Bay Area Dance Venues

A listing of Bay Area venues conducive to West Coast Swing, Blues, Bachata, Stepping, and/or Kizomba dancing.

For snack, meal, and beverage assortments perfect for dance conventions, please visit Nutriate.

Last updated 2024/01/08. (2019 updated / added: 11/18 Starlight; 10/22 Comstock Saloon, Lungomare; 10/7 Musicians section; 10/4 Il Pirata, Allegro; 9/21 The Local, Habanas, Pagan Idol, Jupiter, Salesforce Transit Center, The Back Room; 7/19 Sheba, Les Joulins Jazz Bistro; 5/15 Five + Dime; 4/17 The Lost Church, Elbo Room SF, F8, Vino Godfather Winery; 4/8 Cresta’s, Murphy’s Law; 4/1 Impulse Room; 3/2 Amnesia, Blue Note Napa; 2/15 Balancoire, Cafe Claude, Rum & Sugar.)

Redwood City Music in the Park; The Starry Plough, Berkeley – sloping floor; .

Night Clubs and Restaurants

Clubbing Tips

Wear earplugs with sufficient noise reduction rating (NRR).  NRR of 30 – 33 dB for foam earplugs, 25 – 31 for no-roll foam, and 25 – 28 for industrial reusable, stemmed earplugs.

Hard-soled shoes – or dance sneakers with the nap buffed out.

East Bay

Alameda

Cafe Jolie, 1500 Webster St, Alameda.  Live jazz duo Friday & Saturday, 6:30 – 8:30pm, $0.  Adequate dance space though with some foot traffic; reasonable floor surface.  Public metered parking lot behind restaurant on Santa Clara Ave.  Generously sized desserts.

Capone’s Speakeasy, Park Street, Alameda. Closed January 2016.

C’era Una Volta, 1332 Park St at Redwood Square, Alameda.  Terracotta tile floor.  Good Northern Italian menu.  Fall 2016 music appears to be limited to monthly flamenco show.

Churchward Pub, Park Street, Alameda. DJ Wednesday – Saturday.

Cinema Grill (Alameda Theatre & Cineplex Cinema Grill), 2301 Central Ave, Alameda.  Friday and Saturday, 6:30 – 9:15pm, live music, $0.  Free evening parking in parking garage next door.  Full dinner menu.  All ages.  Reasonable floor surface with enough space for two or three couples dancing very compactly.   As of March 2019: Wednesday nights karaoke, Thursday nights live salsa music.

Dragon Rouge, Alameda.  Smooth cement floor.  Fridays and Saturdays, DJ, cover varies ($5 or $10 before 11pm, $10 or $15 after 11pm), 10pm – 2am.  Ear plugs.

The Fireside Lounge, Webster St, Alameda. Not particularly dancer friendly when we’ve dropped in.

Habanas Cuban Cuisine, 1518 Park Street, Alameda.  Live Cuban music Friday and Saturday nights, open until 2am, $0.  Ear plugs.  Dancing on the sidewalk and inside on tile (reasonable space) in the bar area.  Occasionally other dancers – including single women.  Safe street parking and nearby parking garage.  All ages?.  Food service.

Jim’s on the Course, 1 Clubhouse Rd, Alameda (Bay Farm).  Bob Enos and Soundwave 18-piece big band, Wednesday, 8 – 10pm, $0.

The Local, 1333 Park Street, Alameda.  Live music Sundays 3 – 5pm and often on Friday and/or Saturday nights, 6:30 – 8:30pm, $0.  Good wood floor but not a lot of dance space.  All ages.  Food service.  Safe street parking and nearby parking garage.

Rhythmix Cultural Works, 2513 Blanding, Alameda.  Great wood floor on upstairs venue – but dance parties are infrequent.

Rooster’s Roadhouse, 1700 Clement Ave.  Closed January 2016.

Speisekammer, 2424 Lincoln Ave, Alameda.  Live retro swing and rockabilly bands, Friday and Saturday, 8:30 – 11:30pm, $0.  Small painted cement floor between band and dining tables.  All ages.  Full dinner menu.  Street parking or in CVS lot across Lincoln.  Safe neighborhood.  Nice staff but somewhat clueless hipsters at the bar.

Temple Israel, 3183 Mecartney Rd, Alameda.  Last Monday of the month, Dave Altschuler’s Swingtime Big Band, 8 – 10pm, $5.  Back end of Bay Farm Island shopping center; large parking lot.  Linoleum floor in a large rec room (with enough space to foxtrot and waltz).

Wine and Waffles, Park Street, Alameda.  Occasionally live music.  Wood floor, limited space next to bar.  Friendly staff, nice dinner menu.  21+.

Oakland – Berkeley – Emeryville

44 Restaurant & Bar, 3290 Adeline St, Berkeley.  Throwback Thursday DJ, 9pm – 12:30am.  Friday, DJ K-Style, R&B, Old School, 9pm – 12:30am.  (Summer 2016: looking for Blues bands for Wednesday nights.)

811 Parliament, 811 Washington St, Oakland.  Mostly DJs, Thursday – Saturday nights and occasional Sunday afternoons or evenings.

Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley, Tuesdays cajun/zydeco band, 8:30pm – ?, $12.  Live music most nights, range of genres, often preceded by a dance lesson, $12 – 20.  Great wood dance floor.  Street parking (and across street in the REI lot after hours if you don’t mind risking a parking ticket).  Food and drink menu.

The Back Room, 1984 Bonita Avenue, Berkeley.  Wednesdays – Sundays, $15 – 25.  All ages.  Wood floor but small space to side of seating in front of stage.  Street parking and UC lot.  BYOB.

The Beat, 2560 9th St, Suite 119, Berkeley.  Rodchata bachata party 2nd Saturdays; milonga 3rd Saturdays.

Bissap Baobab Oakland, 381 15th St, Oakland.  Closed Sundays.  Dance parties and/or live music some Fridays and Saturdays.  Senegalese restaurant before 10pm.  Painted terracotta tile in the stage area; nice hardwood floor in the high-ceilinged rectangular space populated with tables during meal service.  Ear plugs.  Street parking in a don’t-walk-alone-after-dark area.

Chalaca Annexo, 428 3rd St, Oakland (used to be Club Anton).  Latin jazz bands most Friday and Saturday nights, 7 – 10pm, $0; sometimes followed by DJd Latin dance party (with cover?).  Associated with Peruvian restaurant La Furia Chalaca, 310 Broadway, Oakland.

Eli’s Mile High Club, Oakland.  Live blues jam every Monday, 7 – ?pm, $5.

Five + Dime, 2284 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley; used to be Down Low.  Tropical and Salsa DJs every Wednesday, 9pm – ?, $?.

Jupiter, 2181 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley.  Live music (mostly jazz), Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, 8 – 11pm, DJ Thursday 8 – 11pm, $0?  Dancing on the brick patio.  Limited street parking; parking garages.  Bar and restaurant.

La Peña Cultural Center (and adjacent restaurant), 3105 Shattuck, Berkeley.  DJd Blues Dancing, Wednesday nights, 7 – 11pm, $6 – 16.  Last Mondays, live Salsa band, 9 – 11pm, $0.  Tuesday nights Kizomba, 7 – 10pm, $10 – 15.

Lake Chalet, Oakland.  Live music, summer months, 3 – 6pm, Tue, Sat, Sun.

The Layover, 1517 Franklin St, Oakland, music We – Sa.

Legionnaire Saloon, 2272 Telegraph, Oakland, DJd Motown on Mondays, 9pm – 1:30am, $0; funk and soul jam, 10pm – 1:30am, $0.    Street parking in a gritty neighborhood – don’t blindly follow the GPS off the freeway; it’s better to take the long route on to Telegraph.  Ear plugs.  Good wood floor (upstairs).  Fairly clean, gender neutral restrooms – but no seat covers.

Level 13 (used to be Shadow Ultra Lounge), 341 13th St, Oakland.  Painted wood floor – wear hard soled shoes.  Ear plugs.  21+.  Damone’s last Saturday Steppers set, 3 – 7pm / 2nd Friday, 6 – 10pm, $10; stepper sharp attire.  Alisha and other DJs Wed evenings @ Level 13, Oakland; $10.

Lounge 3411, 3411 MacArthur b/t Midvale Ave and 35th Ave, Oakland

Luka’s, Oakland.  Thursdays – Tumbao (Cuban salsa) party, DJ, 10pm – ?, $5; Friday and Saturdays, DJ, urban, 10pm – ?, ladies free before 12am, $5 before 11pm, $10 after; Sundays, DJ, urban, 9pm – ?, $0.

Lungomare, Jack London Square, Oakland.  Change of management October 2019; music on hiatus.  Underground parking in garage; get ticket validated at Lungomare.

The Marsh Berkeley Arts Center, 2120 Allston Way, Berkeley.  Live jazz, Wednesdays, 7 – 10pm.  Rooftop bachata party, 6 – 10pm, occasional.

Monaghan’s on the Hill, 2820 Mountain Blvd, Oakland.  Steppin’ DJ Terry Hobson 1st Fridays, 7 – 11pm, $0 – ?.  Street parking on the edge of a quiet residential neighborhood.  Full service restaurant and bar; outdoor patio adjacent to the dance room; fast wood floor; bring ear plugs.  Typical Steppin’: mature crowd, well dressed, reasonable floor craft, and smooth contemporary and old school R&B and soul.

Elbo Room (nee The Night Light), 311 Broadway, Oakland.  Bar area downstairs and “intimate venue” upstairs.  Bar has reasonable fast polished cement floor.  Movable chairs and tables – but other patrons may move into dance area.  Ear plugs.  Wait staff are efficient and reasonably courteous.  Provided water in large glasses when asked (no bottled water).  A little smoke drifting in from folks smoking outside.  Street parking – but sometimes have to walk a couple of blocks.

Lake Merrit Dance Center, Oakland.  The Breakaway! – lessons and (Lindy) swing dance Tuesdays with occasional live music, 8:30 – 11pm, $8; wood sprung floor.

Oaktown Jazz Workshops, 55 Washington St, Jack London Square, Oakland.  Smooth cement floor, stage, and great jazz bands.

Ol’ Yeller Cafe, 2708 98th Ave, Oakland; 848-9492; every other Friday 7 – 10pm.  (Haven’t tried yet.)

Omni Commons, 4799 Shattuck Ave, Oakland.  East Bay Fusion on Tuesdays, 7 – 8pm lessons, 9pm – 12am dancing, DJ, $10 – 15.  Street parking.  Main upstairs ballroom has nice wood floor and high ceiling with skylights.

Overland Country Bar & Restaurant, 101 Broadway @ Jack London Square, Oakland; 510-419-0594.  Closed.

Q Lounge, 2nd St, Oakland (part of Everett & Jones BBQ on Broadway).  Low pile carpet and uneven cement.  Live music with house band, 8 – 11pm, no cover.  Saturday Blues, 9pm – 1am, no cover.

Plank, Jack London Square, 98 Broadway, Oakland; $0, 6 – 9pm, ? (was Wednesday and Friday), live band.  Outdoors on the back patio – lots of space but cement floor.  Parking in underground garage.

Rosenblum Cellars, 10 Clay St, Oakland.  Live, very danceable music, 5:30 – 8:30pm most Friday nights.  No cover.  Fast floor.  Friendly staff.  21 and over.

SomaR Bar, 1727 Telegraph, Oakland.  DJ, 9pm – 2am?, $0.  Wood floor though a bit sticky, moderately sized – larger with the furniture rearranged.  21 and over.  Okay neighborhood with street parking depending on crowds at nearby Fox Theater and neighboring restaurants.  Tuesday night funk, soul, and R&B was a lot of fun; but bring a partner.  Sunday night the music is R&B, rap, and reggae.  $1 mango juice and seltzer in a nice plastic whiskey glass (tipped the bartender $1 per drink); free water nicely flavored with apple or some other fruit.  Frequently do happy hours fundraisers for groups like Planned Parenthood.

Starline Social Club, 2236 MLK Jr Way / 645 W Grand Ave, Oakland.  Upstairs: . Downstairs: bar and restaurant, live jazz Tuesdays, 8 – 11?pm, $0; okay floor, crowded after 9:30pm.  Free parking (lot entrance off of MLK Jr Way) but fills after 8pm; street parking on W Grand Ave (but not unescorted).

Studio 1924, Oakland – Son.

Terrace Room, Oakland.  Live bands (mostly jazzy swing) Thursdays and Fridays, 7 – 10pm, $0.  Wood floor sometimes with sticky spots.  Tasty desserts, okay coffee, good entrees.  [Closed for private parties December 2017.]

Yoshi’s, 510 Embarcadero West, Oakland.  Live bands nightly but they rarely open up the floor for dancing and when I’ve asked about dancing in the past (in the aisles or between the tables) I got a cold response from the management.  All ages; adjacent Japanese restaurant.  Tickets are fairly pricey – especially on the weekends when the two seatings means less than two hours of music per ticket.

Further Out

8 Bridges Brewing Inc, 332 Earhart Way, Livermore.

The Baltic, Point Richmond. Closed mid-2016.

Impulse Room, 1501 North Broadway #138, Walnut Creek.  Wednesday – Saturday, doors open 5pm, live jazz 8 – 9:30pm, close 11pm, $18 (includes buffet 5:30 – 7:30pm).  Dress code.

Ivy Room, 860 San Pablo Ave (@ Solano), Albany.  Tuesday Funk Jam, Wednesday Booty Bump (DJ), 9pm – ?, $0.

Main Street Brewery, 830 Main St, Pleasanton.  Friday nights, live bands, 9pm – midnight, no cover.  Good floor space; fake? wood but reasonably smooth.  Large parking lot out back.  Somewhat older crowd.  Big bar area with attached restaurant.  Only two bathrooms (each with a toilet and sink) so lines develop.

The Mojo Lounge, 3714 Peralta Blvd, Fremont; Tuesday night blues, 8pm – 12am, free.  Private parking lot.  Reasonable floor; plenty of space in front of the stage for dancing.

Nica Lounge, 1907 Salvio St, Concord; Clave Sunday, Latin dance band, 6pm – 1am (band 7:30pm), $10 b4 7:30 / $15 after; .6 mi from Concord Bart, last train 12:09am.

The Saddle Rack, 42011 Boscell Road, Fremont.  Live and DJ CW; Wed – Sat, 7pm – 12am / 1:30am; $3 – 20.  (Wednesdays WCS lesson beforehand.)

ShBoom Nightclub, 2410 San Ramon Valley Blvd, Suite 130, San Ramon.  Wed Salsa, Fri 80s and 90s, Sat dance mix.

The Vine at Bridges, 480 Hartz Ave, Danville.  Live music Wed – Sat.  Small, hard surfaced floor; intimate setting.

North Bay

Blue Note Napa, 1030 Main St, Napa, 707-880-2300.  Live music Tu – Sa nights and Sunday brunch.

Empress, Vallejo.

Fenix, 919 Fourth St, San Rafael, 415.813.5600. Live R&B and other types of bands. Music on weekends usually runs 8 – 11:30pm. Fenix Calendar. Also a restaurant. Band plays on a raised stage overlooking the main dance area; a row of four-person tables surrounds the other three sides of the dance area. Banquette seating lines the two long walls with two and four-person tables and chairs. The floor is three types of marble. No noticeable ridges but the surface is on the slow side – wear hard-soled shoes. Earplugs recommended.  Management is often a pain about cover and table minimums.

Flamingo Resort, Santa Rosa. Friday and Saturday nights, 9:30pm – 1:30am; $10 – 15 ($10 adv / $12 at door).

N’Demand (??), Suisun City.

Ovation Ultra Lounge? (was Dimitri’s Lounge), 700 Main St, Suisun City.  As Dimitri’s Lounge: big stage, good sized dance floor, comfortable lounge seating, great live music acts.  Easy public parking.

Presidio Yacht Club, 600 Sommerville Rd, Sausalito.  Live music (such as the Doc Kraft Band) most Friday and some Saturday nights.  Reasonably sized parquet floor.  Plenty of safe parking.  Laid back older crowd.

Rancho Nicasio, On the Town Square, Nicasio.

Sausalito Cruising Club, 300 Napa St, Sausalito.  Located in an old WWII barge docked behind Dunphy Park.  Live music most Friday – Sunday nights and a blues jam on Monday nights, 6 – 9pm, $10 non-members.  RSVP to philip.gallo@sbcglobal.net.

Sausalito Seahorse, Sausalito.  Live music most nights (Edgardo Cambon on 4th Sundays, usually), $0 – $15.  Safe adjacent parking lot (though sometimes it gets full).  Full dinner menu (Italian) – so all ages though mostly an older crowd.  Good sized tile floor – but can get crowded for a good band.

Stephano’s, 2272 Sacramento St, Vallejo.  Full dinner menu (soul food).  4th Sundays for Chicago Style Stepping – DJ’d soul and R&B.

Vino Godfather Winery, Vallejo (Mare Island).  Occasional live music.

West Bay

San Francisco

Alba Ray’s, 2293 Mission St @ 19th St, SF.  Short walk from 16th St Mission Bart.  Great funk band in the bar area for Fat Tuesday, 2017.  Reasonably fast ceramic tile (?) floor but had to work around folks coming in and out of the restaurant and bar.  Music for dancing doesn’t appear to be a regularly scheduled feature.  Cajun menu.

Amnesia, 853 Valencia St (between 19th & 20th), SF.  Bluegrass Monday, Jazz Wednesday, Forro 2nd Friday?, swing / jazz most Sunday nights.

Balançoire, [CLOSED 3Q17; reopened 2018 as Mission Street Sports Bar SF] 2565 Mission (between 21st and 22nd), SF.

Bar Fluxus, 18 Harlan Place, SF.  Latin Vibe Tuesdays, VibraSON, 9pm – 2am, $10 ($0 if come early).  Park at Sutter-Stockton Garage (one block away) or walk .3 miles from Montgomery St Bart.  Nice fast floor with space for at least a dozen couples; band plays on a raised stage.   Salsa dancers on Tuesday nights but VibraSON plays only salsa music (though on the plus side they play well and have some original compositions).

Biscuits and Blues, 401 Mason Street, SF.  Live music Wednesday through Sunday, two seatings at 7 or 7:30pm and at 9 or 9:30pm; at least $20 cover.  Park at Union Square Garage or walk up from Powell St Bart.  Downstairs venue with a stage for the band facing two tiers of small table seating.  Strip of dance space between the front row of tables and the stage.  Wear hard-soled shoes and earplugs.

Bissap Baobab Village, 3372 & 3386 19 Th St, SF.  Live music most Wed, Fri, and Sat evenings; also occasional Sun and Thu.

Bix, 56 Gold St, SF.  Live jazz nightly, Su – Th 7:30 – 10pm, F & Sa 8:30 – 11pm; $0.  Supper club.

Black Cat (downstairs), 400 Eddy St, SF.  Live jazz most evenings, 6:30 or 7pm – ?, $10 – 20 cover.  Full menu and table reservations available.

Blondies, 540 Valencia, 415-864-2419.  Kenya Baker every Tuesday and Sunday, 7:30 – 11:30pm, $0.  Close to 16th and Mission Bart.  Reasonable floor and space.  Hard soles and ear plugs.  DJ (80s and 90s?) on Fridays and Saturdays; Steve Lucky et al 2nd Thursdays.

Blush! Wine Bar, 476 Castro St (@18th), SF.  Various bands on Tuesdays and The Americano Social Club every Thursday; 7:30 – 10pm, $0?.  Dinner menu.

Boom Boom Room. 1601 Filmore, 415-673-8000. Every Tuesday: Funkktronic DJ, free, 9:30pm – 1:30am+. 3rd Wednesdays: Soul Train Revival, $5, 9:30pm – late.  Good floor but pot smokers got to us.

Brenda’s Soul Food Restaurant, Polk St, SF.  Gaucho Jazz every Sunday 5 to 8pm.  Tiny bit of space to dance in front of the band.

Burritt Room, 417 Stockton Street, SF (across from Sutter Stockton parking garage).  (Pali Hotel now; renamed Lobby Lounge and Bar.)

Butter, 354 11th St @ Harrison, SF.  DJ Th – Sa nights, 6pm – 2am, $0.

Cafe Claude, 7 Claude Lane, SF.  Live music Th – Sa nights, 7 – 10pm, $0.  Close to Sutter Stockton parking garage.  Decent sized space in front of raised dais for dancing but the wood floor is covered by a large Oriental carpet; dancing is possible between the bar and a row of tables on an uncovered wood floor aisle perpendicular to the carpeted area.  Nice though somewhat pricey dinner menu (with service until 10pm).

Cafe du Nord and Swedish American Hall, 2174 Market Street, SF.  As of mid-2017, Cafe du Nord switched back to a live music venue several nights a week – but edgy pop (ex. “metal on molly”), rap, or folk rather than retro swing.  Both Cafe du Nord (downstairs) and Swedish American Hall (upstairs) bookings are done by Noise Pop.

Cafe du Soleil, 200 Fillmore St (@ Waller), SF.  Occasional bands (Americano Social Club 1st and 3rd Wednesdays), 6:30 – 9:30pm, $0?.  Cafe fare; known for their croissants.  Street parking.

Cat’s Corner at Ukrainian American Hall, 345 7th St, SF.  Wednesdays, live Lindy music, 9:30pm – 12:30am, $10 ($5 before 9pm / after 11pm).

Club Deluxe, 1511 Haight Street, SF.  Crowded but fun.  Cosmo Alleycats, 2nd Wed, 6 – 9pm, $0; 3rd Fri, 9:30pm – 12:30am, $5.

Comstock Saloon, 155 Columbus Ave, SF.  Live music nightly (usually), 8 – 11pm, $0?  Full dinner menu.  Pretty small area for dancing.  Band wrapped up by 9pm.

Cresta’s 2211 Club, 2211 Polk St, SF.
DecoDance SF, Polk, SF.  Gauch Jazz every Thursday.

Double Dutch, 3192 16th St, SF; 16th St Mission Bart station. DJ Tu – Th 9pm – 2am, Fr – Su 7pm – 2am; $0 ($5 sometimes?).  Fast cement floor (other than the occasional drink spill), two unisex bathrooms with a long line and wet floor on a Saturday; pretty packed around the DJ booth at the back at 10:30pm Saturday but crowd (20 somethings, mixed ethnicities, gender balance, mostly straight) and door security were reasonably polite; ear plugs.

El Rio, Mission at Cesar Chavez, SF.  Lovely outdoor patio with a great band (Candela on the Salsa Sunday – 2nd and 4th Sundays – we attended) and a resident feline but two major minuses: patchy cement dance floor and the occasional cigarette smoker – the worst smoker was the lame sound guy (not part of the band) who was tossing his butts down on to the dance floor instead of into one of the many ashtrays.  What a butt-head.  Drinks were easy to get but the non-alcoholic drinks were limited.  One toilet and one urinal made for some occasional waiting.  Street parking on a Sunday afternoon was pretty easy.  Bart (24th and Mission) is an easy option – but since we couldn’t find parking at West Oakland we drove into the City.

Elbo Room, SF – closed 2019.

F8, 1192 Folsom St, SF.  Mostly house and techno; not sure if there’s reasonable dance space.

Fish & Farm, 424 Clay St, SF.  Restaurant upstairs; Friday night DJ’d swing (and Balboa) in downstairs dance venue (with restaurant and drink service), 6 – 9pm, $0.  Wood floor.  A bit stuffy – especially after several fish dinners were served.  Easy walk from Embarcadero Bart.  …  2019/7/19 – no more dancing??

Gold Dust Lounge, Fisherman’s Wharf, 165 Jefferson Street, SF – carpet, gold-rush theme, live bands ??, 9am – 2am.

Hotel Utah, SF – Blues Jam every Sunday, 7:30 to 11:30pm.  Lots of musicians playing Blues but no space for dancing.

Hue SF, 447 Broadway, SF – formerly A3 Atmoshpere Lounge.  Club was remodeled and reopened late August 2015.  Sunday Latin dance restarted January 2016 and CLOSED by March 2017 .  Two rooms, laminate floor was a bit slow but staff was regularly dowsing with talc – dance wax would have been better.  Raised seating space (some reserved) around the floor.  Younger (but 21+) crowd so a bit of posturing and some making out on the dance floor. Mostly nice casual. Wear ear plugs. Reasonable restrooms.  Park in the Portsmouth Square Garage at 773 Kearney for $3 per hour (or fraction thereof), walk three blocks up Kearney, turn right on Broadway, and the club is part way down on the right.  I wouldn’t recommend the walk unescorted.

Il Pirata, 2007 16th St, SF @ Utah St.  Kizomba, Thu 9pm – 1am, $10 – 20.  Parking on 16th and Utah Street.  21+?.

The Knockout, 3223 Mission @ Valencia, SF.  Sweater Funk, Sun 10pm – 2am, $0 – fun though pretty empty until the fake smoke started pumping close to midnight.  Street parking.

Le Colonial, 20 Cosmo Place, SF.  2015 December – restarted live music Mo – Th 7 – 10pm, no cover; DJ on most Fr & Sa, 9:30pm+, $0??. Good wood floor; reasonably sized. Ear plugs. $7.50 for a wine bottle sized bottle of water. Sutter Stockton Garage, $1 / hr; Bay Bridge, Fremont, cross Market, L on Pine, L on Montgomery, cross Bush, R on Sutter, R on Stockton, R into garage, walk 3.5 blocks up Sutter and enter on left.  (For main entrance, from Sutter, L on Taylor, R on Cosmo Pl to 20 Cosmo Place.)

Les Joulins Jazz Bistro, 44 Ellis Street, San Francisco; 7:30pm – ?, $0??  Supper club.

Local Edition, 691 Market St, San Francisco; Monday night big band jazz (danceable if you don’t mind complex and often fast), 8 – 11pm, $0; Tuesdays Cosmo Alley Cats, 8pm – 12am, $0; most Wednesdays Steve Lucky et al, 8pm – 12am, $0.  Lew: for dinner go to the Oasis, across Third Street and a bit up the block.  PEG & CNP: floor okay with hard soles (especially if Bernie’s been sprinkling floor wax), plenty of space to dance on Mondays / crowded with hoppers on Tuesdays; ear plugs.  Can get (free) street parking a couple of blocks away on Mission.  Near Montgomery St BART station.

The Lost Church, 65 Capp St, San Francisco; live music but no space for dancing.

Madrone Art Bar, 500 Divisadero St (at Fell), San Francisco; Motown on Mondays (6pm – 2am; $3 after 9pm), Tuesday New Orleans style usually (10pm – 2am?; $5), Wednesdays world music – French rock, Forro, … (9:30pm – 2am; $0), Thursdays disco retro (9pm – 2am), Fridays dance party (9:30pm – close, $5), Saturdays Prince and Michael (9:30pm – close; $5), Sundays B-3 organ-led jazz (9:30pm – 12:30am; $0).

The Marker, 501 Geary St, San Francisco; Wednesday 5 – 10pm?, Mark on guitar.

Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, 39 Fell St (between Van Ness and Polk), San Francisco; live jazz every night, 7pm – 10pm Su – Th, 9pm – 12am F & Sa (food service 5pm – 1:30am).  Upscale atmosphere, plenty of space to dance between cocktail tables; clean, smooth floor (wood and polished cement?); fresh squeezed grapefruit juice; friendly waitstaff.  .3 miles from Civic Center Bart; SF Jazz.

Neck of the Woods, 406 Clement Street, SF.  Salsa (and bachata?) classes (and party?) on Monday nights.

Pagan Idol, 375 Bush Street, San Francisco.  Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursdays 8 – 11pm, $0?

Polish Club, 3040 22nd St @ Shotwell, San Francisco.  Shades of Blues on Monday nights; Mission City Swing (WCS) on Wednesday nights.  Nice wood floor, some street parking in a residential neighborhood, walking distance from 24th Street Mission Bart station.

Presidio Officers’ Club, San Francisco.  Special events.  Lovely, sprawling building with a large, adjacent parking lot.  Main auditorium has a nice wood floor, high ceilings, and a stage at one end and carpet and seating at the other.  The air circulation is a little lacking on balmy nights.  Complex includes a restaurant and a bar.  Restrooms and drinking fountains are a little hard to find.

Revolution Cafe, 3248 22nd St, F.  Bands almost every evening (though not all are necessarily danceable – Sundays are usually Balkan Evening), Su – Th 8:30 – 11:30pm, Fr – Sa 9pm – 12am, $0?.  Cafe menu.

Rickshaw Stop, 155 Fell St at Van Ness, San Francisco.  Good sized space with a stage at one end and the entrance, restrooms, and bar at the other end; and a balcony above… but a little dangerous when it gets packed as it did for the Love Trumps Hate party in late January.  Wood floor.  Street parking with good karma; if no street parking opt for a secure garage (but check the closing time) over the open lots.  (Look at the SF Jazz site for options.)  Bart’s an option if you bail at midnight.

Ritz Carlton – The Lounge, 600 Stockton Street, San Francisco.  Live music Tuesday – Sunday, 6 – 9pm, $0.  Low pile carpet, swanky, tasty roasted Brussels sprouts and house-made blackberry soda.

Roccapulco Nightclub, 3140 Mission St., San Francisco

The Royal Cuckoo, 3202 Mission, San Francisco.  Bands Wed – Sun, 7:30 – 10:30pm (including Lavay Smith and Chris Siebert on Sundays), no cover.  Very dim lighting and not much space to dance: it’s a long rectangular space with the entrance at one short end and the restrooms and the area occupied by the musicians is at the other end.  We tried dancing (on the low pile carpet) between the bar and the tables at the entrance but had to keep stepping aside for other patrons.  Reasonable street parking on a Sunday.

The Royale, 800 Post St (@ Leavenworth), SF.  Fr & Sa, live jazz, 9pm – 2am?, $0?; 4th Th DJ, vintage soul and funk party, 8pm – 2am, $0?.  Ceramic tile floor enough space for 3 to 4 couples, more if the tables are moved to the side (and if the pool table is not in use).  On a Saturday night with a DJ, we were the only couple dancing; at the bar and pool table, there were two dogs and less than two dozen people, apparently locals.  21 and over.  Walk up Post St 8 blocks (.7 mi) from Montgomery Bart or 4 blocks (.4 mi) from Union Square Garage (or .6 mi from Powell Bart but the neighborhood is iffier at night).  Street parking is possible but tough.

Rum & Sugar, 823 Geary St, SF.  Th & Fr, live jazz, 8 – 11pm, $0.  Wood floor, narrow strip between bar and long wall.  Nice drinks.

Salesforce Transit Center, 425 Mission Street, SF.  July – October live swing 4th Friday 5 – 7pm, live Latin music 2nd Fridays 6 – 8pm, live music Wednesdays 5 – 6pm, DJ Thursdays 5:30 – 7:30pm, live music Fridays 12 – 1pm, $0.

SF Jazz Center, 201 Franklin St, SF.  Live music most evenings, ~$20 – 50.  Nice wooden floor in the Miner Auditorium but not usually open for dancing (beyond entrance hallway).

Sheba Piano Lounge, 1419 Fillmore Street, SF.  Live music, 8pm – 1am Mo – Th, 9pm – 2am Fr & Sa, 8pm – 12am Su, $0.  Very limited wooden floor between dining tables (Ethiopian) and band.  Some street parking.

Slate Bar, 2925 16th @ S. Van Ness, SF.  Dance Karaoke Thursdays, DJ, 9:30pm – 1:30am, $0.  Street parking in neighborhood with good karma; 1/2 block from 16th Mission Bart – but last train east is at 12:19am.  Smooth cement floor, raised DJ booth, and 21 – 40-something mostly Caucasian crowd.

SOMArts Center, 934 Brannan Street, SF.  Project Tango Milonga @ Cellspace on Wednesday nights.

Space 550, 550 Barneveld, SF; Sundance Saloon CW Th & Su, Latin Fr.  Nice wood floors, plenty of street parking in a light industrial neighborhood.  Side and upstairs rooms open on Latin nights.

Lizzie’s Starlight, 450 Powell Street, SF.  (Pre-October 2019 was the Starlight Room.)  Live and DJ We & Th 5pm – close; DJ Fr 5pm / Sa 8pm – close.

Stookey’s Club Moderne, 895 Bush St @ Taylor, SF – 4 blocks from Sutter-Stockton parking garage; post-prohibition SF with ’30s and ’40s DJ’d music and cocktails; Tu – Su 4:30pm – 2am.  Per Lew Serbin 2015/03/26: club is very small and very clean.  Checked in on a Sunday June 2016 but it was dead.

Sundance Saloon, 550 Barneveld, SF; Th & Su, CW 2-Step with a bit of WCS, sponsored by LGBTQ community, DJ.  Nice wood floors, plenty of street parking in a light industrial neighborhood.

Swig, 561 Geary, SF; Mo Salsa 9pm – 1am, Tu ?, Su WCS / ECS / Blues 9:30pm – 1am.  Street parking is hard to find on rainy nights and local parking garages are expensive.  Reasonable wood floor.  Fireplace can make it a bit warm.

Tonga Room. Island Groove Band, We – Su, 950 Mason St; after band starts at 8:15pm $10 We, Th, & Su $15 Fr & Sa.

Top of the Mark – see ‘click for calendar of events’ link, 999 California Street, SF. Live bands Wed – Sat evenings.

Verdi Club, 2424 Mariposa Street, SF.  Lovely wood floor and high ceilings.  Bar out front.  As of March 2018, regularly scheduled (mostly fast) swing dance on Tuesdays.

Verso, 1525 Mission, SF, Fr & Sa nights.

Yerba Buena Social Club (Salsa and Bachata in SF) occasional dances at various SF locations including 550 Barneveld

South of SF

KoKeto’s, at Club Caliente, 1776 Broadway St, Redwood City.  Live Latin band and DJ on Sundays, $12, ($8 4 – 5:30pm happy hour), 4:30 – 6pm? lessons, band 6pm (?) – 10pm.

Motion Arts Center, 217 S Claremont St, San Mateo.  Tuesdays, Richard Kear teaches WCS 7 – 9pm, DJs 9 – 11pm, $10 party only.  Limited studio parking; more parking at the Central Parking Garage on 3rd and B Streets one block away.

St. James Gate, 1410 Old County Road, Belmont.  Also a restaurant.  Smallish nice dance floor in front of inside stage, ceramic tile beyond dance floor, reasonable surface on large, uncovered outside patio and covered raised platform.  Live rock and cover bands Fridays and Saturdays; $5 after 8pm.  (Used to be KoKeto’s on Sundays.)

Seven Mile House, Brisbane. Also a restaurant. No cover. Live bands. Small area for dancing between band, tables, bar, and entrance. Hard-soled shoes – tile floor?

Red Crawfish, 401 E Third St, San Mateo, 650-347-7888. Occasional live bands (usually 8pm – 1am). Red Ultra Lounge calendar. Also a restaurant.

Angelica’s, Redwood City. R&B and Soul on Thursday nights.

Club Fox, 2209 Broadway, Redwood City.  Live Blues and Rock music on Wednesday and Saturday nights, and live Latin on some Friday nights.

Savanna Jazz. Bands daily, $8 on weekends, 1189 Laurel Street, San Carlos.  Not much space for dancing and it’s carpeted.  Easy street parking.  Also a restaurant.

South Bay

Alberto’s Salsa Studio, Mountain View – Sunday Milonga

Cascal, 400 Castro St, Mountain View – LaTiDo every other Friday, 9pm – midnight, no cover.  Free but crowded public parking a block away.  Small dance space (clean matte glaze terracotta tile – an okay surface for hard-soled dance shoes) in front of the band’s corner adjacent to the front entrance.  The counter behind the stools provides plenty of space for tasty tapas and drinks; jacket / purse hooks are provided under the counter.  Ambient noise level is pretty high; wear ear plugs during the music.  The floor in the expansive dining area is varnished wood; can dance between tables after the end of dinner service.  Other dancers showed up for the second set; could get by without a partner but it’d be better to bring your own.  It got a little warm dancing because though the wide open front entrance was adjacent to the dance area, the outside patio was dotted with heat lamps blocking the otherwise cooling breezes… unfortunately they didn’t block the occasional cigar smoke wafting across from the far corner of the patio.  Tall water glasses and the waitstaff was responsive to refill requests.

Cafe Stritch, 374 S 1st St, San Jose.  Wax Wednesday; bands most Thursday – Saturday; 8:30 – 11pm, $0?.  All ages.  Dinner menu.

Club Milano, San Jose – Salsa and Bachata

Flames Eatery & Bar, 88 S 4th St, San Jose, Mambo Flames, Tuesdays 10pm – 1:30am (salsa lesson 8 – 10pm), $10, park 4th St garage.

Little Lou’s BBQ, 2455 Winchester Blvd, Campbell.  Live blues music most nights and Sunday afternoons.

Lobby Lounge, Fairmont Hotel, San Jose – We – Sa, 9pm – 12am live music, no cover, all ages.  Reasonable wooden dance floor – no seams and fairly clean.  On a summer Saturday there was a mix of dancers, wedding parties, businessmen, and a few families (probably due to the soccer stars staying at the hotel – the kids had been collecting autographs); reasonable room for the songs for dancers but a bit crowded otherwise.  The band played a reasonable mix but was occasionally off key.  Ear plugs; hard or suede soled.  Street and garage parking.  Drink service – avoid the orange juice.

Mariani’s (restaurant and lounge), 2500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara.  Fairly good size wooden dance floor but since the space is (presumably) usually used for dining and drinking, it was pretty sticky; the dance wax sprinkled in the corner helped.  We went on a Friday night with a live blues band, no cover, and several other WCS dancers (Dance Boulevard regulars).  The band was okay – but not up to the standard of Reed Fromer, Lavay Smith, or the Cosmo Alleycats.  The space was low ceilinged and low-key – definitely not up to the standards of the hipster bars in SF or Oakland.  Private parking lot on the back side.  Safe for a single woman.

Murphy’s Law, Sunnyvale.

Poor House Bistro, 91 South Autumn St, San Jose.  Live, mostly blues, music every night, including Aki Kumar on Tuesday nights.

Quarter Note, 1214 Apollo Way, Sunnyvale.  Live music every night except Tuesdays; Funk jam Thursdays, 9:30pm – 1am, $0.  Cover charge on Fridays and Saturdays.  Strip mall with plenty of parking.  Wood floor (over cement so no spring) but space depends on how far back the tables are moved and how many groupies congregate in front of the stage.  Ear plugs.

Musicians

Other References

Next Gen (TNGSDC) – host of 1st Saturday WCS DJ’d dance 6pm – 12am at Two Left Feet in Danville and the Boogie by the Bay dance convention, Columbus Day Weekend (October) at the SF Airport Hyatt

Wayne’s Window

Dance Maven

About Dancingregular calendar.

Studios – Dance Parties and Classes

East Bay – West of the Hills

  • Allegro, 5855 Christie Ave, Emeryville; 12012 San Pablo Ave, Richmond.
  • Just Dance Ballroom, Oakland
  • Kizomba at mOOv, Lake Merritt Dance Center, 200 Grand Ave, Oakland. On Facebook. Thu, 9 – 11:30pm, $10 dance only.
  • Lake Merritt Dance Center, 200 Grand Ave, Oakland
  • Malonga Arts Center, 1428 Alice St, Oakland.  Stepping with Damone Hodges every Monday, 7:30 – 9:30pm, $?.
  • Trilliant Studios, 130 Linden Street, Oakland.  Got Kizomba on Mondays??  Salsa Tue & Thu, WCS Wed, Bachata Fri.

East Bay – East of the Hills

  • Two Left Feet, Danville.  WCS lesson and party every Friday night.

North Bay

  • Bay West Ballroom, San Rafael – closed as of Summer 2015.
  • WnY Warehouse, 64 Digital Drive, Novato.  WCS lesson and party every Tu and third Sa.

West Bay

  • Metronome SF, 136 Missouri St @ 17th St, San Francisco.
  • Mission City Swing – Polish Club, 3040 22nd St @ Shotwell, San Francisco, Wednesdays, 7 – 9pm lessons, 9 – 11:30pm party
  • Symbolic Dance & Fitness, 672 S Van Ness Ave @ 18th St.  Bachata w/ Manny & Mireille, 8:15pm – 9:30pm, Mondays; third Saturday Bachata dance – with many more women than men.  Upstairs studio with a nice wood floor and mirrors.  Street parking in an iffy neighborhood that’s not well-trafficked at night.

South Bay

Cheryl Burke Dance, Mountain View – closed as of September 2015

CPAA, San Jose

Dance Boulevard, 1824 Hillsdale Ave, San Jose.  Every Monday WCS lessons and party (and lessons only Tuesdays and Wednesdays).

Dancing in the Street

Summer

  • Jazz & Beyond, Sunnyvale, every Saturday in July and August, 5:30 – 8:30pm, $0.  Dancing in the street, literally.
  • Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, Mission Street between 3rd and 4th Street, San Francisco, May – September, most Thursdays 6 – 7:30pm and Saturdays 1 – 2:30pm, $0.  Hourly covered parking at Yerba Buena Garage; Bart / MUNI two blocks away.  Grass with a wide, smooth, gently sloping slate path around the stage.
  • Jazz on Sundays, Golden Gate Library, 5606 San Pablo Ave, Oakland, every Sunday in July and August, 3 – 6pm, $0.
  • Kaiser Roof Garden, 300 Lakeside Dr, Oakland, most Fridays June – early September, 12 – 1pm, $0.  Take any elevator from Kaiser garage, building, or 2nd floor pedestrian bridge to the RG level to access the Roof Garden.
  • 4th St, Berkeley, every Saturday in July and August, 12 – 2 or 4pm, $0.  Dancing on the sidewalk at the base of ramp near Peet’s Coffee, 4th St and Delaware, Berkeley.  $3 / hour in lot a block or two down the street.  Too much foot and car traffic for good dancing.
  • Sunday Streets SF, ~monthly Mar – Oct, Sunday, 11am – 4pm, $0.
  • Year Round

  • Lindy in the Park, Bandshell in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, every Sunday, 11am – 2pm, $0, DJ.
  • Bachata Takeover, Lake Merritt Pergola, 599 El Embarcadeo, Oakland lesson 2 – 2:40pm, dance 2:40 – 6pm; $0.

Conventions

  • Boogie by the Bay, SF Airport Hyatt, second weekend of October
  • Swingtacular, Redwood City, early August

Reference

Facebook

Dance Lists

By Date

Sunday

  • Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, 39 Fell St (between Van Ness and Polk), San Francisco.  Live jazz, 7pm – 10pm, $0.
  • Swig, 561 Geary, SF.  Live WCS / ECS / Blues, 9:00pm – 1am, $?.
  • SomaR Bar, 1727 Telegraph, Oakland.  DJ, R&B, rap, and reggae, 9pm – 2am?, $0.
  • Tonga Room, SF – band, 8:15 – 11pm, $10 after band starts.
  • Double Dutch, 3192 16th St, SF; DJ, funk / hip hop / R&B, 7pm – 2am; $0 ($5 sometimes?).
  • 7 Mile House – jazz band, 5 – 8pm, $0.
  • The Knockout, 3223 Mission @ Valencia, SF.  DJ – Sweater Funk, 10pm – 2am, $0.
  • Cana, 530 Lake Park Ave, Oakland, 2 – 10pm, free before 4pm / $10 >4pm, live Latin.
  • Salsa Sunday, @BayStreetEmeryville, 3-5pm, May – July, live band
  • Madrone Art Bar, SF.  Organ jazz, 9:30pm – 12:30am, $0.
  • KoKeto’s, at Club Caliente, 1776 Broadway St, Redwood City – Latin band and DJ, 4:30 – 6pm lessons, band 6pm (?) – 10pm, $12 ($8 4 – 5:30pm happy hour on some Sundays).
  • Sausalito Seahorse – Candela on 4th Sundays
  • Allegro, Emeryville.  DJ, Latin, lessons 6 – 9:30pm, dancing 8pm – 1:30am, $15 lessons and dancing / $10 dancing only.
  • Sundance Saloon, 550 Barneveld, SF.  DJ CW 2-Step, 7:15 – 10:30pm, $5
  • Blondie’s Bar, Mission, SF – Kenya Baker blues and R&B, 9pm – 12am, $0.
  • Stookey’s Club Moderne, 895 Bush St @ Taylor, SF – Cuban Sunday, 4:30pm – 2am, $0.
  • Royal Cuckoo, 3202 Mission, SF.  Lavay Smith and Chris Siebert, 7:30 – 10:30pm, $0.
  • Lindy in the Park, Bandshell in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, DJ, 11am – 2pm, $0.
  • Alberto’s Salsa Studio, Mountain View – Sunday Milonga, 7pm – ?, $10.

Monday

  • Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, 39 Fell St (between Van Ness and Polk), San Francisco.  Live jazz, 7pm – 10pm, $0.
  • Stompy Jones at Lake Merritt Dance Center, 200 Grand Ave, Oakland, 7 – 9:30pm Lindy and Balboa lessons, live band Stompy Jones, 8 – 10:30pm, $15.
  • Legionnaire Saloon, 2272 Telegraph, Oakland, DJd Motown, 9pm – 1:30am, $0.  Upstairs.  Gets crowded by 10pm.  Started out mostly white hipster (including the DJ) and morphed to polyglot hipster.
  • Eli’s Mile High Club, Oakland.  Live blues, 7 – ?pm, $5.
  • Dance Boulevard, 1824 Hillsdale Ave, San Jose.  WCS party, DJ Richard Kear, 9:15pm – 12am, $12 (7:15 – 8:15pm beginner lesson, 8:15 – 9:15pm intermediate lesson, $15 lessons & party).
  • Lakeside Lounge, Oakland.  Steppers, Ron Brown, 9pm – ~12am, $?; class 7 – 9pm, $10
  • Madrone Art Bar, SF – Motown, 9pm – 2am, $0.  Pretty crowded after 9pm and street parking tough.
  • 7 Mile House – jazz band, 7 – 10pm, $0
  • Local Edition – big band (Fil Lorenz Orchestra), 8 – 11pm, $0
  • Neck of the Woods, SF – Salsa lessons followed at 9:15pm by salsa and bachata dancing until 1am, $20 at door / $15 online
  • Swig, 561 Geary, SF.  Salsa, 9pm – 1am, $?.
  • Shades of Blues at Polish Club, SF – DJ, 9pm – midnight, $6 – 10 (8 – 9pm lesson, $12 – 15)
  • Savanna Jazz, San Carlos – live band, 7:30 – 10:30pm, $5?
  • Temple Israel, 3183 Mecartney Rd, Alameda.  Last Monday of the month, Dave Altschuler’s Swingtime Big Band, 8 – 10pm, $5
  • (no more PlayaSF Kizomba Monday nights)

Tuesday

  • Local Edition, SF – Cosmo Alleycats (usually), 8pm – 12am, $0.
  • SomaR Bar, 1727 Telegraph, Oakland.  DJ, funk, soul, and R&B, 9pm – 2am?, $0.
  • Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, 39 Fell St (between Van Ness and Polk), San Francisco.  Live jazz, 7pm – 10pm, $0.
  • East Bay Fusion at Omni Commons, 4799 Shattuck Ave, Oakland, DJ, (7 – 8pm lessons), 8pm – 12am, $10 – 15.
  • Legionnaire Saloon, 2272 Telegraph, Oakland, funk and soul jam, 10pm – 1:30am, $0.
  • Club Deluxe, 1511 Haight, SF – DJ, 6pm – 12:30am, $??
  • Poor House Bistro, San Jose, Aki Kumar‘s Blues Jam, 7 – 10pm (6pm start when Sharks are playing), $0.
  • Savanna Jazz, San Carlos – live band, 7:30 – 10:30pm, $5?
  • Double Dutch, 3192 16th St, SF; DJ, funk / hip hop / R&B, 9pm – 2am; $0 ($5 sometimes?).
  • Ivy Room, 860 San Pablo Ave (@ Solano), Albany – Funk Jam, 9pm – ?, $0.
  • Starlight Room, 450 Powell, SF – live jazz, 7 – 10pm, $?.
  • 7 Mile House, Brisbane – jazz band, 7 – 10pm, $0
  • Blondie’s Bar, 540 Valencia, SF – Kenya Baker funk and R&B, 9 – 1am, $0.
  • Ashkenaz, 1317 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley, cajun/zydeco band, 8:30pm – ?, $12
  • Bar Fluxus, 18 Harlan Place, SF.  Latin Vibe Tuesdays, VibraSON, 9pm – 2am, $10.
  • Starline Social Club, 2236 MLK Jr, Oakland, downstairs live jazz, 8 – 11pm, $0 / upstairs The Breakaway!, DJ (monthly live) Lindy, 9 – 11pm (lessons 7 – 9pm), $8 (more for live).
  • Woodchopper’s Ball at the Verdi Club, live swing (Lindy mostly), 9 – 11:30pm (lessons 7 – 9pm), $10.
  • WnY Warehouse, 64 Digital Drive, Novato – WCS DJ, 8:30 – 11:30pm (lessons 6:45 – 8:30pm), $8 ($18 with two classes).
  • Boom Boom Room, SF – funk etc DJ, 9:30pm – 1:30am, $0
  • Cat’s Corner at Ukrainian Hall, 345 7th St, SF – live Lindy music, 9:30pm – 12:30am, $10 ($5 before 8:30pm)
  • The Mojo Lounge, 3714 Peralta Blvd, Fremont – Aki Kumar’s Blues Jam, 8pm – 12am, $0.  (Not sure that this is still happening in 2017 given the Blues Jam at Poor House Bistro in San Jose.)
  • Cuddles’n’Blues, Oakland – open dancing (following a 2 hour blues dancing “playshop”), 9:30 – 10:30pm, $(sliding)
  • Flames Eatery & Bar, 88 S 4th St, San Jose, Mambo Flames, Tuesdays 10pm – 1:30am (salsa lesson 8 – 10pm), $10
  • Playa SF – Salsa Dura

Wednesday

  • Local Edition, SF – Steve Lucky et al (usually), 8pm – 12am, $0.
  • Sh’Boom, 2410 San Ramon Valley Blvd, San Ramon.  DJ Latin, 7:30 beginner salsa lesson, 8:15 intermediate salsa, 9pm dancing, $10.
  • Ivy Room, 860 San Pablo Ave (@ Solano), Albany – Booty Bump (DJ), 9pm – ?, $0.
  • Mission City Swing (WCS), Polish Club, 3040 22nd St @ Shotwell, San Francisco, Wednesdays, DJ, 7 – 9pm lessons, 9 – 11:30pm dancing, $8
  • Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, 39 Fell St (between Van Ness and Polk), San Francisco.  Live jazz, 7pm – 10pm, $0.
  • Double Dutch, 3192 16th St, SF; DJ, funk / hip hop / R&B, 9pm – 2am; $0 ($5 sometimes?).
  • The Saddle Rack, 42011 Boscell Road, Fremont.  Live and DJ CW, 9pm – 12am (lesson 7:30 – 9pm, $5 (including lesson).  January 2016: WCS on Wednesdays.
  • Project Tango Milonga @ Cellspace, 934 Brannan, SF – live / DJ, 9:10pm – 12am (class 8:10 – 9:10pm), $10
  • Tonga Room, SF – live, 8:15 – 11pm, $10 after band starts.
  • Blues Dance at La Pena, 3105 Shattuck, Berkeley, DJ, 7 – 11pm, $6 – 16.
  • Lobby Lounge, San Jose – live, 9pm – 12am, $0
  • Burritt Room, 417 Stockton, SF, live jazz, 6:30 – 9:30pm, $0
  • Starlight, SF
  • Club Fox, Redwood City – live,
  • Savanna Jazz, San Carlos – live band, 7:30 – 10:30pm, $5?
  • Madrone Art Bar, SF
  • ?? Plank, Jack London Square, 98 Broadway, Oakland; $0, 6:30 – 9:30pm, live band.  (Moved from Thursday nights.)
  • BachataLicious at ? (moved in 2016), SF – DJ, 9pm – ?, $5

Thursday

  • Terrace Room, Oakland – live, 7 – 10pm, $0
  • Lakeside Lounge (Steppin), 338 E 18th St, Oakland – DJ, 8pm – ?am, $5.
  • Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, 39 Fell St (between Van Ness and Polk), San Francisco.  Live jazz, 7pm – 10pm, $0.
  • Double Dutch, 3192 16th St, SF; DJ, funk / hip hop / R&B, 9pm – 2am; $0 ($5 sometimes?).
  • Cinema Grill, 2301 Central Ave, Alameda.  Live jazz, 6 – 9pm, $0.
  • Tonga Room – Island Groove Band, 8:15 – 11:30pm, $10 after band starts.
  • 2nd Thursday, Blondies, 540 Valencia, SF.  Steve Lucky et al (live swing), 9pm – 12:30am, $0, ,
  • Blues dancing in Redwood City, 9pm – 1:30am
  • Kizomba at mOOv, Lake Merritt Dance Center, 200 Grand Ave, Oakland, 9 – 11:30pm, $10 dance only
  • Slate Bar, 2925 16th @ S. Van Ness, SF.  Dance Karaoke, 9:30pm – 1:30am, $0.
  • The Royale, 800 Post St (@ Leavenworth), SF.  4th Th DJ, vintage soul and funk party, 8pm – 2am, $0?.
  • Top of the Mark – Motown at the Mark, 7 – 11pm, $10 > 6:30pm
  • Burritt Room – Kamikaze-Butterfly Trio, 7 – 10pm, $?
  • Sundance Saloon, 550 Barneveld, SF.  DJ CW 2-Step, 8 – 10:30pm, $5
  • 44 Restaurant & Bar – Throwback Thursdays DJ, 7 – 10pm, $0
  • The Saddle Rack, 42011 Boscell Road, Fremont.  Live and DJ CW, 9pm – 12am (lesson 7:30 – 9pm), $3.
  • Starlight – DJs, price and start varies
  • Just Dance Ballroom – DJ, 8 – 11pm, $5
  • 7 Mile House – live blues, 8pm – ?pm, $0
  • Savanna Jazz, San Carlos – live band, 7:30 – 10:30pm, $5?
  • Frank Haro’s house, Las Trampas, Lafayette – salsa dancing in home studio
  • Lobby Lounge, San Jose – live, 9pm – 12am, $0.

Friday

  • Terrace Room, Oakland – live, 7 – 10pm, $0
  • Rosenblum Cellars, 10 Clay St, Oakland.  Live, 5:30 – 8:30pm (most Fridays), $0.
  • Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, 39 Fell St (between Van Ness and Polk), San Francisco.  Live jazz, 9pm – 12am, $0.
  • ?? Plank, Jack London Square, 98 Broadway, Oakland; $0, 6:30 – 9:30pm, live band.
  • Speisekammer, 2424 Lincoln Ave, Alameda.  Live retro swing and rockabilly, 8:30 – 11:30pm, $0.
  • Cinema Grill, 2301 Central Ave, Alameda.  Live R&B, 6 – 9pm, $0.
  • The Royale, 800 Post St (@ Leavenworth), SF.  Live jazz, 9pm – 2am?, $0?.
  • 7 Mile House, funk, 9pm – ?pm, $0
  • Double Dutch, 3192 16th St, SF; DJ, funk / hip hop / R&B, 7pm – 2am; $0 ($5 sometimes?).
  • Top of the Mark – Black Market Jazz Orchestra, 9pm – 12:30am, $10 > 8:30pm
  • St. James Gate / KoKeto’s, 1410 Old County Road, Belmont.  Rock or cover band, 8pm – ?, $5 after 8pm.
  • Cascal – live band, 9pm – midnight, $0
  • Just Dance Ballroom – ballroom DJs, 9:05pm – 11:30pm, $6
  • Starlight – DJs, >8:30pm, price and start varies
  • Tonga Room – Island Groove Band, 8:15 – 11:30pm, $15 after band starts.
  • Le Colonial, 20 Cosmo Place, SF.  DJ, 10pm – 2am, $0?.
  • Burritt Room – GDF Trio, jazz, 7 – 10pm, $0?
  • Dance Fridays, 550 Barneveld, SF.  live & DJs, Latin, 8pm – ?am (lesson 8 – 9pm), $15 adv / $20 door?
  • Lobby Lounge, San Jose – live, 9pm – 12am, $0
  • Dragon Rouge, 10pm – 2am, $10 before 11pm / $15 on 1st Fridays
  • Savanna Jazz, San Carlos – live band, 8 – 11:30pm, $5?
  • 1st Fri
    • Dancin’ Kings & Queens, Monaghan’s on the Hill, 2820 Mountain Blvd, Oakland, $0, 7 – 11pm, DJ Terry Hobson
    • Oakland First Fridays, $0, 5 – 9:30pm, Telegraph Ave from West Grand to 27th St, oaklandfirstfridays.org
  • 2nd Fri
    • Swing Out! at Lake Merritt Dance Center, 200 Grand Ave, Oakland, $10, 8:30 – 11pm, DJ WCS
    • Level 13 (used to be Shadow Ultra Lounge), 341 13th St, Oakland.  DJ Damone Hodges, 6 – 10pm, $10; stepper sharp attire.
    • Exec Suite, 306 Pendleton Way, Oakland.  DJ, Steppers – Ladies Choice, host Tim Perkins, 9pm – ~12am, $10 ($7 w/bracelet <11pm)
  • 3rd Fri
    • 3rd Fri Steppers’ Set, Moose Lodge 1491, 20835 Rutlege Rd, Castro Valley.  DJ Terry Hobson, R&B and Neo Soul, 8:30pm – 1:30am (lesson 7:30 – 8:30pm), $5 before 8:30pm / $10 after.

Saturday

  • 1st Saturday – Next Gen at Two Left Feet.
  • 3rd Saturday – Latin Kiss at Allegro; WnY Warehouse in Novato;
  • last Saturday – Damone’s Stepper Set at Level 13 (used to be Shadow Ultra Lounge), 341 13th St, Oakland.  3 – 7pm, $10
  • Mr. Tipple’s Recording Studio, 39 Fell St (between Van Ness and Polk), San Francisco.  Live jazz, 9pm – 12am, $0.
  • Speisekammer, 2424 Lincoln Ave, Alameda.  Live retro swing and rockabilly, 8:30 – 11:30pm, $0.
  • Double Dutch, 3192 16th St, SF; DJ, funk / hip hop / R&B, 7pm – 2am; $0 ($5 sometimes?).
  • Cinema Grill, 2301 Central Ave, Alameda.  Live R&B, 6 – 9pm, $0.
  • The Royale, 800 Post St (@ Leavenworth), SF.  Live jazz, 9pm – 2am?, $0?.
  • Top of the Mark – $15 after 8:30pm, 9pm – 12:30am
  • Starlight Room – $5 – 10 cover after 8:30pm??
  • St. James Gate / KoKeto’s, 1410 Old County Road, Belmont.  Rock or cover band, 8pm – ?, $5 after 8pm.
  • Overland Country Bar & Restaurant – live music, $? cover, 8pm – 2am?
  • Beatbox Country, Beatbox, 314 11th St. at Folsom, SF.  DJ, 1st Sat, 7 – 9:30pm (lesson 6 – 7pm), $8.
  • Tonga Room – Island Groove Band, 8:15 – 11:30pm, $15 after band starts.
  • 7 Mile House – zydeco 1st Sat, R&B other Sat, 8pm – ?pm, $0
  • Lobby Lounge, San Jose – live, 9pm – 12am, $0
  • Chalaca Annexo – ?DJ, 9pm – 1:45am, $?
  • ShBoom, San Ramon.  DJ, dance mix, $16.
  • Le Colonial, 20 Cosmo Place, SF.  DJ, 10pm – 2am, $0?.
  • Dragon Rouge
  • The Night Light, 311 Broadway, Oakland – Now Elbo Room, Oakland
  • Club Fox, Redwood City – live
  • Lobby Lounge, San Jose – live, 9pm – 12am, $0
  • Chalaca Annexo – ?DJ, 9pm – 1:45am, $?
  • Savanna Jazz, San Carlos – live band, 8 – 11:30pm, $5?

13 Replies to “Bay Area Dance Venues”

  1. Cafe Van Kleef, Oakland – terracotta floor
    The Legionnaire Saloon, Oakland
    The Starry Plough, Berkeley – sloping floor

  2. Stookey’s Club Moderne, 895 Bush St @ Taylor, SF – 4 blocks from Sutter-Stockton parking garage; post-prohibition SF with ’30s and ’40s DJ’d music and cocktails; Tu – Su 4:30pm – 2am; http://stookeysclubmoderne.com/
    Per Lew Serbin 2015/03/26: club is very small and very clean.

  3. “Jammin with DeJeana” at Dorsey’s Locker, 7 – 10:30pm, 5817 Shattuck Ave, Oakland

    1. Changing management early July 2015. Strip of low-pile carpet between bar island and stage; small square of flooring – not particularly clean – to left of stage. After 8pm on Mondays, pauses with talking between guests taking the stage for open mic night.

  4. Fish & Farm, 424 Clay St, SF, 6 – 9pm Fri, $0, swing DJ – mostly Lindy and Balboa music, wood laminate floor okay. Downstairs so a little warm and a bit fishy smelling once folks started eating. Walking distance from Embarcadero Bart. Cranberry seltzers a bit pricey and served with ice but there were several free pitchers of water and plenty of glasses; and the sweet potato fries and mac ‘n cheese were very reasonably priced.

  5. Milk Bar, Haight Street, SF (near GG Park entrance) – nice wood floor, live bands play on a raised stage, metered street parking but iffy when the Park is crowded.
    Le Colonial upstairs lounge is rebranded 721 Lounge (with entrance at 721 Sutter Street).
    Pier 23, Embarcadero, SF – varnished wood floor, live bands play next to entrance, dinner menu as well as drinks, some metered street parking.

  6. Murphy’s, 135 S Murphy Ave, Sunnyvale
    Fillmore Heritage Center, 1330 Fillmore Street, San Francisco

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