The Continental Restaurant has been a fixture in Winchester for almost 30 years. Known primarily for its continental cuisine, the restaurant recently decided to branch out a bit by offering karaoke on Thursday nights. It offered patrons a few hours to let down their hair so to speak. As that event grew in popularity the question was brought up concerning live entertainment. Unfortunately at the time the restaurant was not physically prepared to host live bands, not to mention the fact that hosting live music would force the restaurant to wear two hats, a fine dining establishment during the day, a rock club at night. That's a pretty tough call however as more inquiries came about, the owner's simply could no longer ignore the needs of both the music fans and the local music community and decided to merge their former front bar with the existing dining room. Since the former bar area is elevated, knocking out the dividing wall instantly created a stage. What is even more unique is that the bar will remain intact where patrons can actually sit side-stage to the band for a very unique feel. The dining room faces the stage and can hold approximately 60 to 100 fans. This creates an intimate atmosphere very similar in feel to northern Virginia clubs such as Jammin' Java. Although the immediate area is non-smoking there is an additional bar directly adjacent to the dining room that permits smoking. Smoking is also permitted on the adjoining patio.
In addition, the Continental staff has had a long-standing relationship with various local musicians so they know firsthand how difficult the musician's life can be, hence their goal is to establish relationships that treat the musician as the business partner that they are. They want local bands to call the Continental their home and will work diligently to earn that reputation. If you would like to be considered for a booking please email us at continentalrestaurant@comcast.net. Please include links to your primary web site as well as music related sites such as My Space. Currently our rate structure is 100% of the door and the band is free to determine door price. The Continental also permits bands to place their own door person on duty to collect funds so that all proceeds go to the band. You play, you get paid…the way it should be.
If you have any ideas of your own please submit them as we encourage your input. Also visit our web site at www.continentalafterhours.com.