The Clermont Lounge is Atlanta's first and longest continually operating strip club, opened in 1965 and boasts a completely female ownership. Located in the basement of the Clermont Motor Hotel at 789 Ponce De Leon Avenue, in the Poncey-Highland neighborhood, the dive bar has survived multiple attempts at being closed by the Atlanta city government, and has established a nationwide reputation for its kitschy atmosphere and unusual dancers. The Clermont has been featured on an episode of Insomniac with Dave Attell. Celebrities known to have visited the Clermont when in Atlanta include Anthony Bourdain, Colin Firth, Marilyn Manson, Cole Sprouse, Ashton Kutcher, Kid Rock, Steven Yeun, Skinny Lister, Lady Gaga, Eric Roberts, Ming Chen, Jason Zimmerman and the Guys Weekend as well as David Cross and Bombay Bicycle Club. Visitors to the Clermont usually alternate between a few handfuls of regulars and large numbers of college students, newcomers to town, and tourists.
The Clermont
The Clermont Lounge
Hotel Clermont in 2020
Poncey–Highland is an intown neighborhood on the east side of Atlanta, Georgia, located south of Virginia–Highland. It is so named because it is near the intersection of east/west Ponce de Leon Avenue and north/southwest North Highland Avenue. This Atlanta neighborhood was established between 1905 and 1930, and is bordered by Druid Hills and Candler Park across Moreland Avenue to the east, the Old Fourth Ward across the BeltLine Eastside Trail to the west, Inman Park across the eastern branch of Freedom Parkway to the south, and Virginia Highland to the north across Ponce de Leon Avenue. The Little Five Points area sits on the border of Poncey–Highland, Inman Park, and Candler Park.
Corner of North Avenue and Highland Avenue
Front and side view of the Ford Assembly Plant from Ponce de Leon Avenue
Western Electric Company building at 820 Ralph McGill
Plaza Theatre at Briarcliff Plaza