If you’ve lived in Sacramento for longer than five years then you may have seen the evolution of The Sandbar. What started as Club Aqua has evolved into a lively midweek party.

A youthful atmosphere is imperative to keeping a place like Sandbar thriving. While there are people over the age of 25, for the most part this is going to be your standard college crowd.

From the outside, The Sandbar looks the same but the inside it has morphed into something quite different. Upon entering, The Sandbar offers up a luau feel with plastic palm trees and a wooden veranda hanging over the bar.

Apparently, the appeal of The Sandbar is not quite the interior design but the fact that the patio boasts a full-blown volleyball court equipped with sand. Hence, The Sandbar.

What was surprising was the fact that people were actually playing. On a cool chilly October night, people were playing volleyball at a club. The concept of a volleyball court at a nightclub is hard enough to wrap your mind around. Imagine the visual. Men and women in club attire diving for volleyballs in the dirt – OK sand. As far as I’m concerned, it’s the same thing.

Although volleyball isn’t really my thing, I must commend The Sandbar for being creative. I’m just not a big fan of getting sand in my halter top.

Back inside, the pool sharks can have their day. Two pay-as-you-go pool tables are inside located near the second bar in the back. If your objective is to shoot a little pool, then it is suggested to get there early because on any given night you can expect a line.

With The Sandbar, it’s not so much what you see, but it is what you don’t see. For example, upon a quick glance, the chandeliers give off a low lighting that sets the mood for the club’s laid-back atmosphere. Take a closer look and you will see that the chandeliers are made up of old Corona bottles.

The idea of a Corona chandelier just screams college student for some reason. The Sandbar is a college student’s dream with free admission before 11 p.m. on Thursdays, relatively affordable drinks and an interesting mix of music.

For the most part, The Sandbar concentrates on Top 40 but every other song or so, the DJ will decide to breakout a little ’80s hair band and drive the crowd crazy – drive it right out of the club, depending on your taste in music.

All this talk about The Sandbar and the most important element has been left out. Hell, it’s in the title: the bar. Patrons can enjoy one of Sandbar’s three bars. Even with all the alcohol on hand, many of the customers usually opt for beer. Sandbar also offers a third bar on the second floor which is known to the regulars as the “body shot” bar.

If you’re like many college students where your Thursday is your Friday, take advantage of The Sandbar’s free admission, built-in volleyball court and new, hip decor.

Oneika Richardson can be reached at [email protected]