First time checking out Retro Junkie. This visit included the Coldplay cover-band Yellow. The drinks were a little weak, the sound had a little too much reverb, and the cover was a little too pricy. (If you pre-purchase tickets early you get a discount.) But we will definitely be back to see if this visit was the norm and check out another band. read more

Retro Junkie - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Walnut Creek, California

Turned away at the door because "no sports attire" Mind you I've watched Super Bowl parties here. Mind you I saw no fewer than a half dozen dudes wearing ball caps. But I guess that's okay because they didn't have a specific team on them? Mike you the whole theme of this place is games but if you have a sports game that's a problem. Lame. Last time I was here the bartender was pouting the whole time. I guess they are just setting a miserable vibe now. No wonder attendance here has fallen way off. read more

My partner is in two coverbands and both of them played in one night ar Retro Junkie. This place has a pool table in the back and a very nice bar. Lots of seating and tables. Servers are super friendly and welcoming and lots and lots of free parking on the nearby streets. What's not to like? They had a really nice wheat beer for me and some nice IPA's for my partner. There are a number of food joints nearby from pizza to gourmet Mexican. If you hear live music, stop by. You won't be sorry. read more

Trivia had oddly hard questions, probably more geared towards their regulars. The karaoke was very fun and the bartender was amazing.

Best place to see live music in the East Bay! We see many tribute bands here and they are all amazing musicians. Going to see NIN and Tool bands in a few weeks. Can't wait! Rock on! read more

I like this spot! Its eclectic clientele is kinda cool. But beware there is almost always a $10 cover. Tuesday is bachata/salsa which is cool to go dance (but they need a better playlist bc I swear the DJ just googled some songs and played them- they never play the REAL OG artists like Marc Anthony, prince royce, Romeo santos, aventura etc). They have karaoke (fun!!!) too during the weekdays and cool cover bands on the weekends. The pool tables are in the back and I enjoy that area if you're not going to be dancing or singing. read more

Fantastic place super friendly staff awesome music love all the cover band s and some weekdays are free if you register ahead of time online lots of moving air so its never too hot just wish they didn't use a smoke machine as it gets too smokey when the dont turn all the fans on otherwise fabulous times all the time!!! read more

Never going here again. They consistently feature cringey terrible bands full of wanna be musicians who can barely play their instruments. It would be ok if it weren't such a douchey venue and overall vibe. Their staff is rude and unprofessional. read more

This place is fun but the drinks are expensive! They have lots of great live bands, mostly cover bands though. It would be great to add more local bands too! read more

This iplace is like a time warp!! I was born in 81' and it's nice to be transmuted back into time! I love the vintage vibes and hearing the music I grew up with. I love the decor and the ambiance, and most of the people that work there are super friendly and chill, I don't go there a lot but they still remember me. Also, the crowd is pretty cool, very respectful masculine energy there. read more

I had my "not old but retro" 45th birthday party here and we all had so much fun! I reserved one of the VIP tables during the Britney Spears Tribute night. It was the most fun I've had in a long time! The bartender wait staff was very attentive and made sure we had all the drinks we needed. We enjoyed the cocktails - I believe one was called "Duck Duck Goose" which had the cutest holiday rubber ducky's on top that we got to keep as souvenirs. My party also enjoyed the taco pop up in the back and they said it was some of the best birria tacos they ever had. We had a blast sipping on drinks, eating tacos, singing, and dancing along with both tribute bands! We would definitely come back and do it again! Thank you Retro Junkie for helping me celebrate my 45th! read more

I'm not too upset about the lack of seating because the music kept me moving. The drinks were greatly priced but there was a steep cover charge for entry read more

Best place in the east bay for a night out! Retro junkie in the place to be! Great tribute bands, a DJ late night, killer cocktails and fun events! Always a fun time here! read more

We had a good time. The bar is cool. Not to say, its always a good time when live bands are playing!!!

Looking for a cool spot on a Tuesday night? Retro Junkie is the place to be. I visited for the first time and can't wait to come back again when in the area. They have salsa lessons on Tuesdays, which was so fun! It's good for all dance levels. It only costed $10 for the lesson which was a hour long. The instructor was amazing and so kind with everyone. After the lesson, it's an open dance floor for several hours. It was a wide range of ages and dancers. The drinks were also good, just wished they had happy hour on Tuesdays. The bartender was super nice and made us great drinks! read more

Retro Junkie - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Walnut Creek, California

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Further update on my review the business owner Karen does not believe that the customer is always right. Based upon the footage that is on my camera you can clearly see that my friend got the okay to wear his hat inside your establishment. Instead we were kicked out and lost our $120 dollars. Please run your business better. read more

Retro Junkie - Vinny who kicked us out - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Walnut Creek, California

My favorite place to time travel in the east bay. Any 70s 80s or 90s child will see something on the wall and say out loud "omg that's amazing". Last night mine was the hidden in plain sight karate kid corner. The owners and staff are always kind and quick with showing everyone a good time. Shows are top tier and if you can get in on the George Michael tribute...do it. He always packs the place and his look, moves and voice are spot on. Thank you Retro Junkie for another wonderful night! read more

Retro Junkie - George Michael is that you??? - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Walnut Creek, California

Cheap drinks Cover band great Taco van outback for snacks Huey Lewis Cover Parking in back. Door Security read more

Had a great time here, have been here a few times now. Most effective Vodka Diet Coke in Confra Costa County AND the movies are free :) read more

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I wanted to try this place again after a long time. I was unfortunately disappointed yet again. They removed all the pinball machines except for one. 2 single jack n cokes were $30. Overpriced. Underwhelming. read more

Great bar for live retro music! Always a great time! Really nice staff and great space.

DJ was amazing! Drinks were good and service was quick. Crowd was a mix of everything and all ages.

Fun & neat spot in Walnut Creek for live cover bands & lots of dancing. They always have great DJs after the bands play. Safe & parking in the back. Staff are friendly. We've been there multiple times & always a great time. There is cover charge & buying ticket earlier is a discount. read more

Retro Junkie - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Walnut Creek, California

Good time, live music gets poppin. 2 decent pool tables in the back. Service is decent, find a good bartender and stick to him/her. No food in house but sometimes they have a little taco stand in the back. read more

It's in Walnut Creek. If you're brown, be warned the bouncers didn't let us in. No reason was given. Absolutely disheartening. It was a bald white man. read more

This place used to be reasonably priced. Cost of the table went to your bar tab and there was a food truck in the garden as they don't serve food. Ambiance was great with the older crowd and 90-early 2000 DJ music after live performances. The bands we've seen were always top notch. However, this last time about a month ago the service has declined and cost increased. My husband and I are disabled so we usually reserve a table. The cost of the table now goes toward the cover charge, on top of that you need to spend at least $125 on your bar tab. Then they add 25% gratuity for a waitress than disappeared after a couple round of drinks. Do you're looking at min $250 for 5 people + $35+ tip for very subpar service. Garden is gone and no more food truck but you can bring your own food in. Such a shame since we really enjoyed it while it was good but it's not worth it to me when many other places have live music and you have need a minimum bar tab and automatic gratuityS read more

I love going here. It's fun and we get good service. However, please put your drink minimum charge on your website. I rented a table for $125, had a fabulous time, with great music and great service. I emailed the club two business days before the event and did not get a reply. Come to find out, the drink minimum for a table is an additional $125. Fine! But post it somewhere, anywhere on the website. read more

Awesome ambience in this place really. Service was good too female bartenders were awesome one actually found me a seat in a crowded room so sweet. I thought the cover charge was high though $20 at 7:30 PM was a bit pricey I thought but it's an awesome place. If you like live music and dancing and you should check it out for sure. Next time I'm in Walnut Creek I'll be back. read more

Allowed entry, but weren't clear about the rules of reentry. Paid $30 to get in on a Saturday night was only inside for maybe 40 minutes. Went outside to get some fresh air and was not allowed to come back in... very disappointed! read more

I get my dance on! Its cheap and fun. I dont drink so I'd rather pay the ticket fee. Staff is groovy, place is chill. Parking is rough if it's a hot band but usually great before 730 read more

This was my 2nd time coming here for a birthday party. If you love a nostalgic vibe, retro music and a good time, you will love Retro Junkie! We had a great time! The drinks were delicious. The vintage arcade games took us back in time and were fun. I love to support live music, very cool!! The staff was very friendly and professional, I felt safe and welcome, part of the Retro club! I highly recommend going!! read more

Had a great night here last night! The cover band saying Maroon 5 songs and were really fun. The rest of the music was really good. Our group ages were mid 30s and mid 50s. There was a variety of ages from young to older. We really don't go out to places like this anymore but it was an absolute blast. The vibe was really fun. Everyone was really nice. Service was good and the drinks were excellent, way better than I would've expected. Our kids who are in their 20s want to go with us next time! read more

Crazy security guards. Got thrown out by security with my GF since I by mistake went into the wrong bathroom. There was no one in the bathroom and it was an honest mistake. Totally overreacting and I can see most of the complaints are similar to mine with security. Get some guards that don't overreact. First and last time there! Don't ever get a mixed drink there - they are awful - stick to the about $10 beers. And it would be great if they had at least a halfway decent music system - it wasn't good. M read more

Terribly unprofessional security staff working here who make it their mission to antagonize paying customers if they don't like you.

I love Retro-Junkie! I was born in 1972 and am definitely a retro junkie! The 80's had the best music in my opinion. I really enjoy the laid back vibe here. I like to dance a lot and this place has the space I need to shake my booty to the older super cool music. The video games add that retro 80's feel that my older crowd grew up on. It's nice to sit down relax, grab a drink and watch people like me tweak out on the dance floor to Cyndi Lauper. read more

The tribute shows are a blast (buy tickets ahead of time). Also, it can be fun to stop by and play pool or arcade games with friends. However, the place loses much appeal when there aren't tribute shows. For the past few years, they had an outdoor area where you could grab some fresh air, hold conversations with people without the music drowning you out, and even grab a snack from food trucks. Recently they lost the permit for the outdoor area, which sucks but is fine- the issue is they don't seem to realize the value they lost when that happened. They're still charging the same expensive cover as before, even though the experience is much worse now. The service is good, but unless it's really energetic that night, the experience feels super lackluster compared to other Walnut Creek venues when you consider that it's also pay to enter. Really wish they'd drop the cover when they're low on customers, because paying to enter and then it being empty has ruined the experience the last few times I went. They also have some bizarre rules (not allowing you to wear sports merch, so they made my friend remove his hat and check it with them). Honestly, it would be a 4 if there was no cover, even without the outdoor area (potentially 5 with), but the last few times we went, my friends and I all agreed it wasn't worth the price of admission for all these reasons and more. read more

Great experience here!!! We walked in and they charged us cover ($15 each) the lady at the front was so friendly. There was a band playing and they were literally so good. I wish i got their name:( They had us order our drinks over the phone and they came pretty quickly. The piña colada and Dusk to Dawn were both very good, pretty strong. We gave the first a 9/10 and the second a 8.5/10 for taste. The music was super loud honestly so if your ears are sensitive I suggest bringing ear plugs lmfao. Other than that, the vibes here were great! Everyone was just having a great time The greatest way to top it off is the food truck they had outside. It was called King Gyro (highly recommend checking it out) i look forward to coming back again:-) read more

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Green Day performing as there alias the coverups at Retro Junkie in Downtown Walnut Creek, ridiculous to cry over there $20 cover, parking is free ya creeps ..... Support Small Business. read more

Retro Junkie - Green Day performing as there alias the coverups at Retro Junkie in Downtown Walnut Creek - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Walnut Creek, California

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My friends and I love this place for the friendly staff, easy parking, great drinks and especially THE MUSIC! They have the absolute best lineup of shows around, whether you like 80s, 90s, pop, metal, grunge, new wave, there's something for everyone! As others have pointed out, they lost something special when they lost their Covid-era permit for the outdoor beer garden. Gone are the days when you could meet up early, grab a pitcher of beer and some dinner from the food trucks and chill with your friends before a night of live music. No more dancing your cares away and then sitting outside for a drink and a heart to heart talk away from the crowds and noise. This wouldn't be quite so bad if there were any seating inside, but that's becoming a big problem too. No stools at the bar or around the perimeter, no bar tables and chairs by the pool tables, more and more seating being removed from around the dance floor. They seem very determined not to let you sit down at all unless you've paid extra for the privilege. Sometimes you need to rest your aching knees for a minute after an hour of dancing (we're here to see an 80s cover band, we are in our 50s people!!!) but don't want to rent a full table with a $125 drink minimum and 25% gratuity to do so. I have at least two friends- once hard core RJ regulars- who no longer join us because their foot and joint issues require frequent breaks from standing and that's not possible any more. I've had countless amazing, nostalgic, wild and memorable experiences here but we're starting to drift away in favor of alternatives where the seating isn't such a problem. Hope they're able and willing to bring back the beer garden one day! read more

My friend was performing here so I was on guestlist. There's parking available and when you first enter inside the venue, there's a cover fee and security check. The 9pm crowd was 40+yrs old enjoying the live music. You can order food from the food truck and sit and eat in their front yard patio with heated lamps. There's also an arcade and pool table to play. Around 11pm, it becomes a nightclub with a bunch of 20yr olds dancing on the floor. There was a lot of security being alert so it made me feel safe. It was my first time here and I had a great time. read more

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