In the four years I've covered nightlife scene in L.A., I've gotten one consistent question from readers: How do I get past the velvet rope? Of course, as anyone who reads this site knows, it's not always easy—even for me. In July, I told this horror story from my experience at Opera, where my glammed-out friends and I got the stink eye from the marketing director who'd personally invited me to come, and, last month, my cohort Amir Kenan had to wait three full hours before getting into Goa as girls in pink Uggs trotted in before him.

So, I asked Jen Rosero, the infamous doorwoman behind SBE's most excusive venues Hyde and Area, what she suggests for people desperate to get in. She said, "By coming around. They just keep coming. A lot of times they get in the first time [because it was the] right night, right time. They came super early, they were really cool, they didn’t act like a spoiled person outside going 'I need to get in.' They just were cool about it." But what if they didn't get in the first time, I asked. Are their egos too bruised to try again? Apparently not. She went on, "When Apple has a new computer out or the new iPod comes out or the new Blackberry comes out—just because people didn’t get it the first time around doesn’t mean they just forget about it. They come back for it because it’s a good product."

Here's my question for you guys: What are your tales from the velvet rope? Comment below and I'll choose the best answers to run in our first print issue of Metromix, out February 13.

Though there was just a fatal shooting at Crash Mansion a few weeks ago, that’s not stopping the dudes behind the new-ish club from throwing their grand opening bash on February 2. The Bravery are headlining, and bravery is just what you’ll need to muster up the courage to come out.

 
—Alexandra Le Tellier