A bartender takes a drink order at La Pomme nightclub on Tuesday. It was the club's first weekday open to the public after closing for three weeks for renovations. Photo: Vadim Lavrusik

By VADIM LAVRUSIK

The round columns at ULTRA lounge in Manhattan are gone. So is the hidden DJ booth near the entrance. Even the name ULTRA has been stripped away.

The posh nightclub closed its doors for three weeks, but reopened to the nightlife last Thursday with a new look and a new name: La Pomme – French for The Apple. Those signature columns from ULTRA have been squared-off. The DJ booth is now on the opposite side of the floor on a platform, but a bit cozier to the dancing patrons.

“There’s nothing about it that’s the same,” said Club Owner Tommy Tardie. “Nightlife is about reinvention.”

To stay fresh and competitive in the city, clubs typically have a 3 to 5-year life cycle before having to renovate and rebrand under a new name and theme.

ULTRA had a “solid” 3 years, Tardie said, but decided that it would be strategically wise to reinvent going into the year-end, which is typically when the club made the majority of its money from an increase in nightlife and hosted events.

Even the late-night food menu has changed and the catering menu now offers various meats and fish, vegetarian options, deserts and more. The club tries to stay competitive by offering in-house catering for events, something nightclubs don’t usually offer, Tardie said. And finger food at night may keep customers around through the night, he said.

The price tag for such a reinvention: $250,000, according to Tardie, who kept his staff on payroll during renovations. Nothing in the redesign was left untouched. Structurally, almost everything was shifted: bar, DJ booth, VIP area, etc.

Tardie worked with PR Design Group on the visual styling and incorporated celebrity photographer Fadil Berisha’s work to create photomurals that add to the new black and metallic wallpaper designs that include hints of mischief.

Phil Rossillo said he and his PR Design Group partner Gustavo Penengo aimed to create an intimate space in the club’s 3,500 square feet. One of the ways that is achieved is through the design of hanging circle-ceiling panels, he said, and an overall goal to tie all the elements of the club together. We are halfway through this piece and I still don’t know where it is.

The Group also did the design for predecessor ULTRA, but the needs of the clientele has changed and so the design must also, Rossillo said. For example, he said Tardie was envisioning a club with more adaptability, where a space could easily be transformed. Now the furniture is easily movable.

This adaptability was one of the more noticeable changes for Eva Shure, who recently held a fashion show at La Pomme. Shure said she needed a space that was big, but not too big and still have an intimate atmosphere. She had been to La Pomme when it was ULTRA, and said the space now feels much more suited for events.

“It’s more versatile than ULTRA,” Shure said. “ULTRA was a hard design, the colors were bright, where as this design is much more elegant with the artwork on the walls and could take on any palette you decide for your party.”

Shure described the changes as a “metamorphosis” from a lounge to an event space.

But ultimately, Rossillo echoed the sentiment of Tardie in a nightclub lifeline.

“Nightclubs are much like restaurants. After 3 to 5 years, for the most part, things do change,” Rossillo said.

For each club the reasons are different but are usually financially motivated, said Veronique Perret, founder of Event Premiere, a club promotion company.

Perret said when businesses don’t have enough clientele coming in after about 2 to 3 years they close down, renovate and start over with a new crowd.

So far, Tardie said the club has been slammed with events. The venue hosted private parties during New York Fashion Week before reopening to the public. On Tuesday, its first weekday night being reopened, there was a good showing of 50 people by 11 p.m., a good number for a club at this early in the night.

“We’re excited about the fall,” Tardie said. “So far the response has been good.”