Jekyll & Hyde Club

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The Jekyll & Hyde Club and the Jekyll & Hyde Pub are two themed restaurant owned by Eerie World Entertainment^[1] in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York. It derives its name and theme from Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson's 1886 Victorian gothic novel The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.^[2]

The restaurant's theme is spooky horror with an emphasis on English Gothic themes, with detailed decorations, set pieces, and actors who roam the restaurant and entertain patrons.^[2] Characters include Mr. Wrott, the club's wacky paleontologist, Mr. Goole, in charge of the club's procurement, the butler Hives, and the charmingly ditzy Theodora Brayne, the club librarian.^[2] These characters are the guest's link to all of the details of the club's history, and perform membership inductions table side.^[2]

In addition to the live characters, there are a number of audio-animatronic props, sounds, and special effects which contribute to the overall atmosphere of the club.^[2] The animatronic creatures visit from the "spirit world" to wisecrack and wish happy birthdays.^[2]

The larger, main location, The Jekyll & Hyde Club, on the Avenue of the Americas is in Midtown near 57th street. The smaller location known as the Jekyll & Hyde Pub was the first to be opened and is located in Greenwich Village, on 7th Avenue near Bleecker Street.^[2] Other locations had been opened in Chicago and Grapevine, Texas (near Dallas), but closed due to poor business and the expensive operating costs of the restaurant.^[2]

Eerie World Entertainment opened several pilot restaurants in order to decide which theme restaurant concept to further develop. In addition to the downtown Jekyll and Hyde, they opened The Slaughtered Lamb Pub with a werewolf theme which is still operational.^[1] as well as Jack the Ripper (at 228 W. 4th St., between 7th Av. S. & 10th St) which is now closed.^[3]

[edit] In Popular Culture

In the 12th episode of the first season of reality show The Girls Next Door Hugh Hefner and his girlfriends are shown having dinner at one of the Jekyll & Hyde restaurants. There is an entertainer at the Jekyll and Hyde club named Dr. Mange, who is known to dance to popular music such as Love Shack during the dinner service on Wednesdays.