It is close to home. They always have strong drunks. Weeknights for pool it is fun.

Hidden little dive bar that seems to have a whole lot of regulars, so if you're new expect to be ignored for a little bit. Once you're in and have sat for a little bit the bartenders seem to warm up, but will def put you on the back burner for their money makers. read more

After a few visits, I like The Canary Roost. Weekend nights are tough to try and get a jab at some karaoke singing. The waiting list tends to be extensive, so pay attention, because the dj will pass you along quickly if s/he doesn't see you coming. Weekend nights are a bit less crowded. You can definitely get more songs in. The vibe is fantastic here and the clientele is incredibly interesting. My only beef are the drink prices. They never appear to have good specials (or maybe I haven't had the pleasure to be around during happy hours). So be prepared to spend some money if you need to get buzzed before singing your heart out in front of strangers. :) You can get pitchers of Shiner, which are cheaper. If you like karaoke, it's at least worth checking it out. read more

Great place to have a good time with friends. We usually go out on weeknights, so I can't really speak to weekend crowds. However, if I arrive at 10 and stay til about 1am, I've always been able to sing twice, if not 3 times. I've been back several times since my first review, and my tab has been much more reasonable since I started ordering their specials. Just tons of fun here! I will say this, for all people trying out new karaoke places. The people who go here usually sing pretty darn well, but there is no need to be intimidated. The crowd really gets behind all singers. So get up there and show us what you've got! read more

Very utterly disappointed. Love the atmosphere & the karaoke, but the one bartender with the blonde hair & nose ring? We waited 30 minutes to be closed out & she completely ignored us to help others that cut & waited shorter than 5 minutes. Only way I could get her attention to actually know that we wanted to close our tab was to snap, since she continued ignoring me saying "ma'am, ma'am". Once I snapped, she snapped & told me she had other things to worry about first before helping me. Then continued to talk ugly about my boyfriend & I afterwards to her other coworker while still continuing to make other people drinks. Disappointed that I had to be rude to get actual service. Will not be coming back, leaving this place in 2019. Hope that bartender gets a better attitude in 2020. read more

So glad they finally banned smoking here. Nice neighborhood place with good karaoke. It gets pretty crowded on the weekends but you can always count on good times. The staff is really nice. I have been going here for about 6 years and have always had a good time. I suppose I do like the fact that it is close to home because the drinks are always strong. I stopped in on Sunday and played Guitar Hero and had a blast. read more

The Canary Roost - Karaoke Near Me - Austin, Texas

If you go in knowing this is a dive bar, this place is actually a lot of fun. There was pool and karaoke and the drinks are very cheap!! Also, a great place to people watch. read more

I used to love going here on Saturday nights but then for some reason Diamond Karaoke moved my favorite KJ, Brandon. The new girl just doesn't get the crowd going like he did...and her song choices are questionable. Brandon is a great KJ with awesome song choices and good charisma, and he even helped the bartenders by clearing empty glasses and pitchers from tables. Probably going to go to the Hut next time. If it's not broken, don't fix it. read more

Bartender was so rude it was unexpected and unnecessary Sasha needs to learn how to handle her emotions cause all she is needed for is to serve drinks with a smile but instead spits attitude and shows her aggressive attitude by slamming her hand on the bar dramatically and I usually come there with abt 20 ppl often and the other bartenders are very nice we decided to go somewhere else tonight still can't believe her unnecessary attitude!!!!! read more

My boyfriend and I ordered a screwdriver and it tasted absolutely disgusting. The atmosphere is OKAY but I would have been nervous going up on stage. I'm not coming back to this place again. I ended up going to the common interest down the road and the drinks and environment were great, we had a blast! The roost is a dive bar and the drinks are disgusting, that's an odd combination. read more

I don't like to give bad reviews- but I must say that the bartender Janet consistently gives horrible service with an attitude. The regulars are kind and fun to be around, but many guests no longer return because she gives terrible service. If it wasn't for the Karaoke, this would be a very sad bar indeed. I was on a league team and came once a week for a while- always fun people and karaoke hosts- but never good service. read more

I used to come here weekly a couple years ago, but it seems the atmosphere has changed drastically. The last couple times I visited the KJs were terrible (speeding up songs from non-regulars, pushing their friends on busy nights, and not knowing how to solve simple issues with the karaoke tech), although I enjoyed the Thursday night KJ quite a bit. The reason I'm giving a one star review is for the bartenders. I've never met a colder group of people in a customer service position in my life. Aggressively rude and sluggishly lazy; it took ten minutes of staring at them to get a single drink. When I finally did, I was given attitude and had my ID checked twice by the same person. I could understand if it was a busy night, but there were maybe twenty-five people in the bar. I would have spent 4x as much there if they had just helped me immediately instead of finishing up their conversations with other patrons. I constantly hear them complain about not getting tipped and wonder how they don't see the correlation between being awful to customers and not being rewarded for it. Dreadful. Also, drinks are about $2 too expensive for how divey this place is. read more

The bartender jenna, is the worse bartender I've ever seen. If you like a bar where a grandma on menopause trareats you and your friends like dirt, you've found the right place. read more

The Canary Roost could, and should, be a nice, welcoming neighborhood bar... but, it's not. Here's why.... The manager ~ Janet ~ is totally incapable of understanding the fundamentals of customer service. She, singlehandedly, creates an atmosphere of animosity that affects the entire personality of the bar. She's rude and unprofessional in her dealings with patrons and staff. Any decent, self-respecting bartender who might desire to work there soon departs ~ because of her bad attitude and lack of decorum. She has no idea how to deal with customers... and should NOT be in the customer service business. I will never step foot into the Roost again. Ever. Do not spend a dime in this bar. The owner should know better than to have her in charge of this establishment. read more

If I could give this place 0 stars , I would. This place and especially the bartender, Janet are awful. Worst bar in North austin.

This place here is a den of iniquity. It's a slice of Sodom and Gomorrah. You will see some real sketches down at this place and at times you may feel as if you are in a David Lynch film. You can go to a place like this if you want to see what things would be like had the Nazis won the war. As I am reading through various posts regarding the Roost, I see it is clear that there is one reoccurring theme. Janet and her bartenders are bitches. Janet is definitely the "iron cunt" in this bar. Maybe they think they suffer from some greater plight in life because they tend bar in the 78758 zip code, possibly ...but get over it. Janet had a personal problem with me ever since I first stepped foot in there back in 2007. Why did she have an issue? Who knows, clearly the woman has more issues than North Korea. I suppose I fail to conform to her idea of an ideal man. To make a long story short, this lady took note of my name, I can imagine from seeing my ID or debit card or something, and then went and did some online criminal background search. At the time I was busy in court getting a falsely made charge dismissed. Nonetheless she went out of her way to tell patrons of the bar, specifically females, about her findings. There will be a warm spot in hell for her to sit and braid Hitler's pubic hair. Rest assured! Anyhow, Janet, look up the Williamson County records now, toots, call the Travis county clerks office. Go ahead and see if that "charge" is still there. Oh and by the way, there is a distinction between a charge and a conviction. Anyhow, it's all been expunged, but as Levar Burton said, "You don't have to take my word for it!", you can go look it up and spread the word. Just for the record, I looked you up too honey. Criminal record, marriage record... Ha, no wonder you are miserable... Beyond the bitch bartenders that publicly lambast and denigrate patrons from whom they do not see eye to eye with, it is a nice place if you like dive bars and you do not mind living a self-destructive lifestyle. In the words of Obi-Wan, "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy"... read more

Worst bar in Austin Texas. They served me one beer then called the police on me and tried to have me arrested because the bar tender hit on me and I was like gross. read more

Good people, very diverse customer base. As with many places, you get what you give. If you are fun, open and enjoy people & conversation, this is your place. If prefer quiet, 'leave me alone', probably not your spot. Karaoke every night, some very talented folks and quite a few regulars. read more

This place is a good time. Friendly bartenders, and a social crowd with folks you can chat up without a lot of attitude. Most folks are there to sing, sing along, and have a good time. Can only give a 1 star rating though because not all KJ's are equal. Wednesday and Friday night are the worst. If you can go any other night than those two I can recommend. read more

I'd be lying if I said that I particularly enjoy watching/listening to random fools belt out their favorite tunes, thinking that they're "American Idol" worthy. Sometimes though, it's more fun than annoying, and I can stomach it. I took a quick glance through the book of song selections and it has probably every song ever written by anyone. Seriously. It's huge. The only thing that tripped me out was the dude who sang "Date Rape". Nice song choice, buddy. read more

Well, I'm not a huge fan of this place. Every time I've gone in, I've felt like there was a really Clickish environment. The bartenders are stiff, boring, don't seem to care about whether you want something to drink or not, (I clocked a 23 minute wait before I finally just left, and I got the bartender's attention twice in that 23 minutes, she just didn't care). It's not clear what the process for signing up to sing is, I've tried to go in on 3 or 4 separate occasions, and I much prefer doing my karaoke in other places. read more

I'm not a huge karaoke bar fan, but if I have to go to a karaoke bar I would choose the roost. Always a good time if you're in the mood for karaoke. I had a few bad experiences and like the canary hut better. Overall not a bad choice if you're on that part of town. read more

Favorite bar in the world! Really love all of the bartenders. Mayra is easily the best and she's so funny! Karaoke is always a blast and all of the hosts are great. Really impressive sound for karaoke. Fair prices and fun place to make new friends. read more

Great place to do Karoake...a lot of college kids here but that's okay. A nice neighborhood Karaoke venue. Drinks reasonably priced. Great music selection. A little small but it should be because it is a neighborhood venue. read more

I am a watcher. I love to watch people sing but you will never catch me on stage. The Roost has an interesting cast of characters and you are guaranteed great people watching! It is on the small side, so weekends can get crowded. I was still able to find a table, albeit it was basically on stage. It is loud, so don't expect to have any meaningful conversations, but then again that is what makes it kind of nice. My only complaint is...the bitchy bartender! She is blond and will ignore you like it is her job. Also, I'm pretty sure she ripped me off on a beer. The draft was $4 and the bottle was also $4? In addition, she didn't clarify what I wanted, just grabbed the bottle, threw it down and demanded my cash money. I will go back but I will be more specific about my beverage needs. read more

Cool place. karaoke happens quite a bit. great service and drink specials. pool tables are good. people smoke out back. the bathroom could use a facelift. read more

This is my absolute favorite dive bar for Karaoke, because you can usually get to sing within 20 minutes of putting your name in. If you want to sing one time and wait for 3 hours, Ego's is the place for you, but if you want to be able to throw down some serious tunes, this is your spot! Their sound system is pretty good as well, unlike The Common Interest. Even better, you can have pizza delivered right to your table from Rockin' Tomato. Drinks are cheap, but strong! read more

Great karaoke selection. Cleaner than most dive bars. Drinks are weak but priced okay. The staff is really not very friendly, which is why I can't give the place five stars. I've been coming here a few times s year for about five years, and my experience has been consistently fun. read more

This place is awesome. Janet, the bar manager is great. Love karaoke and I go there during football season for the UT games. Great beer prices! You can have a night out and not spend a fortune. read more

It's a dive bar with totally kick ass karaoke.

Brian (owner of diamond karaoke) admitted as much as the rotation plan they use makes them money so it is what it is. I prefer to frequent karaoke bars that don't push the late comers in front. To each their own. Common Interest! read more

The guy that runs the karaoke on the weekends is really nice and means well, but the bartenders SUCK. They are rude, just stare at you with this blank look when you ask for a drink and then act like it is such a burden. Hey, you, 1 bartender on a saturday night... it is your JOB. The lack of service and just basic interest in customers trying to order drinks has turned us completely off of this place. Remember ladies (i.e. 2 female bartenders that we have had the misfortune of dealing with) the more your customers drink the MORE they are likely to tip you big! Drunk people always tip better then irritated sober ones. Just a hint. We've tried multiple times in hopes that maybe the bar staff would be different... and well... ya no such luck. ONLY good things: the KJ, Gary (AMAZING man who sounds JUST like Tina Turner-- LOVE him)... and well... the writing on the bathroom stalls is very entertaining :) Love dive bars and especially karaoke bars but until they hire some bartenders with personality and some people skills, we will be going elsewhere... even if that means missing Gary's killer rendition of Proud Mary that we have been dying for him to do... read more

My fiancé and I tried to get in to the Canary Roost last night. I went in and a few moments later, a man came in to tell me to go back outside, my fiancé wasn't allowed in. I thought this was a weird joke. But no, he was denied entry for being "too drunk" (we hadn't even been drinking yet)! Turns out his big flipper feet tripped over a curb in the parking lot, thus he was determined to be too drunk to enter this dive, where more than half the people are sloshing around inside. We have been here many times before and always had a great time, but this was the most bizarre and offensive thing to happen. We will not be back, thanks Mr. Doorman with a god complex. read more

I come in to get out of traffic and it took the bartender 10 mins to acknowledge me. There was only 5 customers and she wasn't busy at all. Then when she asked for my id, as I was pulling it out, she walks away and starts playing some golf video game. I will never come back here. Horrible service! read more

Brown haired bartender will ignore you at the bar. Same thing, every time I'm there. I've waited tables, so I appreciate being really busy, but there's a difference between that and just being a bitch. read more

I came in for day drinks with a friend. There were two bartenders working. A new young girl, and a busty woman I see frequently with long dark hair who always wears a spagetti strap shirt and flower tattoo on her sholder. The woman with long dark hair was coaching the new woman. On the first round I had ordered a well vodka redbull for myself and a bloody mary for my friend. The new bartender made my vodka redbull just fine, and then made my friend's bloody mary spicy with sriracha sauce instead of tobasco. My friend said it didn't taste good but didn't want to be rude so she drank it anyway. I then ordered another vodka redbull, expecting it to be a well vodka again. The new bartender was told by the regular bar tender to use the cherry vodka in the cooler. That vodka was Three Olives. Also known as *not* a well vodka. Also known as not what I asked for. She made it, and then I saw her trying to pick something out of the drink. She was using a straw to fish out something floating in the drink. They saw me looking at them, and then they threw the drink away. I asked what was in it and she said there was a dead fly in that drink. So basically they were trying to pick out the fly and still give me the drink. They gave me the drink and my friend and I closed our tabs. My tab with TWO vodka redbulls was $25! I told the regular bar tender that my tab was wrong and she said "no you had two vodka redbulls and thats what i charged you.." She then printed out an itemized list of my tab and instead of having two mixed drinks it said I had 4 shots of Three Olive and 2 cans of Redbull. I did not understand why they charged me for two cans of Redbull since the "redbull" was really whatever energy drink they had on tap/that little gun and NOT a canned redbull. I asked if thats how they always rang up thier mixed drinks and the regular bartender said to me a snooty voice "yes. this is how we have always done it, and its correct." So, basically I paid around $13 for each drink. I wonder how much a long island iced tea is?!? All those shots must really add up. Since they charge by SHOT and not by DRINK. I love JANET and will only come when she, or one of the other bar tenders are working. If I see that lady with the long hair and the spagetti strap shirt working...I am walking out. read more

Feels like an oven ,small ,and God forbid you have good time they kick you out In general if you want to enjoy your night this is not the bar to go to !!!!!!! read more

I only come here because I'm a huge fan of local, funky, fun, oddball dive bars and the only reason they don't get 5 stars is they don't serve food. Fortunately, they don't give a rats ass about food because there's a pizza joint next door. The bartenders are cool unless you're an idiot who thinks money entitlement exists. The karaoke is good to great, unless a big guy named Ryan gets on and, then it's mind bending. Please don't come here unless you're chill, love to laugh, educated beyond grade school, and are ok with just having a good time with no frills, and want to escape reality in a permanent midnight. read more

The thing about reviewing this place is, I probably picked the worst night in the world to form a first impression. A friend was visiting Austin and wanted to do karaoke, but most of the best-known places were (a) not that great, (b) packed to the rafters or (c) both, so we found out about the Canary Roost. It's way on the other side of town, tucked away in a tiny strip mall in a mostly residential neighborhood, and worst of all, we went on SUPER BOWL SUNDAY, so attendance was not spectacular for karaoke, outside of us (and naturally, we tore it up) and a handful of really sincere dudes singing Creed songs. The Super Bowl spread was...well, I'm not touching that thing, but there were free Doritos. The drinks were a bit slight, but they were cheap as hell so you could have a billion of them, which I did. It's just a divey little joint with karaoke, is what it is, but it still beat actually watching football. read more