(See pics) Review #1260. I recently started salsa dancing and just could not keep my feet off the…read moredance floor. While I still prefer the more traditional studio style of dancing, Impala has a fun place for dancing when you want to have fun, live music and demonstration. The evening I visited was also Mexican independence Day and how I love the band! This place also offers alcohol but I seldom drink when dancing as alcohol and spinning definitely do not mix. But dance away!

Hot Bachata!!! I mean damn this joint makes me sweat!!…read moreI go the yelp deal and they had me sweating my ass off. Fun Place to try out . Great people and outstanding music. Get the yelp deal and try for yourself.

Me and my homegirl Farah S. hit up this place after watching Kevin Bacon and Sarah Jessica Parker…read moreand who can forget John Lithgow, in Footloose to get in the mood for the 80's and to pick up some dance moves to break out for the dance-off competition at midnight. I can't get that Flash dance "She's a maniac" out of my head! We tore up the dance floor with our crew and danced the night away! Leg warmers, neons, madonna goth... we had great costumes and loved seeing others dressed up.

Great 80s Dance Parties When They Occur…read more SITREP Of late, this has become a sporadic dance event, but it is always a great time to come to San Francisco and hit the Barracuda Party @ The Minna Gallery. SETUP Located in downtown San Francisco, the Barracuda 80s Decade Dance Party is a wonderful complement to other stalwart 80s Dance events, such as New Wave City, and Thursday 80s Night @ The Cat Club. DIFFERENT PEEPS One BIG difference, however, is that the crowd is much different than what I see at the Cat Club. Lots of people tend to become loyal to certain venues and I will notice a lot of the same people at New Wave City and Thursday 80s Night at Cat Club. So I love the fact that I can go to Barracuda and make a lot of NEW friends that I may not mix with in SOMA venues such as Cat Club and/or DNA Lounge. TIMING However, I've noticed of late that Barracuda - depending on venue and/or resident DJ availability - is not as regular as it has been in the past (2010, 2011 for example), and so I hope that I will see some new flyers posted for upcoming events. If not, it will remain a wonderful positive dance memory for me. THE LOWDOWN Barracuda provides a most excellent NEW TAKE on the 80s Dance Scene.

The EndUP is traditionally an after hours dance club. It's the place to go after the bars close at…read more2am. The cover charge can be steep. The crowd is a mix of gay and strait. It features 2 bars. One in the front and one in the side. The bathrooms are small and trashy. The back patio is the oasis. Great place to cool off from dancing or mingle. At times they will have food for sale on the patio. The EndUP also has a coat check area and table service. Bartenders are average. At times they have drink specials. My favorite night to go is the monthly ShangriLa gay Asian dance party!

Everything, try selling drinks other than kirkland vodka, kirkland tequila, and kirkland whiskey…read more Don't be fooled, order any drink, doesn't matter, you getting one of those 3.

Morrissey & Smiths Tribute Is One Of The Best New Wave Nights…read more SITREP New Wave City (NWC) is the longest-running club event in San Francisco. I've been a regular to NWC) since it's first year in 1994. Every month is a treat, and often is a special "tribute night". In fact, this most recent past Saturday was the monthly club night for December and it was a tribute night for Morrissey & The Smiths. The energy of this crowd was kinetic and made for a great dance night! BLACK CARD The longevity of loyal followers has it's benefits and on the 5th anniversary of my coming to New Wave City (1999), I was presented with the rare NWC BLACK V.I.P. CARD which I've kept in my wallet for 15 years, proving the adage, "Membership Has It's Privileges" - my guest & I are treated to free entry into all NWC events. SET-UP New Wave City is now sited at The Cat Club (1190 Folsom Street, SF), but was once much more of a revolving-venue club, enjoying being sited different months at different places, including: the KING STREET GARAGE, the TOWNSEND, 550 BARNEVELD, BIG HEART CITY, THE CHERRY BAR, the GLASS KAT, and most recently, the DNA Lounge. SPECIAL EVENTS NWC always promoted special galas and incredible "80s Prom Nights". With the Cat Club, NWC still is able to maintain two (2) separate rooms of music, each specializing in a different format, and with revolving door of talented DJs. NEW WAVE DANCING Dancing is what we come for and a stellar dance-environment is what we are provided. You can't ask for any better, and with the Go-Go Boxes in the back room, there is always ladies & gents who enjoy being a bit - how shall we say? - a bit EXPRESSIVE & OUTGOING in their dancing on the box, in front of the mirrors, and losing themselves in the music! THE LOWDOWN NWC remains the best ongoing club night and truly keeps keeps the momentum of the New Wave movement going strong!

I've been dancing like Molly Ringwald at NWC since I was in my 20's...and that was more than 20…read moreyears ago now...So, yes we've aged together! The music is fun. The two rooms at the Cat Club let you bounce between scenes (I have always hated Depeche Mode, so this is important as DM is on heavy rotation sometimes). I always have a great time and the crowd is friendly and always weird just like New Wave was and still is. Recently I went after a long hiatus and danced my a off like my a hasn't seen in a while. My favorite moment was Shriekback "Nemesis" followed by Echo and the Bunnymen "Never Stop" Yes, I was the superfan dancing like a maniac, maniac, on the floor, Dancing like I've never danced before.

This is one of my favorite club nights in SF. It's britpop, so really, how could it not be? When…read moreall the djs are on their games, it's impossible not to drink and dance all night. Suede, Smiths, Blur, Stone Roses...a britpop fan's dream. And even when they're throwing some questionable tunes in there (last time i checked pixies are from NEW england, and that no one really likes the fratellis), you'll still have tons of fun. Unfortunately, I never got to experience Leisure back in its hey-day at Annie's. From what I hear, those were some fun times. When it was at Paradise, I feel like half the place was filled with people who didn't know what was going on because they were too-drugged out of their minds. Cat club is an improvement, but still not really ideal in my opinion. The $8 cover charge is lame and the drinks are a bit pricey. I'd love to see Leisure move over to a place with real personality, but I suppose it's too big for a lot of the smaller clubs around town. Though it's not really my bag, you can also do britpop-themed karaoke in the front room.

If you're a fan of Brit Pop, Madchester, Mod than there's nowhere else you want to be than at…read moreLeisure the first Saturday of every month. You can expect all the tunes you have9had) in your own collection. It's just great to hear them on a big sound system. Morrissey, Pulp, James, Joy Division, Happy Mondays, yes and even Oasis(YAWN. So over them). But they're the band you love to hate, no? Solid monthly that's been going on for years, with a solid scene too. Makes for some great people watching. Lots of stylish eye-candy, 'crumpets' as it were : )

OUTSTANDING EVENT FOR ENJOYABLE DANCING MADNESS!…read more SIT-REP *DIVE! DIVE! DIVE!* [NO. That is not a command with the KLAXON HORN alert indicating that a SUB is SUBMERGING, but rather the heads-up that we have entered the "DIVE BAR" ZONE! - Translation: "A GREAT TIME is AHEAD!"] CLUB GOSSIP resides on 2nd Saturdays inside THE CAT CLUB, one of the most awesome dive bars that I patronize and love. CLUB GOSSIP is one of the best "WOW!" I mean "WOW!" experiences. This is truly one of the few EVENT-VENUE combos I really enjoy, which is why it is extremely nice for me to take my FIRST "YELP"-opportunity to write about it. THE SET-UP First came to CAT CLUB back in 1994 (that I actually remember - it may have been as early as 1990 when I first clubbed in SF, but as a passenger I was usually a bit discombobulated to actually know "where" I was since i trusted to my friends to get us around in those early days of my clubbing). The CAT CLUB is a DELICIOUSLY DIVY bar with wooden floors and walls in the SOMA (South Of Market Area) district of San Francisco. It is basically two separate rooms that permits two separate DJ-dance parties to go on simultaneously. It has vaulted ceilings (which are more pronounced in the front room) and has an air of spaciousness. So though DIVY, it is NOT claustrophobic. THIS adds to the place's charm. CURRENT CLUB GOSSIP DJ-FUN CLUB GOSSIP plays Synthpop, Goth and Electro in the front room & 80's Video Classics in the back. CLUB GOSSIP (2nd Saturdays) is propelled by the awesome DJ MELTING GIRL and DJ DAMON BOYLE, playing the best Dark Wave 80s, EBM and Industrial-lite that you will enjoy! If you want get the latest updates on their TRIBUTE-THEMED nights, then send an email to: clubgossip-subscribe@topica.com and DJ Damon will keep you in the loop! BAR & SECURITY STAFF In sum: BEST in the business! RANDY MAUPIN is an outstanding Bar Manager and makes us all feel like we at an incredibly fun house party. With him in the front and ALTHEA in the back, great coverage. LIESL remains my favorite bartender in SF, possibly WORLD - I love this gal like nobody's business! MICHAEL CHESTNEY, STEVE WASHINGTON and their team are best security guys you'lll ever meet. [I have to take a moment for my friend STEPHAN WILSON who passed away from medical complications at a young 40 this past year. I first met him here at the Cat Club, though I've had the privilege of meeting him at other venues he also worked at. He was a fun presence wherever he was and we, his friends, will miss him terribly...] THE LOWDOWN You are bound to have an incredibly fun time at CLUB GOSSIP and THE CAT CLUB!

Situated inside the beloved Cat Club (see my other Yelp review for the venue) is Club Gossip, a…read moredance night centered around New Wave/synthpop/80's music that's held once a month, every second Saturday. I particularly like Club Gossip because they tend to host a lot of tribute nights for a particular artist (ie: Madonna) or artists (Joan Jett vs. Pat Benetar). The last night we attended was the David Bowie & Prince tribute night, which they apparently plucked from my dreams of best dance club themes. The front room spun the biggest danciest hits of Bowie, glam rock and synthpop, while the back room bounced with Prince, funk and 80's music. Both rooms played accompanying music videos or movie clips featuring both artists. There was a vendor booth selling amazing jewelry and gifts, and around midnight there was a dance troupe performance in the back room headed by an amazing Prince lookalike. I seriously can't remember the last time I danced so much- we were completely sweaty by the time we left! Club Gossip is well worth the drive to SF, every time!

If you want a more authentic picture of this event and place, search for Club Fuego (basically the…read moresame event at the same venue.) The glowing reviews for Dance Fridays seem to be an attempt of the new organizers to get away from all the other negative reviews while not really changing things that resulted in a bunch of bad reviews in the first place. First off, they CHARGE FOR TAP WATER. You read that right, a dance venue with a cover charge ($10-$25 per person) charges for TAP WATER. I've travelled and danced all over the US and this is a first. I don't think I need to explain why this is ludicrous to people who have ever gone dancing. Secondly, the bachata room is much smaller and has NO FANS. So when you get super overheated from dancing in a crowded room with no fans, you can't even get free tap water to cool off. And the cherry on top was the guards kicking me (a woman on my own) out of the building at 1:30 am in a seedy part of town instead of letting me wait for 15 min inside until my Lyft arrived. They were not leaving to go home, they just stood there and smoked.

Maybe it's too late to get it in at 550 before the end of the year, but save it on your bookmark…read morefor 2022. I'm SOOOO happy they opened back up after being closed all of Covid. I used to come here every now and again for the dancing because I always loved the vibe here. Lessons start at 8pm. It's a perfect spot for beginners, and every now and again, you'll find a more seasoned person who joins the lessons. Salsa and Bachata seem very natural to me, but I'm very much a novice. With that being said, I feel super comfortable to show up alone, do the lessons, and get out on the floor. The beauty is diversity: Younger, older, men, women, beginners and advanced people all mix it up. Ladies, all you gotta do is hold tight and wait for an invitation, and you'll be dancing all night. No weirdos (at least not that I've encountered yet), no negativity, and just all around good times. Here's a little tip: Sign up for the text alerts, and they offer early bird tickets for $10 on Mondays. After that, the price goes up. And if you pay at the door, the price could be $30 or $35; I think it depends on the night. Thanks 550 for staying true!

I absolutely LOVE this party! The Venue (Element lounge) is extremely sexy, and the djs are…read moreincredible. Everyone is so friendly patrons and staff included. You will definately be seeing more of me on Sunday mornings!