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Honolulu After Dark: Piranha Room

by Cindy Paliracio

HONOLULU (KHNL) Long before the sun goes down many are hard at work to ensure the party sizzles. It's something the crew at the Ocean Club knows well. They have found the secret to success by creating one of the most happening events in town. Five years and the Piranha Room is still going strong. But you'd be surprised how much work goes into putting it all together.

By day Ian Nakaishi prides himself as a part-time decorator.

"We have our side business," says Nakaishi.

But at night Ian switches gears and become a bartender, his real paying job. He and his co-workers have less than 10 hours to transform this area which looks like a construction zone into one of Honolulu's hottest hotspots.

"Its just a monthly promotion that we do to try and an create extra hype in the nightclub industry . We want it to be the event of the month that everybody wants to go," says cub manager Dan Punch.

And to lure folks in, there's a different theme every month.

"It's hard to come up with new idea." The staff pulls it off and everything's finally in place just in time for the opening.

"Welcome to Piranha Room at the Ocean Club, come on in, says a doorman.

As the music gets louder, the crowd begins to pour in.

"Its always fun here," says Giselle Pileta.

"I feel glamorous. iI feel like I'm the star," says Donna Chun.

"That's what we try to do is make each person feel special, everyone's a VIP here when you walk in, you feel special, says Russell Tanoue.

Tanoue is the host of Piranha Room. "I have the best job. I just bring the beautiful people here and give them a good time," says Tanoue.

This fashion photographer by day invites all of his friends. Many of them are in the public eye.

"Movers and shakers in the industry party right here," says Tanoue.

"I see so many movie stars coming here, i see like NBA players, i've seen football players come here. If they're coming here then this is the place to be, says Chun.

Giving patrons something to remember.

"They feel like they got a deal, they don't feel they just paid cover and just got a drink. They feel like they paid for entertainment. They got something for their money," says Punch.

And that's what keeps them coming back month after month. "I like the fact that its once a month, its very exclusive," says Chun.

Club goers get to go home at 4:00 am, except for the staffers. They have to take down the decorations and clean-up. In fact, some of them don't leave until 7 or 8 in the morning.