Beginning Friday, students and residents of Ames will have a stage other than their showers to belt out their favorite songs.

Energy Karaoke & Cafe, 200 Stanton Ave. #102, will open Friday at 6 p.m., and owners say the cafe will bring a new flavor to Campustown.

Modeled after the popular “karaoke box” clubs found throughout Asia, the venue features seven private rooms for groups of up to 18 to rent by the hour, says owner Gary Lau.

Lau, who graduated from Iowa State in December, says Energy is very different from the typical American version of karaoke — one main stage in a bar where patrons are encouraged to get onstage in front of the whole crowd.

“The karaoke bars in America are not like the ones in Asia because [karaoke is held] out in the open and impersonal,” Lau says. “This place will be for friends and families to come and chill out and relax together.”

Lau says Energy will instead offer a laid-back, alcohol-free atmosphere for all ages.

“I’d been here in Ames for a few years and there were no places for students under 21 to go for entertainment, so I wanted to open one,” Lau says.

Lau says the karaoke “boxes” are sure to be a hit with international students in Ames that want a place to hang out with friends other than the typical bar scene.

“We combine the Asian customs with American customs,” Lau says of his new club.

Lau says his mother has managed a similar karaoke facility in Japan for more than 20 years, so he has some personal experience with this type of venue. Energy retains the component of the private rooms from karaoke’s Japanese roots, but adds an American-style cafe area, Lau says.

In addition to sushi, desserts and standard coffee shop drinks, the cafe will also offer a unique specialty known as “bubbletea.” The tea has tapioca bubbles mixed in that add a textured flavor to the drink, and Lau says this tea blend is very popular on the East and West coasts and throughout Asia.

The cafe bar and lounge area in the front have a modern, American deco art look to them, Lau says. The karaoke “boxes” themselves each have Internet ports, 54-inch television sets, disco lights and comfortable furniture. Lau says the karaoke system features music in English as well as six of the most common languages in Asia.

After 3 p.m., Lau expects karaoke to be Energy’s central feature. The caf‚ will be open till 4 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, giving people a place to cool down after the bars close, Lau says.

Residents of the Cyclone Plaza apartments, located in the building directly above Energy, haven’t voiced opposition to the new cafe.

“You don’t see too many bar/cafes that don’t serve alcohol, but I think it’ll do OK,” says Matt Gassman, junior in sociology and Cyclone Plaza resident.

However, the chance of loud noise at late hours from the cafe has other apartment residents worried.

“We live right above the karaoke bar, so we’re worried about the noise level,” says Clare Niemi, sophomore in material engineering. “I think people are going to get drunk first, then come here.”