Fez Ballroom

On Friday nights, nobody beats the Fez. Nobody. \r \r The staff at this place is top-notch. There is very little pretense to this place, and the vibe here is not mean-spirited in the slightest. \r \r The crowd is quirky and playful and pretty good-natured. Also, they're smart. Darn smart.\r \r Friday nights are ""Shut Up and Dance"", and it's just an incredible time.\r \r If you fit the mold, ya gotta go. Pros: Awesome, great, fun. Cons: Cons? more

The Fez is great in a lot of ways: The owners are super-cool to the random costumed Portland weirdness that goes on. (They don't mind when 300 santas show up and want in.) There is a medium sized dance floor on the third floor and a relaxed lounge on the second floor. Fridays is ""Shut Up and Dance"" with a $5 cover and some Saturdays they have Bhangra dancing. There does always seem to be goth clad kids but there are also a bunch of middle aged housewives out on the town and couple that are there to have a good time. Every time I go to the Fez, I have a good time. Pros: Inexpensive for dancing, big coolers of water sitting around, good music Cons: Stairs to get to the dance floor and out afterwards can be tricky more

Every day of the week isn't enough! The drinks were perfectly mixed and the crowd was so friendly and intelligent. You'll find a room full of beauties with something to say - no cosmos in this crowd! Pros: Thirst quenching concoctions. Cons: You""ll never go home. more

Initially we were excited to find a dance spot that played our fave 80's music and at first enjoyed the dirty city ambience. The bartender was nice. But as the music played we didn't recognize but one song; apparently the DJ didn't live through the 1980's. Stranger than normal clientele who wore costumes , and a lot of goth wear going on. We were uncomfortable and not enjoying so we high tailed it to the nice easy going Uptown Billiards for a final drink. Oh well my quest for good dance music in this town continous... Pros: location Cons: music , crowd type more

Friday night, 10:30pm and 1:30am, was surprised by the music--kind of dark 80's rock. Mixed crowd, full dance floor at later hours, some semigoth boys and girls, overall casual, friendly door and bar staff. Pros: friendly staff, nice small 2nd floor lounge, nice 3rd floor dancefloor Cons: parking, not my taste in music (but you might like it) more

This was my first time going out in 5 years, and I was extremely lucky to stumble across The Fez. The people at the door were great, and very through in checking ID's. The music was great, you couldn't help but dance to every song, the drinks were good, and not too spendy. It was constantly being cleaned and tidied up, and the bar downstairs was nice and calm. It was definitely crowded, but everyone gave each other room to dance, and if you bumped into someone, it was no big deal. There were plenty of comfortable places to sit down and rest, or just chill out and watch the fun dancing go on. All I can say is that I had a blast and I can't wait to go again. I also recommended the Annex down the street, a nice place to start your evening. Pros: Not a Meat Market, Fun People, Great dancing Cons: ummm, mmmmm, mmmm nope! more

really glad that disc jockey gregarious has found a new home. as much as i love lola's room, i think the fez is a fantastic replacement home for his shut up and dance friday night gigs. love the soft sofas to lounge on and lighting, plus the wooden dance floor is definitely my kind of floor for dancing. looked like a decent sized crowd there last friday, and i'm sure as word gets out, more and more people will show. keep it up gregarious, we all loves ya...... more

Friendly doorpeople, non-aggro security, attentive bartenders, polite concert-goers, clean bathrooms, good decor, coat check... Maybe I'm just getting old, but that's all a refreshing change of pace from your standard rock club (you know who you are!) Basically, the Fez is worth going to even if you've never heard of the act, just to check the place out and enjoy the atmosphere. Ticket prices are reasonable, and I've definitely paid more for my drinks elsewhere. Fez and Holocene both kick butt for the same reasons. Pros: Atmosphere, Attitude, Acts Cons: None, Nope, Nada more

BEAUTIFUL, plush, comfortable. Loads of class. The new lounge downstairs has MAD style. The people working the door did not have the typical door man attitude, very friendly! I will be looking for reasons to go to this GEM of a club!!! Pros: beautiful, spacious, good drinks more