We stopped by before Free Music Fridays to grab a quick drink and finally check the place out since we'd never been inside before. I'm glad we came early, it gave us a chance to look around and take it all in. The bartender was really friendly and laid-back, which made the experience even better. The space is super clean, and the stage looks perfect for live music. We tried a few local beers and were really happy with everything. The vibe actually reminded me of a hometown college bar I used to visit on Cape Cod with a friend, which made it feel extra nostalgic and fun. There's also plenty of parking in this area, which is a big plus. Overall, we had a great experience, thank you! We will be back! read more

See all

Charge your phone, play cards or dice, eavesdrop on locals gossiping the Atlantic has it all. Great drinks great service it feels like a chill neighborhood regular bar with the added benefit of local shows throughout the month. Open every day no fuss no mess just drinks and vibes. Highly rec for out of towners wanting a chill spot downtown to cool off and watch some weird movie or show. read more

The Atlantic - Front door - Music Venues Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

Bad venue. Not inclusive. Bad drinks. Super bad ambiance. Service is awful. I would rather drink puddle water then ever go again.

The Atlantic is the place to go for the best themed nights in Gainesville- whether it is Hair Metal night, Yaght Rock Night, or All Request 80's. This place really supports the Gainesville scene. I am an old lady, so I actually wear earplugs here because it can get really loud. The bartenders are sweet, and the doormen are sweet-er. There is a cover charge, even though they must make a killing on drinks. The Session beer is actually decent and cheap, too. However, I mostly drink the Crack and Coke (rum and coke) and it tears me up just fine. You can come here for the retro ambiance or the casual hipster watching. The AC could be a little cooler at times, or maybe just add some more fans. Plenty of seating and even some hidden dark nooks to make out in. There are velvet paintings and the most awesome movies playing on the flat screen over the bar. Last night was Breakin', with a short cameo by JCVD. Sometimes when I come to The Atlantic, I wonder, "What would JCVD do?" The bathroom has paper towels and running water. What else can you ask for? read more

The Atlantic - a group of people standing around a table - Music Venues Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

See all

Recently I went to The Atlantic for some Karaoke and it sure was a great time. We went on a Thursday night and arrived right at 10 when they open. Even though we showed up right at 10 they were not ready for us to come in yet, so we waited and went in about 10:05. Thankfully they were not charging a cover on this night so we did not have to pay. Once inside they had a nice stage area where the Karaoke was taking place, the bar area was in the back and they had a few booths that people could sit out on either end. The have a big dance floor where you could dance if there was a musician, band, or dancing a long to the different Karaoke songs playing. The bar area had friendly bar tenders and some pretty great drink specials. All the drink specials were on a big chalk board above the bar area. I ended up going with a can of PBR and then I got a White Claw. The total price for the night was around $10 with tip included. Not bad for a night out. I do highly recommend this place. It was a fun night out. I highly recommend! read more

Most dissatisfactory experience since a time a lady literally dropped trow, and defacated on the dance floor at a bar that at least follows its advertisements. Came with a group of people for a themed dance night. I have screen shotted their website and it says music events and themed dance nights at 18+ our youngest person a 19 year old who is trying to celebrate being in college. We arrange for people to come in from out of town to have an alleged manager lie to our face about what the website says (declaring 21 up) and then say he has no control over what the website says. False advertising to the extreme. Happy to spend my money somewhere else. Happy to report them to the chamber of commerce for their false advertising. Don't take a shit in my mouth and tell me the undigested corn on the cob is sprinkles that you have no control over. read more

The Atlantic - Music Venues Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

How could I not give this place a top review. FIRST because it is a non-smoking venue. I really appreciate that. The only two times I've been able to get here were some of the most "dancing" fun I've had since I moved back to FL. Last year we went for the Stranger Things Dance Party. (PLEASE have this again!) which was more fun than can be put into words. Then this last time I went was for my B-day and they were having PRINCE NIGHT! (Though yes extremely sad that he died the day before my B-day last year. RIP, Prince.) Anyways, I have to say I love the new layout! So much more room for dancing, not to mention the super fun addition of the Pinball machines. This is nice because I get to dance and my hubby can still have fun instead of just sitting somewhere waiting for me to take breaks from the dance floor. LOL! Also, I really like how there is that additional back bar (through the patio type area) where it is more quiet and no dancing. Last thing I'm going to say is I LOVED the Prince and Bowie with halos mural above the dance floor. I honestly hope that is a permanent installment and wasn't just for Prince night. read more

The Atlantic - a row of pinball machines - Music Venues Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

A cool find thanks to a random movie poster/ad we saw while at dinner the other night! Thinking we were going to see a movie at an independent theater in Gainesville, we were shocked to walk in a bar with a projector screen set up on the stage and informed, "THIS is the theater!" And it was! A full service bar to the left and the movie set up on the right. No popcorn or overpriced concessions but I would much rather have a gin and tonic than twizzlers anyway. $5 for the show and $5 for the gin. Can't beat those prices. The bar in itself would be very cool to hang with its dive bar decor and friendly bartender. Can't think of a better place to watch a movie based on Chris Farley's life. Cheers! read more

The Atlantic - The big screen/stage! - Music Venues Near Me - Gainesville, Florida

The Atlantic was my favorite venue from my trip to Fest 10. I love the intimacy, the large and weird various predatory cat velvet pictures hanging on the wall, the owl that is sitting on the bar, and definitely the cool lights, places to sit, and being able to hear what the hell you're there to listen to. I wish The Atlantic would find it's way to the Pacific side of the country. read more

Shady, dirty, grungy, I love it! There's nothing highfalutin or flashy here, just a dance floor and a packed house of sweaty co-eds. So here's the deal. We're in Gainesville, maybe the podunkist town I've ever had the pleasure of living in. There's nothing here. No quality in any direction I can possibly think of. However, I need to dance. After doing so in my apartment night after night after night, it was time to find actual humans to dance with. So, it's a bit cliquey and everyone is basically 20, but... we're in Gainesville, I'll take what I can get! Thursday nights are dancing night and you can generally expect it to be pretty packed and full of people around midnight. Come and visit, you'll leave the place laughing! read more

Rolled in with some friends, most of us in our late 20's and 30's, with one "kid brother" around 19. The website for the venue said 18+, so we believed there would be no issue. The staff member at the door, whom may or may not be illiterate, stated that he was a manager, yet had no control over the website. Nor would he honor the clearly stated public policy, but instead invoked that the policy had been changed and the website did not reflect that. Now, as a business owner, if you have a public statement of one thing, yet you fail to uphold the statement and attempt to backpedal, I can only assume that there's other shady arrangements and pursuits that the aforementioned business is involved in. After hearing a few other stories over the course of the night, I believe there might need to be a full investigation of the venue by the Department of Health, at the very least. read more

One of the first dancing venues I've been to since moving to Gainesville and I must say it's a decent experience at best. Ambiance is pretty fun, and probably the best dancing club in town. It has got booths in case you don't want to dance and just listen to the music; staff is pretty okay, very friendly, no real complaints against them. Drink prices are okay, 4 for a single shot mixed drink with a $10 minimum isn't that bad. My biggest hang up with Atlantic is music selection. People will tell you that the night to go Atlantic is Thursday nights, which yes you should go. But the music selection is terrible and lacking in variety. The worst night was 90s night. There was no variety in the music and it was just nothing but 90s rap. It was good 90s rap, but nothing really else was there; maybe two Ace of Base songs and a Nirvana single and that's it. Compared to the rest of the dance clubs in town though it's probably the best, but it's certainly not the best dance club I've been to. read more

I have many many wonderful memories here! They have all kinds of themed nights- 80's, 90's and today, along with many others! The music is usually great! The bar has all kinds of yummy drinks. There are tables to sit at, and a stage to dance on if you are feeling brave! The downsides? The bathroom is pretty dirty and small. The dancing space is small and can get extremely crowded. It is pretty dirty and grungy- which is part of its charm, as long as you are prepared for it! read more

The Atlantic's location has a nostalgic history. This venue is in the same site that once was the famous 80s BYOB dancehall, The Metro , where dancing stayed frenzied on till 4 in the morning. The Atlantic closes at 2 A.M. nowadays. Dancers seem to dress with comparative inconspicuousness--all pretty casual--relative to the old days, when oddity and novelty of dress was fashional itself. Nevertheless, it's still a very fun place to go and listen and dance and remember to the music of the 80's. The D.J.s tune up the night mixing it in with avant gard, classic disco, rave pulses, some indie rock, rap & hip hop--with emphasis on one or the other depending on the night of the week that you hit the floor. There's a decent selection of beers to choose from and seating space to hang out if you're not dancing. I recommrnd this venue for a fun night out. Give it a few hours and it'll give back to you a fine time of lights, beers, sexy/thrilling dancing, music, and memories past or memories yet to recall in days still to come. read more

This place says on its website it lets in 18+. I drove two hours to meet up with friends and they wouldn't let one of our group in because he was under 21. We took our group and money elsewhere. read more

This is owned by the same people that own the Top across the street and since the Top is usually packed at night they decided to open another bar. They have quite a few shows here with both national and local bands. Like most of Gainesville the shows start way too late for working people (first band usually goes on at about 11 PM) and the club is too damn smokey but I guess that's the audience that it serves. That said, I've seen some amazing bands and I usually have a great time here (if I can breathe). read more

Fun place to go dancing with the girls. The drinks are mediocre so I just go with a vodka tonic. The bathrooms are all kinds of busted. I run over to pop a top. They make you buy something so i get a Samule Smiths Organic Apple Cider and take a sit for a few minutes to cool down. read more

So I planned on going, but then I heard they stopped my friend from attending (even though their website said he could attend). Instead I went to Market Street and had an amazing time! I'm glad word of mouth exists #fucktheAtlantic read more

Went on a Thursday night (supposedly the best night). Not good service and expensive drinks. Also very rude when it came to coming with people under 21. We had a group of five 21+ year olds, but with one underage and they gave us a hard time even though the club is 18+. I do not recommend unless you wanna pay for expensive drinks in a somewhat empty club. read more

I want to love this place - the music is always fresh and the crowd pure hipster fun - just watching them is worth the price of admission .... but I simply cannot breathe in there. They need to do something to fix the airflow / quality - its beyond horrid. read more

The Atlantic is the perfect club to go to on a Thursday night. The music consists of well-known songs that are remixed and some indie classics. It is a little on the small side, and it can get very hot inside, but the two stages allow extra room to move around and get out of the crowd. It's a very down-to-earth club so no high heels required. read more

Cover was cheap. Music was surprisingly danceable eventhough I don't usually dance to indie music. They even played some hip hop style music towards the end. It was a not what I am used to but the difference was refreshing. People were rude though. They would bump into you and not even say sorry. read more

This is one of the first clubs I came to when I moved here 3 years ago. I usually go on Thursday nights which seem to attract a younger college-age crowd. Other nights of the week they act as a venue for bands and sometimes have themed dance nights (like disco or 80s). The great thing about coming here is that I can dance as crazy as I like and I will fit right in with the crowd! read more

Two nights after arriving in Florida, I am cruising the club district looking for an interesting night...I guess this place has potential, the DJ/performer was doing something that I have never seen Dj's do, which was actually take center stage and kind of had a group of people around him and chanting/singing something. I was'nt too thrilled, but I'm kind of jaded and having been all over the world and in so many different clubs, not too much gets me going much. The space seems to be set up for performances mostly, there was'nt that much people for a Friday night. I guess it must serve some niche of some sort, the front door dudes were pretty informative though, so I'll throw in another star for that! Cover charge was negligible so that was cool... read more

Let me begin by saying that I have only visited the Atlantic on Thursday nights which is Indie music night. I LOVE IT THERE! Great music that will not hear at any other bar in Gainesville (ie: Passion Pit, Of Montreal, and Peter Bjorn John). The dance floor is always full of people just having a great time dancing with friends- not worrying about a thing. Everyone is VERY chill and its a very fun environment... probably because beer is free every Thurs from 10-11pm. As was said, this place is very "indie" and you will not find meatheads or anyone Greek here. The design of the place is very random- there is a TV over the bar (usually playing Star Wars or other classics), garage sale finds all over, paintings of Spanish senoritas and they just installed a FREE fuse ball table. The bar is pretty smoky, so beware of that if you dont like smokey places. Cover is only $3 if you're over 21- which is nice. Previous Yelpers had some bad things to say about the Atlantic, but they visited 3 years ago- things have changed. I love it here and I hope that everyone checks this bar out. read more

The only redeeming thing this place has to offer is its bartender, Mike, who has always offered prompt and polite service. That's about it. The other night I asked for a glass of water (I had a large tab running), and the bartender pointed me in the direction of the water fountain (!!!). 99% of the time you are treated as though you should feel lucky they pay you any attention. It is dirty, way too smoky, if they have A/C it is ineffective because on top of being smoky it is always so hot and muggy in there. I'm not sure what their intended approach is with their big attitudes and crappy music but it doesn't work for me. That said, if you like the Top, you would probably like the Atlantic, and vice-versa. If you enjoy dancing to good music without feeling like you are in a 1970s flashback, replete with kitch and too much smoke, you might have to make some compromises and go the other extreme, to one of the South Beach-wannabe clubs. A bit of advice--if you go, stay away from the draught beer. Lord knows when they last cleaned those systems. If you just can't find it in you to scrape up some extra change to buy something in a bottle, you'll find yourself feeling extra-ill the next day after drinking even just one of those nasty bacteria-filled PBRs. read more

Be really careful at the Atlantic, especially with DJ Cameron. His musically capabilities are extremely low (good luck Gainesville with his inexperienced spinning & intimidating demeanor) and he is physically intimidating. Please be careful with the shady musical characters; if you go with friends and avoid the musical talents, you'll have a good time! read more

T.C. Aside from the fact that it is "clique" and not "click" you are absolutely right. The place is way too gross and smoky for the bartenders to have that attitude... also there is a strange obsession there with Pabst Blue Ribbon. read more

I used to love this place and go almost every Thursday night! They had a great DJ and always had a large crowd because it was 18+ and there was free beer from 10-11 p.m.. It always had a cool indie vibe and was very casual. Ever since they paired up with the Bar Arcade next door, the crowd has dwindled to almost no one each week, and they changed their DJ. I don't like the music now or the newly added pinball games. So disappointed! read more

One of the best bars/venues on town. Always has good sound and good drink specials. I'm not sure what else you want?

great place to grab a beer, catch a show, or dance your pants off--especially if your trying to avoid the thick-neck/push-up bra crowd.

I love the Atlantic! Great local bands over the best adult beverages. You can't find a better place to cut loose and have fun.

The music and atmosphere were nice, but the bartender gave us a drink we didn't ask for and expected us to pay for it. The hard cider we bought had soured and was like a bottle of apple cider vinegar. read more