Kiki

Multi level LGBTQ+ dance club & bar on U Street. Not wheelchair accessible (at least 4 steps to a bar & outdoor drinking area and a full flight of stairs to a dance floor). Male dominant but trans, non binary, and female friendly. NO smoking inside or on the patio area 🚭Friendly bartenders. Good music (pop Top 40 remixes)

Great place just be careful of bartenders up chargeing during events. Don’t trust them, be siete to look at what they key in before you tap your card. A day like today “daddy issues” screens may advertise $7 rail drinks but know there is a chance you will be charged another amount, one double. This hasn’t been the first incident either. Collectively, I adore the space. It has a huge outdoor patio and great drag shows. Only thing, bartenders make it difficult to trust.

Kiki now adds a 20% “service fee” to all drink orders and rather than verbally telling each customer and posting a notice conspicuously (both requirements under the new DC amendment), they have a small sign almost to the ceiling which, conveniently, you can’t see in the darkness or chaos. They are hoping they can take advantage of people being drunk and aren’t following the law so I’m working on a way to notify the city because it’s a super shady practice. Kiki knows what they’re doing. This service fee is to account for increased minimum wage for workers that Kiki would rather pass on to customers rather than paying employees themselves. Plenty of other gay bars in DC to go to that don’t do this.Edit in response to owners response: An auto-gratuity is illegal under the DC amendment. It only permits service fees. You cant force people to tip.

The pros:---a diverse crowd. we never know what type of people will be there at any given time, and it is often a mix of different types.--a little divey (thats a good thing!). so many DC bars are a bit pretentious and are trying so hard to be fancy - even if they never succeed. Kiki isnt trying so hard. my friends all prefer the more laid back atmosphere.The cons:---the drinks are a bit pricey. that isnt unique to this DC bar, just pay attention to prices (AND EXTRA FEES) and accept it for what it is---the noise levels inside get very high, even when there isnt a performance going on or dancing. BUT, even the outdoor patio in back starts out with decent volumes, but sometimes suddenly become obnoxiously deafening where my friends and I cant even hear each other, so we have no choice but to just leave the bar (*** their poor neighbors!)

Really love this place! So fun and welcoming. But the DJ needs to play better dance music and not get offended when we dont want to listen to EDM all night.

Best bar in town. Best vibe. Most love. Most fun. Cool people. Definitely worth the visit :)Bartebder Tony is cool af, and a radiant smile 💯

Be careful with your tip, I’m accustomed to tipping on subtotal, Kiki is charging your percentage on top of their service fee and DC taxes. IMO, they are stealing from all of their customers.

It was fine and i was having fun with my friends then i accidentally made fun of a white gay person (as one always does) and he complains to security to kick me out… just cuz i made fun of him.. that’s why white gays

Jerdin and team are the best. Thank you!Excellent drinks, atmosphere and service. I visit every time I’m in DC.

I ordered two tequila pineapples and it was $72+ tip. Watch out for the slight of hand where the bartender said $36 (but didn’t say per drink) so it seems reasonable but is absolutely ridiculous. Also all you’ll hear is terrible techno all night which will probably give you a headache. No thanks.

Security was extremely rude and unprofessional one of them even challenged me on how much money I made. Instead of taking accountability the security staff just blindly backed each other up after removing my friend from the club

Really lovely spot and great staff! General manger is really helpful.

Visited with some out-of-town guests on Saturday night (8/18). With English not being my first language, I apparently asked for a Cranberry Vodka when, according to the bartender Keaton, I should have asked for a Vodka Cranberry. Sad that calling it a “Cranberry Vodka” instead of a “Vodka Cranberry” threw this “professional” bartender (Keaton) off balance and caused him a great deal of confusion, to the point where he felt the need to correct me. What I think can be excused is me reversing the two words in the name of a drink. What I don’t think can be excused is the way he felt that he needed to correct me or the way he did it. I certainly hope he felt better after that. Strongly encourage management to give Keaton some additional training and coaching.

Bartender wont serve you if you dont place the card on his hand precisely. He wont take your order if you dont scream it out loud to him, because he (apparently) is a Queen and wont lean to listen to you. Nobody will communicate you with the manager because hes out there dancing somewhere but no description of what he actually looks like. It is extremely disappointing that the community participates in this type of toxicity. Or is there something that Im missing out?Friday 07/08/23Second floor bartender: red hat, glasses, black.

My partner and I have been going to Kiki since it opened in early January of 2022. This is a super nice LGBT bar in DC. We have experienced all of the LGBT bars in DC and there is a reason Kiki is our favorite spot. From the front door to the back this is a honest hangout spot. Security is always super nice and inclusive. Kiki has some of the Best bartenders that have worked in DC with years of experience. The owner is very sweet and you can find him around the bar some nights. Outdoor area is clean and a great spot to socialize away from the crazy dance floor and DJ. They are always looking to improve the experience you get. Drag shows and underwear contests are always fun. Hoping to see what the future brings when the second half of the building is open. The line is worth the wait!

$15 for 1 shotWaited in line for an hour to get to an area where you cant even moveWe had to go to the terrace just to breatheThen were promptly kicked out from the terrace by staff and forced back in to the flood of peopleStaff was very rude, from the bouncers to the bar tenders. Would not recommend.

PAY YOUR EMPLOYEES! Don’t rely on $0.28 for every $10 to provide health insurance to your employees. Cheap business!

It’s disgusting that they gather so many people without air conditioning. Especially in summer.

Update: (5/13/2022):The owner did reach out to me and my partner regarding the incident. they are very polite and acknowledged what happened was unacceptable. They took the issue very seriously and placed the bartender on probation.That showed they really care about business ethics and want to ensure this is a safe place for LGBTQ+ minorities. It really satisfied us with their response. Therefore, we will give them another chance, and continue to support their business. Since this is a very nice LGBTQ+ bar, if the owner keeps his operational ethics this way, I am sure the bar will thrive.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------My experience at Kiki is not a good experience. I and my partner went to Kiki for the first time on a Saturday. We are residents of DMV for years and love the bars here. However Kiki left a really bad taste in our mouths.We ordered our first drinks from a bartender (who was white). He is very nice. The drinks were railed vodka tonic. $8 each - reasonable price for gay bars in DC. However, when we went down stair to order the same drinks from another bartender (who was Black). He charged us $10 each for the same drinks. In highlights, we did ask him if the bar take cash. And we saw him put our $20 plus $5 tips in his pocket for 2 drinks. We knew right there, he saw the opportunity to do some hustling aka stealing. There is no paper trail since it was paid in cash.It really made us very uncomfortable and upset. It really ruined our moods for the night. We went back the bartender upstair and ordered another round. It was still $8 each. We told him what happened to us down stair. He was embarrassed and told us that, he will talk to the bartender down star since it had happened before.The whole incident really makes us very upset and unsure if we want to go back to Kiki. We are local residents and been in gay bars since Town was here. We comes to no. 9, Dirty Goose, Trade, Uproar every weekend, and yet never experienced this kind of treatment ever. As someone who immigrated from Asia, and have accent, I have experienced more discrimination since Covid happened. So this just makes me feel even worst cause I feel ripped off by another marginalized group. We are the only Asian there, so we have to pay extra to be accepted?Overall, I am not sure if i can ever give Kiki another chance. But if anyone visit Kiki, order drinks upstair, the bartender there is very honest, nice, and you will never feel ripped off or discriminated cause you look different from everyone in the bar, and feel like you have to pay extra just to be there.

Edited: so it turns out the limit of people is due to their license, which is not in their control but still not the best when their total number doesn’t let them to fill the space.Watch out: expect to make long lines in busy nights and expect to find the place downstairs empty - apparently it’s all due to limit on total of ppl they can have.Still not sure if worth the one hour line to enter! … Once you make it to the second floor the music was fine, drinks, and everything else just like any other bar in town. Nothing special.

Great vibe but gurlll yall need some new speakers. They are so crunchy.Edit: they fixed their speakers and expanded! Definitely best spot for clubbing. They played pop and even edm remixes.

Love the location, and the General Manager is super friendly

Always a great experience when going out to KiKi. It does get a little crowded & with limited space it gets pretty hot real quick. They do have an outside patio which is nice & the drinks are good & relatively cheap.

Its a hit or a miss like most bars, depending on the night. The security person made a comment last time saying, I dont know what you all want me to address you as... (like in a mocking tone) so I assume someone called him out for misgendering people before. It was a bit off-putting, and I know he didnt mean it in a malicious way, but a gay bar is the last place you want to experience microaggressions.

When you think the St. Regis is expensive, come to Kiki, where 4 vodka sodas ran my husband and I $104. Oh, and that was a happy hour price. Bar was empty, I can understand why. Never coming here again.

Tried charging me $9 for a premium rail cocktail when the sign said $7. The ‘lowest they could go’ was $8. Drink here at your own risk.

Small space and $40 for 2 RBVs and a beer. No thank you.Does anyone else think its weird to have live camera feeds of the dance floor going to TVs in other places in the bar?

Kiki has quickly become my favorite bar on U. Friendly bar staff, fun atmosphere, strong DJ rotation. Excited for the expansion this fall.

Great staff (security included), great drag performers, and great energy! Jerdan, Paul and Keith are especially wonderful.

I went last past Sunday I ordered 2 margaritasThat’s cost me $56 somethingThe bartender suck he say he charge doubleI say I don’t ask for double and he say people here pay for it 🤣🤣🤣🤣bitch please don’t be like that first time and last one there

Bartender said one price and then changed his mind and upcharged smh

Disappointed. Thought Id check out this new bar. The guy at the door and the bartender werent the friendliest. Also $20 for a double is a little ridiculously expensive. Dont really feel a need to go back.

First experience checking out the space and place for the environment so far meaning the look and space given its nice with a beach bar vibe!

The Music should be more diverse, specially in a city like DC, just blasting pink pop divas all night long is hella boring.

Loved it!!! Went with a friend and everyone was friendly. Loved the vibe, would definitely come again. Highly recommend!

Disappointing music. Didn’t have much fun. Spent most of our time waiting and hoping for a good song to dance to.

Jerdan and team are amazing!!

This was my first time here and the security and all staff was amazing! I’ll definitely come back here as i am a DC resident

I enjoyed my time here last week. So many were dancing and music was good.

Kiki is a wonderful low key be yourself place. Sexy men adds to the vibe.

FUNNNN!!

The staff and security were so hospitable. It was sickening. Slayyy the house down

This is a cute place! Drag show was fun!

WONDERFUL SECURITY!! John couldn’t have been better at his job!

Big gay bar with multiple levels and rooms

They make people wait in a line when it is empty inside.

Nice place but the guy at the door was very rude with clients

Excellent wednesday drag show

Rude security guy at the door. Innecesary welcome.

Mid music and atmosphere

10/10 gay people do thing here! Klassy