best espresso martinis in sac. Ask for Abel . Music was great, would definitely come back. read more

Badlands - Dance Clubs Near Me - Sacramento, California

We don't come to Badlands too often, but when we do it's typically for a special event. They have different shows, watch parties and entertainment scheduled and these are typically well attended. On our latest visit we attended a Drag Race watch party and it was a lot of fun. The drinks were a good price and the staff was friendly. It does get very hot in here in the summer. Consider bringing a fan, and enjoying more iced beverages to stay hydrated. read more

See all

Don't come here and waste ur money on them security is nothing but rude and think they above themselves same with the manager

Came back last night after almost a year break and nothings changed. We ordered drinks, one of them in a can. Bartender opened the can and there was a lot of pressure in the can so the drink spilled out onto the counter. It was 1/3 empty because of the spill. We asked for a new one and the bartender got a new one...then motioned forward as if to say, "keep that can," so I gave a generous tip, then when we tried to walk away, he snatched the spilled drink from us. Good customer service would've been to let us keep the drink, right? Later we left and came back to enter and were told that one of my friends was banned. We had no idea why...then security realized they were talking about someone else. Rudeness for no reason. At least at the other two bars around the corner the security staff and bartenders are friendly and customer service centered. read more

I'm new to Sacramento and this was one of the best clubbing experiences I've had! The bartenders were very nice!

Warning: thieves are actively stealing from drunk people here, and security either ignores it or doesn't care. My friend needed some juice to steady his blood sugar, but security shoved us out and refused to let him take one step inside to drink the juice or let me take the juice one step outside the door so he drinks it. And zero concern for safety, just attitude. Be careful at this place--especially if you're visiting. read more

Over 5 years later and have still never gone back. I went there every week practically since the day they opened and the depot for over 20 years. That's many many $$$ I have not spent there. Not even a word from the management. Judging by many of the other reviews not much has changed. I am glad to never go back to such a horrible place. Take my advice and go elsewhere if you would rather not be treated like crap. You deserve better than this place! read more

Badlands - Dance Clubs Near Me - Sacramento, California

Simply put. Everytime they hire new employees they fail to properly train them. They follow veterans for existing, and fail to acknowledge their mistake. Ifnyou have no appeal process then you're sh*t. read more

The last good gay bar in midtown!! We always have a good time here and much better than Faces. Go to the merc though if you want a strong drink read more

Always an amazing dance spot huge dance floor the DJ play great music the bar always full and ready. Love the place best drag queen shows. read more

See all

Went here for my birthday and will never come here again. My friends and i were all having an amazing time until at one point, I was walking down the stairs (which were wet and slippery) and slipped/fell . Did the security ask if I was okay? Nope. What did they do instead? They immediately kicked me out because apparently I was a "liability." I tried respectfully to explain that the stairs were wet (with no wet sign) but they didn't let me talk and escorted me out as if I was being a belligerent drunk. Fun night ruined by horrible security and customer service. I will be spreading the word about this - no establishment should condone this type of behavior from the staff. read more

A fun and memorable experience! The dancers were incredible and added a lot of fun to the atmosphere and the drinks were strong and tasty. Most importantly, security took their job seriously without putting a damper on things And should you get overwhelmed you can always take a nice quiet break in the upstairs lounge which has its own bar and comfortable seating as well as an outdoor balcony. In addition all the other club go-ers were consent queens, always asking and taking no for an answer. A safe and exciting place to spend a Friday night! 10/10 read more

Badlands - Wrist stamps - Dance Clubs Near Me - Sacramento, California

This club is so much fun. I love the low lights in there, it makes it intimate. Prepare to pay a fee to get in, they accept CASH only, but they have an ATM inside if you only have card. The fee is usually $20. If you go before a certain time you only pay $10, sometimes it's free, it really depends what day and time you go. The music in here is so good, they also have a lounge area upstairs and outside in case you don't want to be on the dance floor all night. The drinks here are super strong, they're also cheap though, which is a dangerous combination. You will be drunk off two drinks and will want to buy more because of how good and cheap they are! I love this location so much more than the San Francisco location. Parking is not hard to find, but expect the area to be busier on Friday and Saturday nights. read more

Decided to give it another try. And it was even worse than before. There was 5 of us- after dinner we got in a super long like. $20 cash cover while the inside was empty but why the big line? Maybe a strategy to get more people? The big thing that upset up was that the one black friend that was with us and the only black person in line was denied entry (for being intoxicated?) total lie - she was the most sober out of all of us. This was completely race targeted. She did not want to make a big deal and ruin our fun so she left. After paying that ridiculous cover we came inside to the same boring top 40s music. Does the manager or the DJ not have any idea of any other music out there? Maybe they need to hire a younger DJ to add variety. The bartender was nice but by this point the fact that our friend was not let in for bogus reason had ruined our night. Later as we tried to dance straight creepy men were being very pushy toward these girls dancing next to us and asked us for help. Long story short this place is a complete mess - Sacramento deserves better. read more

Love LOVE coming here with my friends!! The vibe is immaculate! Always high energy and great music playing. I can dance my butt off all night if I had the chance. Staff/bartenders are great as well. Theres an upstairs area to order drinks and sit down at as well if downstairs gets crowded. Not to mention an outdoor drink area as well if you get too hot. And of course, cant forget those Gogo dancers!! read more

DO NOT GO TO THE BAR UPSTAIRS they're hella rude to you when you order water. I ordered so many drinks at the other bars IN THE CLUB and then when I try to chill at the upstairs bar they give me so much attitude when I just order water to try to sober up/not throw up. I still gave them tip after the second round because I know how hard their job is but they will give you attitude just fyi. read more

Excellent Ceremony for the Imperial Court of Sacramento for CGNIE hosted by BADLANDS in the heart of Midtown Sacramento. SITREP BADLANDS is a very hip hapnin club-venue that besides having one of the best dance club environments - including the best gay dance venue in town - is also is a dynamic venue for hosting events featuring local charitable causes. THE SETUP The CGNIE or Court of the Great NorthWest Imperial Empire, is a local charitable organization whose purpose is to support the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender communities through its donations to recognized HIV/AIDS, social services, and youth support organizations and serving those communities. CGNIE also further promote positive awareness of the ideals of the International Court System of which they are proud members. It features a number of chapters throughout the United States. https://www.facebook.com/CGNIE.ORG IMPERIAL COURT The Imperial Court is the VERY regal title that the Officers of CGNIE give themselves to describe their "court" for each year after their recent elections! Always an event with much fanfare, it is celebrated with LOTS of drinks, karaoke and DRAG and other fun performances by everyone present. THE LOWDOWN Badlands is an exceptional venue to host the VERY exciting events of the CGNIE Imperial Court! read more

See all

First of all, WOAH. My friends & I first & probably our last time here. We noticed many people dancing on the boxes on the dance floor (many were white women). My friend waited her turn & when the two girls who were up there finally got down, my friend (Native American) went up, the security guard told her to "get the fuck off!". He was extremely aggressive & was speaking to her as if he had repeatedly asked her to get down. POWER TRIP!! This wouldn't be an issue if he asked respectfully, we paid to get in, we paid for their services. NOT TO BE DISRESPECTED. He then began to harass a man near us & was cursing & was just being extremely hostile. Everyone who was near us was just watching him in disgust & confusion because he was acting crazy! Don't know if he thought he could intimidate us because we were women? Power trip was insane. read more

Badlands - Security guard who was being extremely hostile & aggressive towards guests. POWER TRIP!! - Dance Clubs Near Me - Sacramento, California

Employees and security staff are often more inebreheted than the people they are supposed to be protecting, we have reported on multiple occasions the use of hard drugs in their bathrooms and nothing was ever done about it, not even stepping into the bathroom to check it out. Very sleazy and sad club. With the employees running around like they own the place either drunk or on something not a good experience. Drag shows are great still support just going where I feel more comfortable and protected read more

stopped by while in town on work. people were rude and not welcoming. drinks were mid at best. also smelled like a dirty bar towel. too many more inclusive options. read more

My favorite club in Sac! Always a good time. The staff is beautiful, friendly and fun. Also they're very good at keeping things safe. I've seen reviews from people complaining about security, they're doing their job people! If you were denied entry because of your fake ass ID, they scan them, so its not them being dicks. If you got kicked out for being too tipsy, that's for YOUR safety and the clubs as well. The music is fun, the gogos are amazing and there's plenty of space for dancing or chill. There's 3 bars, patio, couches on the mez and good vibes. Plus! You get a bonus bar with The Depot attached. What's there not to like?! read more

I visited Badlands for the first time on Thursday, 1/12/23. I loved how there wasn't a cover charge to get in that day. The music was very awesome. Everyone was super friendly and fun. Overall, I enjoyed the vibes. From now on, this will be my go-to club. read more

Came on a Thursday night, had a good exchange with the front. As we were making our way, a rude lady with a mullet stopped our party and said the only woman in our group was "overserved and swaying". Not only is this incorrect, it's sexist. Which is comical for a gay bar. We went across the street to Mango and Faces and had a great night. Don't waste your time or money here. EDIT: after checking out other 1 star reviews of their blatant racism too, forgot to mention my friend targeted is Asian. read more

First off I've never been here until last night to celebrate my girl friends birthday! All was fun we started off at Faces to see the vibe and then figured we liked badlands music vibe better. We stayed at bad lands order drinks and there were essentially less than 20 people there as it was a Wednesday. Throughout the night we go to the restrooms to then realize that their locks on ALL the bathroom stalls don't work or are broken, this lead to my and my girl friend walking into not 1 or 2 but 3 guys using the unisex bathroom. How ridiculous that the locks don't work. Poor people that we walked into but poor establishment. As the night goes on security approaches us, asking to speak outside. No problem we said and went outside. To our surprise we hear the security say that their manager saw us throw up in the bathroom, which is so far from true. And what were they in the bathroom stalking us... Creep get a life. Basically their restroom situation sucks and so does their manager for falsely accusing customers of something they didn't do. Be better than just assuming stuff and instead try fixing your bathroom locks. read more

Please play better music. the DJ is 100% ripping off the owners and the patrons by playing the same basic songs with an added zazzle of current pop girls. read more

This bar is not a safe place to be. Someone outside groped my girlfriend by grabbing her butt and when I went outside to confront the man, I was kicked out by the general manager. The staff claimed that they had handled the situation but when I was inside, I noticed the man still standing right outside. As I was getting kicked out, the staff mentioned that "he was gay and wouldn't touch her like that". It's unacceptable that this bar allows people to get groped outside then kicks people out who press this issue about that. Later I hear that my friend who were allowed in, heard the general manager saying it was the girls fault she got groped. Do not come to this place cause they'll allow sexual assault to happen in front of them. read more

Badlands is an institution, this post is solely to draw attention to a crowd control problem. The goal of a major Drag Race debut should be to enjoy the performance, but there are so many people here tonight it's three or four rows deep. The place is a mess, violating fire code with people on the stairs, people on stools and chairs, just way, way too packed. To management, please ticket for big events, and announce tickets weeks ahead of time, with excess capacity sold at the door. We paid $50 to see Sasha Colby and the best view we'll have had tonight is her walk from the meet and greet to the entrance while we waited in line. The bar can still make money with pre-sales, and at least everyone knows they'll be able to actually see the performance. To be clear, we paid $50 to see a performance and physically could not tonight. Looking forward to the meet and greet at Faces in two weeks, however ‍‍ read more

Badlands - Too many people - Dance Clubs Near Me - Sacramento, California

I love this place, it's always fun and I highly recommend coming for the drag race viewing parties and the live drag shows.

Horrible experience here. As I was waiting in line and going inside I got grouped by a man outside. I immediately told the man that he cannot touch me that way. We continued to enter inside and I told my partner what happened. He was obviously upset that random man touched me that way. He proceeded to go outside and confront the man about what happened. The general manager then told my partner "he wouldn't do that because he is gay". Shortly after the general manager came inside and got very aggressive in me and my friend' faces. We all then got kicked out. This situation was handled horribly. After we left, the management then told our friends who were still in line that it was MY FAULT. will never go back here. ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS. read more

Came here on a Thursday night. Staff was polite and friendly. There was no cover and security was quick and efficient. Drink specials were awesome and even though it was very crowded, service was fast. It was cash only and the drink prices were much better than across the street. The other people in the club were fun and friendly as well. The back area was having a drag show and it was very loud and the flashing strobe lights were intense. It was too crowded to see much of it anyhow, so we did not stay long in that area. We do enjoy these shows but decided to just enjoy the bar area this night instead. Security was present inside the bar area and it felt safe even with how crowded it was. I had read all the bad reviews about rudeness with security but we experienced the opposite. We also read about drinks getting spiked which I feel is a huge issue everywhere these days so we were very careful with our drinks and had no issues. I definitely will be back. read more

The bartender with the hair pulled in the back and shaved sides - ran over to fix a light issue after lights were turned on during a drag show. On his way, he decided to two hand push a Black female friend of mine while telling her to move. Not just push - but a two hand forceful, disrespectful, and unnecessary shove. I saw the entire thing and need their management to review their cameras from this evening around 9pm and reach out to me. I plan to follow up with a police report for physical assault if the establishment doesn't properly investigate - I contacted numerous staff members. Everyone is extremely nonchalant and I am sick of the Sacramento queer scene not showing respect for all people - especially Black folks, women included. Literally no one cared and once the cameras are reviewed, management will see why this would be deemed physical assault. He must've been on a drug or blatantly out of his mind. We had just gotten there and ordered one drink each, before this happened. Not worth this sort of experience whatsoever and I would urge the establishment to have due diligence in releasing that individual from their staff immediately prior to me contacting counsel Monday. read more

We went to Badlands to enjoy the camaraderie of fellow Ru Paul Drag Race watchers. Had a great time. Drinks were really good. Staff on point. We stayed for the local drag show which was also good. The thing that ruined it was the put downs of white people and the political comments of stopping the genocide. As a person of the white color, why would I want to go and get attacked. I guess as a gay man, I want to feel welcomed by my fellow gay family. Certainly not to have the division from the outside world brought in and thrown in my face. It's drag, why's it gotta be about race. read more

Badlands - Scenery - Dance Clubs Near Me - Sacramento, California

I used to frequent the Lavender District quite a bit preCOVID but this was my first time back and it dawned on me that maybe I haven't been to Badlands in YEARS because I do not remember it being 3 stories (bottom is strictly urinals), nor do I remember a cover charge. Either way, we came on a Sunday for Pride week, cover is $10 cash and there is an ATM around the corner from The Depot. The bar does take debit and credit tho. Once inside it was a mad house. It felt well over capacity and I felt like a little sardine in a can. Getting a drink from the main area was horrible. The bartender didn't pay any attention to the side of his bar and attended to all the patrons who were able to squeeze in to the front of the bar area. It took 15+ minutes to get a drink. We were charged $14 for a rum and coke and corona, not too bad. We tried to make our way to the dance floor but that was not going to happen, way too many people and you couldn't move. We went upstairs and it was way less crowded and had empty spots to sit. We finished our drinks and attempted to get another round from the bartender upstairs. She was rude AF! Never smiled nor acknowledged anyone and gave so much attitude even when everyone was nice to her. Not to mention our rum and coke and corona with her was $18! What?! The last straw were the bathrooms. I know any clubs bathrooms can be horrendous but these smelled so bad and I almost slipped and fell from all the pee on the floor. Other than that the music was good, just wished there was more room to dance. For the cover and how small it is, Faces is probably a safer bet next time. read more

I went there with my friends tonight I was on my way back from the bathroom and one of the employees just physically shoved me out of the way and said look out. I'm in a hurry and when I tried to talk to him to see why he would do that he told me to go fuck myself. So I talked to the manager about it and he told me to get over it that he was busy. This place is terrible and I will never go back. read more

Badlands is a racist and prejudice establishment. I say this because of the horrible experience me and my friends (who are POC) experienced on their "Juneteenth" themed Thirsty Thursdays. Now usually Ive enjoyed Thirsty Thursdays because of the gogo dancers and the music. However, on Juneteenth Night, they did not play any hip-hop or a majority of black artists! The music was consistently pop & house music from white artists. So when my friends and I went up to the DJ and tried to politely ask to play some black artists, SHE IGNORED US! Several minutes later, we witnessed other black people going up to the DJ box to request more hip-hop music or music by black artists and they were ignored as well! So we asked one of gogo dancers (who was POC btw) to request music from black artists and apparently she ignored him too!!! Next, I decided to take this up to management. I asked the security guards, bar staff, and hostess to speak to management about how the music and to make a complaint about the DJ, but everyone brushed me off and ignored me. As a gay POC man, I felt utterly rejected, ignored, and frustrated on a night that was themed for my community. And in my opinion, I believe this night was a performative night in order to make money off of POC people and the Juneteenth holiday. Because POC people that night were ignored and rejected on holiday which is dedicated to us. If you are a POC or a LGBT POC, please take your money elsewhere. This racist and prejudice establishment DOES NOT deserve our money, our time, our energy, or our business. read more

I have been denied access to this establishment multiple times. I showed up with my girlfriend last night after one, pre-game drink and the bouncer told me to "try faces". I am a friendly person and love to chat with security and bouncers, but every time I walk up to badlands they got a stank look on their face. It didn't feel good. read more

Initial security was very sweet, but I had a shooter and a taser/pepper spray in my purse. She said I couldn't come in with those in, which is understandable, so I threw away the shooters then stored my taser and pepper spray with a different security guard at the merc. I walked all the way back to get back in now that I had complied with their terms, and they said I was "denied for the night" since they had already seen those items on me. My friends had already gotten in and paid the 15$ cover charge. There was no arguing with them as they just refused my service and my friends had to come back out in order to not leave me alone. I completely understand the policy on bringing in alcohol and potential weapons, however I think it's ridiculous that I was still denied after complying with their terms and that no refund was given to my friends under these circumstances. I don't recommend this bar, but the people and drinks at the merc down the street are very lovely and I recommend going there instead! read more

I don't like having sometime place their hands on me especially when you don't indicate that you're not able to take a drink from one place to another yet it's the same establishment. It's dirty and nasty. And the customer service with the bartenders is crap. read more

I fucking love this place. The bartenders are always so nice and make the best drinks!! If you want have a good night got to badland.

The security forces my bathroom door open while I was undressed using the toilet for other patrons to see