Private Clubs on the March?

Not content with the exporting of the English Private Club concept to NYC via the Soho House, the English--well, two English guys--have now brought the concept to Buenos Aires. Time Out Argentina co-editor Matt Chesterton points us to their place, Club 647, an Asian-themed club/restaurant where, and I quote, "the luxury and decadence of 40s Shanghai echo against vast walls of antique French smoked mirrors" (can't you just hear the echo?). The club sells annual memberships for 2000 pesos and has a definite 'Are you cool enough?' vibe: the public can book tables for dinner and stay from 8:30 p.m. until 1 a.m. but only those with "a great attitdue, great style and a sense of fun" will be invited to stay on into the night. As the 647 website says, "The expectation of what happens in 647, will always stay in 647." We agree, we think. And Club 647 is not alone: the restaurant Maat was scheduled to become a private dining club this month (here's a review from B.A. blogger SaltShaker.net). As Matt C. asks, "Will porteños cough up an annual membership fee for this kind of thing? Is there a big enough contingent of media whores in the city to make it work a la New York or London?"