What Recession? The $160,000 Bar Tab

When I was a college student living in Manhattan, it used to be “cool” to go “clubbing”—by about mid-way through sophomore year, though, my interest had waned almost completely.

Aside from the costs involved, and the rapid loss of hearing (you just can’t get the nuances of a Young Jeezy song unless it is played louder than a jet engine), there was the tiresome parade of superficial aspiring “socialites” bankrolled by forty-something rich dudes looking to play out the fantasy of Big Man on Campus. I think they just wanted the college life they never got to experience the first time around, pre-millionaire.

I assumed that these big fish, after seeing 401ks implode and real estate investments vanish, might have been instilled with a sense of humility.

Well, I was wrong (not the first time)! One of the unintended consequences of the bank bailout and the disgusting Wall Street bonuses that followed, is that there’s still plenty of money being spent in New York City clubs. But there’s one story of excess that really caught my eye and I had to share it.

Taek Jho Low, “a 20-something Wharton grad from Malaysia who has burned through hundreds of thousands of dollars at the city's hottest nightspots in the last three months -- and shows no signs of stopping,” according to The New York Post.

Here’s what we know about this fella (courtesy of the Post):

1. $160,000 bar tab at Avenue, which may sound unreasonable until you realize this was during Fashion Week. You know how that goes. Models and bottles. Yada yada.