I used to always go to dimples but my homies went to pagoda and they should really change their name to paGOATa. I really liked the chill vibes there and the bartenders were super cool! Here you actually don't have a big stage and you don't have to pay for songs. Where as at dimples you need to pay per song but you get a big stage to show your skills. However, depending on what you're feeling I think there is a place for everyone! You got some chips as a snack and you just order your drink and pick your songs! They had a huge selection of songs. It was fun! Definitely will be back next time and bring all of my friends. Thank you for the great vibes and great service! read more

so sad i'm making this review but i feel like i should warn people... this used to be my go-to karaoke spot but i honestly don't think i'll ever come back. not sure if it's under new management but there was definitely rude dare i say racist behavior towards me and my friends the whole night. we were there for an hour and they didn't play any of our songs but played tables that came after us, insisted we keeping buying drinks even though we haven't sang, and gave every table free chips but us... Im really disappointed with this place and not sure what changed but if you're a POC maybe consider a different karaoke spot. read more

This place is alright. The one thing I really dislike about this bar is how they run their karaoke. They will keep moving back your songs if you give them money or idk. It's straight anarchy. This is a bar that's fun if your already wasted There is no food served and the drinks are fine, just well drinks or mixed drinks and beer. The service is fast and it's fine when it's not too crowded. But when it's crowded I don't enjoy it. read more

If I can do less than 1 star I would. I wasn't sure about to delete this yelp app but I have to make sure I made this review. Me and my friend got 2 Shirley temples. The Shirley temples were 14 DOLLARS EACH. IVE NEVER HAD SUCH AN EXPENSIVE SHIRLEY TEMPLE IN MY LIFE. Now hear this. They also decided treated me and my friend terribly. They ignored my karaoke requests and took other peoples requests before me when I was waiting for 4 minutes. Like I was standing there for four min with my hand out and they blatantly ignored more then a person approaches with paper in hand and they take their request immediately. Also gathered trash right next to my friend and tried to take her chips prematurely when she clearly was still snacking on them. So they are insolent and expensive. I'm never coming here again. read more

Came here for a friend's birthday on a Saturday night at about 8:30 PM. We snagged some couches and a table for our big party, and it was sparsely populated when we got there but filled up as the night went on. Their songbook is organized by songs in alphabetical order, which made it difficult to peruse. They have a sheet at the front with new songs that are more popular at the moment. Because it's free karaoke, the queue for songs took a long time, but we got to sing quite a few songs still! The rest of the crowd at the bar also passed the vibe check -- everyone was cheering and singing along as well, so the camaraderie was there with all of these strangers. We had so much fun, they even gave my friend a free bottle of soju because it was her birthday. If you're looking for a fun activity that's free, check this place out! read more

Pagoda - Inside - Dive Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

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We decided to go to this place and sing our hearts out on Memorial Day. And they're the one that was opened that day. It was great co not many ppl were there and we got to sing our songs one after another. The bartender is wonderful !! This is the second time I've been here and I enjoyed it each time. The song selection is old fashion phone book And mostly are old songs but were old so it was good for us. My friends and I had an amazing time. Definitely will go back again !! read more

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Spent 78$ and was here from 11:30 to 2:00. They didn't let us sing a single song and said there were too many when we asked about it. 한국 사람들은 피해도 될 듯... 78불 쓰고 2시간 반을 기다렸는데 한 곡도 못 부르는게 말이 되나요?? 저희 곡이 계속 예약리스트에서 밀리는게 보이는데 거짓말 하시는게 재밌으세요??? If it wasn't for Son who offered us an apology and was super pleasant, this place doesn't deserve a single star. You better be paying him an absurd amount of money because he's the ONLY reason I would ever consider going back. read more

This isn't your average karaoke bar. This place can be a fun time or not, depending on the vibes you're looking for. Pagoda has been around for awhile and surprisingly survived the pandemic while others nearby have shuttered their doors. Located directly across the street from the Peace Plaza/Japantown mall, you would go down these sketchy stairs to find Pagoda. Pagoda is an open-mic karaoke bar that can have amazing singers or bad singers. To request a song, you would review the 2-3 inch binders sitting on the tables and you write down the song # you want, then give it to the bartender. While you wait, I recommend ordering a drink. The "free sides" they offer here are mini bags of chips and great when you been singing your heart out and drinking. I wouldn't say Pagoda drinks are the best, as I think their cocktails are watered down, but it feels like a vibe just being here. 90% of the time, I always a fun time with my colleagues and friends. Definitely a fun place to be if you're in the area. read more

My roommate and I were introduced to this karaoke bar from an old coworker and friend. Even when we were college students just working at Chipotle, this was one of our go-to spots. At first, this place was a little intimidating since it's located at the bottom of the stairs of a building at the intersection of Japantown. Sometimes there are homeless people sleeping by the stairs, but they have never bothered us anytime we have gone. Once you reach the bottom of the stairs, you walk into a multi-colored bar with maybe three tables across the bar. This place is one of three karaoke bars I have been to in the city but have heard they have the best deal since you don't have to pay for songs like neighboring bars (from what I've heard). The ladies working here have always been so friendly to us every time we've gone and always kept us stocked with snacks. We have made many acquaintances through the ladies working and even met a chef from a nearby restaurant who shared his bread with them who in return shared it with us. This place isn't necessarily the best looking, but the vibes and service have always been outstanding in my eyes. If you're looking for a good time, this bar is a good place to spend time listening to people sing their hearts out over a cocktail or five. read more

Pagoda - a bar with a lot of liquor bottles - Dive Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

This place is a freaking shit show. I ordered few songs and told me that it'll be like 1 hour away, but actually, skipped our song, and playe other people's song and never Played ours. DO NOT GO THERE IF U ACTUALLY WANNA SING OR GET NORMAL TREATMENT. They lie to u and just not gonna help u. It was the owner who helped us!!! So this was really fucked up. read more

Had such a fun time here. No stage so you can sing right at your booth. Great staff and plenty of drink options. The karaoke is free so just come in and have a good time. read more

Pagoda - Dive Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

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My friends and I have been coming to Pagoda on Sunday nights and have really enjoyed it. The bartender (didn't get his name sorry!), despite being the only worker on the floor, handles both drinks and karaoke. He's always friendly and the queue for karaoke runs smooth and fair. We also love the chill ambiance and crowd. read more

Pagoda - Great service! - Dive Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

Wish I could give a zero but that's not an option. My sister wasn't 21 so they kicked us out but after we already paid for the juke box. It was our friend's 21st and wanted to do 21 shots. Horrible customer service. Don't go here! read more

We went here for karaoke on a Saturday night and they had free songs and snacks. It was great! There is no stage. You sing from your seat or wherever you choose to stand. There are couches and tables with books of songs to choose from. read more

They are completely passive aggressive AF. Won't respect that you've had too many and pressure you to have a drink in order to sing. They're highkey racist to POC as well one too many occasions it's a rude ass vibe. And purposely will skip your song if they don't like you!! They're better karaoke spots. COUNT YOUR DAYS PAGODA 304!! read more

Workers friendly and sound system are good. Happy place nice ambiance . I really love Pagoda.

This place is racist against black people. I put in a song, while the place was mostly empty, they didn't put in my song. I then watched a tier black person put in a song and the staff behind the bar l looked at it and put it aside. They didn't add it to the queue like I saw them do with other people who submitted songs to the same staff members. read more

Came here for the karaoke bar and loved the vibe. There's two mics, no stage, just sit at the bar and sing or sing from the table. Sing from the hallway, he'll, just sing from the restroom--the entrance! So relaxed. Was advised to bring dollar bills to tip the bartender when you add your song to the list. There's a decent selection of 90s-2000s music and the classics (think, Frank Sinatra "My Way"). What we didn't know is that they ping ping the selections by table, so other parties will get priority if someone in your party just sang. This is annoying if you take over someone else's song. But otherwise the drinks came in small pitchers for about $30. They're refreshing chu-hi style drinks but the frozen daiquiri kind. Wish they would give us water (did they sell any? Idk.) My advice would be to install a vending machine outside the entrance and sell water and snacks because we could use those. Oh and a change machine cause we need to keep those songs going! read more

Pagoda - a bar with a television and neon lights - Dive Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

If I could give this place 0 stars I would. We walked in with a group of 12 people. There weren't many people there so the bartender told us to choose out of two tables. We ordered drinks and immediately started requesting songs for karaoke. We turned in about 8 requests. A little while later, a big group of about 10 people walked in. We noticed they were hugging one of the people that worked there possibly the owner (idk). Next thing we know, all our songs were skipped and they had the mic the entire night until they left. We complained to the lady who hugged them that none of our songs had been played. She told us that they gave her a tip and ordered bottle service. Oddly enough, there was no bottle in site and we equally had ordered enough drinks and shots to have spent the same amount of money. Once the group started leaving, the lady came over and asked us what was one of the songs we requested and we said no thank you and walked out. Terrible business management. If you only want people you know to enjoy the space, then make it a private venue because we are all spending the same amount of money and deserve equal customer service. Not returning again. read more

Figured out why my karaoke songs never came up the first time around. Apparently, they have a preferential tipping system. So if you tip, your song gets priority, but if not, you might be waiting awhile. I didn't mind the tipping system per se, but what bothered me was that some of my friends tipped very generously and only got one song in. They don't track how much you are giving them. If you give them $1, $5, or $10, that's one song. We mistakenly believed that $10 meant we'd be taken care of the whole night. Not the case. We actually ended up leaving after it happened to multiple people in our group. I still enjoy their frozen soju drinks and complimentary snacks, but just be aware to tip $1 per song and no more. If not, there's always Dimples next door, which charges a flat rate ($5 for 2 songs) with much better sound quality and customer service. read more

super cute karaoke bar. drinks are good, and they provide snacks for free. no full meals here, though. love the vibes and people who come in, generally a very welcoming environment. hostess does her best to accommodate everyone. read more

My friends and I came here this past weekend because our reservations at another karaoke lounge was cancelled due a facility issue, so we decided to check out this place. It's an open mic lounge so we thought it was pretty cool at first. We were a group of 10 people and there wasn't many people when we got there. We sat down and ordered a round of drinks and put in some song requests. Another group came in after and suddenly already had the mic to karaoke. We thought it was odd but didn't think too much of it. We get rounds of shots and after a while, we notice the last several songs were all from the same group. We ask the bartender about our songs and her response was, "we need to earn our tips and that group ordered bottle service." Obviously our rounds of drinks did not deserve the respect and fair treatment as a patron. We were planning to get more drinks but after hearing that, we just finished our drinks and went to Dimples that had a private karaoke room available. Definitely would not recommend going here unless you plan to spend more than everyone else. The bartenders never smiled and did not look friendly at all. Expect to be ignored or treated horribly like all of the low ratings given. read more

Went here with my gf for lunar new year(2024). You can find better service at a 7-11. The bartender ignored us for about 15 min while serving everyone else that came up to her after us. The entire time we were at the bar, the bartender was shooting my girlfriend dirty looks. It wasn't until I approached the bartender by myself that she decided to serve me but not before she snatched my card to pay for it. I regret tipping anything. They did give us a pack of chips after our first purchase and I guess that was to hold us over until we were served again 20 min later. It was very clear that the ladies behind the bar are RACIST! Drinks were as watered down as the atmosphere. Do yourself a favor and go to the corner store for better drinks and entertainment. Happy lunar year.. Tl;dr bad karaoke, even worse bartenders. read more

Came here last Saturday 12/9/23 around 10 pm w/ a group . We ordered drinks , etc waited for more than an hour and not anyone of us was able to sing . We gave up and left . The table next to us seemed to monopolize the karaoke and management didn't care at all . What a waste of time . read more

I like the crowd there. There were 9 of us there celebrating my friend's birthday. We put in a song request but never got to sing it they let their friends/regulars sing. We left after waited for an hour. What a joke. read more

My friends and I were visiting San Francisco and ended up having a blast here. We stopped in at 10pm on Tuesday. There weren't many people there but as soon as we started singing, dancing and enjoying drinks, the party started! We met a group of friendly locals and ended up being there all the way to last call (2am). The two bar tenders were so sweet and brought us Pringles and beef jerky while we sat and sang the night away. HIGHLY recommend the peach Soju cocktail. At the end of the night it started to pour rain and the two bartender ladies brought us each an umbrella to go home with! She said they were old from lost and found and had been left behind forever. This was SO beyond sweet of them. We will never forget this fun night! It was definitely one of the biggest highlights of our trip. read more

Pagoda - The entrance - Dive Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

I've been a customer at pagoda for 10 years. In the past, the woman who worked there, and I believe owned the bar, had been amazing and she is a large part of the reason we have been repeat customers. Last night I went with friends that also have been customers for the same 10 years. Unfortunately, there was a man at the bar who completely dominated karaoke the entire night. At one point, my friend was singing and this guy took the mic from him to sing the song himself. Issue with the bar: the women working did nothing about it and continued to let this man sing every song for the rest of the night. When I let them know he took the mic, they didn't stop the song even.... their response was that they couldn't do anything and we should take it back. Frankly, none of us wanted to get into a fight, which this man was ready to do, so we didn't do that. They lost multiple 10 year, 25%+ tip returning customers so they could get one good tip for one night. Will not be back. read more

The pagoda is my go-to karaoke spot to bring friends and have a good time. No private rooms, just the bar, some seats and two microphones. Everyone starts out a little shy since you're singing in front of strangers and maybe a little too sober to get comfortable. Then you start drinking, laughing with the people next to you, and Soon enough you're singing with strangers who almost feel like friends. I try to avoid super busy nights but overall it's a fun place to be. Idk, I'm used to dive/small bar culture so the things everyone's put off by are things I expect. The bartenders are tough, sometimes friendly but sometimes not lol that's just the way it goes. Not every night is gonna be a hit but I've definitely had more great times there than any other karaoke bar in the city read more

I've been coming here for more than 12 years and was one of the first back in when the pandemic was over. The bar is the bar. There will be drunk people trying to hog the mic but that's what you get when it's open mic scene. If you want to sing the song yourself just take both mics. It's always someone birthday so get ready for the crowds and loud yelling. I love it. If you want to take your time and sing come on a Monday or Tuesday very few people so the mic is all yours. If you come you may see me practicing a few songs.. closure song Frank My Way -- I love this bar. People that hate this bar are too entitled and need to tie their own shoes and get out of the stroller and walk. :) read more

It was my first time going to this bar in Japantown. I went here with my father and checked it out. I went here a bit earlier and it was empty and there was just a lot of older Asian men there. I ordered a Pina Colada and it turned out alright. Also, I noticed that the drinks were beyond expensive I thought even for SF. Like 7 dollars for a beer and a bottle of water. However, the lady behind the bar was nice to us and we sang some Karaoke songs. There was a little bit of commotion because there was a person standing in the corner near the restroom for a long time, and he went in there with another guy doing who knows what in there and the lady go very mad at them. Overall, pretty decent place and its a great spot to hang out. read more

Don't think this place is considered Adult Entertainment However, it is a pretty mediocre dive bar. Even though it's literally at the centre of Japantown, there is relatively little traffic to this place, and once you step in, the entire store is actually very small. The drinks are nothing to write home about, and they give you lots and lots of salty snacks to make sure you keep ordering drinks when you get thirsty. The place reminds me of Dimples, another basement dive bar a few steps away. All in all, a pretty quiet place to have a beer, if you want to avoid the crowd. Don't expect much other than simple beer though. read more

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Very Friendly Service and Excellent sound system for the Performer desiring to present a song to the Audience.

Nice looking place. Horrible service. The lady at the bar is not kind at all. She just seems rude and impatient at every customer. Keeps shouting at people for their choice of songs. Do not recomment at all. read more

I wish I can rate this place 0 stars the worst experience I ever came across... it's hurts me to say this but if your black/African American like me do not come here it was giving very much racist vibes!!! And to be honest I am not the type to throw race into anything!!! But man oh man this place is horrible I came here late night for karaoke! Free karaoke as they say!!! and a drink, I wasn't even inside for 5 minutes and the lady is like you need to buy a drink before you sing like really pressuring me I didn't even get a chance to order!!! Her exact words "everybody come here and say free karaoke, and it's not free unless you buy drink" at this point I'm like wait, where is this coming from?????? I honestly couldn't believe this was happening to me like is she serious??? I honestly had to record because the way she was acting was so absurd!!! Remind you when we first walked in my best friend ordered a drink no question! This lady never even gave me a chance to order before she went off!!! I'm still in shock as I write this review like wtf just happened?? Horrible horrible experience lol will not EVER RETURN!!!! I had to go next door to DIMPLES where I was treated way better! And with respect! All I have to say is if the karaoke isn't free maybe you guys should include that in your description instead of lying to try to manipulate people Into your bar!! Buying a drink was never a problem it's just the way she approached me and her reaction!!! Horrible horrible!! I do not recommend I do not recommend read more

Pagoda - a welcome sign for a free karaoke and sidefish come on in - Dive Bars Near Me - San Francisco, California

Waited 20 minutes for the song I requested and when it finally came on two men at the bar had the remote and skipped my song I will not return 0/10 read more

I've gone here a few times, and every single time I've gone the owner or one of the workers is SO rude. I honestly don't know why, as me and my friends always tip and bring business to this bar. I noticed when I go there with a big group, that's when the same lady starts to be rude and look unhappy. One time she was taking glasses from our tables and she starts kicking our bags!!! They weren't even in her way, they were tucked under the table. I do not want to support this business anymore and have been sharing my experiences with my friends. read more

Terrible experience, not only did the owner give our group of nasty look , but we spent $300 + but intentionally skipped our song on the open karaoke... the soda machine is flat and tables un sanitary. No one checked if anyone had Covid vaccine nor anyone complied to the 6 feet social distancing.. This is definitely a plan C type of bar. read more

Listen. Any bad reviews are just from sad drunk people. This place is awesome if you're out late with your friends and want to act a fool. Don't expect much, but if you're out past 12am would you normally? No. Tip well. Say thank you, and I promise you'll have the best time. read more

Walking around Japantown and my fiancé and I hear karaoke coming from downstairs. Went to check it out and had so much fun. Great song selections and we loved the bartender. She was so friendly and we loved the random snacks. This is a place I would definitely come back to. read more

This is such a random "hole in the wall" spot in japantown. We stumbled upon it late one night when we heard the karaoke and went and checked it out. Think karaoke, but in one area so it is a group effort. I think it was especially fun the night we went because of the groups that were there. The bartenders are amazing and try to feed you snacks the whole time. They brought out pretzels, nuts, and watermelon. The drinks were strong and inexpensive. The karaoke was a blast. I will say that as it became later, what appeared to be the regular crowd rolled in and the environment was less desirable. The bar was unlike any other I've been to just with the vibes and bartenders and I loved it. read more