BalMar

I came here on a Saturday night and loved it!
It’s definitely a spot to go to and with that, it was quite packed. Many people are arm to arm. So it gets pretty crowded.
The dance floor is upstairs and luckily with the huge crowd I was able to manage my way upstairs with some room to spare.
The DJ that night was great! The funny thing was 15 minutes before we were about to leave the DJ wasn’t playing great music. although, as we were about to leave, he did. So the guys had already walked out while me and the girls stayed and danced to a few more songs haha

This place is nice. Went here on a Saturday night and the vibe was really chill, but fun. The upstairs turns into a dance floor and the place in general looks pretty classy, there were no creepy lurkers like there are in Belltown and Capitol Hill and Pioneer Square. What I also liked about this place was that it was not a complete sausage-​fest and was pretty equal with guys and girls, so that was nice.

Nothing special with this place. Being in Ballard, the parking is a pain. The venue is much nicer looking from the outside than it is inside. We hosted a holiday party here, and we rented out the upstairs. The «staff» here do a horrible job keeping lurkers and people not in your party out of the area. What’s the point of renting out a space then?
If I were to come here just to stop in for a drink (eg without renting out the upstairs), I’d hate the experience. The downstairs area is oddly arranged, and is much smaller than it looks.

MAL-​Bar would be a better name.
Greasy food, foreign items suspended in drinks, unprofessional service, poseurs.
I’ve been both for HH and big events.
It’s just disappointing every time.

Good music. Great staff. Wasn’t very busy so we got drinks right away. Great location.

Tonight I’d definitely give one star. Usually I really like bal mar, but tonight was an extremely weird and unprofessional vibe. I kid you not, the waitress was wearing sweats, a cotton tank and nikes with her hair up like she was about to go to bed? Definitely didn’t put anyone in the party mood. Was extremely bizarre

Everytime I have been here it smells like someone just puked. Bathrooms are equivelent to a Nevada truck stop. ¹⁄₅ will not return.

Balmar is a great experience to have. Great food good drinks and at night if you’re feelin it upstairs has a dance floor and a second bar, keeping down stairs strictly to drink food and pool which is perfect. The place isn’t huge but they have a great floor plan that flows very well. Over all has a great concept and diversity of function!

I went on a Thursday night, definitely not the best time to go. I had a steak burger because there was no people and no music. I was the only customer. I didn’t even have a drink. Anyway, I feel like it wouldve been good if I went on a weekend.

I’ve only been to Bal Mar for a work function, which was set up buffet-​style. So I can’t review or speak to the regular service at Bal Mar. That said, the upstairs «loft» really is the perfect layout for a large function — save for the awkward, darkened space beyond the bathrooms.
I can’t recall all of the food, but there were house made potato chips, pita & hummus, spicy sliders, grilled veggies, blondies (or brownies) and a few other treats. The sliders were by far my favorite, and I’m not kidding when I say they were spicy. But they were oh so good! They also had chicken satays made from chicken breast and a fantastic peanut dipping sauce.
I stuck to club soda as my mocktail that night, so I can’t speak to their drinks, either. All in all a decent evening!

A huge thank you to the staff here! I just threw my boyfriends 25^th bday there this past Saturday and it was an amazing venue! Your staff is so friendly and the VIP area was perfect! Everyone had a great time, thank you for all the great dancing and drinking. I can’t wait to book another party here!
(Hand down best place to host a surprise bday party!)

Came here for a birthday recently and boy was that a mistake. First off, if you’re over 30, you’re going to feel really old here (I’m talkin 21yos with backwards fitteds on) — but then again you’re probably not their target demographic anyway. It’s so hot and crowded in here I’m surprised they can pass fire inspections. My GnTs tasted so watered down that I felt like I needed to bring my own Hendricks. On the bright side they played good hip hop and pop muzik. Turn up!

I can’t say enough good things about my first visit to BalMar.
My date and I walked in around nine on a Saturday night. After a negative experience at a restaurant down the street, we were seeking a cosy romantic spot for post-​dinner drinks. The place was almost empty, and the interior had nice exposed brick walls and wooden floor, low tables and couches. We felt special; how could nobody else know about this great place we asked ourselves?
I can hear the regulars falling on the floor laughing at this point — we sure misjudged this place (but in a good way). Gradually (at first) the weekend throng began drifting in, and infinitely diverse people watching quickly ensued, although we soon realized that past 50 years old, we were (made to feel welcome) dinosaurs here.
We didn’t go upstairs to dance, but the music was great, a variety of great tunes reminding us of the 90’s-00’s. Note that some of the music might have been a bit too oriented toward listening if you need a serious beat to dance by.
Finally, they had ONE cocktail server for the entire downstairs bar. A recipe for disaster I hear you say, but no, this was SuperServer™, able to leap tall bars, cover the entire floor with breathless efficiency (even keeping our water glasses constantly full), and never missing a drink order or check. To management I would say, whatever you pay her, it’s probably not enough.
Absolutely love this place. Perhaps the young crowd will find it entertaining if we go upstairs to dance next time?

Went dancing at BalMar twice so far and I am hoping not to come back here again.
The first time, we had a bachelor party and it was some old school music that was difficult to dance to but lucky for us, the bachelor was so wasted that he didn’t care… or would dance to anything in his condition. :) It was a bit awkward feeling in atmosphere and the layout was a bit uninviting.
The second time I visited, it was for a birthday party and the place was super crowded with no coat check. Having no coat check is fine but when heat rises, people are packed on the 2^nd floor, and there seems to be no ventilation, it becomes a disaster! It was very difficult to get any drinks or even move around the place and the downstairs once again seemed very clicky and uninviting.
Not a fan of the night life at this location. Perhaps I should go back to visit the restaurant instead one day.

Ah, I was reluctant to write a review on this joint because I figured the less I talk about this place, the less likely it was that this place would get discovered and overcrowded.
A time ago, my sis had her birthday gathering here and nothing about this place distinguishes itself from the hundreds of other lounges in the greater Seattle area… except: stiff dranks and 90s hip-​hop and R&B.
Now I know there are spots that have both but what I loved about the place the first few times I visited, was that the DJ was spinning my nostalgic jams and it wasn’t undergarment-​sweaty crowded. I could flail, kick, gyrate, pretty much do anything my body desired without feeling claustrophobic! Radical!
So, for the last few months, this was our spot to get a few adult beverages and shake our rumps. Alas, the dream ended not too long ago and now, after the last couple of get-​togethers, I’ve realized this place is too small and poorly ventilated. There was a group of people sporting their new scents, B.O. for Women, and it was all up in my nose all night. Sad.
I’m sure I’ll find my way back here again and I hope people stay home when I go. I need room to dance, people. But, if you’re going to come, maybe shower or slather on some deodorant… ALL over.

My girlfriend and I were in Ballard last Friday evening to see a show at the Sunset Tavern, and we were looking for a place to hang out at before the concert. We ran into this woman on the street with a clipboard who was trying to get people to sign her petition for her cause. She invited us to join her group upstairs at BalMar. When we gave her skeptical looks, she added the we wouldn’t be pressured to sign the petition and that she just needed there to be fifty people so they could get a group rate. She seemed nice enough, so we decided to head upstairs and get some drinks.
The petitioners seemed pretty out of place. MalBar seems to be going for a hip and modern feel, while most of the petitioners were in their mid-​fifties and jeans and t-​shirt types. The staff didn’t seem bothered by it though. We went to the bar and ordered and old fashioned and a vodka soda. The old fashioned the bartender made me was hands-​down the best old fashioned I’ve ever had (that was made with well whiskey). The bartender did not cut any corners when making it and the proportions of everything were perfect. Both of our drinks were pretty stiff too which we greatly appreciated. We sat enjoying our drinks while the petitioners stamped one dollar bills with red ink stating that «This bill shall not be used for corruption» or something along those lines. While we didn’t end up being swayed to join the political group, we were very impressed with the drinks we had at MalBar and would definitely come back again.

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ermergerd did you see that boi? he was checking you out!
what?
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Can I have a rum and coke?
I don’t know how to make that, for I am a mixologist.
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I’m with the dj, ok? I’m wiiith the deeejaayyy.
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Girls go to BalMar until they get old enough to coug at Matador.

If I feel like dancing this will be the first spot I would hit in Seattle. Great music, wonderful ambiance and good looking people ;) you know the kind of crowd that is not just easy on the eye but can dance their hearts out. You will bump into such people here :)
The drinks are cheap and the dance floor is real small, so get here by around 10.30 so you could dance all the way upto 2. Love it here, will be coming back for more…

Got a section reserved for a friends birthday and received easily some of the worst service in my life. They screwed up the majority of our drinks which took at least 30 minutes to get each watered down round. When I gave up and asked for beer they seemed to be out of anything worth getting. I eventually asked for a Corona and it took over an hour to get it. The server came back to the party three times to first tell me it was still coming and then he forgot twice after that apparently. I try going straight to the bar and I get a rude response of «you need to get it from your server.»
Unbelievable. He gave it to me for free after saying just give me checks because I had no intention staying any longer. But that meant nothing seeing as how half our night was ruined by this crap service. We tried to be patient as it WAS an incredibly busy Saturday night, and I know I would never be able to handle a party that large on my own. But I expect the establishment to dedicate more servers to a party of 20+. Not just one who can’t seem to remember our drinks.

First of all, from a design standpoint, BalMar is easy on the eyes. Exposed brick and beams with straight and sleek lines everywhere and dark furniture. The aesthetic alone is what drew me in initially.
On a weekend night, the downstairs of BalMar is a dimly lit lounge with a collection of small but high tables and a long bar. Servers (and even bouncers) are fun and friendly and drinks are great. The upstairs is where you will find another bar, a DJ, and a dance floor full of overly-​aggressive guys pumping their fists and copping feels off poor girls to the beat of boring top 40 and hip-​hop.
We spent a lot of time getting drinks below but didn’t stay long for the dancing. The minute my two friends got nearly pulled to the ground and felt up by a hammered guy, we figured it was time to go.
Long story short: Great place to grab a drink on the lower floor, but beware of the upper dance floor…