Club Eight

For a Friday night, the line was super long, maybe because it was gay weekend/​night. Omg, the hotdog stand right in front smelled so good too bad I couldn’t eat pork. For a gay club, it was pretty fun. Everyone was friendly and they played great music. The bartenders were in their undies and a couple of interesting dancers :-).
What a great first time experience and I was sober.

Its Club8 Upd8 Time.
Okay ya’ll, I decided to hit up Wet&Wild again for the December party. Quick Recap: DEFINITELY WORTH CHECKING OUT.
Lets highlight the fabulous: 5 $ stoli all night, Lady TaTa, Phil the promoter, 2 floors of fabulousness, a really friendly crowd, and a damn good time.
In my old review I listed a few negatives that don’t seem to be the case anymore… Music was bangin — Bathrooms were hilarious (they’re small, private, and built for my drunk friends’ hookups) — And fog was just right. Wet&Wild is my apparently my monthly gay club porridge of choice.
Also in my previous review I talked about how things weren’t really wet, nor wild. Well, it was definitely wild. And that dance floor was pretty damn wet.
So when you find out the date of the next Wet&Wild party I would recommend that you block that night out on your calendar. And when you hear Phil is throwing a party, I would recommend you block that night out too. He’s basically showing SF how its done.
Stolilicious Smiles,
Thom

This is my favorite standby club in San Francisco. Weather it’s Asian night, Big Top, or Middle Eastern night, I always have a blast. The staff is very friendly! The atmosphere is great because there are two floors and three bars to choose from, yet it is not a mega club. It always feels kind of like a house party. The patrons here tend to be more diverse and more friendly than those in the ‘stro. Middle Eastern night has free houkah. Big Top night has lots of club kid fashions and drag. Asian night usually has a celebrity dj or porn star in the mix. Wet & Wild is hosted by Lady Tatas, who gives a fierce little show. Leave your abercrombie at home, and come to this club to express yourself.

Club Dragon on Friday nights seldom disappoints – as long as your standards are fairly low to begin with.
Club Eight is an okay venue for a drink and to people watch, but I always feel like an outsider here. Lots of small groups and couples makes it difficult to meet anyone to chat with and the small scale of the club – both upstairs (hip-​hop) and downstairs (typical club dance music), makes it hard to move around freely.
Go before 10pm to avoid the cover, but realize that this club will not be very busy until at least midnight. The upstairs bar didn’t even open until around 10:30pm.

Welcome to The Club 8 Home For Extremely Wild And Dangerous Animals
Some of the Creatures You May Find At This Menagerie Include:
Hookah-​Smoking Caterpillars
Mysterious Ancient Dragons
Trained Monkeys
Big Furry Bears
American Terriers
Do keep in mind: In an enclosure full of exotic beasts, you will also find aggressive hunters, greedy collectors and curious observers.
If you do not want to lose a limb, stay inside the Safari Shuttle at all times.

Me @ Club Dragon 2−4−1 before 10
Me: Rum/​pineapple and Vodka tonic please
Bartendude: (nods) and comes back with 4 drinks
Me: Huh? You have to get two of the same thing?
Bartendude: (look of irrelevance…) It’s $ 10
Me: Oh. OK.
The night is good to go!

2 shots of Crown, 2 shots of Patron, all chilled = $ 17. Ding ding ding! We have a winner.
Granted this was all before 10pm but every night needs to start somewhere.

San Francisco’s gay nightlife is exploding every last Saturday of the month at Joshua J’s BIG TOP. This end of the month club-​land, drag, freak show, dress up party that attracts an extremely hot crowd dripping with young boys, tops, and drags!

I am now a fan of Dragon thanks to my lovely roommate and The Rice Rockettes! I rang in the new year Spice Girls style with a gang of friends & drag queen fun! And I must say I had a blast. Especially a bigger blast when you get mistake for a drag queen! :D
I was deceived by the outside of Club Eight. And they’re right-​never judge a book by it’s cover. Inside the bar is two stories of dancing and over indulging on drinks! I’m not a big time clubber-​but I had a relaxing time dancing around. It was surprisingly not too crowded, and the bar service was awesome– quick and friendly service with reasonable prices. Plus a free glass of champagne with my NYE admission!
Whether you’re gay or straight-​Dragon seems to be a welcoming place for all to create memorable times! What a start to the year 2010! :)

I’m not sure if this is where I ended up on Saturday, but from the pictures, it looks similar…
Anyway, I’m writing to thank this club for letting some drunken ladies in for a discount because we were «cute»! And thanks secondly to a club that had not one, but two guys come up and tell us to «work it!» That’s three compliments by my count, and that’s about three more than I’ve ever gotten in a regular bar in SF.
Thanks for the good times Club Eight. Just wish I could remember you more clearly.
PS, I didn’t know there was a downstairs. Maybe next time.

I went a few times years ago for Club Dragon, a Friday night event for Asian gays and their admirers, but it really wasn’t my scene. Club 8 has a new marketing manager creating new events and partnering with other promoters, like Joshua J for «Big Top» (one of my favorite club nights) and it’s becoming a really fun venue. The club is an old Victorian house converted into a two-​story club, with dance floors upstairs and down, three bars, and a covered side alley for smokers (or those who need fresh air).
I did have a weird experience where two different bartenders at the front bar charged me higher prices than the bartenders at the back and upstairs bars did for the same drinks. Not sure if that was a misunderstanding, bar policy (unlikely), or shady bartenders, but from now on I’ll use the upstairs or back bars when I order.
They are currently only open Fridays and Saturdays, plus every other Thursday, so be sure to check the club’s website for the week’s schedule and events.

In my club hopping days, I was scantily clad, ready to pound shots and hunt for men — so where did I search for the best places to go? Well Unilocal of course! I kid, I kid. None of the above is true, except that I did search on Unilocal for a nice place to go. Somewhere, somehow, I had missed the crucial element of this lounge.
It was my turn to find somewhere to go, so I turned to good ol’ Unilocal.Parking nearby was a breeze, so my friend and I hop out of the car excited to try somewhere new.
When we get to the door, my friend turns to me and goes «There are a lot of guys here.»
I say «Yea there are! And super trendy! This is awesome!»
She says «No, really Candy, there are a LOT of guys here.»
I go «I know, I’m so excited!»
She goes «No, Candy, I think they’re gay.»
Bummmmmmer. I didn’t get a chance to go inside, which I really regret. But hey, it was nice to have some eye candy to start the night.
+1 for the convenience, +1 because it was clearly popular, +2 for the hot guys outside. I’ll be back another time. Have fun boys!

I’ve only been here for Club Dragon, and I loved it.
Music, check. Great beats, nothing too nostalgic, and definitely fun.
Good, strong drinks, check.
Hot dance floors, check.
Hot guys, check.
Just as hot chicks, check.
Hot (to look at, and semi-​sweaty) bartenders, check! And double check.
Upstairs = more lounge, and easier to have a conversation. Different type of music.
Downstairs = more dance, darker, and less able to hear anything but the pumping beat of the music.
Outdoor = breezy with plenty of seats but it’s a lot of smokers in one area, you’ve been warned!
Bars are on BOTH floors = awesomely brilliant. Although it leads to…
Being barely able to make it down through the treacherous stairs, double check.
For a single and straight female, it was fun to go with a bunch of gay guys.
Minus = parking. Although… if you plan to get drunk, don’t drive home! lol So cab it! Although, the cheap cover totally makes up for it!

This is my favorite gay club in the city on Fridays. I guess, when I USED to be on the prowl, I loved the Asian appeal. Though the guys are rather SUPER picky, if you are a young, athletic/​muscular, Asian-​American, with an air of confidence, you’ll be swarmed with the eyes of onlookers. Keep an eye out for the gross old white guys who try to talk to you. Just let them buy you a drink to make em feel good.
The building is comprised of an upstairs, downstairs, and outside smoking section (1^st floor) with an open roof. The downstairs and upstairs music typically are either hip-​hop or techno, but NEVER both. I would have to rate the guys as ³⁄₅ up to ⁵⁄₅ (very rare). There are, of course, the occasional gross guys, but they are usually just your «sidekick» who lives vicariously through your own sex lives to satisfy their own. LOL
I recommend this club if you are looking for an Asian meal (gross but true). Make yourself a regular and you’ll be able to skip the $ 8 cover charge (get to to know the bouncer, duh!).

It has been quite a while since I’ve been to Club 8 and DRAGON, but I made my way out there for a certain someone’s b-​day party. I had a BLAST. Thanks to Charles for organizing and thanks to EVERYONE at Dragon (Jonathan Chiu, especially) for allowing such a large group of us to takeover part of the club.
Some things continue to be true over a 1year and ½ later:
–Drinks are strong.
–Men are young and hot (and predominantly ASIAN)
–The music is bumpin…
–A straight girl can still hook up with the hottest men in a platonic way :-p

I met my current girlfriend here on a gay night! (Through a friend of course) LOL. I kid you not, I did! She claims I didn’t talk to her prior to dancing with her so she wasn’t sure if I was gay or not, but dude… I totally talked to her and bought her a drink before that! C’mon!
This was my first gay bar experience. I came here for Dragon on a Friday night with my bay gay friend Jon, a gay Londoner Luke, a questionable gay NY’er Chris, and Namu W (who might be the gayest of the bunch, his wife is a cover), and couple of my gal pals (for safe measure), but I digress…
The music kept us dancing all night! The bartenders were super nice and generous with the alcohol potions and the price wasn’t too bad for a SF bar. The crowd is obviously gay men if you’re into that kinda thing but a little grabby for me. The atmosphere was clean, although the bathrooms might be a little on the iffy side… ick.
Next time I need to wear shirt like this:
or a button that say, «You can touch, but not too much.»
Good times all around.

Oh, Dragon! Honestly, I love this place, how could I not? This is how a true club should be. Now, I do realize that on Friday nights, 80% of the clientele is Asian, but I happen to like that.
The reason I love this place far outweigh reasons I have slightly against it, such as a tendency to get crowded at times and how it gets hot in certain places around the bar.
Downstairs: a bar, dance floor, dj, outdoor smoking area, and a lounge area. Upstairs has exactly the same thing, although a slightly different layout, and minus the outdoor area.
I went to Dragon last night for the second or third time, in what seems like a long time. I had a blast. I do realize the $ 8 cover is a bit pricier than bars on Castro, but you have to realize if you come here, you aren’t going to be bar-​hopping as casually as one can in Castro, therefore suck it up. If you think about, hit up Badlands ($ 3) and then go to BOC ($ 5) or Jet ($ 7 I think…). If you hit up a couple places, you’re going to break that $ 8 mark anyway.
The drinks are a little pricier as well, but not by much. My semi-​usual Spiced Morgan and Diet is $ 5.25 at Badlands and $ 6 at Dragon. I think it’s more clever this way because I will tend to tip more at Dragon, although the actual tip varies with the number of drinks purchased.
The other thing, and maybe it’s because I’m a young white guy in an Asian setting where I’m the 20% minority (I swear if you’re reading some of the other reviews and are scared of the older white guys here and are comparing me I’ll punch you square in the face, because I’m just as frightened of them as you probably are), I tend to get really stiff drinks. I swear, last night, Chance kept making the drinks stronger and stronger. By the time I had my third drink it was mainly rum with a tiny drop of coke in the top to add color. Not that I mind, the stronger the drink, the more I tend to stick to a single bartender – thanks again Chance for the great birthday shot (151 and some other magical concoction)!!!
As for the music, the upstairs, which is usually less crowded, has hip-​hop based styles. Downstairs has your more mainstream dance tracks with some oft infused Asian inspiration. I swear, if they’d throw on Tigarah (Roppongi-​Dori, The Game in Rio, Money, or Japanese Queen and I’d be ever so much happier).
I tend to find decent parking, but do try to park close. I, personally, don’t think it’s that great of a neighborhood, but I’ve never had issues. Actually I distinctly recall homeless guys directing me to spots each time. Yes, the spots were in an alley each time, but hey, it’s close to the bar.
All-​in-​all a great place to go, and you must be callous to adventure if you don’t check it out.

I have a love-​hate relationship with this place too (like James J). The pros are that the bartenders are super-​cute, the crowd seems fun, and the music is really good. Also, the drinks are reasonably priced and the location allows for decent (comparably) parking. The cons are that the nicest area in the place is designated for smokers, the lines for the bathroom are crazy-​long, and the stairways are so narrow that they get treacherous by your second drink.
Still… cute bartenders and cute crowd trumps most any other complaint in my book… :-)

This is where this «ex-​marine» followed me around for an entire evening… eventually conjured up the courage to come up to me… and whispers in my ear, «You’re so hot! I want to bite your tit.»
I figured… HEY, it’s a safe space… this dude is gay, and what self-​respecting gay man would ever actually bite a woman’s boob?
I laughed at the proposal, but was taken aback when he actually did it. WTF?!
My harem of AZN ghayz that surrounded me, Joshua included, all just stood there. shocked. as in… surfrised. as in… shocked. just like I was.
I know i was wearing a bra at that time, but dood bit so hard that my nipplage felt raw. Anywayz. I felt sorry for the other boob, so I let him bite it too.
Club Dragon at Eight. Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink.
(|)

The party really doesn’t start until 11:30, but when it does, it’s HOT.
Dragon is the only place where I find the bartenders to be attractive.
Matt (downstairs) is cute and friendly!
The music is great of course with PKDJ and the House music downstairs is. um interesting. I’m not a fan.
The drinks are strong and the people are friendly. I often go to see old college friends and the general gay asian community of the bay. People travel to get here (San Jose, Davis) because really… it’s home.