The Gateway

came here for a delhi to dublin concert and it was a pretty solid experience.
this place is quite large with a fair number of tables. this setup is quite handy when you want to eat /​not be super close to the dance floor /​main stage.
drinks were cheap /​/​however, as a college bar, I’d hope they are. Only thing — they wouldn’t let me start a tab, which can be a pain if you want to have a big night…
decent acoustics, friendly staff, super close to transit options… gateway wins

This review is based on my concert experience. I attended the Abandon All Ships and Palisades concert. The place was maybe ¹⁄₃ full, but it was a Thursday. Both of the bartenders were friendly and efficient. The facility was very clean and prices were about average. The loss of one star is because the numerous bouncers failed to remove two guys who were «dancing» by taking swings at the back of people’s heads. Otherwise it was great.
I am planning to attend another concert soon and will update based on that one.

The Gateway:
A.K.A my second home while at SAIT. One of my favourite places to be. It was hard to justify going anywhere else at lunch. Why spend five dollars on an expensive coffee when you can spend that and have a nice lunch, a beer, and an actual place to sit. The music is nice and service is great. Not to mention one of the best venues for music in the city. Note to students: Get the dollar nachos, great for those of us on a budget.

The gateway is a nice venue for sure! Sweet sound system with a good open space. The Stage is a nice size and easy to navigate. Any show I have seen here has looked and sounded quite good.
I wouldn’t recommend eating here as the food is sub par, menu needs to go to rehab and get a job, as well as the servers because if they consider what they do work, well I won’t go their…
Extremely easy to get to by LRT as the venue is located on sait campus. For me its good strictly as decent space to watch a small act that comes through town. Check it out next time you can! Eat and drink before you come!

The Gateway is one of my favourite venues in Calgary, not least of all because they bring in great acts. I love that this campus bar is small enough to fill with music and atmosphere, while also big enough to attract musicians like Mother Mother, Two Hours Traffic, and Yukon Blonde, and way, way more! Because it is on SAIT campus, the crowd is fairly young but if you’re there for the music, who cares?
I’ve only had lunch here but the service is great and if you’re worried about a mass of students (or getting a specific table), planning lunch after 12:30 never fails. The food is what you would expect for pub fare: tasty, reasonably priced and with just enough variety to be interesting. The lunch special is a great deal, you can get lunch and a beer for under $ 15.
The Gate is also a great place for a post-​work beer, though it can be busier and louder at some times of years that others. Such is life with a campus bar!
I’ve only had great service at the Gate and it really helps that the servers are attentive regardless of customer gender, something I don’t always experience in Calgary.
The location, the service, the music, the food and the general atmosphere of The Gateway make it a fantastic place, whether you’re a student or not. Take advantage of the patio if you can, the view of downtown Calgary is badass.

The good: excellent location, beautiful view, and lots of space. Great place for live music with good sound, lighting, and stage.
The bad: Service was pathetic. There was no clear sign stating where to order food/​drinks and the bartenders weren’t exactly nice about telling us where to stand. When I went back for another drink the bartenders ignored me for a few minutes. A friend and I ordered the same pizza, they came forty minutes apart. I’ve only been here once, therefore I don’t know if this is just a rare occurrence, but I definitely am not tempted for a return visit.

As a SAIT alumni, I really enjoyed going to The Gate on my down time. Its usually pretty quiet during the day, so its nice to get together with friends and chat and have some grub. Like the others have said, the food is not the best, but its not awful by any means. The servers are a little slow but have always been friendly when I was there.
As a venue, its not one of my favorites, as its not that big, but its good for small events where less people would attend. Its nice that they also still have seating during the shows, so you dont feel like you have to stand around in between sets.
No coat check, which really sucks, but its sheltered right from the C-​Train station and the underground parking is steps away from the entrance. (not 100% sure if you can access the underground parking through the center as I have never used it)

Gonna have to reiterate what my good friend Dan wrote: as a music venue, the Gateway is quite nice. As a food place, it is subpar. Note to musicians: try to avoid the poutine with extra Montréal smoked meat if you are about to hit the stage. It’s much more like YOU will hit the stage from the overload.
It is a nice space — being in a school, it is very like a cafeteria: wide open, big inviting windows, with the added bonus of a bar. However, you do have to put up with the surly line-​cook shoveling slop onto your tray.
Kind of an aside, but the green room behind the stage… pretty sure the drunk guy in there pooped his pants as we were changing into our tights. Pretty sure.

As a venue, the Gateway gets 4 stars.
Good sound, lots of space, nice stage. Well worth checking out a band here. Intimate (close enough to be near the performers), while not TOO intimate (like seeing a band in some guy’s low-​ceilinged basement).
Now as a food establishment and bar, the Gateway gets TWO stars at best.
The servers and bartenders are unhelpful, rude, and condescending. They act as if you are SO greatly inconveniencing them by your existence.
The food is mediocre. Pizza seemed like a microwaved pizza, nachos were alright. Just average.
I will likely be back to the Gateway to take in a show or two in the future, but it is very unlikely that I will be ordering food or interacting with the service staff.

I’m pretty fond of the Gateway as a campus bar. The big windows let in a lot of sunlight, the open layout makes it easy to track down your buddies and the food is surprisingly good. Like, really, really good. It’s true that you always, always get ID’d, but then I’ve noticed that Calgary is cracking down more in general.
There are TVs all over the place, so it’s a good place to sit down and watch the game. They’ve got pool tables and some nice bathrooms in the back. The sound system is great for shows. It has all the elements of a great campus bar. There’s always groups of friends crowded around, enjoying the specials. I feel like the Den gets rowdier but the Gateway gets points for usability.

When going for lunch at the Gateway involves first get past the lurking and lurching security guy who checks everyone’s id’s (I’m sure not all of them are creepy but one of them really is.) And then you have to find a seat which shouldn’t be difficult since the place is built like a food-​court. And gentlemen, if you’re looking to pick up, I’m sorry but this is not the place –the girl to guy ratio is not in our favor.
But, surprisingly, the food is really good. Most places offer one type of veggie burger, here you can get every type of burger they sell but with a veggie patty –It’s a refreshing change from the norm. The canned music is bad but not offensively so and the live music they play is generally pretty unheard of which means a lot of mediocrity with a few hidden gems.