The Temple at the Zen Compound entertainment complex is arguably the greenest nightclub in the world. This 3,700-square-metre complex in San Francisco's trendy SoMa (South of Market) district also houses the Prana Restaurant and the Temple Music Group record label.
Paul Hemming (left) and Mike Zuckerman
For heat insulation, it has a "Vertical Garden" of native plants climbing up the façade, while promotional flyers are printed on recycled paper and the restaurant's fryer oil is reused for biodiesel. But the real sensation is a piezoelectric dancefloor to generate electrical power from the pressure of disco dancers' feet. Appearances by ultra-hip DJ Diplo and other big names such as DJ Goldie and DJ Julius Papp have put the 1,000-capacity club on the map since it opened in 2007 and ensured its rapid, glittering success. The Mezzanine, a club known for star bookings like Justice, M.I.A. and Mos Def, has followed suit in resolving to introduce all the environmental measures that are already firmly established in the Zen Compound.
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Get the full story by Tracie Broom in the San Francisco edition of MINIInternational