Photo by anokarina.

Haydee’s Restaurant in Mount Pleasant is known for its sweaty Saturday night dance parties nearly as much as its food. But after the imposition of a surprise $20 door fee this weekend, event organizers are reconsidering the location.

Vintage Vinyl “Ritmos Raros” “Brazileiros” Vol. 2 promised a night of world music, and had the words “Free.Gratis” in the event title. But after waiting in line for nearly an hour, many attendees were asked to shell out $20 to enter.

The money went toward food and drink at Haydee’s, but came as a shock to Afro Ritmo Records, which co-hosted the event but did not get a cut of the door fee.

A statement from Afro Ritmo Records says that Haydee’s imposed the fee because “many party goers in the past were not buying drinks.”

Haydee’s did not respond to a request for comment.

“It was already advertised as a free event,” says Ramases Kofi, one of the founding members of Afro Ritmo. “It should have been talked about beforehand. Everybody thinks it could have been handled differently.”

Kofi says he’s going through 80 emailed complaints following the event. One comment on the Facebook page for the event, someone writes, “So All of a sudden it’s $20? Not cool, and Not what was advertised. Smh never again.”

For a sense of the scene, Kofi says, “Imagine a packed party, with one or two hundred people in a line outside.” But the popularity of the event doesn’t explain the door fee, he says. “It’s not the first event to be packed like that” at Haydee’s.

The next Ritmo Raros dance party is already scheduled for February 19, but Kofi says “that’s in jeopardy now.” They’re looking for a place with a larger maximum capacity that still “has a local feel to it.”

But Kofi has no lingering anger towards Haydee’s or its owners. “People in Mount Pleasant know the importance of Haydee’s. We’re not condemning the person, just the actions taken.”