Ken M.
Yelp
Thursday: 21+ Ladies Night
As a guy, there is no other place off of The Strip with so many attractive women at one time in one place. The best part is that it's easy to strike up conversation and ask them to dance. The worst part is that it's on a weeknight, when many of us have to work the next morning. I think 9:00 to 10:30 p.m. is the sweet spot for girls accepting requests to partner dance (i.e., two-step or country swing), or to exchange contact information with them in that time frame.
Friday: 18+ Live Music Night
The presence of the 18-20 year-old Gen Z crowd on Fridays deters previous generations of patrons from coming that night. The under-21 folks pay a doubly higher cover charge to compensate for revenue not made from alcoholic beverages that can't be sold to them. This results in intensified security to make sure 21+ patrons don't buy drinks for them. I'm not sure why Stoney's sticks to this business model since no other country bar in Vegas has an 18+ night, which is also unusual in other cities.
The other drawback on Friday is that only half the dance floor is available, with lighting turned dark, while the band is playing. This effectively precludes two-step, and limits the amount of people who can be doing line dancing and country swing. This also takes away one of the big perks of country dancing: showing off, which is reinforced by attention that is temporarily diverted to the band playing on stage.
Saturday: 21+ No Cover for Military, Teachers, Nurses, First Responders
To me, the sweet spot on Saturdays is 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. However, since country dancing is nonstop exercise, I'm fatigued after two hours if I exercised earlier in the day.
Sunday: 21+ Partner Dance Lessons, Open Dance
Instead of seeking out a dance studio for lessons in partner country dancing, Stoney's now offers a three-hour block of lessons on Sundays. This includes one hour for each of the three styles: two-step, country swing, and west coast swing. No partner is required, since a rotating format is used, but is optional for couples taking the lessons.
Two-step and country swing are the two styles of country partner dancing that happen between line dance sets at Stoney's. So, it would make sense for Stoney's to offer a weekly, one-hour lesson for each style, back-to-back. Instead, they're spaced apart by a third, one-hour lesson, placed in between, for west coast swing. Therefore, patrons who want to learn the two main partner dances at Stoney's have to invest three rather than two hours for the instruction. Because west coast swing is hardly ever danced at Stoney's, it should be the first lesson offered, at 3 p.m., so that the main two partner dances can be taught in a two-hour block, followed by the open dance period.
West coast swing, despite its popularity, has never found a home at country bars in Las Vegas, other than an occasional call-out by the DJ. I'm not sure if the force-fed, one-hour lesson on Sundays is going to change that, when the demand for it is simply not there on regular nights. It's not normally danced to country music. It's slower than two-step and country swing. Most people who dance west coast swing are so focused on that one style, that they don't also learn two-step or country swing. Conversely, most folks who dance two-step or country swing, don't dance west coast swing. West coast swing already has its home in weekly events at local dance studios.
Country dancing at Stoney's alternates between sets of songs for line dancing and partner dancing. Two-step or country swing can be danced to the same partner dancing songs, but the same can't be said of west coast swing. Instead, west coast swing requires its own callout, to the exclusion of the other three dance styles, which sidelines most of the country dancing crowd. So, it's not realistic for a third branch of song sets to be created for west coast swing. There is not enough time in an evening, and west coast swing requires regular lessons, beyond what the main crowd is willing or able to invest in.
Line Dance Lessons
Line dancing is the biggest form of crowd participation at Stoney's. There are so many different line dances, with new ones continually introduced over time. This is why I like to be there at 8:30 p.m. for the second line dance lesson. If you also come for the 7:30 p.m. lesson, it can feel overwhelming to learn and remember these back to back. It can also cause you to fatigue earlier in the night and leave during the peak hours.
Beer Selection
One of my pet peeves about Stoney's has always been the lack of independent craft beers, including an absence of beers from local breweries. The two independent craft beers that they do offer are available in bottles: Shiner Bock is mediocre, and 805 (Firestone Walker) is stellar. The draft beer selection should include Atomic Duck IPA (Able Baker) or Duck Hunter IPA (Beer Zombies), which are easily the two most popular local beers, which are standard in local bars.