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Seattle has an almost unnaturally large amount of dance clubs. This may be because after being cooped up in the cold for months on end leads locals to want to grind against strangers in sweaty euphoria. Or maybe not. But does it really matter? Seattle has great places to dance, so let’s leave it at that. Fenix Underground is a tri-level dance club in Pioneer Square that has been attracting locals and visitors for years. For a gay friendly dance club, Neighbours is there for those who simply want to have a great night out. Yet another Pioneer Square dance club (starting to see a pattern?) is the Last Supper Club. This Seattle dance club features some of the best house and hip-hop that the city has to offer. Of course, Pioneer Square isn’t the only place to go clubbing in Seattle, it just may be the most convenient—one cover charge grants admission to many of these dance clubs. Also, Belltown, Fremont and the University District have plenty of booty shaking dance clubs practically next door to each other.
Aristocrat's Club Bar & Grill
220 Fourth S., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.748.9779
The two floors at Aristocrat's Club Bar and Grill in Seattle are constantly packed with eager club kids grinding out the weekend at this hip lounge and dance club. Aristocrat's Club Bar is seriously one of the best nightclubs in Seattle for world-class DJs manning the decks every night; their revolving slate of top spinners showcases some of Seattle's best with some international beat scientists peppering the mix. The upstairs at Aristocrat's houses the packed dance floor and bar for the freaks and the dim downstairs lounge offers a more chill space. |
Ballroom in Fremont
456 N. 36th St., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.634.2575
The Ballroom in Fremont is a warehouse style Seattle billiards bar and dance club that caters to a decidedly chill mix of ex-frat boys, hotties, hipsters and sharks that crowd the nine pool tables, the bar and the dance floor on the weekends doing their thing, whatever it is. The weekends see slick DJs dropping beats for the ravenous dance clubbers gyrating on the packed floor while during the week a house CD player does the job with ease. The drinks at the Ballroom in Fremont are reasonable, potent and come at you fast, but to help you out with all that, this Seattle bar and nightclub offers a homey mix of comfort food. |
Baltic Room
1207 Pine Street, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.625.4444
The Baltic Room, a posh Seattle nightclub, caters to a hip and eclectic mix of dance clubbers and drinkers getting their groove on under the lights on the ever-packed dance floor. The real draw, and subsequently why the Baltic Room is wall to wall nearly every night, are the sick DJs manning the decks dropping some serious beats spanning all tunage funky, hip and blazing from all over the world which also creates another great draw at Seattle's Baltic Room: the multi-ethnic parade of hotties, pickup artists, metros, ravers, freaks, straights and gays. The party gets slammin' at the Baltic Room and you've got to check their theme nights that always draw a fun, energetic cavalcade of frenetic dancers showing their dance club chops. |
Beso Del Sol
4468 Stone Way N, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.547.8087
Offering fresh twists on traditional Mexican fare, Beso Del Sol restaurant in Seattle is packed to the point of bursting during dinner and after that rush slows, the Seattle dancing crowd into Latin and salsa starts streaming in. The dancing happens every weekend—Thursday through Saturday—and like we said, the dance floor starts filling up at Beso Del Sol around 10:30, so if you're going for a little food and the nightlife, plan accordingly. |
Bonzai
704 1st Avenue, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.264.9570
Bonzai, a sleek hipster dance club and lounge in Seattle, gets the weekend dance clubbers kicked into high gear with throbbing DJ beats spun by some of Seattle's premier mixers. If dancing on the packed floor gets to be a little much, the lounge area at Bonzai offers a super chill alternative for drinks and conversation. Not only is this Seattle nightclub a hotspot for the dressed to impress club set, but Bonzai is also open for lunch and dinner featuring an excellent selection of sushi and Asian fusion cuisine. |
Century Ballroom and Café
915 E Pine St., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.324.7263
Expansive and polished, the Century Ballroom and Café is the premier venue in Seattle for salsa and swing dancing. Live bands that really lend to the retro authenticity of the Century Ballroom usually provide the music for all of the celebratory cavorting, but even when the tunes are provided by DJs, the hot dancing never slows down. Even if you're a decidedly un-fleet of foot rookie, the Century has your back providing lessons for novices and experts alike before the shows really start to sizzle. To make a unique night out in Seattle have dinner in the restaurant or at one of the intimate tables upstairs and then dance your hearts out in this dance club that's a testament to a bygone era. |
Chop Suey
1325 E Madison St., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.324.8000
Chop Suey is a stylish Seattle club that caters to a hip crowd with its heavy pours from the bar and its eclectic musical stylings from local Seattle live music acts, some national touring bands and some beat DJs. Chop Suey's interior looks as if someone rolled through a Chinatown garage sale, but had a better eye for style and retro kitsch than when your mom used to birddog one five blocks away and say "we'll just stop for a minute." When popular local bands play or one of Seattle's top spinners mans the decks at Chop Suey, get there early because even though the layout at this Seattle live music club is crowd friendly, it can get a little cramped at sold out shows. Packed or not though, Chop Suey always keeps you fueled with plenty of booze. |
Club Medusa
2218 Western Ave., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.448.8887
Club Medusa, a posh LA-styled dance club in Seattle sports two rooms for the dressed to impress clubbers that pack in to down some expensive drinks and dance the night away. Bottle service is offered at Club Medusa in either the front lounge area or at the reserved tables circling the dance floor. You can show up early at this Seattle nightclub hotspot, but don't expect to get your DJ—spinning new, old school, dance and hip-hop—fueled bumping and grinding on until around midnight when the seemingly sparse crowd multiplies 10 fold and the dance floor is wall to wall. As an added eye candy bonus, Club Medusa employs hottie go-go dancers high above the floor doing their thing to warm up the crowd. |
Contour
807 1st Avenue, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.447.7704
Hipsters, scenesters and aural junkies flock to this smallish Seattle dance club and lounge for raucous partying until the wee hours of the morning. Contour stays open until the sun rises on the weekends and this isn't some lame after party spot, they keep the slick DJs dropping beats the entire time and this Seattle club is seriously packed the entire time. During the week, Contour closes at the usual time, but that certainly doesn't mean that this joint is any less crowded and, you really wouldn't think it, but the food here is way above average. |
Downunder
2407 1st Avenue, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.728.4053
Downunder is a Seattle dance club destination for those that just don't want to let the party end. Usually sparsely populated early in the evening, Downunder does it's thing late—the bar and dance floor start really filling up around midnight with Seattle clubbers and reaches a sustained acme from 2am til 6am. The DJs at Downunder spin a decent mix of hip-hop, dance, techno and the like that keeps the sweaty packed house moving to the somewhat mainstream beats, but if you're not an aural snob or dance party elitist then this Seattle dance club will do you just fine, hopefully you hit the bull's-eye and show up during one of Downunder's infamous foam parties. |
Element
332 5th Ave. N, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.441.7479
Dance club scenesters have a new velvet roped herding zone at Element nightclub in Seattle where heavy beats provided by resident and international DJs commandeer the dance floor every night so dressed to impress clubbers can gyrate the night away. Element also employs the nouveau trend of the ultra lounge featuring extensive VIP areas—done in the four elemental motifs—for more discerning partiers that like the whole swanky bottle service gig. The Seattle dance scene starts gathering heat at Element's two floors later in the evening, so if chic trendy hanging is your thing, make your grand entrance around midnight. |
Fenix Underground
109 S. Washington, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.405.4323
The undisputed heavyweight live music and dance club of Seattle's Pioneer Square, Fenix Underground is comprised of three levels for hipsters, clubbers, scenesters, ravers and aural freaks to lounge, booze and party. There're five, yup five, wholly separate bars in Fenix Underground so getting your drink on is never a problem and with plenty of space, this very crowded Seattle club never feels cramped. Also, the live music acts that pound out the tunes from the Fenix stage are some of Seattle's best local talent, not to mention that their line up of resident and international DJs seriously know how to drop beats and are some of the most coveted Seattle spinners. Plus, there's never a shortage of hotties doing their thing on the dance floor—especially on the third, underground level, that houses the illustrious poles and cages—so, drop the canned beer you just opened in your squalid apartment, don some threads and check out Fenix Underground. C'mon, you work hard all week; play hard on the weekends. |
Juan O'Riley's Nightclub
309 1st Ave. S, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.622.5826
Walking the thin green and red line between Mexican restaurant and Seattle pub, Juan O'Riley's Nightclub kicks out some serious grub during the day while catering to a sports oriented crowd. But, at night, Juan O'Riley's puts down the hot sauce for some hot dance beats as this Seattle nightclub transforms into a bass pounding dance club that carries over its Mexican sensibilities with some completely dangerous house margaritas that can make even the most rhythmically challenged person get up and shake it. |
Last Supper Club
124 S. Washington St., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.748.9975
A premier dance club in Seattle's Pioneer Square, the Last Supper Club caters to a dressed to impress clubber crowd that starts packing in after 10 for some mainstream house and hip-hop booty shaking. Surprisingly though, this Seattle nightclub also does an outstanding dinner menu for those that seek inclusiveness in their night out. If you want to take advantage of the Last Supper Club's posh lounge area, you'd better assemble your crew or your date early because after 11pm nearly every seat in the house is taken and the slick guest and resident DJs crank up the beats for the burgeoning dance floor masses. Also, the Last Supper Club does something that some other upscale nightclubs in Seattle don't: pour you stiff drinks for your hard earned cash. |
Mercury
1009 E. Union St., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.328.9481
A Seattle Goth club for black clad nightcrawlers, Mercury usually requires membership to enter or accompaniment by a member, but once inside the driving techno heavy DJ mix and safe, chill crowd will make anyone feel like they belong. Mercury is like the last outpost of a dying breed and you don't have to be all gothed to appreciate its uniqueness; it's a true underground dance club where you don't have to drop serious dime to get in, it's not an uber-trendy meat market attempting at presenting low key fringe partying and the drinks are stiffer than a corpse. |
Neighbours
1509 Broadway, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.324.5358
Neighbours, whether you're gay or straight, is a Seattle dance club mainstay that always gets packed with revelers on the weekends for the choice DJs spinning high-energy dance tracks. There's rarely an attitude at Neighbours, everyone from the staff to the patrons are just out to have a good time to which goal this Seattle dance club consistently contributes—seriously, it's been around forever, serves dangerous cocktails and while many other Seattle gay bars and dance clubs have come and gone, Neighbours is still surviving and is still the place to be with the attitude of sexual orientation be damned. |
Noc Noc
1516 2nd Ave., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.223.1333
Heck, Noc Noc is all you could ever want in a Seattle bar, dance club and lounge all under one booze soaked and beat heavy roof. Popping in after work, regulars take full advantage of Noc Noc's infamous happy hour when the bar is like a homey local retreat, but when the sun slips over the horizon, this bar turns into one of Seattle's busiest dance clubs featuring a slew of genre destroying DJs keeping the party going. If dancing isn't quite your gig, Noc Noc also sports a pool table and some comfortably worn couches to plop down on and take in the scene. |
Re-bar
1114 Howell St., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.233.9873
If you want a true taste of Seattle forget the cheesy tours and ferry boat rides and just pop into Re-bar on any given night to see exactly what Seattle—drinking notwithstanding—is all about. This one of a kind Seattle club is filled to the brim with hipsters, freaks, geeks, artists, gays, intellectuals, punks, rockers, ravers, clubbers...well just plain good people that show the unique diversity and welcoming attitude of the Emerald City. Re-bar is the undisputed anchor of the Seattle alternative arts scene presenting loads of local artist's works, housing theatre and comedy performances with just rocking dance nights...oh yeah, they also serve some mean, get the frickin' lead out cocktails. |
Tiki Bob's Cantina
166 S King St., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.382.8454
A young crowd gets their heavy drink and hard party on at Tiki Bob's Cantina that now does that cool Seattle club thing of the Pioneer Square joint cover. The energetic crowd full of hep cats and hotties dance raucously to the mixed DJ stylings and the bartenders seem to pour the drinks stiffer as the night goes on. Also, as an added eye candy bonus, this Seattle bar and dance club often has impromptu dancing on the bar by the aforementioned hotties being egged on by the DJs to shake it. |
Trinity Night Club
111 Yesler Way, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.447.4140
This three roomed, multi-level dance club and lounge is stylishly decked out just like the twenty-something Seattle clubbers that pack into Trinity Nightclub for heavy drinks and beats. Some of Seattle's top spinners man the decks in each of Trinity's three rooms popping off three distinct vibes, with national and international talent rolling through and dropping beats when they're in town. Cocktails can get a little pricey here, but the dressed to impress ogling set doesn't seem to mind while they get their kicks from more than just energy drinks. |
Vogue
1516 11th Ave., Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.324.5778
The black clad, vinyl, leather and full-body rubber suit donning after dark crowds flock to the Vogue for some Goth and fetish laden dancing and drinking to some wicked DJs. The crowds are packed into Vogue tighter than the skin-tight outfits the decidedly non-mainstream patrons shimmy into. This is the Seattle club to walk on the wilder side of life—you know it totally reminds us of that underground club in the third (wholly crappy) Matrix installment and you could probably find your own buxom Persephone inside if you're fetishly hip. Some of the hottest dance nights happen at Vogue, but like we mentioned, this crowd can birddog a poseur from behind the masks of their vinyl cat suits from a mile away, so if it's your first time at this Seattle dance club...well, do a little research and good luck. |
Watertown
106 1st Ave. N, Seattle, Washington; Tel. 206.284.5003
During the day Watertown is a relaxed Seattle local bar to grab some food and a drink in, while at night that quaint feeling and atmosphere get blown directly out of...er, the water. The music at this long standing Seattle dance club gets ratcheted up a few notches with DJs spinning house, hip-hop and top forty dance tracks for the style conscious masses that come spilling through the doors of Watertown seemingly as soon as happy hour ends. Sporting some good elbow room on the dance floor ensures that you'll only be dancing cheek to cheek with someone of your choosing and the bartenders at Watertown really help that course of action along with some dangerous pours. |
—Seattle bar and club reviews by Ryan Osterbeck |
