancer more than club. At least as long as a club doesn’t have unusually restrictive rules. Both clubs have some of the sweetest girls, but they both also have their share of ROBs(Rip off bitches).

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odog9797 t1_iu8rmk3 wrote

Haha new to the city but has 3 strip club recommendations. I can dig it

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ConsternationBias t1_iu8tmah wrote

OP doing a great public service. We owe him a debt of gratitude.

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MagAqua t1_iu8hwag wrote

Is true diamonds still open up? Now that’s a place where you can get bang for your buck

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Rocktroy33 t1_iu8u1y9 wrote

Has anyone been to Beemers? I'm curious to know about that place.

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rhb4n8 t1_iu91k83 wrote

I have but not recently. It's not as bad as you would think. Tall pole iirc

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ogthunda t1_iu9mk1y wrote

It used to not be so bad years ago, but the last few years the quality of girls isn't the same

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blp9 t1_iu9a340 wrote

So any of you all ever been to either Bare Assets or Pleasure Ultra Show Lounge in North Braddock/ East Pittsburgh? https://imgur.com/a/LQnnX2O

We bought the then-abandoned building in 2019 and renovated it into not-a-strip-club. I will tell you that my lawyer insists on calling it a titty bar.

If anyone has photos (?) or stories, I would *love* to collect them.

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wseligsohn t1_iubrcvl wrote

I’ve been trying to find out who bought this! What are you guys planning on doing with it? I grew up 5 houses down the street from it

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blp9 t1_iud84uk wrote

Awesome! We're a boutique electronics manufacturer in the entertainment and architectural lighting markets. Basically, we build controllers that make things on Broadway happen and make pretty lights on the outside of buildings (top of Fifth Ave Place/Highmark Building, Homestead Grays Bridge, etc. etc.).

We turned the apartment upstairs into offices, and then have warehouse and manufacturing down on the first floor. We're actually quite literally manufacturing controls right where the stage used to be.

Mostly we just emptied the place out because we mostly just need open space -- it was like 5 dumpsters. I'm digging around and can't find the photos of the cleaned out space-- it's really a lovely building.

We do still have some carpet samples of that amazing mardi gras carpet that I still need to go take into a carpet shop and ask to see the strip club book, AND I get to claim "former strip club owner" as a title, so that's cool.

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subjiciendum t1_iu9f3ze wrote

Forgot Lucky’s, conveniently located between cheerleaders and Rick’s cabaret. Home of one of Pittsburgh’s finest cigarette vending machines, and only moderate risk of falling demolition debris from the adjoining building.

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chb66 t1_iu9jx0t wrote

I'm sure Lucky's is a great time but I'd wager the market overlap between there and the places you mentioned is not significant...

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subjiciendum t1_iu9otwt wrote

Something something… gender is just a construct … something something…

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enraged_hbo_max_user t1_iu8u7t7 wrote

What happened to blush?

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VacantLot412 t1_iu8wx1b wrote

Albert moved to Florida and sold it and now it’s Rick’s Cabaret.

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enraged_hbo_max_user t1_iu8y1a3 wrote

Thanks. Would you say it has a similar vibe to Blush like 6-10 years ago, or is it totally different?

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VacantLot412 t1_iu8y7d2 wrote

It’s a lot more sports bar-y now. Especially upstairs.

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superm455ive t1_iu9qcgm wrote

Albert put in the sports bar a couple years before he left. Most of the decorations around the club are still what his wife choose. Except for prices going up, in my opinion not a lot has changed from a customer’s perspective. Now that it’s a corporate club, any money the dancers and staff make off of credit cards is now reported on 1099s. That’s probably the biggest change that has affected them.

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enraged_hbo_max_user t1_iu9vyqk wrote

Thanks to both you and u/VacantLot412.

Do they still get fully nude on stage? I remember being there once with some guys my company was a client of, they were from NYC and they were surprised the dancers on stage were fully nude. Which surprised me that THEY were surprised because I thought in NYC you could see/do anything you wanted lol

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superm455ive t1_iu9wiw9 wrote

Generally yes. I’m not sure they enforce it on the dancers as much as Albert did, but I’d say full nude is more the rule than the exception. Honestly I don’t really care one way or another, so perhaps I just don’t notice.

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WoodpeckerFar9804 t1_iub5v1q wrote

I was wondering the same. I lived out of state for a while so I wasn’t sure if it died.

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NonoYouHeardMeWrong t1_iu977d4 wrote

What about that Strip club where you do karaoke while dancers dance on the stage?

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DugganSC t1_iuc3viq wrote

Tennyson Lodge in South Hills. Still reportedly running, although it doesn't look like it from the outside.

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superm455ive t1_iucrsvz wrote

It’s open Wednesday to Saturday after 8pm. I was there a few weeks ago.

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HotDrink2601 t1_iu8uhww wrote

Is Crazy Horse in New Brighton still in business?

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Sweetpockets t1_iu98cn9 wrote

It became Stilettos a while ago but I believe it is still open.

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OliverKlozoff1269 t1_iud9nca wrote

Yeah it is, it sucks though. $5 cover, and SOMETIMES there's a girl on stage. Beer prices vary, they just make them up on the fly I think.

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DarkKnyt t1_iu8okae wrote

The hero we need...

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OliverKlozoff1269 t1_iudanhf wrote

Wife and I have been to a few clubs around town and have found Erotica to be the best... $25 cover, but free drinks. Stage set up is good, can always get a spot. We never do private rooms so don't know about that.

Went to Tennyson for bareoke, that was pretty cool. Dj was really interactive. The club is really divey vibe. One of the best steaks I've ever had too!

We went to cheerleaders a while back to see "Octobooty" perform. She did a heck of a job. The stages are too far away though. Seems like more of a place to watch the game with some tiddys on the side

Stilettos in New Brighton is a dump. We've gone a few times hoping it was a fluke but there's hardly ever a girl on stage...sometimes, none to be seen at all. They allow smoking, so it reeks. $5 cover.

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GoodGravy412 t1_iu8vgut wrote

No mention of Food or Bathroom Cleanliness...

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frailwords OP t1_iu912wn wrote

The bathrooms are usually manned by someone and quite clean at these places as they are all well known names. Food - I didnt' try.

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TheMrBR t1_iuahnc0 wrote

Is the beehive still open out on rt 22? I got cornered in the parking lot leaving a bar a couple months ago from a guy trying to promoter them.

Thought they had closed up and this seemed super sketchy.

When I did go there I will say it was “interesting” time. If you like a strip club where the ceiling is super low and the strippers basically roll around from person to person with no dancing go there Lol

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CounterSensitive776 t1_iub4ixg wrote

Erotica is the One. $15 cover (last I checked), unlimited booze, plenty of girls. Tennyson isn't as bad as everyone says but it's very local.

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Willow-girl t1_iu9s9ij wrote

Doing God's work there, lol.

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rangoon03 t1_iu9vpk3 wrote

For your next review, check out Beemers in McKeesport!

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montani t1_iuatp7i wrote

What was the one down past the Baltimore house where you turn to go to south park? That one was hilariously awful

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superm455ive t1_iucs4et wrote

Curry Hotel. It closed when they redid the Brownsville/Broughton/Horning intersection.

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aam726 t1_iu9veb9 wrote

Wow. Just....wow.

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lordjuicy t1_iu8dgyw wrote

Never go to erotica, got a whole pile of cash stolen from me by a stripper last time I was there, bouncer said “you weren’t quick enough bro” as if I should spring out of my seat and tackle her

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_rabbit-hole_ t1_iu8fiu4 wrote

Or maybe... Don't keep an entire pile of cash within grabbing range... Of anybody?

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superm455ive t1_iu8ioka wrote

Exactly. No matter what club I’m at I only set down $10-20 of ones at a time for my tip pile. The rest stays in my pocket.

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S4ltyInt3ractions t1_iu93l2p wrote

Don't mean to victim blame but people who put cash in front of them seem to be challenging a confrontation. Like put money out and be like "I dare somebody to touch my stuff" so many fights begin this way you lucky a stripper took it...

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lordjuicy t1_iu8kmov wrote

Well to be fair it was a sum less than $40. But still I had an expectation that it wouldn’t be grabbed from in front of my face.

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chad4359 t1_iu8q20c wrote

You complained over $40? I bet the bouncers had a good laugh at that

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Jahya69 t1_iu96t1f wrote

You got problems if you go to strip clubs what an utter waste of time and what a stupid tease

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damp_goat t1_iu98mg6 wrote

People are always surprised when I say ive never been and not really interested. Like why would I pay for blue balls?

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chb66 t1_iu9kbqm wrote

Who says you have to? I've only ever gone with my wife (and before her other girlfriends). I mean if you aren't interested that's cool, but that doesn't mean people who go are making some odd decision. It's fun!

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knotnotme83 t1_iu9fq1w wrote

It's ok not to want to go. And it's ok to not Like places that force women to do things they don't want to....but to say people have problems etc is just rude.

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superm455ive t1_iucrz45 wrote

How are they forcing women to do things they don’t want to?

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chb66 t1_iu98ppq wrote

Who are you to say someone has problems because they like going to a strip club? It’s entertainment, it’s no more frivolous than spending money on tickets to a concert or sporting event.

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BecGeoMom t1_iu9ro6f wrote

Are you joking? THIS is your post? You actually took the time to rate strip clubs in Pittsburgh and then post about strip clubs to help other losers find a place to go to get their rocks off? This is a real post? Seriously? You’re that guy? Single, right?

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Im_a_Katie_Vick_guy t1_iua1rit wrote

It's a nice day out, I encourage you to step outside if even only for a moment, smell the smells, feel the breeze.

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