If you’ve driven down E. Center St. in the last month or so, you’ve probably noticed some activity in the building across from Damgoode Pies.
The space – most recently occupied by Opal Fly’s Feel Good Lounge – is getting another makeover, and in the next couple weeks will be the new home of Whole Earth Organic Lounge.
Partners Will Najger and Judy Paynesmith are hoping to open the new nightclub and lounge in early July.
“We’re finishing up permits, and we should be ready to go soon,” Najger said.
The club was originally going to be called “Bliss Organic Lounge,” but potential confusion with Bliss Cupcake Cafe (just up the street) led Najger and Paynesmith change the name.
Whole Earth will serve organic beers and wines and feature some of the food offered by Naiger and Paynesmith’s take-out business, Lean Green Cuisine.
Co-owner Will Najger
Entertainment wise, Najger said he will focus on music and entertainment with “a positive vibe,” with theme nights including a jazz night, a tribal night, a poetry night, a high school glee club night, and more.
Najger moved to the area from Asheville, North Carolina to help Paynesmith open Lean Green Cuisine. He said he has helped others set up organic restaurants with a similar concept around the country and that he hopes Whole Earth Organic Cafe can become a prototype for a new type of nightclub.
“We’re going to do something different,” said Najger. “Whole Earth will be a positive place to party with an eco-friendly vibe, where people can have fun and feel good about it.”
