The Drake Underground

Very fun place caught a story telling show down stairs. Great night and good food.
On a strange note the bathrooms in Canada are super nice.

I come here usually for show events like the spoken word shows. The venue itself is nice and the drinks are averagely priced. I personally dont care for the club-​like nights or dancing but hell I’d go if there was a big group of my friends going.

This a really quiet, intimate space. I went to a concert here with a meet-​and-​greet with the artist beforehand, and it was such an awesome place for it – couches, dim lighting, excellent acoustics. The show was great, and even though the room was crowded, we still had a great view. (But I still have to roll my eyes at the couple who sat on a couch near the back of the room and complained to each other about all the people who then moved up to stand in front of them – guys, I get it, people standing in front of you sucks, but at a general admission show, you’ve kind of got to get used to it.

The Drake Underground, as the name would suggest, is the basement level of the Drake Hotel.
It normally hosts concerts and DJs spinning particular styles of music. I think that it’s a great venue for an intimate dance night.
One of the cool things about the Drake is that it’s usually a flat cover charge for all levels, so you can wander around between the floors. If the Underground is empty, you can hang out on the main floor. If you meet someone on the main floor, you can take them downstairs to hang out too. It’s more fun than a one room venue.
The Drake Underground has a great sound system, with no need for ear plugs. It’s dark, and when the dancefloor gets packed it can be kind of hectic (in a good way!). The relative darkness is a great environment for dancing.
There are always couches on the side, so you don’t really need coatcheck either. I love how laid back it is.

I like this place, its fun it is dingy, claustrophobic, intimate and all that makes for great live shows and music where every seat is a good seat. Except those along the side walls, they’re kind of shit.
I would give this place five stars if they were not such a rip off on drinks, I would expect after paying $ 30 for a show that I would not have to pay a premium for crappy beer.
So tempted to take another star off but meh this place is fun and I did not even need to button my collar up to get in and avoid frowns.

The Drake Underground is an interesting place. On one side, I like the design aesthetic in how the stage is outlined with oldschool speakers, with the actual p.a. speakers set outside those to still provide proper sound.
I also like that they have tables and couches or benches along the side that don’t require bottle service to sit at. Too many dance venues have limited the ability to sit in a booth or at a couch unless you have ordered a couple of overpriced bottles. This is brutal in my eyes as it sets the people on a pedestal who just want to buy there way into being «elite» (yet are typically the ones that are that much more out of touch with the actual club scene to begin with). But I’ll save my «bottle service ruins clubs» rant for another place and get back to the Drake Underground.
Also unlike most «dance» venues, I could appreciate that they actually had a good variety of beers on tap. In theory they wouldn’t have much excuse to not have them given the rest of the building offers tap beer, but still, it’s a nice luxury to drink a pint of Creemore in the club. That said, things arent cheap. 2 shots, a pint and a mix drink come to $ 31, so essentially you’re looking at $ 8 drinks on average which isn’t cheap but isn’t out of the question either.
One thing I will say is to get their early on the weekends. We were able to get in right quickly upon arrival around 11 – 11:30 but within an hour of going outside to accompany a friend who smokes, the place had a lineup down the front of the building and had numerous people practically begging to get in.
All in all, while my socks weren’t necessarily knocked off, it was a good time and I could see myself coming back at some point.

Recently spent an evening at the Drake Underground for a concert. It was my first time at the venue, and as soon as I stepped in I knew that I would like it. It was cool and dark and I felt as if I were at an underground speakeasy (fortunately, the drinks are legal here!). The neon lights reading «BANG BANG» and the speakers framing the main stage also add a touch of rock n’ roll nostalgia. There are also a bunch of eclectic sofas and chairs around the stage, offering patrons the choice of sitting or standing eagerly in front of the stage waiting for the band to come on. I really enjoy the smaller, more intimate feel of the place… would definitely come back here for another concert or event.

I do enjoy the Drake, its got wonderful interior, very trendy and cool. I guess as a university student, however, this wasn’t my scene.
I was there for Trivia once, hardest Trivia in the world by the way. You have to pay to play which is kind of lame? Drinks are a bit pricey, as I will elaborate.
In accord with Anna V’s post, you do pick your place (whether it be the sky lounge, the main floor bar or the underground), the Drake is indeed multifaceted.
On the sky lounge yesterday I ordered a Manhattan, and the bartender oh-​so-​casually hands it to me and says «That’ll be $ 13»… I moved down to the underground and stuck to the $ 6 pints of Labatt 50 the rest of the night to say the least. P. S. They don’t do pitchers!
In the Underground, it was an OK scene on a Thursday night. I enjoyed myself, but I wouldn’t rave about this to my friends. Its really trendy and up on style, so it’d be a nice place to go when you’re feeling swanky.

I’ve only been here once and didn’t like it. I thought it was pretentious and dark. I was there for a poetry reading (Shane Koyczan – who was fantastic), and only a few rows of chairs were set down in front of the stage. The majority of us had to stand through the whole show, it was very uncomfortable. Luckily I had managed to secure a tiny portion of bar space to set my drink, but to my chagrin as soon as my eye was turned an employee grabbed my drink (which still had some in it, by the way) and ran. Irritated, I went back to the bar to get a replacement, and this time it cost almost a dollar less! The bartender was different the second time. The first bartender was not only rude but ripped me off.
It will be a sunny, rainless day in Vancouver before I ever visit this little crap-​hole again. But Shane was awesome.

Cell phone reception be darned, this basement bar features great bands almost nightly and is worth the communications failure. Go easy on the beer though — it’s a little on the pricey side.

My friend’s band, The Jilted Lovers Club, was playing last week at the Drake Underground as part of their Elvis Mondays. The show was free and packed with awesome indie bands. I love that the Drake goes out of their way to help infuse Toronto with its own brand of culture.
The location is dark, intimate and provides just enough seating to encourage drunken dancing. The bar doesn’t take debit, but there is an ATM right outside the door.

Ah, the Drake. The venue itself is quite beautiful. I remember the first time I ever went I was completely blown away by the atmosphere and thought the Sky Yard was a thing of beauty… But this is a review for the Underground so I will stay on topic.
The Underground is where you will likely see the best side of what the Drake has to offer. A few years ago I saw M.I.A. perform there and I know they have had some other pretty legendary performances. When the place is packed it’s almost impossible to get a drink seeing as they have the one bar at the back, but lately they have opened a side bar with limited drinks, but the popular ones so you’re pretty much set.
The sound can get pretty intense down there but if the music’s right then things are tight. They have DVD projections on three screens which definitely adds to the atmosphere. They used to have a video jukebox near the back bar but that’s long gone.
The crowd can be very mixed. Pending on the event you can get the hipster locals who just want to have a good time, and then you can get the club crowd who dress up super fancy and aren’t down with the program. I guess the Underground gets the spill over from the Lounge but overall the crowd is down there to dance, dance, dance. And everyone can appreciate that, right?
Oh, and the staff is usually pretty amazing. They definitely are there to work and get the job done, but they are also friendly and efficient at the same time. I once fell down the stairs with a full pint of beer and the bouncers came over to make sure I was alright. That made me happy.

3 levels, 3 diff DJs, variety, roof top patio=great scene and a fun night out

Came here randomly one fabulous Friday evening. There was this electric energy in the air and whoever the DJ was that was spinning seriously took it to another element. Loved it! Danced the night away and will be returning.

rad for shows. great programming. saw a burlesque show here for work, once.

Most of my experience in the Drake Hotel has been in the underground. They have an excellent concert space in the basement which is pretty much in constant use by local bands. Occasionally something a little more outside the box will occur, like a cabaret, or a cabaret for the dead.
Every Monday, the Drake is host to Elvis Monday’s, a long standing event that’s been happening in Toronto for a really long time (like 15 years I think?) It’s been hosted in several venues over the years, but lately it called The Drake home. Elvis Mondays, in addition to offering free local music, offers free food! There’s usually a delicious stew or something equally wholesome available to everyone.
Drinks here are a bit pricey, in the 6 – 7 dollar range for a beer, and about the same for a mixed drink I think.

The Drake isn’t my favorite place, but if something cool is happening in the Drake Underground I might be swayed to check it out after all. The underground tends to have more arty happenings, although lately it seems to be a lot of random DJ nights I’d just as soon skip. There have been some key screenings, comedy shows and other events that have hit the underground, especially around TIFF time.
While I find it a little unfortunate that the Drake tries to be all things to all people, it’s a sure bet that there will always be a crowd present for whatever happens there. I think the slick, upscale vibe of the Drake probably appeals to just as many people as it does to offend me, but that’s why we all like different things.
One thing I would watch out for is going to the Drake during the key busy times, they have been known to essentially eject people who have stepped outside to talk or for a smoke, and literally not let them back into the building except to retrieve their things. This has happened to a few people I know, mostly guys. I imagine this is because, as we all know, the rich guys upstairs were running out of 20-​year-​old blondes to creep out, so they needed to kick some dudes out in order to keep below capacity. :)

Here’s the story with The Drake Hotel.
it was a total dive in a crappy area known as Parkdale and then five years ago, they did this hot revamp and turned it into a boutique hotel.
It ignited West Queen West as a hip artist area, and drove the dive-​inspired Parkdale past the bridge. It also brought Starbucks and a ton more night club spots.
So it’s a hotel, and it’s a restaurant, lounge, rooftop patio and there’s the underground. Each has different night life programming that suits the crowd, but the underground is where all the good jams happen. Basically, it’s become a weekly mix of monthly parties featuring a healthy mix of local and out of town acts. They also book it for screenings and private parties, but generally there’s something doing every Friday or Saturday down there.
The room holds about 250 with a small stage and screens for projections. There’s one bar, and it’s a basic square. It’s also the same level where the bathrooms for the Lounge/​Main Floor and the Underground are, the coat check and the ATM machine.
The cover at the Drake is usually $ 5 to get into the building. The general rule of thumb is: Suits on the roof, rich kids and waspy uptowners in the Lounge and party kids in the Underground.
Pick your floor, seal your fate.
All in all, this is like a meat and potatoes meal as far as decent nightlife goes. There’s something for everyone, and it’s easy to have a low maintenance good time on any given night.