Published by the Hill Country Sun.
discover
Dripping Texas For Springs, advertising, call 512-484-9715
or email ralph@hillcountrysun.com
February 2013
LOCAL INFORMATION & ADVERTISING
Scoot on down to Mercer Street Dance Hall
T
By Laurel Robertson
en years ago Dripping Springs residents couldn’t buy a beer in the local grocery store. Today they can quaff hand-crafted brews in the local beer pub, enjoy regional and international wines in a wine bar two doors down—and now dance to live music two nights a week just down the street at the new Mercer Street Dance Hall. Welcome to Dripping Springs’ own version of 6th Street! Nick and Gay Dotin are the owners and entrepreneurs behind Dripping Springs’s newest entertainment venue. As a musician, Nick spent 35 years on stage in other dance halls and honkytonks playing in rock ‘n roll and country bands. Now the fifty-year-old is ready to keep it closer to home by running his own dance hall.
Gay, who worked in hospitality at the Hyatt Regency Austin and now is general manager at Whim Hospitality in Dripping Springs, rounds out the perfect dance hall management husband/wife team. “There are lots of people out here who don’t want to have to drive out to Blanco to enjoy an evening of dancing,” Nick observes. “There was just no place to dance regularly in Dripping Springs”. That problem became acute for Nick and Gay a couple of years back when their (then) 14-year-old daughter, Shelby, learned to two-step and wanted to regularly go out to Blanco to dance at Twin Sisters Hall, or to Buda to dance at the Painted Horse Saloon. “We were driving 40-to 80-mile round trips to take her to the nearest dance hall,” Nick bemoans. See MERCER STREET DANCE HALL, Page 2
LEFT TO RIGHT Nick, Shelby and Gay Dotin welcome you to Dripping Springs’ newest entertainment venue, Mercer Street Dance Hall. Photo courtesy Mercer Street Dance Hall.
Dripping Springs Pharmacy carries a full line of
Quality Pharmaceutical Grade Supplements including Metagenics, Neurobiologix, NuMedica, PURE, Standard Process, Xymogen & many more….. if we don’t have the product you’re looking for, we’ll get it for you!
Bring a copy of this ad into the pharmacy during February & receive
20% OFF any pharmaceutical grade supplement
THANK YOU for supporting one of Dripping Spring’s locally owned businesses!
PROUDLY INDEPENDENT! 100 Commons Rd #1 • 512-858-7935 • 512-894-0285 • drippingspringspharmacy.com
info@divineserenity.net • 512.607.6357 13110 Hwy 290 West, Ste 303
Massage Studio
Convenience. Comfort. Class.
Find Your Peace... divineserenity.net for Gift Certificates & Online Scheduling MT107321
Massage in the Hill Country Therapeutic and Relaxation Massage in the beautiful Austin Hill Country.
Indoor or outdoor sessions including hot tub pre-soak surrounded by Koi ponds and waterfalls. The ultimate in stress relief. Near 1826 & Nutty Brown Road
Joe Peterson, LMT (MT113103)
MERCER STREET DANCE HALL, from page 1 Then Shelby came up with a great idea: “Hey, Dad – why don’t you open a dance hall here?” It didn’t take Nick and Gay long to locate the perfect building – a former auto warehouse-turned-baseball academy at the back of the Sunrise Café’s parking lot on Mercer Street. Its pole barn construction with wooden trusses created a large open space perfect for filling with a band stand, a 1400-square foot wooden dance floor and raised platforms for table seating. Nick, an experienced carpenter, and crew added spacious new restrooms along the front wall and a long wooden bar along the rear wall. Repurposed barn wood and rustic old signs lend the new hall an atmosphere reminiscent of traditional dance halls like Gruene Hall, which Nick cites as an inspiration for their design of Mercer Street Dance Hall. The venue will be family-run and family-friendly. Gay will meet and greet at the front door, Shelby will be keeping the dance floor active, along with many of her friends (all ages admitted). Nick will run the sound systems and tend bar. Nick insists on good behavior in the establishment. “I’m well-behaved – if not upstanding,” he confides.
MassageInTheHillCountry.com • 512-413-0636 Get your Valentine something special... a couple’s massage Hot tub, wine/cheese/fruit tray, two 60-min massages — just $100.
Live Oak Child Development Center Enriching Early Childhood Programs for Children 6 Weeks to 5 Years
Now you can enjoy Friday and Saturday evening dancing close to home at Mercer Street Dance Hall. Photo by Kim LeBlanc.
At work on interior construction of Mercer Street Dance Hall. Photo by Kim LeBlanc. House rules include no beverages or loitering on the dance floor, kids under control (“They can dance on the dance floor, but not run loose…”) and no dogs (“It’s a dance hall, not a kennel….”). “We’re gonna offer clean restrooms, cold beer and good bands that don’t play too loud, Nick promises. “We’re gonna start on time and end at a decent hour,” he continues. “Some of us have to get up the next morning ...” Each Friday night, music will begin at 8 pm; Saturday nights music gets going at 8:30 pm. And dance lessons—taught by a rotating team of instructors—will be included with admission each night and start an hour before the music begins. Outside, guests can enjoy a tree-shaded side yard offering washer pitching pits and a smoking area (there’s no smoking See MERCER STREET DANCE HALL, Page 3
MODERN ORTHODONTICS FROM FRIENDLY PEOPLE.
512-829-5176 • liveoakcdc@yahoo.com 27979 Ranch Rd. 12 • Dripping Springs
www.liveoakcdc.com
To Advertise... Call Julie at 512-484-9716 or email julie@hillcountrysun.com 2
Mark A Thompson DDS MS Specialist in Orthodontics 512-858-2916 • www.austinbraces.com corner of Ranch Road 12 @ 290 West
February 2013 MERCER STREET DANCE HALL, from page 2
- Jewelry for Your Valentine! Feb 9-10 Anne Dee Thierry brings her
New selections from the Island of Bali to
Wesley Gallery
Also see your Valentine’s dream come true in the form of
Lee Carrell’s exclusive one-of-a-kind silver creations! Hours: Sat 10-5, Sun 12-4 www.wesleygallery.com (map) ph: 888-806-0678
FINE ARTS & CRAFTS • UNIQUE GIFTS • CUSTOM FRAMING 27008 RANCH RD 12, DRIPPING SPRINGS, HALF MILE SOUTH OF HWY 290 W
1st Anniversary Celebration February14-16 & Happy Valentine’s!
Music, Food, Drink & Awesomeness! Please give us your vote for Dripping Springs’ Best New Business of the Year at:
drippingspringstx.org
★ Hometown Hero/Ed Sims Memorial ★ Citizen of the Year ★ Non-profit of the Year ★ New Business of the Year ★ Business of the Year ★ NEW AWARD ★ Outstanding Customer Service Award
A fun evening to honor those who make Dripping Springs a unique community.
G
S C H A MBE R OF ING R CO SP
SUITS
&
RCE ME
FYI • Mercer Street Dance Hall is located at 332 Mercer Street, next to The Sunrise Café. The Dance Hall will be open Friday and Saturday nights – doors open at 6 pm, band starts at 8 pm on Fridays and 8:30 pm on Saturdays. All ages admitted. Dance lessons are included with price of admission and begin one hour before the band plays. Beer, wine, setups and snacks are available. For more information, visit the web site at www.mercerstreetdancehall.com.
M
allowed inside). A deputy from the Hays County Sheriff Department will be on hand each evening to ensure everything goes smoothly. “As a musician, I’ve spent a lot of time in honky-tonks and bars. I’ve seen it, I know it, and I know what to do,” Nick says confidently. “This is not my first rodeo.”
DRI PP IN
The interior of the new family-run and family-friendly Mercer Street Dance Hall. Photo by Kim LeBlanc.
512-858-WINE H drippinwine.com 211 Mercer Street H Dripping Springs, TX
BOOTS 11th Annual
Community Awards Celebration Friday
February 8, 2013
The Terrace Club • 2600 E. Hwy. 290, Dripping Springs Hosts: DS Chamber of Commerce • The Terrace Club
THANK YOU TO OUR PLATINUM SPONSORS
6pm Appetizers and Networking, Cash Bar 7pm-10pm Dinner, Awards ★ NEW ENTERTAINMENT ★
★ Comedian, Chuck Montgomery ★
Tickets $40 ★ Purchase online: www.drippingspringstx.org Or at: The DS Visitors Bureau, 509 Mercer St. (next to City Hall)
For More info call: 512-858-7000
3