Winners For

Best Karaoke

The north end has a plethora of venues to karaoke in, especially on weekends. In Greenwood alone are six awesome Friday-night options within five minutes of my home. But every week for the past four years, I've chosen to sing at Tarasco in Ballard. It's a nice tucked-away venue that usually gets packed but has occasional down nights where you're...

If you're gonna murder a popular song, might as well do it on the fringes of the Everglades. Since 2009, Fat Monkey has been hosting karaoke parties six days a week. Trust us — the trek to deep South Miami-Dade is worth it. Lube up your vocal cords with $5 frozen daiquiris or four bottles of domestic beer for $10. Ladies drink free Friday nights...

Karaoke is meant to be cheesy. So don't do it in a posh, private room with a dozen of your closest friends. Sing your heart out in a lounge that looks like a 13-year-old girl decorated it (zebra print and hot-pink furniture are in no shortage here). Planet Rose Karaoke in the East Village is an old standby, yes, but it's our guilty pleasure. It'...

You're out with your friends and you're tired of Hollywood drink prices, standing-room-only clubs and pushy meatheads. You wonder aloud if there's a cozy place where you can imbibe and enjoy music with all the comforts of your couch. In fact, there are many such spots in Koreatown, where karaoke rooms are known as norebang. Some have after-hours...

The history of American music is littered with legends about "pickup bands," units of players so adept and quick on their feet that touring songwriters needed only to show up in town and contact the band to back them at a bar or club gig. The members of the karaoke band at Toby Keith's I Love This Bar and Grill in Mesa are kind of like those leg...

If karaoke makes you queasy — that is, if you don't relish the thought of standing onstage with a giant room full of strangers staring you down while you butcher "Rollin' in the Deep" — then what you need to do is gather ten of your closest friends and head to PJ's for karaoke, which starts promptly at 9 p.m. every Friday. Your pals can sit on t...

Like its name says, Glitter Karaoke's insides are bright and colorful, but the lights are low, so you won't get dizzy. And with over 140,000 songs in this Midtown joint's collection, so you'll never get bored searching for something to sing. When there's a crowd, the DJ picks crowd-pleasing favorites sure to get a singalong competition started u...

Guava Lamp is another two-for-one gay-bar-meets-karaokevenue. In addition, dance videos playing throughout and hilarious hosts are what rank this venue so high on the list. The drinks are expensive yet strong, and with a pool table, rounded bar and televisions and plush couches strewn throughout, the décor reminds you of a modern version of that...

The Houston branch of the restaurant and bar chain is such a popular place, it even prompted our own Shea Serrano to give it a review. At Genji's you can order your food and your music from the same table. The place is a bit rundown, the private rooms in the back and the karaoke songs are rip-offs of originals, but it's worth it for two-for-one ...

There are multiple Spotlight locations: One in the Galleria area, and the other in Midtown. Go to the one near the Galleria; you can bring your own food (not drinks), and it offers beautiful private rooms where you and your friends can sing and dance to an endless list of classic and modern songs in nearly every genre imaginable. Spotlight's son...

F Bar gets double billing for being one of the best karaoke and gay bars in Houston. The interior is classy and fabulous, as are the drag shows on Sunday nights. The dance floor is small but fun, and if you get tired of grooving to the beat, the patio outside provides a quiet respite from the clubby atmosphere. But you're here for the karaoke...

Visitors to Mo's Place can enjoy karaoke Mondays through Wednesdays, with live music performances the rest of the week. However, this establishment does enforce a strict dress code policy of no tank tops, bandannas or backwards baseball caps, so to be on the safe side, leave your casual wear at home.

We'll let the scantily clad waitresses slide. Why? Karaoke nights on Wednesdays! The Runway Bar and Grill is another far-out venue, but that doesn't make it any less "in" amongst karaoke lovers. Instead of an electronic karaoke machine set to shuffle, they have a live DJ who, if you're good enough, will keep the songs coming all night.

For some, karaoke is simply another line item in the litany of embarrassing things that happen when blood-alcohol levels get a bit off-kilter. But there's an entire subculture of bar-dwelling aural sadomasochists who thrive off of ear-splitting renditions of Hall and Oates' greatest hits. And from the moment they flip that first laminated page i...

You don't go to Just John's for simple karaoke; you go there for an experience. From the moment the doorman glances at your driver's license photo and exclaims, "Honey, you've got to be lying about your age, because you look good," you're welcomed into a hotbed of positive vibes. Nervous about singing? Don't be -- by the time the night's over, y...

Much like Baskin Robins, DD's seems to have 31 flavors when it comes to karaoke clientele. There's Vanilla CEO Slam on Mondays, Double-Chocolate '90s Nirvana on Wednesdays and Tutti Fruity Rockin' Bootie on Saturdays. Mix in a few Jell-O shot girls and Old Man Smitty hossing some Parmesan fries, and you can experience a smorgasbord of singers vi...

People who say "I'm big on Twitter" usually are douches, but that's not the case at the Luna Lounge. Known as St. Louis' premiere tweetup bar, the Luna ensures that friendships that originally begin as 140 characters are further cemented over karaoke and booze. The Luna feels a bit like a dark cave near the entrance, but the karaoke room with th...

Sometimes you want to perform in a nice bar with diferent-colored spotlights and an audience that politely applauds for every singer. Other times, you want to sing while shitfaced before slithering back to your stool through weathered dads and sorority outcasts who haven't washed their hair in three days. The latter are the days you want to hit ...

You know that friend who says, "Let's go to a strip club just to see what the big deal is" when you've had a little too much Milwaukee's Best in college? Yeah, that's the friend who, as an adult, will convince you to head to Mike Talayna's after a wild night of Van Halen and Eddie Money cover bands. The neon lights and mirrored walls beckon sing...

Linbrook Bowl is a legendary working-class Anaheim institution, with its Googie-style sign and rotating, neon-lit pin. But by night, it beckons leagues of OC's inebriated crooners. The sound of bowling balls spinning down the lane leaving dreaded 7-10 splits can be heard upon entering the Kopa Room, but once inside the dimly lit, oval-shaped bar...

We all know that feeling: It’s late, we’ve had a few, and we end up at a karaoke bar flipping through the pages to find that “perfect” song to impress the crowds – nothing too sappy or slow, something fun with easy-to-read lyrics. But, after we sit down, we realize perhaps we are not the next American Idol. Fear not, karaoke fans, for Lincoln Ka...

Get ready to bust out your best Bon Jovi, Michael Jackson, and Journey, because The Indie on Main's karaoke bar lets you be the rock star, even if your stage is tucked away in the corner of a movie theater lobby. Hey, you gotta start somehwere.

This traditional Japanese izakaya (a casual bar with sushi and other small plates) also offers the best karaoke in town. There's a public karaoke lounge upstairs, as well as eight private rooms that can be rented out for parties. So if stuffing yourself with sushi and sake and then making a fool of yourself in front of a room full of strangers b...

If you cringe at the thought of belting out “Cats in the Cradle” to a drunk and ornery crowd, Muzette might be the place to fulfill your introverted karaoke dreams. There are cozy private rooms with flat screens and programmable set lists, so you never have to stop singing, and the rooms are sufficiently dark so no one will see you sweating. The...

Come for the spicy goat stew, stay for the ’80s ballads. The hipster mecca is perhaps best known for their monthly spelling bee, but to overlook the Wednesday night karaoke with Red Sox DJ TJ Connelly would be a shame. The song list runs the gamut from pop classics to Pitchfork-approved indie tracks. Grab some liquid courage from the bar and get...

We like our karaoke with a side of characters, and this J.P. pub packs ‘em in on Saturday nights: a James Spader doppelganger crooning the Temptations’ “Get Ready,” a gaggle of girls rapping their way through the early-’90s hip-hop songbook, and a tone-deaf regular unleashing his jazz hands during a rendition of “Just a Gigolo.” Extra points for...

More than just a karaoke bar where patrons pick up a mike and make fools of themselves, this takes outlandish—and serious—performances to new heights. Singers can fashion their own wardrobes from a stash of hats, wigs, and costumes along with prop instruments. What good is a Hendrix show without getting nuts onstage with a guitar? (Although you’...

A die-hard Irish dive bar to its core, Ould Sod is where hopefuls unleash their inner songbirds. Bar owners Tommy Quinn, Ron Stout, and Mick Ward wear many hats--they sponsor the San Diego Irish players drama group, host the annual Blooms day pub crawl in June, the Christmas pub crawl in December, and the list goes on. There is no typical client...

Off-key and awesome: It’s the only way to rock the mic during a hot karaoke session. And at Good Time Charlie’s Pub it goes down that way seven nights a week, from 9:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. The songbook is more than 100,000 strong, and the crowd is a mixed lot with a penchant for heckling. So, if you’re going to try for a belter and don’t have the ...

We got worried when we heard that the former Midtown Yacht Club space was going to be turned into a barbecue joint. We hoped the new owners wouldn’t transform the once gloriously divey spot into a cheesy suburban-style restaurant. We were assured when we visited Midtown BBQ & Brew and realized not only could you still crack peanuts and throw the...

In some ways, saying “Best Karaoke” is like saying “Best Place to Have Your Ears Ripped out by Drunken, Amphetamine-Fueled Rats.” It’s partly because the damned karaoke machines for some reason often have the songs in a different key or tempo than the popular version. But there are some good karaoke experiences to be had, and the BEST is right a...

If you spend too much time fretting about your rendition of “Radar Love,” chances are you’re going to bomb. But waiting on pins and needles for a bellicose KJ to call your name to the stage is never a problem at this Northwest hidey-hole bar, where you (and a crew of your bravest buds) can rent out one of a half dozen private rooms to practice i...

Tina's is reason No. 1 to skip the karaoke night at the strip-mall bar down the street. Tucked way back in Detroit-Shoreway, Tina's is many things. Sketchy, hopelessly drunk, eclectic, hipster, dive-y, a relic, a classic, and more. A perfect mix of old-guard neighborhood folks and youngsters flock to the brick building every night. Liquor is rid...

Las Vegas did this place up right, since the entire lounge is devoted to karaoke. Select from thousands of songs but be prepared to be judged—fans are serious practitioners here.

Finding Ego’s can be a challenge given that it is underneath a complex of office buildings, but once you find the door, it is on. Their extensive song collection and generous sound system give you all you need to sing your heart out. But, what makes Ego’s interesting is that the drunken hijinks often end up with a stage full of ass-shaking colle...

Karaoke bars are so weird. It's this bizarre combo of drunk people in their 30s mixed with tourists who are cheering on wannabe country singers. But at Santa's Pub, this type of tomfoolery is completely absent. There's plenty of other tomfoolery — you can smoke inside, beer is only $2, and you're drinking in a double-wide — but any old Jack or J...

Music City doesn't mess around when it comes to karaoke but that doesn't mean it's always an uptight affair -- this airbrushed double-wide trailer offers karaoke all day , every day from open to close.

We're ready to join the folks who voted the Hot Club as the Best Karaoke Spot. When the iTunes shuffle just served up ABC's "The Look of Love," we were belting out the timeless lyrics ("If you judge a book by the cover/Then you'd judge the look by the lover"), complete with signifying hand gestures and a striking gold lamé jacket (well, in our o...

When it opened some twenty years ago, Armida's hosted karaoke one night a week. But the Mexican restaurant soon focused in on the entertainment option, and for years it's been one of the few spots in town to host karaoke seven nights a week. It's also grown into one of the most popular venues for people to strut their stuff — so much so that it ...

If you were a regular at the sparsely attended Hairy Karaoke series at St. Paul's Turf Club, you were not only in on one of the city's best-kept secrets but you've also likely had an itch to get up on the venue's side stage for quite some time now. Unfortunately, with its many regular offerings, from touring bands to weekly residencies, the Turf...