After work today I was just exhausted. I got home and really wanted to do something different. So after discussing it for a while, we decided that we would attempt to get take out from Brookhaven Country Club, at which I am an associate member. Ever since getting to go to the Tower Club in Dallas last week I have been itching to try out the other ClubCorp properties to see. Now that I know how easy it is to go to them I’m really excited to try out the different venues and menus. I’m also trying to orchestrate a Dallas Society Club Crawl for the young execs and professionals in the region to go around and try out all of the different clubs as a group.
So Souder and I drove over to Brookhaven, which is really just around the corner from us, and explored the property. In many ways, being a ClubCorp member, and going to Brookhaven specifically, gives you a lot of the feeling of being in Walt Disney World – at least it does for me. When Dominica and I use Disney properties we tend to focus on the resorts, food, lounges, venues, etc. and very little on the parks themselves. ClubCorp gives us that same experience without the parks, but still with pools, athletic facilities, gold, etc. Basically, Disney is like a giant country club with some parks in it.
Showing up at Brookhaven at night felt not totally unlike going to a Disney Resort. It was huge with a grand front entrance, treed parking lot, very mature foliage and several venues including all the amenities. Just what you would expect from a Disney property. The other really similar feature is the way that you feel “included.” One of my favourite things about Disney is how you get your Disney resort card and you can go anywhere in the Disney system and everything is handled through that single card. Every meal goes to your room, everyone knows who you are (to some degree) – you are a “part” of the place. ClubCorp does that between all of their properties. Present your membership card and you are a member at that location. Your food, drinks, etc. all go back to your main account. You never need money no matter where you are. Your ClubCorp identity travels with you.
We toured the facility a little bit while we were there. It is pretty cool and way, way larger than any of the other clubs that I have seen. This is a much older club too, having been built in 1957. They’ve kept the 50s feel too even with the modern renovations. It’s a very cool venue.
We brought dinner back home and ate there with Dominica and Liesl. Dominica and I are continuing to work our way through Roseanne which I have not watched in forever.