I would suggest not going here. The event coordinators don't really know what they are doing. Sure there are 2-4-1 drinks but you'll find a better crowd with 2-4-1 at Toad hall (Right down the street) The music is okay but not until the end of the night. and the go-go boys never really have anybody to dance for... I think there are more people working for the event then there are attending...... read more

Excellent place to go out on a casual Friday nice mixed crowd dance floor and good drinks perfect to hang out with friends and perhaps meet somebody fun :) ! read more

Got my phone stolen from INSIDE my bag on the dance floor. What was worse was the attitude of the security. Their lack of empathy and attitude made it so clear they deal with this too often to care. read more

I love the environment and how amazing everyone is. Would highly recommend, bring your friends!

I always have fun at this club, HOWEVER, I signed up on Yelp just to WARN you about the security/door people. My friend was PHYSICALLY ATTACKED and ASSAULTED by the people that are there to keep us safe. The female door woman attacked and strangled him last night 1-10-15. He did not physically attack her or threaten her or do anything to deserve what she did to him. After the attack went on for seconds I realized nobody was helping, not even the other security guards. I had to jump in and push her off of him, mind you she is 3x our size. He has scratches and actual bruising in the shape of her hands around his neck. Even after there were several witnesses who saw her attack him all the guards took her side and didn't even give a damn what happened. You could tell one of them knew she was wrong and still didn't do anything. This should be a place for fun and happiness and we shouldn't have to worry if we will be assaulted by the people there to protect us. So fellow party goers BEWARE. Love you T. read more

Phone was stolen out of my ZIPPED PURSE!! This seems to be an ongoing theme with this establishment, just search for "phone" amongst the reviews. Beware. read more

Just got in. 6 bucks just to enter as soon as I order a drink and I m on the dance floor, got my drink down by a drunk couple and got them aggressive when i told them about my drink. Just cause i called the security to defend me i got kicked out and treated like a criminal . Just visiting SF there are way better place around with less problems... If you want to enjoy your evening don' t go to this shiithole! And you can save your many for peaceful violence free environment! read more

I love the cafe! I have been going ever since I was old enough. The Cafe's renovation is beautiful and the vibe is always welcoming. It's also not as crowded as the other bars, there's actually space to dance and chill out. I wish they would bring back hip-hop on Monday nights! Hands down the best spot in Castro!! Buy me a drink if ya see me! ;-) read more

I've always found The Cafe a fun place to go and was definitely sad when they closed for their long-ass renovation. But now they're open, and in full glory. Not only are the drinks strong as f*ck but the music is usually pretty good and the crowd even better. Granted, you've really gotta love slutty go-go boys in grass skirts and jocks, but if that gets you going when you're drunk, then you're home. The only thing I'm a little iffy on is the Saturday lesbian nights... I mean, yay for them, but...I ain't eatin' no pussy (and nor do those lezzies want me to) so I'll be staying away on Saturday nights. Also, I'd like to thank the extremely (and I mean EXTREMELY) amazingly nice staff. Last Friday, I had lost my wallet and completely flipped out. (As I think the normal reaction should be). I emailed The Cafe at 3:30am telling them about my lost wallet and begging them to call me if they found it. Well, not more than 10 minutes went by when the Manager himself called me to tell me that they found my wallet! Apparently the PR guy had checked their email just as they were about to head out. I told them I'd be over right away to pick it up! I told them I lived 4 blocks away, when in reality I lived more like 15 (so they would be more inclined to wait) so I had to run like dickens. And let me tell you, running (still buzzed) through the streets of SF at 4am, is a totally crazy workout. Well, the really amazing thing is that not only did they wait for me in the parking lot of the nearby gas station while I sprinted to them, but they even gave me a ride home. I was seriously shocked that there were people THAT nice out there. Sadly I forgot their names, but I just want to say, thank you again! Nice to know that the Cafe is run by good people (unlike some other Castro bars who will go unnamed at this time...). ps. I'd also just like to point out to anyone who goes that their bathroom has been newly renovated (with more stalls and urinals!) and that the metal thing on the left-hand side is a sink, NOT a pissing trough. I recently got to see someone lay their "member" on the sink and piss into it because that's what they thought it was. (And he didn't even wash his hands after that!) read more

the cafe is not my typical scene, but it serves its purpose and does it well. i would normally choose a bar over a club, grit over glitz, but every now and then the urge strikes to get dressed up all sparkly and go dancing. if the goal is to really get down dancing in the castro, this would be my top choice, though i can only handle it a few times a year. i also enjoy the mixed crowd, as you can flirt with boys and girls all in one space. drawbacks: younger crowd, nasty floors, no outdoor space to retreat to for fresh air (and you'll need it), cash only, gets really crowded, stimulation overload if i'm not in the right mood. read more

haven't been here in years so when my friend called me up and asked me if i wanted to go dancing in the castro tonight, i said sure! this was the first club we stopped at. they were playing house music and almost everyone was dancing. the good thing was that there was still a lot of rooom to move around and you didn't feel like you were squished. the energy here was really great. the go go dancers were fun to look at too. the cover wasn't bad either. it was a bargain at five bucks. read more

Great music, sexy go-go dancers. Had a great time on a Friday night with my friends and there was only a $5 cover. The layout of this place make it large but the upper portion of the club doesn't have speakers for the music. If you're a smoker, this isn't your club because the outside patio is tiny, more like a hallway. The drinks were good and they had people walking around with trays of shots for sale. Definitely will be back! read more

i miss the old cafe. call me nostalgic. i prefer it when people are looking at eachother rather than big screen tv's.

Cafe today Sucks big time!! Dj's is so rude and nobody is dancing. I just want to put out there because I love this place and I've been here for 13 years!!! For a labor day weekend is terrible, not even the dancers can stand this!!! read more

I have been to The Cafe several times now, before and after the renovation. I love the new renovation they did! The ceiling lights are the topper. It's fun to have go-go dancers too. Ok here's the deal though, you will inhale smoke. It's inevitable as you traverse through the crowd and the dance floor because of the indoor smoking area. Great if you're a smoker, sucktastic if you're not. Just try to steer clear of being near that area. Secondly, do not go early! I've gone early a few times (before or around 11pm). Don't do it! You will run into the before 11pm crowd and believe me, it's not pretty... literally and figuratively speaking. The funner, more outgoing crowd shows up from 11:30pm on, that's when I now show up. The crowd is fun, the DJ is good (you will pretty much hear all the radio songs but at least they're good radio songs you can dance too!), the go-go's are some good eye candy, and the dance floor is always full. Saturday night is the night! Check it out. It's worth your time. Who knows, ya might see me there. :) read more

Hands down, my favorite place to dance in the city. Love the old school hip hop and gettin' down with my homegirls. The remodel makes it look shi-shi but drinks are still cheap and the music is never pretentious. read more

Fancy new looking a bit cheesy, but tons of looking guys with hot dancing! I just keep thinking that it's too bad they are not straight! Ugh. But still, it's the place if u wanna hang out at Castro, u NEED to check it out for sure! Nice dance music and hottest boy go-go dancer. Both hands up! read more

Great place. However, latin night is gone. Thursdays salsa night from 9 to 11.30 is gone. So sad. Love the place because of tha.. but is gone read more

Love this place especially when they hosted ladies night! This will always be my favorite bar and it's so relaxing. Come in any day of the week and have a sex on the beach! Just lounge and they even have a section for those who smoke! I will always love this place. Many memories. read more

Great place to dance. Really fun pop music. Very crowded. Clean bathrooms, but they tend to run out of toilet paper.

I love Castro! Every time you will find some surprise here! The café is near the street corner(there has a gas station here).But you will not find it is a club in daytime. Around 9:00-11:00pm,people will line up outside. Last time I went there,everyone had a sailor hat and people were crazily dancing! Also I like a black dancer there who had over $100 tip in 20 mins! read more

This renovation took out the soul of the Cafe. Yeah, things change, places need updating...but the old Cafe was cozy, with its perch atop the stairs for crowd watching, the quieter patio and balcony for smoking (but really for socializing), and the darker colors. In their effort to open up the danceable space, they wrecked the crowd flow and hangout spots, and they used a terribly sterile decor. It feels hollow and lifeless. The patio is now saturated with smoke (the vents don't cut it); the balcony now no longer opens on to the street. Change isn't always good, sad to say. This was not an artful redesign. read more

I greatly enjoy going to The Cafe. I have went 3 times and everytime I go I always have a great time. The cover charge is great. It's only $5. Coat check is $3 could maybe be a dollar cheaper. Drinks are priced well. The DJ is great!!! And there are lounging areas where you can sit if you don't wanna dance. There is an indoor smoking area which I love and there is always staff picking and tidying up the place. The only reason I wouldn't give it 5 stars is because their website isn't up to par, it should get updated more often with previews to events they are gonna have and should be able to offer guest list (but since it's only 5 can't really beat the price). If there is half a star it would be 4 1/2 but ya. Go to The Cafe. Regardless if you are gay or straight you definitely feel comfortable there!!!!! read more

Good on Fridays, wouldn't go on other nights. But Fridays has good music and a good young professional crowd

Update: Friend's iPhone was stolen out of her purse while she was dancing. Seems like cafe employees are either indifferent to this, or that they are perpetrating it. read more

Its a pretty nice looking club if your interested in paying a cover charge. The music and videos are good and sometimes different from what you would hear at all the other bars. They charge cover virtually every night so I personally have only been here a few times when it was free. I have seen The Cafe closed some evenings during the week. read more

I enjoy the cafe; ive been partying it up here for the last few years but my friends and i could play better club bangers as well as classics than the djs here. That is all. read more

i miss the old flavor of the cafe...remember, "never a cover" now we pay for crappy renovation. miss the old dj's too. i hope it gets better... read more

Lagging in the compliment piece and so quick to rag on....NEW POOL tables are awesome!!!! AND they even went through the trouble to help protect the rails when the dancers are dancing on the tables. Ok so yeah not dancing on the tables would be wonderful to all that go to really play pool, but hey we can all play in the sand box together. read more

I've had fun here plenty of times, they have good music playing most of the time. The drinks are pretty good and the bartenders are friendly. I don't go on any particular night, just random times when there's special events going on. The only thing I don't like are the people that go there, umm a nice hand on my shoulder to let me know you're trying to get by would be nice, instead of a huge shove or a body running by. Oh, or how about if we make eye contact and I'm trying to get by, you would be so kind of moving for me otherwise I'll be a jerk and push my way thru, and I certainly don't want my drink to spill. There was one night when I went with some people for a drag show and this huge lesbian with her skinny friend was wasted and started to shove her way to the front, one of my friends got in an arguement with her, and they started to push each other. This security guard came over and threatened to kick us all out even though we didn't start anything, we weren't drunk at all, she was clearly wasted, falling over, even her friend was telling the security guard that it was her friend that was causing all the trouble but the guard wouldn't listen. In the end though the lesbian was kicked out along with her friends and we were allowed to stay. After we were leaving the security guard gave us dirty looks, so I gave her dirty looks back, bitch please. Other than that, it's a good place to go dance and have fun with friends. read more

Since I moved to the Bay Area, I have looked always for a place where I can salsa dance, during the week. I heard about The Cafe. I started going to the Cafe 5 years ago, on Thursdays, religiously. From 9 pm to 10:30 pm, Salsa was played at the club. I do not know what have happened! Since few months ago, I noticed that The salsero group is disintegrating. In the club, the DJ rarely plays salsa and if it is played, it starts late; until 10 pm..... What have happened with salsa night's Thursdays from 9 to 10 pm.... Sad to see these nights go... read more

the remod , is great , awsom place to go , str8 or gay , fun had by all

Visiting from NJ, I stopped by on a Friday night with my boyfriend and we had an amazing time. We were trying to find the largest gay dance club in the city, and we finally settled on The Cafe, and we're glad that we did (it seems like SF doesn't have many large dance clubs, the The Cafe was big enough). The cover was $5, although the bouncer seemed legitimately confused by our NJ driver's licenses, it was almost as if he had never seen an out-of-state ID before, but he ultimately relented. The club filled up pretty quickly and was packed by 11:30, mostly with a younger crowd, which we prefer. The drinks were reasonably priced ($5 for beers and $7 for our mixed drinks, not $9 to $12 like some other reviewer stated). There were three separate bars, and the lines for drinks were never excessively long. All of the employees that we interacted with were very friendly, and the overall crowd in the club seemed fun and everyone had lots of energy. I'm not sure why they are still using video DJ's, considering it's 2018 and nobody cares about that anymore, but apparently this is still a very popular thing in San Francisco. Regardless, the DJ was actually pretty damn good and kept the crowd moving all night until the very end. My only complaint is that the entire venue is cash only, and considering that it is 2018, this is unacceptable. Ordinarily, I would never give a 5 star review to a venue that only accepts cash, but we had such an amazing time (and there is an ATM inside the club) that I'm willing to give them a pass on this. I would definitely come back again next time I visit San Francisco. read more