Scarlet Honolulu

The most fun you’ll have on island if you’re looking for a night out. I stay in Waikiki frequently and live in Chinatown. I’ve tried quite a few places in my search for some place I could actually have fun — because a lot of places turned out to be complete busts! Noisy, boring, crowded, obnoxious… not Scarlet! People were actually in a good mood, smiling, there to have fun and dancing! Even someone like me, who tends to be kind of… lame…iss able to open up and have a blast every time I find myself there. So many places I don’t even feel comfortable dancing because it’s just an awkward hump fest as people scurry to find their end of night companions, but you really can have fun at Scarlet.
The bartenders are also better than a lot of places I’ve been. The discussion in town has been that it’s a little pricier than other Chinatown bars, but the drinks tend to taste better and be larger — but not as strong as at other gay bars (Lol, I didn’t know that was a thing, but that’s the big pout I get from pals). And the price of drinks is worth the trade off because you won’t need to go go anywhere else.
Whether I’m with friends or on a date, this has become our go-​to destination, and my number one recommendation.

Great vibes!!! Love this spot!!! This venue is great!!!

Just like to thank the entire staff for an incredible night last night. Came in from vegas and were treated like royalty. The show was incredible and the service was top notch. Thank you so much for a wonderful welcome to the island.

On Saturday night the cover was $ 10 and the place is on a smaller side but it was fun, you have dancers and live dragshow which was über entertaining. I had fun but it can get crowded.

This place was so much fun. I honestly can’t wait to go back. I first I thought this was going to be some old rundown club, but as soon as you walk in you realize that it’s going to be a fun night. The ladies were hilarious and very entertaining. And the dj does a good job and plays any type of music you can think of.

Came here for a bachelorette party. First of all, LOVE the music! Second of all, the drag show was awesome and they call up anyone who is celebrating any special occasion up to the stage to get a shot of Fireball. Also loved the mixed drinks! We told the bartender to make us something he recommended that was good… not sure what he made but it was delicious! Will definitely come back!

Love love love love LOVE this place! It’s the newest club to Honolulu but it’s STILL the best place to be!!! Hot gogo boys, cheap drinks and great music! Definitely aimed towards the younger crowd but that shouldn’t stray you! There’s also a tiki lounge to sit and have drinks with your friends to chat and have a great time!

Very cool atmosphere. Lots of variety and fun things to do. Nice to have another gay bar in Honolulu and one with such style.

FINALLY a dance club here in Hawaii like the ones I would frequent on the mainland. I remember when I first moved out to Hawaii permanently, one of the most noticeable things lacking were good dance clubs. I tried them all — too pretentious, too dirty, too small, bad music. You name it, there were plenty of turn-​offs. I remember when this building was SoHo and the Fix. Nothing compared to this.
Fast-​forward to the new era of Scarlet. I was lucky enough to be a VIP at the Grand Opening of this amazing venue and spent most of it in the dollhouse. In fact, most of the time when I go, it’s spent in the dollhouse. I met Traver (one of the owners) before the club even opened when he attended my beloved CabaRAE. He was so down-​to-​earth and gave me his number right away!
The DJs: The resident DJ, DJ Luna, is THE man! He’s one of my top 3 DJs on the island! His mixes are amazing and so eclectic! One minute I’ll be listening to Rihanna and The Biebs and the next will be Whitney Houston and Gloria Gaynor! His beats keep my feet moving and my heart pumping. I never leave without a soaking wet shirt.
The bartenders: Dayum. Whether you prefer guys or girls (yes, they are straight-​friendly), there’s eye candy for everyone. Not only that, they’re not stingy with their alcohol. You pay for a tasty adult beverage.
They have really revamped the place. What used to be the women’s bathroom is now the men’s. But alas… there’s a pretty pink hallway with single private bathroom stalls complete with sink and large mirror to, you know, make sure your make-​up and hair are on fleek.
You can also reserve VIP tables. There’s my favorite, the dollhouse, which is upstairs and overlooks the dance floor and is sure to keep you entertained. It has a large plastic couch that resembles, well, a dollhouse couch. In fact, damn near the entire dance floor area is dollhouse themed. I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t been, but keep your eye on the walls ;) I reserved the dollhouse for my birthday and the staff was extremely attentive! Always checking to make sure our mixers were full and replenishing our glasses. There’s also a couple of VIP areas downstairs next to the DJ booth.
More recently, they opened the Tiki room with its own bar, bathroom, seating area, and stage where they have frequent drag shows. Be sure to bring your cash as these ladies and gentlemen know how to work it!
Man oh man, I could go on and on about how awesome this place is! But I want you to experience it for yourself. My favorite night to go is Saturday. OH! If you’re a fan of RuPaul’s Drag Race, check frequently as every month, they have a star from the show as a celebrity guest!
I usually park in the lot next to Mark’s Garage when I drive. I personally like Ubering it :) Don’t forget, Scarlet is almost always a participant in all the Chinatown bar crawls! Unfortunately, this closes at 2am like most places.
Unilocal Challenge #10/​100

Came here last night for the Mardi Gras pub crawl and LOVED IT.
At first I wasn’t sure if we were going to stay because it looked empty, that that was because all the excitement was happening in the beach boy room (not sure if that is what it is called but there were surf boards, a grass shack themed bar, and a giant tiki!!!)
The bartenders and servers were super nice and welcoming– made sure our cups were full and we were satisfied. The entertainment was like nothing we experienced at the other bars– they had everything from pole dancing, to a light show, and some sensual tango. The cushions were comfy and bathrooms spacious and clean– really nothing to complain.
I mentioned earlier that it looked empty– that is because the venue is big and the other side, decorated with a more modern angsty feel has a large dance floor next to a wrap around bar. I’m sure when there is a DJ there it is epic.
This is a must return for me!

Absolute LOOOOOOVE! The best place I’ve been to since I started going out to town! The atmosphere is everything! The music is perfect the bartenders are so personable and make the best drinks! (The best cranberry back I have ever had!) and the men!!! Friday nights are a must! And trust me when I tell you BRING THEM DOLLAS! CaraMel and the boys will have you emptying your bank accounts!!! But you can’t miss Saturday either ! The show is the best I’ve seen! And the celebrity appearances have me gaaaagging! Especially for all you RuPaul fans! Straight, Gay. You need to come here!!! It’ll have ladies wishing they were men and the men questioning their entires lives!!! I love this place and I will be back weekend after weekend! So, if you show up SHOW OUT & come bring me w drink!
I love you all at Scarlett! Can’t wait to see you next weekend!!!

Okay, so tonight was round 2 and it was a huuuge improvement from their grand opening week back in the summer.
Music was turned down to an enjoyable level, the staff was much friendlier tonight and the crowd was a nice mix of all different races and faces.
If I may suggest one more thing, it would be to get the AC pumping into your new «Tiki Room,» it was a bit stuffy in there. Otherwise, it’s much improved and I wouldn’t mind going back again.

Scarlet (previously the Fix, and before that Soho) is located on Pauahi Street next to HPU/​Fort Street. Parking can be rough because downtown isn’t the easiest place to find parking. There are a number of parking structures available close by or if you’re lucky maybe you will score street parking on one of the side streets.
I came here on a Saturday night, first time too! There was a fashion show being held and no cover charge until 10pm. The fashion show wasn’t that great. I was hoping to see something fun and exciting. But the fashion show was like random people walking in rags.
I like the updated décor! I love all the crazy barbie wallpaper! I also like the doll house they made. You can go upstairs or stay downstairs in the doll house.

I’ve been back a few times recently and love the place! It’s a great venue a short trek from Waikiki. The staff is super friendly. The recently added Tiki Room is fun and an enjoyable atmosphere if you need a break from the music/​dancing in the main area.
A definite must!

This place tries to be a gay club. But clearly don’t understandably gays want. It’s sad because I want to like it. The established gays don’t want to come here because it’s «pots and pans». But they repeatedly play 90’s rap songs like I had to endure in straight clubs and bars. So if that’s what you want, yay. If you are gay, and want something more gay, I’m sorry. Hawaii offers you terrible choices
[Update] Place has gotten much better. Music doesn’t cut out every minute with terrible transitions! The tiki bar is a nice addition. Glad to see this place staying busy. Hopefully it’ll stick around to give Hawaii more choices on their nightlife. Thanks!

Aloha to that bunch of mainland queens indulging their desire for a tan and a tacky Hawaiian detour! The proof is in the mugs! But it comes down to this, really: the drinks need to be stronger and the cover charge has to go if talent is going to be mostly drag queens, otherwise why leave Waikiki?
UPDATE: On 11/​13/​2015, Traver Rains responded privately to my above review with the following: «Please just stay in Waikiki. They love negative energy and LGBT haters.» My review gave Scarlet three stars, which is an «A-​OK» rating. That’s good, not bad. And the two suggestions I made to improve the place echo what everyone else is saying. «Negative» and «gay hating» Mr. Rains said.

I love Scarlet. The Dj’s are good and play hit after hit. The bartenders are friendly enough.
It’s really cool when they do free Fireball shots to the Pitbull song.
$ 5 cover but they accept cards which is awesome since I never have cash.
There is usually a food truck parked out front which comes in handy.
My only gripes, the music is too loud. I usually wear ear plugs as I find it unnecessarily loud. The bartenders will not serve a glass of water, they force you to buy bottles. While the artisan water they have is amazing, I would like to have the option!
Great and unique gay experience for Oahu. VERY SPACIOUS! Clean bathrooms! Friendly bouncers.

It’s just Soho with new wall decorations. I was very excited when I heard that «Scarlet», previously «The Fix», previously «Soho» was «remodeled» and got a cool makeover. I went to check it out with some of my best friends and was not impressed.
I think the saddest part about Soho changing hands so many times is the waste of the awesome venue space. They used to have an extra room that was perfect for live music and performances, with a good sized stage and high ceilings. I emceed for a concert and a burlesque event there, and thoroughly enjoyed how the producers took advantage of the space to give people room to meander and experience different things. But the way Scarlet uses it, it’s just… walk in, there’s the bar, there’s the dance floor. Nothing special. There’s a singular alcove with a scarce seating area, which is kinda dark and sketchy, you can hardly see the interesting wall art that’s there. So there’s not even a place to chill and finish your drink with your friends– even a couple of couches over there would be good. And as for that big room that was perfect for performances, maybe it was «sold separately» and no longer part of the venue, but I miss it.
Echoing some other reviews, the bar tenders were not friendly at all. I kind of had to stare at them or wave them down, they’d stare back awkwardly, I yell my order over the music, they slide over my drink, I hand them my card, they slide me the check. Not a single bit of conversation, no smile, no thank you– and that’s for the guys and the girls. Neither of them were nice. It totally put a damper on my good mood. On top of that, the drinks were pretty standard for Chinatown fare. $ 9 – 10 for a tall mixed drink, sounds about right.
The music isn’t bad, pretty standard untz untz music. It gets better when you drink more.
I think this place could be saved if they played up this theme that they sort of started and fell short with, and took advantage of their space to put on events. Theme nights, dancers or something fun. Otherwise this will get old fast, and nobody cares for rude or selectively nice bar tenders.
Long story short, it wasn’t the worst place I’ve been, but it wasn’t the best, and it wasn’t particularly memorable.

Not cute.
Parking is not ideal and requires cash, but no fault of Scarlet. Cover charge is cash only, which isn’t unheard of, but there’s no ATM and the bouncer was unaccommodating. Weakest vodka soda I’ve ever had AND with no lime (I had to wait until after the bartender served someone else to get his attention again for a lime). Bartenders were not friendly and were very curt; the same can be said for the crowd.
Scarlett’s only saving grace was the DJ, which is why I’m giving two stars instead of one.
Needless to say, I think I’ll veer away from the hype on this one.

One of the best times of my life! The bartenders are so sexy and the music is amazing! One of my favorite spots to have fun! Also every time i have been there is always a famous face! I can’t wait to go back!