Gracie Barra Northridge

I’m in town visiting from New York and heard great things about Gracie Barra from my professor and fellow students. I must say after stopping in to train I could not have come to a more welcoming, gracious, kind, respectful and experienced academy than this one (and Renzo Gracie NYC of course lol ;) What a pleasure training today was ! If you want to learn in a welcoming, extremely clean, and professional academy; I highly suggest Gracie Barra.

Why Your Child Should Learn Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (at Gracie Barra Northridge); A Parent’s Opinion
Although all martial arts – to varying degrees – enhance the learner’s fitness, self-​confidence, and self-​defense skills, arguably, for the child learner Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) offers some unique advantages over other martial arts.
Illustratively, when confronted by an aggressive school bully, the child trained in a striking-​based martial art (e.g., kickboxing, Taekwondo) would likely defend him/​herself by injecting more aggression (e.g., punch, kick) to an already aggressive situation; the end result would likely involve both children being disciplined by the school. Conversely, the child trained in BJJ (i.e., a non-​striking martial art) would likely defend him/​herself in a controlled, less aggressive, yet highly effective manner (e.g., redirect the punch then takedown and restrain), thereby neutralizing the bully’s attack until school personnel arrived; the end result would likely involve only the bully being disciplined by the school, and the victim returning to his/​her usual routine – albeit with an added boost to his/​her confidence and self esteem. Other advantages to learning BJJ include being comfortable in confined spaces and on the ground – a place where most fights end up – as well as superior strength and conditioning.
Disclaimer: The aforementioned narrative is written from the viewpoint of a parent, not of a martial arts expert, and is not in anyway intended to discredit any martial arts or disrespect any martial artists.

There was a time were I was not coming to train very often, and I gained some unwanted extra weight. When I received my purple belt this summer, Professor Romulo told me I needed to start training harder. I followed his advice and started to come more consistently again. I have lost 20 pounds in 5 months! If you want to lose weight, or become a world champion this is the school for you!

The BEST school for training young children and future champions! I have had three of my sons (started at ages 3 – 5) join/​train here for over a year and a half and they LOVE the program and the Coaches! They have learned more discipline and respect for adults… confidence to stand up to bullying at school… better coordination/​fitness which has helped them in other sports… and great family bonding time. They now even want to compete in tournaments and have a blast!
After watching them for a year they inspired me to join and in a couple of months I lost 15lbs!!!
You also can’t beat the quality of the instructors (Coaches/​Professors) they are World Class Champions (literally!) Professor Romulo Barral is a 5x Black Belt Champion! Professor Edwin, Professor Gabriel, Coach Pedro, Coach Sky, Coach Mike, etc… etc…etc…All of these talented individuals still actively compete and win National Tournaments!
Overall this studio treats you like a member of their family… and has become a 2^nd home to us. We will be members for life!

The best place to train in the valley. Professor Romulo, Gabriel, Edwin, and coach Jaeson teach bjj at its finest. The vibes of a new addition (me) to the family is the best feeling. Don’t miss out on great bjj if you live close to here. I live in Moorpark and always look forward to class.

World class instructors. Great training partners. This is the best jiu jitsu studio ever.

It took me a while to find a gym where I wanted to train at. There is a vast number of bjj schools in the valley to choose from, but there is a reason why people from all over the world come train at Romulo Barral’s gym. To simply put it, he is one of the best in the game. A quick google search and you’ll find that he’s earned his spot in the IBJJF hall of fame. A great jiu-​jitsu practitioner doesn’t automatically make a good school to learn jiu-​jitsu — a proper teacher does. Professor Romulo has demonstrated that by making world champions out of his students Edwin Najmi & Gabriel Arges both whom also teach at Gracie Barra Northridge.
This school is made up of current champions and people desiring to make their mark in bjj history. The competitiveness is present in the gym and people train hard, but that doesn’t mean the gym is filled with unapproachable «bros» that have 0 personality. EVERYONE that I’ve met since I started training here has been extremely friendly. The friendships you end up making become another reason to motivate you to come and train.
I’ve visited other bjj schools, and nothing compares to training at GB Northridge.

This is the best place to train Brazilian Jiu Jitsu! This is a very family oriented place. All egos are left at the door! Very warm and safe environment!

Well, I have never thought I would be doing jiujitsu. When, I started doing it, my life has changed drastically! Not only I have been learning self defense but also how to set goals in my life and achieve it. Literally, all the professors are so patient and nice. I totally see how they love teaching and how much their passion has passed to me. Jiujitsu is not only a simple sport but a life style. My mind is different and also my body. I don’t even go to the gym and I’m now so much stronger than I had ever been before! I highly recommend Gracie Barra Northridge if you wanna a great change in your life and discipline! I would like to thank professors, Romulo, Grabriel and Edwin for being so caring and patient by sharing with us their excellent techniques!

The best place to train. Romulo, Gabriel, and Edwin are the best and the nicest teachers ever. They’re patient and they always teach you the best and as best as they can. You train with true athletes and champions here. Everyone here is very welcoming and have great attitudes. Don’t be afraid to come in and try!

Gracie Barra Northridge the best Jiu Jitsu school in California hands down!!! If you looking to learn from the best you train here, train with Romulo Barral multiple time World Jiu Jitsu World Champion and ADCC Champion!!! Here you will find the best training partners and a fantastic family environment for everyone.

So basically it’s really simple, if you are not raining here you are not training to become a world champion. All of the men and women that come here are beasts! Professor Romulo Barral is a 4 time world champion and teaches the most current techniques and trains extremely hard. It’s truly the best school you can go to and this is where I will remain. I love my Jiujitsu Family!

Train with champions. Best place for martial art. Awesome vibe great intstructors. 4time black belt
World champio professor Romulo and many more world champion instructors.

I absolutely love this place. They have a friendly and knowledgeable staff that is always eager to help with a positive environment. It is a great location to train, regardless, if you’re a new beginner with zero past Jiu Jitsu experience or a professional competitor. They have a wide variety of classes available to meet almost anyone’s schedule, taught and train amongst the most elite in the industry. I highly recommend.

Since I enrolled my girls to The Gracie Barra Studio in Northridge it has made a big difference in my daughters lives. My 7 year old Sierra has come out of her shell, boosted her confidence, and is not afraid to speak in her classroom. My 14 daughter Nia trains with the adults and since, it’s given her a since of security, self confidence, and friendships. I am so great full for this studio, the opportunities it teaches girls/​women and for the coaches and staff. They are all so wonderful and family oriented. I’m so glad I found them and I would definitely recommend this studio to everyone. Thank you Gracie Barra Northridge Family
The Silva Family

For sure a 5 stars my little brother started going her since he was 4 years old and the guys that train him are like his older brothers they take care of all the kids very very well and take the time to make sure they have there moves right. When he gets home he teaches me hahaha.

This gym is intense. If you’re serious about jiu jitsu and about improving your game, come here. There is a lot of laughter and fun, great guys on the mats, very respectful, but most importantly, the level of practice here is so high, your skill level will improv exponentially. Professor Romulo is one of the best. And his coaches are some of the very best. And they want you to do well and improve. They love the sport and the jiu jitsu lifestyle. After training at several other gyms, I’m so grateful I ended up at this one. And Jaeson Bianchi who runs it is one of the friendliest, down to earth people I’ve met.

My 11 yr old son started at Gracie Barra Northridge more than 9 months ago, when he was 10 yrs old. This review is for the kids program. In my mind, just because you are a BJJ athlete who competes and gets on the podium it doesn’t make you a good coach, just because you have the technical skills and have a black belt it doesn’t make you a good coach, and just because you love BJJ and you’re able to motivate others it doesn’t make you a good coach. In my opinion, especially for kids, it takes ALL these abilities and even more. Coach Jaeson, coach Pedro, coach Pete, and coach Mike at Gracie Barra Northridge are without a doubt the best coaches/​teachers I have come across.
As a parent, I can’t tell you how satisfying it is to see your son working hard, sweating all over himself, getting knock down and a little banged up, but making it back on his feet and ready to go again.
Finally, just because it is so cool, you should google owner/​head coach Romulo Barral. On a website I found, Coach Romulo is ranked #1 in the world in his weight class. How cool is that, how many times in life do you get to do anything with anyone who is ranked #1. Although I started my son at Gracie Barra Northridge due to the name Romulo Barral, we will stay and continue because of coach Jaeson and the other coaches who make the kids program something special.

Great school; high cost
My wife has been going here for a while now. The instruction is quite good, and the atmosphere is fairly friendly.
There are a couple of issues, there’s no changing room for women like there is for men. The toilets were backed up for a few weeks in a row, and there’s the cost.
Now, lets be clear, they aren’t charging exorbitant rates. Still, it’s $ 156 a month, and you have to provide 3 months notice for cancellation. Also, you have to buy their gi’s (this is the thing that most annoys me). You can’t use any other (better) jiu-​jitsu gi, and their gi’s cost another $ 150 a piece. You’ll need at least a couple. The sign up process as we went through it seemed more concerned with the money than helping a new student.
Still, a good school and the owner is a great competitor. This is definitely a good bjj school, and my wife enjoys every class. I’d recommend you look around though and try a few classes here, and at other schools in the valley (almost all of them offer free trials) before committing to any one school.

High level instruction by the teachers, staff is very polite and the gym is very organized.
If you wanna train BJJ, get in shape and have a healthy lifestyle this is the place to be.