Badlands Portland

Amazing venue, great music, friendly staff. The drinks are a bit weak and they are also quite pricey. $8 for a well drink, $10 for mid shelf well drinks, more for drinks with more than 2 ingredients. Seems more expensive than the California Badlands. The dance floor is great with colorful lighting and lots of screens playing music videos. The interior is well thought out, with lots of seating, lounging areas, pool tables, and dance floors. Bathrooms are plentiful so no lines there. Stronger drinks and happy hour 2 for 1 drink specials like the California locations would make this venue a solid 5 stars. Can't wait to go back. Thank you!!

Had a fantastic night of dancing and cocktails while we checked out the soft opening of Badlands, Portlands new queer video lounge in the old Embers Avenue space. The space is incredible. Everything is brand new and the flow of the space works really well. Embers Ave was one of favorite spots back in the day and they truly did a great job with this new vision. We didn’t eat anything so I can’t say anything about their food but for right now it’s a pretty small bar menu. Well done. Well done! Come check out this new space.

Badlands offers a vibrant atmosphere with great music and an energetic dance floor. The space is inclusive and welcoming, perfect for a fun night out. Affordable drinks and friendly staff.

AWESOME OVERALL - ANY COMPLAINTS WOULD BE NITPICKING COVER: Not sure what their schedule is for cover charges yet. It was $10 on a Saturday night. I feel like that's a great price point without being overbearing. That's also less that Blow Pony, which will attract their business (smart). AT THE BAR: Many bartenders so getting a drink on a crowded night was easier than expected. Expect about $10 per drink. They have a simple bar food menu as well (see photo of menu). **Ask Guido for a "Guido Special" (Tamarind vodka, pineapple juice, dash of Tajin, with a Tajin rim)** AROUND THE BAR: 5 areas: main bar, two regular side lounges, a dual pool table lounge, and back bar/dance floor. Ample seating. Sound system, lights, and overall interior design is 5 stars. Televisions everywhere. They spared no expense. Reminds me of a big city club. (SIDE NOTE: Love the quiet side bar. Sometimes you just want to talk to your friends) DANCE FLOOR: High energy. Go-go boys. Sound and lights are a 10. DJ and music are on point. It's easy to get lost in the ambience and dance the night away. STAFF: Lots of staff and security. Pat-downs and hand wand at the front door, which makes CLEANLINESS: 3 Bathrooms that are big, bright, modern, and STERILE. The staff seem very attentive to check the bathrooms regularly (please keep that up). Trash cans all over which was nice to see. SUGGESTIONS: 1. Water stations are much needed 2. Tables outside would be cool. But, there's also a lot of crazy people on the streets so maybe they factored that in. 3. Not sure why they went with a dull dreary paint color on the outside. It certainly doesn't represent the upscale inside. I would have tried for a lighter color, like a cream colored stucco (California high end vibes). OVERALL THOUGHTS: Badlands took a long long time to open, but in that long period of time it seems like the owners kept thinking and thinking about how to make the perfect bar/club. You can tell that every tiny detail was thought about before being built. It truly is remarkable. Portland desperately needed a dance bar/club. Slaughters kind of turned into a drag/trans bar so the guys only really had things like Blow Pony and Bearracuda to go to. I knew that whomever made the next big dance club would score BIG and now Badlands will do just that.

Amazing opening night, 6/12/24! For a new club this size to reopen they did an amazing job. LOTS of lounge space and can fit a ton of people and you can still move around. Over 20 screens for Music videos (loved it), two new pool tables in side room, multiple side “quieter” lounge spaces, not including pool table area. Plenty of seating, great back dance floor. They had drag MCs on the mics that were great. Three bathrooms that didn’t even get lines when near full. Drinks were nightclub fare - medium strength and about $8 wells. No CBD drinks yet but maybe soon for non-alcoholic crowd. Oh and two DJ booths, front and back. Going to be an amazing space for big or double events. Staff was wonderful, fast, didn’t seem rushed and even when full were great and were top notch. Location is ideal in old town, for walking to/from other clubs less than a block away, and plenty of parking along street, park blocks or in paid parking across street. They are also decently wheelchair accessible with low shelf bars, ramps and accessible bathrooms with several wheelchair patrons there that evening. Overall loved it, amazing opening night. Also they added their lineup for the week! Monday Musicals, Karaoke Tuesdays, Latin Wednesdays, Thirsty (Dance), Thursdays and Drag Fridays! Special events and dance on weekends including beer bust Sundays. Welcome to the community!

11/9 This security person yelled at someone and called them the R slur. Went back inside got our coats and immediately headed someone else. Y'all are doing a HORRIBLE job creating a safe and comfortable space if this is who you hire.

About time Portland got a Dance club. This place is awesome. Great music and videos, bar tenders are very friendly and the entire vibe is right. Get there early because there will be aline. But it is worth every minute of wait.

BEST dance club we found in Portland during our short stay. Great space and music and crowd! Super fun.