Guilt & Co is a popular live music bar in Vancouver's Gastown neighborhood, known for its nightly…read moreperformances by a variety of local and touring musicians, from jazz and blues to funk and rock. It features a dark, cozy, and intimate atmosphere, with food and drinks available, and a cover charge per set, though it used to be pay-what-you-can. The venue is praised for its consistent quality of live music. Great vibe! Plenty of seating. Quaint and cozy.

Based on my experience going at 8:40pm on Friday night…read more We went there for the live music performance. It was near the end of the first set when we showed up and there was no line up at all and were seated immediately. It was already packed by the time we were there. When we were headed out at 10:30, there was a very long line up.

Super fun on Thursday open Mic night! The drinks are cheaper than anywhere , there is a pool table…read moreand darts board to be used for free when you come in and enjoy a beverage or 2! Friendly servers will ask you to sign their guestbook as they are a private members club/non profit organization . Guests are always welcome and membership is crazy affordable.

Free Pool - Regular Tournaments - Excellent Live Musicread more

Absolutely fantastic music on wine, Wednesday! Great ambience, great food, great service, and most…read moreof all, the best jazz. I've heard in a very long time! What a great night out in Vancouver!

We arrived later in the evening and the music was pretty loud. The row seating gave me an uptight…read morefeeling. We were looking more for a speak easy vibe. The menu late night was limited.

The Iconic Roxy has been around for ages. It's clients vry from day to day depending on the bands…read moreplaying. Good chill vibe for those want to hang out along the bright lights of Granville St.

Was visiting Vancouver and staying downtown... and this was a must stop spot!…read more It's a historic bar. Had a live band playing. Good time!

Best food on the north shore and the service was fantastic! I haven't had a better cocktail…read moreanywhere else

Good food-fish tacos 8/10, needed hot sauce non offered, saw a bottle when I went to the ladies…read moreroom.... Good service BUT, big but.... Your music is way too loud!! Please turn down, they did, 10 minutes later, cranked Led Zeppelin, asked again, please turn down the music!!! Couldn't get out fast enough Won't go back

Staying downtown and attending Les Misérables we decided to try something different than we…read morenormally do and we discovered The Ventura Room. We got there quite early into service so not a lot of people in the place. The ceiling is low, it's kind of dark, but somehow it works. It feels maybe more intimate, which was right up our alley. We wanted some nibbles, not a full blown meal lest we fall asleep during the performance. Happy hour was still on so we ordered the dill pickle chips and the burger sliders combo. Both were excellent! The chips were spot on definitely dill pickley, nicely cooked and crispy. The sliders were really great as well, not too small like many we've had lately and you could really taste the beef. Our martinis were also great although a little more juice in the "dirty" side of the equation and perhaps an olive without a pit. We also ordered the BLT with mixed greens, which we probably didn't need but Les Mis is almost three hours long. The service was also great, waters topped up regularly and the servers interactive and interesting. We would absolutely come back to Ventura again. Oh and Les Misérables was outstanding!

First time trying this place out this week. I've walked past it a few times and was curious about…read moreit. Very casual at the time that I went with lots of tables (high top or standard). I had the sticky Thai chicken and yam fries. The portions were actually pretty decent and very filling for what you get. Plus the prices are decent as well.

We took Friday night to step out of our age and revisit our youth!…read more Jmac, Stevie and my brother bought tickets to see the seminal Vancouver rock band Japandroids at the Cobalt. It was everything that i've become shitty at lately. Including staying up late, lining up, dealing with crowds and waiting for a drink. We started early in the hope they would have as well. I dont know how we did it. It seemed like such a struggle coordinating cabs to arrive before an unspecified time at a complete shit hole that seemed to have no concern that we were thirsty and unacustomed to having to fight our way through a bar line up that seemed oblivious to our ability to tip our way through this. Johns first rye and ginger arrived as a red bull and rye . The pretty thing at the bar was unimpressed with our ability to buy service and looked in disgust when John complained, threatening to take his businness and his tye dye Tshirt out of there and back to Browns!! It began to get even hotter and the crowd swelled beyond the legal limits of capacity. I thought, why didnt we bring a fireman? I switched to canned beer out of frustration. Cheap, cold and less of a line up. I felt young. My power wained even further. I went outside to cool down . When I rentered my glasses immediately fogged up to the point of blindness. I scratched my hands across the table looking for the beer I thought i had left there only to find my self running my fingers through a hipsters beard. As I screamed my apology through the ear splitting cacophony of a to near speaker , my glasses cleared long enough to see him wipe my spittle from his forehead and hear his girlfriend ask me if I needed to call someone. At this point I was unsure if I was having an anxiety attack or a stroke or both . I leaned back and pushed my self into the hipsters bench without invitation. Surely i was leaving on a gurney regardless. As the crowd looked at me with no concern whatsoever I became mildly at peace and gave in. And it happened. I cooled down for no acceptable scientific reason. my blood slowed, my vision cleared. I stopped sweating and the overwhelming sense of doom associated with a full on panic attack stopped for no reason other than the ativan i couldnt push under my tongue became nothing other than a belief in its psychosomatic effectiveness. I stared across the crowd and 200 hipsters were singing " its raining in Vancouver and I dont give a fuck, Cause im alone with you tonight" Screaming the lyrics to a song. I wanted to take a picture but I noticed no one else was. It was beautiful . They were singing along. Joyfully. Im not young enough to do this anymore but i still undertand why I did.... And if you need any particulars of the actual space . Yeah, Ayla's sums it up nicely.

This skuzzy death metal bar used to be a strip club back in the day, and the mounted pedestals with…read moreshower nozzles are still located throughout the room, adding an authentic trashy vibe to the already filthy ambiance. The Cobalt is the lowest common denominator of bars in Vancouver, but it manages to take a certain pride in the dilapidated scenario. Typically full of punkish-goth kids, it serves extremely cheap beer and highballs, has ample seating and room for mosh pits, and comes off as unpretentious, in a "too good for good" sort of way. Many loud bands are given their first opportunity here, and many of the better ones return after achieving success for nostalgia's sake. Things can get out of hand, as conventional wisdom tends to get left behind in coat check, and obnoxious teenage drunks start doing whatever they want. I've even seen a band shoot whiskey filled super soakers out into the audience. This is actually the only place I ever did cocaine, taking it for the only time on one of the musty old cars parked out back. I had always envisioned doing blow with nice clothes, beautiful women, a mirror, and a rolled up hundred dollar bill, but the Cobalt was so exactly opposite that it seemed perfect.

Ironworks is a really lovely venue for music, art, and events…read more The network of rooms, halls, and galleries combine to a moldable space. We attended a wedding here and the set-up worked perfectly. The gallery space, with its stage, was great for dancing and the rowdies. The other halls housed the food, cake, and more subdued folks. Ironworks is run by Astrid Sars who was a very welcoming host. The bar served cheap drinks and the bar staff were friendly and good-natured. All around a great venue to keep in mind for when you want to celebrate.

I came here on the weekend for the VALT (Vancouver Alternative) Fashion Weekend, it was the first…read moretime I had even heard of this venue, so I was pretty stoked to check it out. The place is located down in gastown just on the cusp of the crust, meaning its just inbetween where the crackies meet the Vancouver nitelife, or if you're better with landmarks, kitty corner from the Number 5 Orange. Inside there are lots of old remains of ironworks bringing you industrial steampunk realness, and separate rooms to mingle and drink. Well, at this event there was a beer and wine selection so drink we did! A small glass of red went for $5 which is pretty decent, and they had a table of Geek Sweet Cupcakes for sale as well. YUM! The fashion show was fierce and they had some bands in between which were so-so. What I liked about this space was that there was space for a live band to play with a small stage, and there was also space for a runway (I'm not sure if that was brought in from somewhere else or something the venue rents) but it was pretty cool to have both, plus a separate room with a small bar set up, and a backstage area. What I'm sayin' is that this room is pretty diverse, and there's a lot you can do with it and I like that.

China Cloud feels like the secret clubhouse you wanted in college. Hidden behind a nondescript…read moredoor, up a few plain flights of stairs and filled with funky art, a handmade wooden bar and cozy furniture. The room is small and intimate... perfect for a little indie show. The crowd is hipster but the friendly type--and it seems like they all know each other there. I can dig it. I highly recommend it for small (50-150 people) artsy events!

China Cloud. So appropriately named, so secretive…read more An auspicious black doorway, with no signage but only an image of a cloud. Open the door and you will find yourself heading up a long narrow staircase, one of those where you don't know where you will end up, but that's the best part of the adventure. The space is very cool. Artwork all around the lobby space, and then the main room is almost like a cool garage hangout. Low ceilings, a bar, artwork, and bits and pieces of interesting memorabilia. I came here for a 10 Speed Improv event. Improv sets in under 10 minutes each. The bar served beer, wine, and simple well drinks for $4. I can't complain. Cozy, intimate, very fun times!