Weddings on Ice

Auckland-based bar group Minus5 is opening the first ice-lounge in the United States, in Las Vegas, on September 26. Named for the temperature maintained within its 1,200-square-foot main room – 5 degrees Celsius below freezing, or 23 degrees Fahrenheit – Minus 5 will feature a bar, chairs and cocktail glasses all carved from frozen blocks. President of the chain Craig Ling said the concept has been very successful worldwide, with similar places to chill in Auckland, Queenstown, Australia, Sydney, Gold Coast and Viseu, Portugal. “We believe we can do almost everything in ice,” said Ling. “Everything except the floors”, he admits, “which will be nonslip masonry.” There is certainly no better place to debut the chain’s first wedding chapel. Minus5 will offer fur-trimmed white wedding dresses and ceremonies. Further bars also are set to open in Los Angeles, Manhattan, Miami and Hawaii by next year.