A little bit Bravo, a little bit “The Truman Show” — and a nosy audience at home.
Fans are glued to the Elbo Room, a Fort Lauderdale, Florida bar that’s been livestreaming its boozy, rowdy regulars since 1996 — yep, way before social media even existed.
The bar literally has cameras all over that cover everything, so no patron is safe: The Beach Cam, The Patio Cam, The Band Cam and The Bar Cam.
The strangest part is that those at home can watch all this bar activity for free (no sound) on YouTube from the comfort of their couch.
If viewers want audio? That’ll cost them $2.99 a month for BandCam+ access, including the Second Floor Bar Cam — that’s some business model.
One TikTokker, @courtneykcolombo, called it her “favorite show” in a recent post on the platform.
She’s uploaded two follow-up videos of herself and friends watching the livestream.
And judging by the views, she’s not alone.
This week, TikTokkers got a front-row seat to the chaos at the Elbo Room, with creator @courtneykcolombo captioning her clip of the bar’s lively patrons: “To our friends hanging out at @ElboRoom tonight.. thanks for the 2 minute show […]”
The comments section quickly exploded: “This is the best/worst idea of ALL. TIME,” one fan declared, while another gushed, “elbo room live streams are top tier entertainment.”
Some got philosophical: “This is the equivalent to when kids watch other kids play with toys on YouTube.”
Others dreamed bigger: “Imagine if this was a reality show lol and they had them in bars all over the world hahaha.”
And for those too old or tired to hit the town, the verdict was clear: “I love watching these! I’d rather stay home and watch this than go to the actual bar,” and “Yes!!!! I am 37 now with kids and am in bed by 9 lmao. I live through these people now.”
It’s unknown if the bar notifies its customers that they’re being filmed.
The Post has reached out to the Elbo Room for comment and to answer the question on everyone’s mind — why do they do this?
And it turns out this Florida joint isn’t the only watering hole getting a livestream glow-up — fans chimed in with tips from around the globe:
“They’ve had these in bars in the Keys for like 20 years and same but the people are wild!!! You should look some up too! Make a whole universe for yourself,” one viewer wrote.
“Dirty Harry’s in Key West does this too,” added another, while someone else shared, “There is a bar in Key West called Sloppy Joes that does this and there is a website for ‘Sloppy Joes Bingo’ which is a crowd watching bingo game created by the ‘Regulation Podcast’ crew.”
The trend stretches far beyond Florida. “I do this with a bar in Charlotte and one in the Midwest. The Midwest one is funny,” a commenter noted.
Across the pond, another TikTok user said, “There’s a bar called Woodys in Liverpool who go live every night.”
And for those really craving a global spectacle? “hahah I do this with Thailand live cams lol.”
And if watching humans stumble through bars isn’t enough, people are also going full wildlife mode when it comes to livestreams, as The Post previously reported.
Earlier this spring, millions went wild for Sweden’s moose-see TV — a livestream of the country’s largest land mammals on the move.
Dubbed “reality TV at its finest,” The Great Moose Migration returned April 15, a full week early thanks to an unusually warm spring that jumpstarted the annual inland trek.
Known locally as “Den stora älgvandringen,” the broadcast has been called hypnotic, meditative — and oddly addictive.
Last year, nearly 9 million viewers tuned in, and the moose mania shows no signs of slowing down.
So, whether it’s humans stumbling through bars or moose on the move, who needs Netflix when the world’s chaos is streaming live 24/7?
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