Ask Capetonians about the Galaxy and they won’t answer about planets and the Milky Way. A smile will spread across their faces and they’ll tell you about the “fabulous” time they had there at some stage in their lives.
The club in Rylands will be celebrating its 40th birthday on December 8 and the event promises to be an event not to be missed.
Galaxy opened its doors on December 14, 1978, and has stood the test of time. Weekend Argus caught up with the owner, Kanthielal Patel, as preparations get underway for the birthday celebrations.
Construction on the club started in 1976 and was opened by then owner, Shiba Jeram-Patel, who passed away in 1982 at 55. Since then, his son has been running the show.
Patel was 25 when he took over the reins from his dad and has been the driving force behind the club’s success.
According to Patel, it’s the only club in Africa to have stayed at the same address for such a long time.
Galaxy started out as a 5-star restaurant with an a la carte menu but they soon discovered that patrons didn’t really frequent the place for the food.
Kanthielal Patel
“We had a small dance floor and the original restaurant could accommodate 200 people. As the place became more popular we started buying up other shops in the Cine 400 centre and in the late ’80s, we extended so much that we could accommodate 1 000 people,” said Patel.
When Galaxy opened its doors in 1976, the cover charge was R2.50 during the week and R3 on weekends.
During the ’80s, the cover charge increased to R6 and later R10.
In the ’90s, entry cost between R20 and R30 and these days patrons pay R50 to get their feet tapping to the music that has made the Galaxy one of the most popular clubs to have opened - not only in Cape Town but also South Africa.
For the December birthday bash, Patel said they had chosen a line-up that will cater to young and old.
“It’s going to be an old-school, new-school theme. We cater for people up to the age of 80 and our oldest regular is 82-years old,” added Patel.
The line-up for the December 8 event includes the Legends Band comprising Vernon Castle, Ian Smith, Sammy Webber, Naz Brown and Celeste William. For the younger crowd, Karin Kortje will make an appearance along with Ryan the DJ, Dr Jewels, Easy B and DJ Willy.
The cover charge for the birthday bash is R60. Asked about the secret behind Galaxy’s success, Patel said: “Customer is king. We treat everyone like kings and queens”. Patel says, at present, the club has 22000 patrons on its database and for them, it’s about “building a personal relationship” with people.
Weekend Argus