I love the Rooster Fish, as I work in the neighbourhood and it's great to drop in for a post work drink. My only beef? They'll charge you $3.50 for a small glass of soda water. No exceptions. That doesn't make sense to me. read more

Sonia is the best bartender EVER. Not only is she kind and mixes a fucked up good cocktail- her playlists are INSANE. Anyone who can take me from Disclosure to Fiona Apple to The Weeknd to Tracy Chapman to Janet Jackson and then rounds it all out with some Amy Winehouse is a star in my book. read more

It was apparently pre-happy hour when we went in and each round was a buck more than the previous round? Oh well. The bar is a dive-ish joint in what seems to be a hip hip hip section of Venice. I guess you pay for the neighborhoods hipness? The bartender was nice and the crowd was friendly and fun yet not too friendly if yo get the drift. I really like the patio in the back. There was sun and shade and some good music playing, Nice eye candy too on a wednesday in the late afternoon! I will check it out next time I'm in Venice. Hopefully the drinks won't be Hollywood Club prices the next time. read more

We went for drinks and each round was a different price. The price kept going up! It was weird but whatever. The people on the patio were fun. We met a very strange man who in his mind was a very famous person. He told us so several times! That is what makes this place fun, you are in Venice and you are going to met some kooky people. It is hard to park but that is expected. Over all the place is cool, I'd go back. read more

hey folks. I came to your bar 10/31 bc/ it wasn't playing terrible club music, seemed like a crowd I could hang with. Wasn't there long, just a drink, tipped Travis $2 and borrowed a pen. Finished around closing time, came back to return the pen and touched a towel that was on the bar. I was told I "fucked it all up." So I left the pen there and left to have a smoke outside before getting on my rented bicycle (just visiting here). Having only one left I squinted down Abbot Kinney towards the major intersection. I approached your door guy with a friendly hello and asked him if there might be a gas station up there. He said "you're right," so I hopped on my bike towards the intersection. Didn't see the station, decided I would cross the street...maybe he meant much further down Abbott.... No luck, found myself on a darkened street where a couple street youts ran after me, one of them swinging and clipped my head. But I stayed on my bike making my way home safe enough. I guess I'll give him the benefit of a doubt and check out tomorrow if possibly I missed the station bc/ it was closed. But if I don't find a station there I got just one question: Why? You can't just answer a simple fucking question with decent manner, got to cop some attitude and send me down the rabbit hole? What's the end game about there? Signed, Tom Byrne, a visiting artist who's got to ask WTF?? read more

Great spot, cheap drinks, good music, quiet back area where you can smoke and just chillax, look up when your in the bathroom...

This place is my favorite bar in Venice: The crowd is amazing, very friendly, relaxed and open minded. Even though it is a gay bar, patrons and guests are very straight-friendly. The later the evening, the stronger the drinks and the more hedonistic the crowd. Big plus: acceptable pool table (hey, it's a bar and not a billiard hall) and $3-margaritas all Wednesday! If you are not into the hipster-scene of Venice but instead want to meet real people, this is the place! read more

First time back since they reopened. Happy to say I enjoy that it became an "Everyone Welcomed" Bar rather than only Gay bar it use to be. Although I did have a blast when it was only gay but definitely now I can attend with my guy and his guy friends. I am looking forward to there events and hopefully soon they will have some posted up on the website! Happy Hour is great anyday of the week! read more

Worst service ever! We went for a couple drinks while we waited for a table at a restaurant. Nobody was there to help, we asked for our drinks at the bar and seated for a while. My friend complained that the woman bartender was rude to her. So we decided to leave, but as the drinks costed +17 dollars each, we asked for recyclable cups so we could leave with our drinks. As we reached the door, the security guy was so rude and aggressive and kept yelled at us "get back inside now" with a loud voice and rage. As we are from another country and didn't get why we were commiting such crime for this behavior, we talked to him to understand. No dialogue was possible, and we needed to obey and get back inside terrifying. Extremely rude staff in charge of this place. But we should have imagined as the sign at the door says: "we have the right to refuse any person as client", so leave it to the rude staff to decide then. read more

Terrible service. The RUDE bartender/owner named Gary told me that i was sitting in a $100 seat (bc i was sitting at the bar with my friends who ordered Numerous drinks) and that if i wasn't ordering a drink i needed to move. He also said the same thing to another friend of mine who was just standing by the bar not in anyone's way. To prevent myself from getting upset and reaching across the bar to punch his short ass i stood up and told my male friend what he said. He then pulled Gary to the side to tell him how rude he was being and i stepped in very politely to tell him how he made me feel as a 1st time visitor. He listened to my friend talk but told me "i see your lips moving but i dont hear you ordering a drink so we have nothing to talk about". So i told him i refused to spend a DIME in a place with bad customer service and told my 7 friends its time to go. I my experience gay bars are usually very fun and inviting, but this place is NOTHING like that. My advice is NEVER go there! Don't support a place/owner who treats ppl unjustly for no reason. read more

My friend Melinda G. whom I was visiting, lives in Santa Monica, and Roosterfish was the closest gay bar to her apartment, so we decided to check it out on a Wednesday night, for a low-key night involving a few drinks and lots of chatting. Roosterfish has a dark and dingy but really comfortable and welcoming ethos. The drinks are affordable and the crowd is rather mixed between men and women as well age, though it definitely is predisposed towards 45+ crowd. There are a few pool tables in the back, and a dart board and some really random art on the walls. The pool tables are definitely the happening spot. The music is good, and the right volume... Soft enough to chat with the person next to you without raising your voice, and loud enough that people you talk about won't raise their eyebrows. Oh, and its $3 margarita night on Wednesdays! read more

After reading fellow reviews, I can definitely say this bar has a reputation for mistreating their customers. I understand all gay bars aren't supposed to be some place 20 something straight girls go to have a night out away from men picking up on them, but I went with a group of my friends to celebrate one of our gay friend's birthdays. He had been wanting to go check this bar out, so we went after dinner. Living in Long Beach and having a few friends who live in Brentwood, someone had to stay sober and drive some of the group home safely. When I asked for a water with my fellow DD, the balding short bartender behind the bar handed us water bottles. Since the bar was cash only, and neither of us had cash because we weren't drinking, we asked for tap. The bartender immediately became annoyed and slammed the glasses down. And while I had found a dollar in my purse thinking I would try to find spare bills to pay for the bottled water, when he obliged to give us tap, I put my bills back. My fiancé was behind me and planning on buying a beer so I was going to tell him to tip the bartender for our drinks as well. Until the bartender stopped pouring the tap water and had the nerve to say "OH. So where are those dollars you just had?!" I wasn't sure I heard him correctly; but he refused to finish pouring our waters until I gave him TWO DOLLARS FOR TAP WATER. Then he had the nerve to say, "Who orders water anyways??" To which my friend who was also DDing responded with, "We are driving our friends home tonight." The bartender responded with, "Well, you shouldn't be in a bar then." I told him someone had to stay sober to get everyone home safe and he repeated, "Then you SHOULDN'T be in a bar. We have an occupancy of 180 people and you two are wasting space." We were both so shocked and uncomfortable especially since we were with 10 other people who were buying plenty of alcohol and we obviously wanted to celebrate our friend's birthday. My fiancé went up to the bar to buy a drink, but when he heard the last quote from the bartender, he told him "I'm not buying a beer from you when you were rude to them," to which the bartender said, "Yea. I was rude." With no apology. Later, he walked out from behind the bar in attempt to talk badly about us to people nearby but didn't realize we had quite a large group of men with us, and he being so short, backed off immediately. We were also told by several people to stop standing near the bar top (even though there weren't any people scrambling to order drinks) and received very unwelcome looks from the other workers and regulars. I was shocked that any establishment that sells liquor (especially in a cop populated area like AK) would disrespect and harass a customer for being a safe driver. Based on the reviews from others I can see this is a norm for this place. I felt discriminated against for first of all being a straight female and for not drinking to the point where I made my group leave early because of all the hostile stares and comments from the bartenders. I don't want this review to discourage customers, but I hope it adds up with the other reviews to become a wake up call for the management and staff who read it. read more

From the outside this place looks so chic so my girlfriends and I walked in. There was what looked to be a male bartender and then a female standing just inside the bar but drinking a cocktail. Neither gave us the time of day as we walked in clearly intrigued but had so many questions. I made eye contact with the male bartender as we sat at a table. As about 5 minutes went by the male bartender just stood and talked to the girl so it was obvious I needed to get my own menu. The menu had a delicious sounding margarita finished with a wheatgrass foam. We had to walk back to the bar and ordered 3 of them. What we were served were 3 very basic margaritas. The bartender did not care what so ever and at this point the girl started making drinks so I suppose she also is a bartender. Neither seemed to care about much so 2 stars for the cool looking place, 1 star for drinks only because at least they poured liquor in the cup and 0 stars for service. If your in Venice do yourself a favor and pass this place up. read more

Short bartender made me wait and feel like a bother the whole time. Generous pour for the first round, so I gave a generous tip, I never forget my pleases and thank yous, or eye contact. We're talking whiskey and a splash of soda, nothing shaken or muddled. The second round tasted lighter, and I was charged $3.50 for my friend's club soda (from a bar gun), so I tipped a buck. I'd have left by then if it wasn't a friend's party. For the third round I only got a beer. When I made the judgement call not to tip, the entitled bartender caused a scene in front of everyone asking why I was trying to shaft him. He even asked if I was from this country. When I reminded him of my generous up front tip, he said "that's not how it works"! I don't need to be lectured on the back-and-forth of bar service. Prick. He had no time for me all night, and then suddenly he wants to take the piss out of me in front of all the other patrons? Forget that! A tip is earned. I was happy to see an Old Venice establishment surviving on Abbott Kinney. Their service is a shame on the old neighbourhood. read more

Yes, I am a proud hag. I prefer 'dive' bars like this over a uber trendy spot. The drinks are cheap. The crowd is fun. I've only been a handful of times over the years, but I always have a blast. read more

i was in dire need of a libation and the first bar i came across was the lovely and delightful roosterfish. i had already ordered my first drink before i realized it was a gay bar. my friend and i were supposed to be on a shopping trip but gaetano, the absolutely fabulous bartender, made such wonderful cocktails that we had to stay for at least 7 more! yes, i'm blaming it all on gaetano, his charming ways, his boyish good looks, his killer mixology...summer in a glass indeed! read more

Eveytime i go there is bad from my own personal experience, the bartenders are rud especially if your not a drinker or are rare with alcahol drinks, i'm still new to this but i remember once i asked the bartender whay he had or what he would recommend and gave me a bad attitude and told me"what you see here is what we got" and walked away and the people there are so stuck up and give dirty looks the the newbies, worst gay bar to go to. read more

We were there for First Fridays last week, and the bartender actually demanded a bigger tip than I had given him (which was a dollar per mixed drink) -- this after a 15min wait to order drinks and giving me two bottled waters instead of the tap water that I wanted. Later, he told off my slightly drunk female companion who was dehydrated and asked for water -- are you kidding me? I've received bad service before, but this was belligerently bad. If their goal was to keep breeders out, they win. Truly horrendous. read more

A local favorite. I love the bartenders, the graphic decor, the back patio, and $3 cape cods on Sundays. I always have a good time here and feel right at home. read more

The Roosterfish is the only gay bar on the West side. The drinks are stiff, and be ready to whip out the ID for the bouncer. This is throwback/hideaway is popular with skaters, surfers, and straight dudes alike. Fun jukebox, friendly crowd. Great patio in back, but if you're a vegetarian, beware the BBQ's burgers and bacon-wrapped dogs out there on Sunday afternoons! And be sure to look up at the ceiling in the bathroom. All said, I got lucky. You just might too! read more

came early on a friday night and it was not packed at all (yay). snagged a spot in the lot behind the bar, and played a round of pool (badly). the bartender was really friendly and made me a killer cosmo. read more

ill be roosting my fish there again! this place is great, it had venice locals and some gay scenes and a few girls and more guys... they have a nice dart board and a level pool table and comfortable non-awkward seating and chill background music, i'm coming back here! went on thursday night and bartender was really friendly, and only $4.50 for a beer. it wasn't trashy at all so the straight people won't feel awkward. read more

Feels like walking into some local bar in texas. Not as friendly as I expected.

Oh afternoon at the RF is very nice. Low key and pleasant in the back area, Like a friends back yard party. I never did the night scene at RF so I cant say much about that. read more

I joined Yelp to let everyone know this; ROOSTERFISH SUUUUUUUCKS!!!!!! Terrible service. My friend and I came in parched after bike riding and ordered 2 waters and 2 beverages. The extremely rude bartender with an EXTREMELY large stick up his ass... Or lack there of, slowly brought us our drinks and when I put my card down he angrily demanded cash. No eye contact. No customer service. I mean. It's 2016. Sorry I was surprised you don't take a card? Then! I got out the correct amount of $. No tip, cause tips are typically deserved when treated with good service. My friend and I were then bombarded by men and the bartender for not giving a tip. We were called bitches multiple times,... Basically it was very clear we weren't welcome. I'm gay, so is my friend, and this kind of behavior is what makes us NEVER want to go to gay bars ever again! I mean... It feels like we're taking a backward step by treating one another this way. Sorry gay world. As a fellow gay, I'm checking out and living my life without the huge chip on my shoulder. I'm sick of gay people treating others like shit. I'm sick of straight people treating others like shit. But it just seems even more hypocritical and contradicting when gay people treat people like shit!! Like. What else do you want!!!!???!America for the most part accepts us!!!! read more

I went into this place on Sunday and the older bartender (white hair) ignored me and my friends. Mind you at this point we havent had anything to drink just yet. After he took everybody elses order (he let about 6 people cut ahead of us) he greeted us by saying "do you already know what you want? If not then ill skip you" no joke! The man was a complete jerk and treated my friends and I like we were classless citizens. I grabbed my drink as I was getting ready to pay and he ordered me to put the drink down until he gave me back my change. I heard this place was FINALLY closing down and I cant be happier read more

This bar has a lot of potential but what is it with the crappy bartenders? There's one who claims he's the owner who can't even handle more than ten people without there being lines for drinks and can't count change, and the balding guy last night (Tuesday) who obviously doesn't want to be a bartender who was very chatty with a few and rude to most others. It would be best if they hired real bartenders - this could be a great place to stop by after the beach. read more

So I went back and the back talking doorman was giving a regular a hard time because he his petty comments were being ignored. So he 86'd him. What a jerk! read more

Came here ready to have a good time. The bartender Richard looked bothered every time we ask for a drink mind you we were at the bar and the place was empty. He rolled his eyes at me so many times that I think he saw his brain before he got my order. Very condescending made us feel like we were at a party where we weren't invited. We decided to leave and when we were walking out he saw him taking a nap next to his friends at a bench. Will never come back. Do you want to see great service come to the Bay Area ! And I am giving you a star because it doesn't allow me to give you a zero read more