Badlands reviews, photos - The Castro - GayCities San Francisco - Gay Bars

bullseye 0/

it's a fun bar. but be forwarned that during happy hours you have to fight through the throngs to get to the bar before you can be carrying that 2-1 special back to that tiny area you have created to hang with your friends. the crowds manage to be both the good thing and the bad thing about badlands.

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Grab a drink and it will be a cool place

ramon 0/

Music is great especially now that they killed 92.7. Everyone is generally very friendly. Drink, dance, and be merry. This sums it up.

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Weekends

twinklover 0/

You deginitely need to be here for Friday and Saturday nights for eye candies. Submitted via GayCities iPhone application

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All Madonna all the time

AdamSandel 0/

The only place to really dance in the Castro, Badlands is hopping every night of the week. Whether or not you like the video music, or the somewhat nervous gay boys and the fag hags who love them, or not, is up to you...

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You won't find girls here.

JimmySF 0/

I used to go to Badlands tons but I guess when you get older things change. I still tend to go to Badlands with friends for happy hour or if we hit happy hour somewhere else because sometimes it takes a lot of patients to go to Badlands at times. It can get pretty crowded and most of the time there are people there with attitudes. I guess I am coming from a standpoint of having a partner so that atmosphere is not really my preference. However if I was single, I think it would be a great place to go. The drinks are strong and reasonable. The only other thing I don't really care for is that there are not a lot of women that go to Badlands. I miss the girls.

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Just OK

rovvied 0/

I am vacationing in San Francisco from L.A. and this club is the most happening from Monday to Wednesday. Mixed crowd (ages 21-60 yrs old) and mixed music as well. It was a club for everybody but it was just OK for someone who is 20-something for me.

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Always fun, always hopping

AK_Cruiser 0/

Stopped in on Sunday afternoon (7/5) for a cold beer with a buddy, place was hopping with hot men as usual. Very consistent and I always go there on my trips to SF.

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great place for good music, dancing and cute guys

Tash28 0/

went to badlands a few times on my vacation in SF and i had a great time every time i went. The club was always PACKED, the drinks were strong, and the videos were pumpin out great hits to dance to. all in all, a great place to party.

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Great Video Bar!

CalgaryCub 0/

Loved it. People were friendly. Fun crowd. Great videos. However, I did hear that they have been accused of being racist. hmmm.

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you have to go its great

Tammyk1 42/F

the dj rocks this house this is a must dance club.

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Good place for Happy Hour on Friday

sfgam 0/

This is a place where I usually go for Happy Hour on Fridays. You can't beat the 2 for 1 drinks that last till 8pm. It is a place where you could cruise alone or hang out with your friends. Clients ages range from mid/late 20s to early 50's. Mostly Caucasian (60 - 70%), Asians (20 - 25%) , Latinos (5 - 10%), African American (less than 2%) and there are always straight ladies who like to hang out with their darling gay friends. There are plenty of video screens throughout the bar playing music video to keep you occupied if you were alone. It could get very crowded during HH on Fridays but it gets worse on Friday and Saturday nights. The line to get in starts around 10pm on Fri and Sat and it gets longer after 11pm. It could take up to 20 - 30mins to get in if arrived late. I usually avoid to go there on both nights because it is jam packed inside and indeed the dance floor is too small for the dancing crowd. This place also has loud music so it is not for everyone. But if you wanted to go to somewhere that is cruisy and want to find a trick, you do have a good chance there. As the night goes on, lonely people want to pair up and leave to do their things. Of course, a lot of them already drunk so they are not as picky. This rules always applied to gay bars everywhere :-) Have fun!

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OMGYG2BK!

RinconJohn 0/

Extremely popular with kiddies in whom I have precious little interest. That's okay. They can keep their clove cigarettes and twitchy, garrulous little queue waiting to enter the most totally awesome gay dance club ever! However, I will admit being dragged here on rare occasion by some pretty thing infatuated with the silver beard. Mustn't dash the hopes of the young, you know.

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just got back from sanfransisco about a week a go

tyronerocks 21/M

went to badlANDS great night club boys go xxx

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Great video bar

ericolav 0/

Badlands is not for everyone; if you don't like pop dance music or videos you won't like it. It's definitely not some uber-chic club in Manhattan. I was there twice - on a Friday & Saturday nights. It gets going early, by 10 pm it's packed and it closes @ 2 am sharp. I found the bartenders to be very nice & its cheap too ($2 cover & $3 bottles of beer). There are lots of tourists there, so the croud tends to be friendlier - I danced with several hotties there!

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Gay bopper bar

ggallag7 0/

Anyone with any taste in music will cringe at this place. Music is top 40 hell/ teeny bop played very loud with videos everywhere in the bar (to avoid actual conversation). Sad that this is the most popular bar in the Castro. Crowd is mostly 20-set and 30s mixed crowd wearng their A&F wear. Fairly attractive but watch the attitude. No soul, no personality place.

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if your into video

Ray1972 0/

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Owned by a Microsoft style merchant

buddieeddie 0/

The owner also owns the Patio (closed since 1998), the Pandulum (closed for many years) and other properties. His strategy seems to be to buy the competition, close it and pretend that eliminating choices and boarding up businesses is good for the neighborhood.

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Best club in SF

Ramses 38/M

I come 3 times a year to SF and going to Badlands is my drug! What i love the most at this place is that it is very clean compared to other places, security is professional and polite, and yes the bartenders are cute. Also the resident DJ's are great, they know how to get the crowed on the dance floor.

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Trendy youngish bar

NY2CA 36/M

I was visiting in SF after many years away and was disappointed at the change in this bar. I loved the former incarnation of this place. Anyway, it is still very popular, but it doesn't have the same feeling as before. Time goes on, I guess. :)

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Loved it!

m1975 32/M

Was in SF for Thanksgiving and liked Badlands so much that we went two nights in a row. Cheesy dance pop, eye candy, mixed crowd- it's all good! Can't wait to go back!

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best place in SF

rich 42/M

loved it, great music and atmosphere!!

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Nice place, easy to find, full of men!

Texasfruit 37/M

Saturday night this place was happening! Good music spinning but a small dancefloor. Big space with lots of places to sit and watch people. A little bit young for me, but the place was full of eye candy with more walking in by the minute.

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Great bar I loved it

Vince 26/M

I discovered this bar on Internet, I went here to see...and I loved it ! Nice music, good ambiance and the bartenders are...so sexy! I recommend !

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Perfect for the generic gay

PowerAction 33/M

Madonna, Cher & fauxhawks. This is the place for the stereotypical. Very flirty bar. Allegations of this bar's racist policies abound. I like my bars a lot more funky and my guys a little more unique.

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Loves It

eawilliams1979 27/M

Badlands is by far my favorite bar in the Castro! I love the music and the hot bartenders! I love there 2 for 1 happy hour! They make those drinks pretty damn well too!!

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Always Been A Neat Place to Spend A Lot of Time

BristowNorwich 63/M

I've been going to the Badlands for a very long time, and it's always been a neat place, I think, mostly, because it has room. It's one of the few bars in the Castro that has a good deal of space. Of course, late in the evening all that advantage goes away. But, I've always had a fine time there, both in the afternoon, and at night.

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The best of my groups bar search

phxdan79 28/M

Visited SF this past weekend for the first time and Badlands was the best of the probably dozen bars in the Castro. Enjoyed it so much we ended up there all three nights in town. Great music, strong drinks, great staff and a packed dance floor. Can't wait to go back!

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powerjaco 27/M

badlands is always crowded to dance on saturdays so the dance floor needs to be bigger and it's hard to move around . I do commend the bartending staff though. You never wait too long to get a drink. SF doesnt have many dance clubs and it's lame. The nightlife in SF needs more vibrant places to go to. I wish Badlands had a back patio.

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Always a good time...

fun4all_ 33/M

No mater what day of the week it is. Good drinks, music, dancing, and people. More than just a bar in Castro. Always a must for me...

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Bartender Hell

Ramcomo 43/M

Badlands was fun, because I went there with good friends, so anywhere would have been fun. The club is small and the dance floor very crowded. I enjoyed the music and the diverse mix of people. The Bartenders annoyed me, however. I ordered a gin-and-tonic and the bartender poured the tonic water first (over the ice) then floated the gin on-top (maybe half a shot). I didn't care at first, because I did not want a very strong drink anyway, but the more I thought about this the more it bothered me. I have NEVER been at a bar where a bartender doesn't first fill a glass with ice, then pours the gin, then the tonic water (or the gin and tonic water simultaneously). This lack of professionalism really got under my skin, and because of this, I will not be returning to Badlands. It's an insult for a bartender to blatantly rip you off right in front of you. There are many gay clubs to choose from in San Francisco, so Badlands, see-ya!

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Very Cool!!!

BostonItalian 35/M

My first trip to San Francisco from Boston, this club reminded me of Club Cafe in Boston, with dancing! Stayed pretty late, 1:30 am, which was 4:30 am Boston time, had a great time, met several guys who were very friendly. Will visit again next trip.

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Great place, but watch your change

zacker 40/M

Been to Badlands quite a few times. Fun place, great music, and the staff overall are pretty friendly. I've been ripped off there, however, by dishonest bartenders more than once...you pay with a twenty, they give you back change for a ten...oldest trick in the book. Good luck to you if you try to argue with them, they get very rude and you most likely will be asked to leave. People do make mistakes, however this has happened to me a few times at Badlands (one weekend it happened twice in one night from two different bartenders). Go and have fun, but pay attention to your money!

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From a local point of view

SF 29/M

Badlands is without doubt the best bar in the Castro. Sometimes the music is not the best, but the other get to be worse. Good environment and atmosphere! Check it out!

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Had A GREAT Time!!

sbomagat 54/F

Went to Badlands for the first time and Had a GREAT time! Got there around 8:30 pm on a Saturday night and had no line to wait in, although around 11:00 pm there was a line. The staff was very nice, the VJ played great music & the dancefloor stayed packed from beginning to end. Everyone there had a fantastic time!! Fun for all!

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What ???

Texasguy1 31/M

I have been to SF many times to visit. It is a beautiful city to visit but our experience with the gay nightlife was horrible. Maybe, it has something to do with building availablity or city codes but the bars we went to were small! Badlands is the perfect name for this place! It is simply BAD! It is very small, it took forever to get a drink, the lighting barely worked, the DJ was playing New Kids on the Block at 11:30 P.M. and it was terribly hot inside. This is known as the "Motherland" for gays and my experience with the bars in SF were not so good! The other small little bars were ok. I am not a leather or levi kind of guy but we had a better time at Daddy's and Bar on Castro. Suggestion...If you want to have fun in a club atmosphere in Castro, go to Bar on Castro, much better. However, if you get to Texas, Yes unfornutely Republican Texas...You will see dance palaces! Houston and Dallas have clubs that make SF look elementary! Step up club owners, you are supposed to be the heart beat of gays everywhere! Do not get me wrong....Houston, Dallas, or SF...San Fran for sure, but when it comes to nightlife choices, those Texas cities are way ahead of you! Should be the other way around.

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Great Place

Stephen 29/M

The Badlands is a great bar. I recently moved to San Francisco from New York and have been going to the Badlands every weekend. The first time I went to Badlands was for Happy Hour and I had a good time. I usually go on Friday and Saturday nights. It is a great place to end the night. The scene is still strong until last call. They consistenly play great music and their staff are super nice. The Badlands is a great place to have fun and not have to deal with attitude. The crowd for the most past is pretty friendly. My only complaint, minor may it be, is that it can get a little loud and very crowded, but what do you expect from the best bar in the Castro?

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Might as well watch MTV with friends

Hooker 30/M

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