Political instability and regional violence have never been enough to stop nightlife in its tracks, and now enterprising club kids and restaurateurs are making a go of it in Iraq’s capital: “A slew of new restaurants have opened in [Baghdad] this year,” the Times reports. “All boast of having thick shatterproof glass.” Antoine al-Hage, in particular, a sort of Middle Eastern Paul Sevigny, opened the Beatrice of Baghdad last month, a Lebanese restaurant-lounge, the Lebanese Club:
Hage thinks there’s money to be made in Iraqi nightlife now: “Simply put, for a decade, he has trailed America’s imperial pursuits. ‘Wherever the Americans are, we are,’ he said.” The club cost $2.5 million to build, but investors expect to make that money back within the year.
Certain safety exceptions are not even made for high-profile guests:
