Incredible 5 star service, atmosphere and drinks I would rate higher than a five star if I could . The PROBLEM is they allow cigarette and Cigar smoking inside... From the entry to the bar.... It's a small outdoor space not far from the entry... The smoke is trapped in the bar and suffocates your experience. It's terrible. The space is intended not for those who will pay for drinks or music but just sit there smoking.. We love the people, music, drinks and vibe. Why cater to the people who don't care about your establishment?!?! read more

Very cool, chill place. The bartenders are nice, quick, and the drinks (Grayhound is yum yum) are great. The music is awesome and the decor is interesting to say the least. Plenty of things to look at and talk about. The people are just as interesting and chill. The best bar I've been to since moving to Oakland. read more

Great atmosphere, good music, and you must try the greyhounds - they stuff half a grapefruit in your class!

If I could I would give 0 stars. Stepped 1 foot outside the bar with a beer in hand and was chased out of the bar with no warning. Had to sign for my credit card at the entrance. I understand and respect the no drinking outside of the space but a warning would have sufficed. Needed to leave friends inside. read more

I don't think I have to say that their Greyhounds are the S#$% but in case you don't know this, just have like 20 of them and have a blast. This place is great for live music. Make sure you get there before 8:30 so you don't pay the 5 dlls cover fee. read more

Love this place. whenever I have friends visiting from out of town I take them here. great atmosphere, cool stage, always bump into someone interesting here. read more

we had an event here to thank our wonderful volunteers and invited all of our east bay campuses to give the volunteers a chance to network. the seemingly hole in the wall opens to a whole other world a deep bar/lounge filled with... well.... the bouncers at the door are serious about their job. even though we had an event and can vouch for all our staff members the unfortunate two that forgot their ids in the car had to double back for them. good on ya! the place... well i'm not sure where to start. you gotta see it for yourself. it's like storage wars. when you go in you don't quite know what you'll find but BOOM! it's all there. and you can make of it what you want. for me it was a bit overwhelming. as a teacher i couldn't make sense of it all. couldn't organize it to a category. i stopped trying and called it an eye spy game :) which has potential to be a drinking game. i guess the space was just not the right fit for our event. we kept bumping into each other. and had trouble getting around each other to get to the bar for more drinks or reaching for the finger food spread out on the tables. although i heard local talents comes to play here now and again. i'll have to come visit again to see what that's like. until next time cheers! read more

If you like your bar to look like some crazy person's attic, you will love this place. Bartenders are super amiable and greyhounds come with a huge grapefruit wedge. Very relaxed/mixed/slightly older crowd and the owners let you bring in food to snack on! The night I went, I think they played mostly 80s music which was fun...and later in the evening there was a live band. read more

Ok so someone dragged me in here! Really wasn't in the mood to drink so I ordered water and my friend ordered a greyhound. Once the drink came I tried their greyhound and let's just say before the night was over I drank 4 greyhounds...so much for not being in the mood! The greyhounds were so good honestly you can't even taste the alcohol and I watched Danny the bartender pour the drink and yes this drink had a good amount of alcohol to it! When I return to Oakland this will definitely be on my go to bar list! read more

Awesome service!! Bartenders make some great drinks!! Recommend coming on a Tuesday and Saturday!!

Great Greyhounds and Dirty Dogs. You see the grapefruit squeezed and get a good chunk with your drink so you know it's fresh. A cool, New Orleans style decor inside. They don't let it get too crowded. read more

Best Greyhounds in town! Fresh grapefruit - not quasi juice out of a can - mmmm tasty! read more

Cafe Van Kleef - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

3/5 it's aiite. chill spot, came here after a failed show at the uptown up the street. come here if you're not trippin out on stuff tho, or else the walls will be the death of you. read more

I don't know how to review Van Kleef.... it's one helluva unique joint! I love the ambiance. That greyhound certainly hits the spot after a workday. You'll never find another bar like this one, which is why I give it a solid 5 Yelp stars. read more

This place rocks. Step inside to enter another universe, where art, popcorn, and kitch are one. The Greyhounds are the signature cocktail, and nothing is grey about them.Not to mention the Bluehounds (I think I had a part in naming these)--if you're a margarita lover, try these, they're f*kin incredible. Peter is an amazing artist and guy who's willing to get to know you. He'll share jokes and history as well as new concoctions. If you stay long enough, you get to listen to groovy, jazzy music as you sit back and admire the decor. The only thing I dread is waiting for the music to start. Sometimes it's 9pm, sometimes it's 9:30... The suspense kills me!! read more

Trying to hard. If you're going to spend that much time decorating a bar try and make it look original or interesting instead of the Chili's meets Burning Man look that they currently have. Otherwise okay. read more

I personally don't care for this place too much...I don't hate it though! it's such such a visually stimulating place that I always finding new things to look at inside. The greyhounds made here are supposed to be fantastic..but i don't like grapefruit juice. But all my friends love them! But I love bringing out of towners here to experience the ambiance and drinks. read more

I love this place! I bring my friends here and spend quite a few evenings at this place. Fun atmosphere, sometimes too packed but there is a reason this place is so popular! Get a greyhound and enjoy!!!! read more

The greyhounds here are as good a cure for scurvy as anything else, and baskets of popcorn are the key to my heart. The vibe is very grandma's attic meets the prohibition era (in a good way). Definitely my favorite bar in Oakland, and its proximity to the Fox Theater spells a perfect evening. read more

Original, but if your not a hipster your only going to be served begrudgingly. Despite giving lots of smiles, I felt totally alienated at this place. Also, the decor is trying too hard to be edgy or some such. Meh. I prefer Uptown. Update: My friends and I have decided that the decor is carnie nightmare. read more

GREYHOUNDS! Even though grapefruits aren't my citrus fruit of choice, these were so good. This place is really cool. The walls are covered in so many random things I looked like I had an attention disorder because I was looking back and forth trying to take in everything. read more

Imagine if a pirate had a side show in his Victorian living room that was actually a bar that served killer [fresh squeezed] greyhounds. That place is Cafe Van Kleef. Add some awesome live music [I'm told], the nicest bar tender that I have ever met who also just happened to look very New Wave tonight, and delicious popcorn. It's the greatest break from reality you will ever take. read more

Damn you Oakland! Why must you have something so cool that's so far away? This bar rocks. Cool shit on the walls, friendly atmosphere, steer horns on the bar taps, eclectic groupings of people, charming smoking patio and some rad circus/gypsy/dixieland kind of band playing on at least last Saturday night. I would be here waaay more, but I'm not since I'm rarely in Oakland. read more

This place is great! Fresh squeezed grapefruit and awesome wall decorations. Definitely a place worth checking out!

This is probably one of the best spots in Oakland for a drink. The fresh squeezed grapefruit and vodka is to f*cking die for. I've shared many a memory and happy time here. go. read more

Came here for the first time the other night for a date. I approve! Not super big but the setting is unique & cozy with a variety of different spots to set up shop in, a big roundtable, nice padded booths up high and one-on-one tables. Very cool art & ambiance, next time I'll come back and try a drink. Open late which is also a plus. read more

Oh my... Try the Salty Dog and you'll be coming back for more. Great place if you want to exchange body fluids with strangers. Lots of fun.

Never a dull moment at Cafe Van Kleef. The oddities decorating the walls adds extra charm to this bar. Not many bars have live music which makes this place unique. My only issue with this place is the narrow entry way. On the weekends it gets ridiculously packed and navigating in and out is a challenge. With the best greyhounds in town it's hard to pass this bar without wetting the old whistle. read more

As everyone else has said, get the greyhound. Get buzzed quickly while staring at the bizarre shit on the walls. A must-visit when in Oakland. Really cool place. A quick note to the manager: when your doorman smokes in the entryway, it flows into the bar and stinks up the place. Not enough to make me want to leave, but still. read more

Stumbled upon this little hole in the wall in beautiful Oakland, CA famous for greyhounds and slice and juice the melons there. Soooo gooood goioooo geeeeeet oooonnnee. Atmosphere is awesome. You don't know what the hell is going on. You'll have a boars head up on the wall watching you drink greyhounds or a miniature jam band peering in on more greyhound drinkage. Which goo down super easy too. They'll mess you up. Go there read more

Cafe Van Kleef - Awesome eclectic decor - Jazz & Blues Near Me - Oakland, California

I'll start out by saying that their signature greyhound was great and the decor was wonderfully eclectic. However I was severely disappointed in the service as we left. The security guard yelled at us the entire time we were exiting. My friend needed to use the restroom before we left and he gave him a lecture about having a ten minute warning. The place was nice but the security is awful, and ruined the night. read more

An acquaintance told me about Cafe van Kleef. Then another. Then another. I decided I should check it out. It stood up to the lofty reviews. It surpassed my expectations. Art and jazz, they said. Umm....how about the most romantic, quirky, cozy spot to enjoy well-made (read strong!) drinks, the rotating "snack of the day" menu; served often and lovingly by the owner himself, more cool arty stuff than your brain can manage to see at once and a refreshingly diverse group of smart, interesting patrons. read more

I can remember clearly when he opened up this place and I thought the place was eclectic.He came to the cannabis dispensary to get medicine and back to the cafe.He has all types customers and will not be snobby.or trendy,but those type are welcome.RRichard was interesting to talk to.I do not work in downtown Oakland now but I stiil happen by cafe van Cleef even though I don't really drink booze.There is more than just alcohol there,there is ART and people to watch and be entertained.I suppose I was one of them when there.Not your run of the mill pub cafe that's for sure. read more

Great ambience, no food, and lax service. The Greyhounds are indeed killer. I don't even like grapefruit.

Bro, this place! Cutie Connie and elvis ( guy with sideburns) are my favs. I love to play drunken "I spy" up in this piece with my girls. Come here if you want awesome bartenders and bomb ass salty dawgs, but not if you have to go to the bathroom, you will pee your pants. So find a gas station before you strut in. Enjoy. read more

OMG. Come here all the time but tonight I was swept off my feet by the crew and the vibe. This is my Thursday ritual and will continue to be until I get priced out. Connie is my homegirl. Come check it out! read more

Looked like fun... Too bad the bouncer was a dick and didn't let me in without my ID. At least I could jam on the curb to their sweet music.

Grey Hound - It!!!! They give a fat garnish of grape fruit that made me shit for days.

the one and only bar i go to in oakland...i love it! great decor, quirky characters and killer greyhounds. last time i was there we got to try the "hot bloody marys" others have commented on here...campbell's tomato soup, pace salsa and vodka. not something i'd ordinarily ingest, but it was strangely satisfying seeing that it was a rainy cold night. read more

I can't say enough great things about CVK. They get the best bands, the ones that are up and coming and I want to go see, they have the best drinks, when I feel a bit too tipsy I always get a fresh juice (squeezed right in front of ya) drink from the bar tender and it's just what I need, and the atmosphere is close to impossible to beat. Thank you thank you thank you Van Kleef for keeping it real. read more