Marilyn Night Club, located on Baross Street, has been adding color to Budapest’s nightlife for 31 years now. Naturally, the windows are impossible to see through—because inside, bombshell dancers are busy stealing the guests’ hearts at the tables—but the shockingly modest price list displayed beside the entrance still manages to inspire some trust. Anyone emboldened by this transparency, somewhat unusual for the nightlife, would do well to take a deep breath and step through the club’s door into the pink-painted unknown.
This is indeed one of Budapest’s most prestigious entertainment venues, this is indeed one of Budapest’s most prestigious entertainment venues, skilfully navigated through the wild nineties by its female owner, creating an institution where not only big-time businessmen and Hollywood celebrities, but even the average person wandering in off the street can have an unforgettable evening.
Homely—that’s the first word that comes to mind when stepping through the entrance. However, as your gaze wanders to the stage, the tables, or the shower cubicle where girls are undressing, entirely different adjectives come to mind. The space is defined by a modern interior, subtly exciting lighting, a stage designed for pole dancing, comfortable armchairs, tables specifically built for tabletop dances, and a long bar counter. If the first thing the guest notices is the pretty bartender, they inevitably wonder: if the bartender looks like this, what must the dancers be like? Of course, the question is purely rhetorical, as the answer hits you squarely through your optic nerves.
Thirty years ago, the genre of strip clubs further west meant more or less safe adult entertainment, but things played out very differently here. In 1985, Rózsaszín Cica (Pink Kitten) opened on Wesselényi Street, which was Budapest’s first private strip club, where initially everyone could find what they were looking for—soothing bar music, pretty ladies, and good drinks for an exciting evening.
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