The North Door

I’ll start by saying I was only there because I play bass and native flutes for Bliss Goddess, and we were booked to headline last Friday night. I love Austin, but I live and work in Dallas, so while I’ve spent lots of time here and adore the vibe, there were several standouts about this venue. The staff were top notch, not just in being incredible at what they do, but as affable and genuine, across the board, as you’ll meet anywhere. I say that with a lot of experience working with people in the entertainment industry — this place made it a cake walk to make the set sound, and look, amazing. The layout is excellent, the stage is roomy, not a bad seat in the house. And while good venue food is arguably much easier to find in Austin than in Dallas, world class pizza (we’re talking seriously authentic pie here) in a Texas bar, is a downright epic anomaly. If I lived there I’d drop by even on nights when the band wasn’t on my list, just for a slice to go. Probably learn about a lot of new bands that way come to think of it. Moving to Austin is on my bucket list, and The North Door is now one of the reasons why.

Great venue, great band, but the WORST sound engineer I’ve ever heard.
Went to see Caspian last night, and it was the loudest show I’ve ever been to by a wide margin. Paired with the fact that the stage is in what amounts to a big concrete box, it made Caspian (a wonderful band who put on a great performance) sound AWFUL. No dynamics, no buildup, just a constant wall of sound above the pain threshold. I finally begged a pair of earplugs off of the bartenders and it was still too loud.
Sure, I’m old (26) and uncool for complaining about music being too loud. But the simple fact is that being too loud for the venue is the quickest way to make a band sound like crap — not only does the human ear perceive frequencies differently at different volumes, but acts as a natural compressor when things are very loud — if a band dips from 110dB to 100dB during a song, this is noticable and dynamic. If they dip from 160dB to 150dB, it’s much more difficult to tell that anything happened. Add in ear fatigue and everything just ends up sounding flat and one-​dimensional. There were several times during the show when the band transitioned from a buildup into a huge, epic climax, and the only way you could tell was because the lights started flashing — they simply couldn’t add volume or emphasis to anything because everything was already turned up to 11. Even worse, each burst of feedback and/​or oscillation sounded how going to the dentist feels, even with earplugs.
One of my favorite bands played an excellent show last night, but it was ruined by an awful sound engineer. Until they get someone that isn’t deaf to mix shows, you’d have a hard time getting me back in this venue for any band, no matter how excellent.

The bar tenders are awesome. Went hear for the double toasted one year anniversary and had a blast

Great place to visit and listen to live music. I visited today when I grabbed my passed to Austin Music Video Festival, that I won here on Unilocal.
Place is dark, but setup was great (with lots of seating for video screening tonight) !

I’m an event goer and event organizer. The North Door is best. If you are an event organizer this is where you want to end up. The staff, top to bottom, are pros.
The pizza is really good, and now they serve slices. The bar is great. The sound system and that giant screen are best in class in Austin.

I was finally able to see a band show at the North Door. My two other visits have been for Bedpost Confessionals and for a friend’s birthday party! I attended the BlackFret event and I was wowed by the acoustics and how well this place works for band performances.
I do wish the upstairs railing area had smaller chairs to fit more people in to see the show from above but, they had high tops too with stools so, it wasn’t all standing room. As usual the bartenders were quick with a drink and their pours are great!
I don’t usually mention door people but, Wickett was amazing. He was engaging in conversation while we smoked outside and I thoroughly enjoyed our conversations. It wasn’t just us though, he took the initiative to chat with everyone outside and ask if they were having a good time and continued to engage in conversations from there. As people came up to try to enter he kindly broke from conversation and turned to be equally as pleasant to people and direct them to the correct entrance door. He was awesome at balancing his duties and going over and above to deliver awesome customer service to guests!
I enjoy places that are great venues but, also employ awesome staff! I will definitely keep my eye out for more events going on at this venue now! Thanks Wickett!

LOVE this place! How cool to watch GoT on a massive screen while drinking something delicious? It’s awesome! The service was phenomenal, it was nicely cooled off in there. I’d give all 5 stars if:
–you could see the screen from the back row upstairs. Maybe raise it, or shorten the tables/​chairs in front? Since there is very limited front-​row seating up there, a lot of people are getting shafted
–the chairs downstairs were more comfy.
That being said, I missed the boat by eating just before showing up. The pizza smelled incredible.

Wow of you haven’t tried the new pizza at North Door you should. They have some very dedicated and passionate people in the kitchen over there that care about pizza. Ashley is killing it with new recipes and the venue itself is coming along nicely as well. New outdoor area is way tighter than before and also the bartenders are awesome. I had this really beautiful man I think his name was Jamie and I still dream about his cocktails. Great place to go eat, drink, and they always book cool music too.

Went to The North Door for the first time during free music week and instantly loved this venue. It’s a nice size (think old Antone’s or Parish) and the sound was perfection. Quick and friendly service with decently-​priced drinks. Cool upstairs/​hang-​out space, too. I’ll be back for more shows in the future, for sure!

It was a good show. Only down fall is, all of us that ate the pizza where sick the next day. :-/

I come here every month for Bedpost Confessions. I freakin’ LOVE LOVE LOVE this show! You MUST go.
Get there early, grab a slice of pizza (made fresh there), grab a drink and get cozy for a fun night of sexy stories and seriously laughter. And don’t forget to confess.
I confess… I love this venue for this show. :)

The female bartender was so rude to me. I waited patiently with a friend and she purposely served everyone beside me, when i politely mentioned I needed to be served she screamed at me saying I was yelling… mind you I was speaking over music. She was rude and made a rude statement about «my type» whatever that means. She refused to serve me and pretend i wasn’t there… I couldn’t believe the nerve and nothing I could do… It was horrible. I hate to play the race card but lets put it down hard for this joint. Will not go again. It sucks that customer service is all that needed to be had in this situation. I have been a few times and the customer service is horrible. They hate there jobs and the girl at the bar is a nut case. It’s one of those places that will serve you how they want cause they know that they still make the bucks so losing one doesn’t matter.

Horrific service. I got charged for a Pearl beer, I don’t drink. I asked for a cup of ice, said please, and was looked at as though from another planet. I also asked for a straw, please, and for my trouble got an eye roll and asked «if I was alright? as I seemed angry». I said no I am fine, not all black women are angry, please give me my bill. I didn’t have my reading glasses asked the bartender how much was the total, he said $ 5.00 I paid, left no tip. Once in line for food I saw that I was charged for a beer. I didn’t want to go back and get it fixed the bar tender was super rude and I’d had enough of his snark. I asked for a manager and he proceeded to argue with me, tell me that his bar tender was a sweetheart and that he didnt’ believe me. I made him fix my check. Every time I go there there are issues with the service. But they have great shows, talks etc… going forward I will eat and drink before getting there. There is only so much rudeness and hostility a person can take. I do not understand why these entitled young men who chose to go into the service industry are so hostile. The economic apartheid in this town is appalling. Will and Adam went out of their way to make me feel unwelcome and were it not for my friends of Bedpost Confessions I would never set foot in that place. The last time I was there I was told «what do you want?» with a terrible tone. The time before I aas told to pay for food at the bar and go and get your food from the window. Tonight Adam told me I «tried to cut the line» for food, really the bar tender told me to pay at the bar and go and retrieve my food from the window and there was no one in line. The staff at this place starting with the manager lie and are rude and hostile. They also will deliberately overcharge you and give you grief if you tell them what they did. This is what happened to me tonight. I asked for a Topochico w/​ice and a straw, was charged for a beer and was harrassed when I tried to get my money back. What a nightmare.
I was not able to enjoy my evening because of these horrible people. They suck, majorly. I may have to give up bedpost confessions as the staff in this place is atrocious. The service is appalling do yourself a favor, eat and drink somewhere else and stay away from the staff, if you must ask them how much what you are pay for costs, pay in cash. Be careful these are not nice people. Super disappointed. These folks ooze unprofessionalism, racism and hostility.
I very well may give up the activities that I enjoy just so I don’t have to deal with these folks.

Very Cool venue… until this past weekend I had no idea this place existed in the eastside downtown area. The name made it sound like it had a northern location, but Nope, it was right here in the downtown area! Parking was a breeze! Located on the eastside near the Metro-​Railway, there was plenty of Free available parking spots!
Fat Bottom Cabaret brought in a lively crowd, but it wasn’t too crowded. The venue itself is medium-​large size in general, plenty of A/​C kept the place cool & comfortable. The main stage was well visible from any position in the building which was Excellent! Sound system was adequate and met the standard for most performing arts venues.
Bar service was Quick! Very professional. $ 3 Miller Lite special the night of the event.
Definitely looking forward to the next event here at The North Door!

It’s a great venue and I’ve loved every event I’ve been to here (Breaking Bad viewing, clothing swap, Nerd Nite, Renegade Austin, etc), but the service here ALWAYS makes me think twice about if I really want to attend. Event planners should take note of this, because I’ve heard this sentiment from a lot of people as well.
The bartenders act like they’d literally rather be scrubbing the toilet with a toothbrush than talk to you, let alone get you a beer with anything less than a sigh and a frown. When I asked the price for the cans of beer were last night, the bartender said, «I don’t know, man. Anywhere from $ 3 to $ 9» and walked away. Is it really that much of a hassle to give an individual price on the THREE different cans of beer they offer?
Also, charging $ 6 for a Fireman’s #4 draft that isn’t even a full pint is highway robbery.

Didnt know this place existed until Kelly S put an event up for the Black Widow Burlesque fifth Anniversary show. I’ve been trying to get to quite a few burlesque shows but they end up being on nights I worked early the next morning. That was until last night. I bought a VIP ticket in advance, 21.96 with tax. Cheap. Showed at 845 for the opening at 930. Grabbed a tall boy PBR and a double Jameson neat. The VIP section had goodie bags for us, one on each seat. The bags had adult gifts inside. A little lube, some prophylactics, a glass pipe, and a Black Widow postcard. And some confetti.
The show started about twenty minutes late, but other than that it was a fabulous time.
Veterans Tip: Every time an article of clothing starts to come off you hoot, holler, cheer, and whistle. Loud like!
The hostess Ms. Lucas was funny, she kept the audiences attention and introduced all the acts.
Each act had something different to offer. All of these women were Amazing. Some stood out more than others. But it was a well rounded show.
I left around midnight with A LOT of Booty on the stage. Twerking. I thoroughly enjoyed my evening. Money well spent.
Didn’t get to try the food, ran out while I was still in line.

Noelle’s right … That $ 1 off any drink with Unilocal check-​in? They guys at the bar say «We didn’t make that offer… they put that up without us.» So they won’t honor it.
I couldn’t care less about the dollar. It’s the ineptitude that grates.

Seeing as how I’m over 30 and i’m boring I don’t really go to bars to just drink anymore, so The North Door is a good option for going out because they’ve got lots of interesting events going on here. I saw a free SXSW show here a couple years back, and then more recently saw their Short Indies event where they place short independant movies followed by Q&A’s with the filmmaker, and also finally, Bedpost Confessions. The venue itself is decent, with an upstairs section. It’s generally pretty dimly lit, and has a passable selection of beer, but nothing to wow you with either. They do have pizzas here, but the one time i ordered one, they made the wrong pie and rather than wait for them to remake it, I just chalked it up as a loss.
I’d definitely check out their webpage and view the calendar as they have lots of events that are pretty cheap that look like fun as well as some not so cheap $ 150 2-​hour chair making class. How random can you get?

So I checked out The North Door when I went and saw Bedpost Confessions here. I love they they have an upstairs so short people like me can see the stage.
My only complaint was that there were far too few bartenders working for the crowd, but I’ll definetly be back.

Solid venue in Austin for live events. Over the years I have been for poetry slam, bedpost confessions, Mortified and other spoken engagements.
There are 2 bars. The one in the back is technically the main entrance. Don’t be fooled thinking you enter on 5^th street. You enter in the back alley which is literally the North Door (ND stands for North Door). That’s where the lower bar is. In the main room there is a main bar. Good beer selection, good cocktails, good wine. Everything here is solid. There is an upstairs area if you want a good view of the stage.
If you can’t find street parking they have a paid parking lot across the street on 5^th.