Karma Martini Lounge & Bistro

Maybe I would have given more stars if I actually got to try the food. I went there on the last day I was able to use my Groupon (I attempted a couple times to go earlier, but it never worked out). Parking is hard enough as it is to find on the streets in Seattle, and the first parking lot we went to was charging us $ 20 to park! So, we went to another parking lot that cost $ 12. Walked over to the restaurant and noticed a «Closed» sign on the door. A lady that worked there happened to open the door at this time, and we asked her if they were really closed. She said, «yes,» because they had some kind of accident in the kitchen, and couldn’t cook. We told her we had a Groupon and that this was the last day we could use it. She asked if we were from around the area. We told her we drove all the way from Tacoma. I guess I kind of expected her to give me the number to talk to the manager, or maybe extend our expiration date on the Groupon, or even show some empathy. Instead, she was a little rude, and just told me to go get a refund, and that was that. Groupon doesn’t just give a refund for any reason. I was just frustrated that I drove about 40 miles, spent 10 minutes or more looking for parking, then spent $ 12 to park in a lot, just to hear someone tell me, «Go get a refund.»

My girlfriend and I stopped in here for some drinks last Saturday. We were on our way to meet her roommate when we were drawn in by the happy hour special of $ 4 wells.
It was late in the afternoon, and the place was empty. Even though the football game was playing on the tv, a martini lounge doesn’t exactly attract the football crowd. Our bartender was friendly, and even let us try some Pernod when my girfriend asked him about Ouzo.
We had a couple well drinks and then decided to try one of the house cocktails called The Kasbah. This contains muddled mint and lime with Hangar One Mandarin Blossom Vodka and fresh Apricot Nectar. We both really enjoyed this cocktail. The mint gave it a cool and refreshing feel, and unlike some cocktails with flavored vodkas, it was not cloying.
I don’t think I’d ever want to eat here (it did not seem like a restaurant atmosphere at all), but it was a nice bar to drink at. If you are barhopping in the area, Karma is worth checking out.

One star is only for the server but Very bad experience overall!
Our server was nice but It took 15 minutes when he came by to take our drink order, Then another 15 minutes to take the food order and we ended up to wait more than 50 minutes for the meal!!!
Waiter came by our table about THREE times and asked about the order, then he came again and says that they don’t have the meal that I ordered! What??? After more than an hour?
Finally I ordered something else and each of us got our meals at different times! Bad management, very disappointing.

The food was actually pretty good and the server/​Bartender was very nice.
The atmosphere was seriously lacking. We went before the dance floor was being used and it was pretty quiet inside. The lighting was a little harsh until they finally turned it down and lit some candles. That didnt really save the experience.
I’m glad we used a deal to try this place.
We probably will not return.

Found this place in Unilocal and was happily pleased… especially with the bartender Kyle. Besides being a great looking man, he knows how to make drinks. Definitely recommended it and food wasn’t too bad…

Kyle makes the best chocolatini in Belltown hands down.
Also one of the very few places in Belltown that has a dance floor.

I was on the lookout to host my husband’s 30^th Birthday party. I heard about this place from a friend and decided to check this place out. Kai, the owner, was very friendly, courteous and open to our ideas which I loved. They had beautifully done the place up on the day of the party with table covers and candles. We were able to bring our own DJ and play music which worked out perfectly for us. The manager of the place helped out to get us a connector so that we could play a video for the party. Thanks to him my husband and other guests were able to see it. Really appreciated it. Food was excellent — Basil Shrimp, Yellow curry chicken, Veggie tempura just nailed it. Quantity and quality of the food was amazing. Thumbs up guys.
Lastly the bar tender Jake was absolutely fun and all our guests really liked him. I highly recommend this place to everybody. You cannot go wrong choosing this place in terms of food, service and ambiance. Loved it. Thank you.

I had a birthday celebration there last month and made the reservations two weeks in advance, and they were able to hold cakes for me without a service fee.
The service was fantastic! The wait staff was very nice, quick, and attentive. The food was delicious, 4 star spice was perfect. Many people were paying different bills, and they kept everything well organized — who ordered x, y and z. They also didn’t mind that we were there forever, nor did they ask us to be quiet (I was drunk and shouted «mutha fu**a!» a lot).
The lounge was very clean, the ladies room was clean, and I was very happy with everything.
Half a star off from the chicken satay not being that awesome and another half star off from them taking two weeks to get back to me about a possible discount/​coupon usage. Otherwise, order the drunken noodles and the Sweet Revenge cocktail!

So I am still making up my mind about this place. I was here over the weekend and while it wasn’t what I was expecting which made me a little down on it, I still did have a good time here. Looking at the image on the website and hearing ‘martini bar’ made it seem like it should have been a little more upscale. I think that’s what my friend who made reservations thought too, as this was where we were gathering for ‘afters’ after seeing the newest James Bond movie.
In reality the club is just a single room with a cement floor and bar on one wall, a couple of booth-​benches on the other, and a space to dance. It was incredibly loud in here and pretty much impossible to talk but on the other hand the DJ was quite good and was spinning stuff that was fun to dance to.
There is also a little patio space for when we did want to talk a bit, except the heater outside was broken which made it a little chilly.
Also, the staff were super friendly and you could tell they were really enjoying working here. A neat place to go if you want to check out someplace small but with more of a club vibe to it then a bar or lounge.

Wandered in on a fluke after leaving Clever Bottle (a couple of doors down), with no intention at all of setting up camp. But GOOD LORD we — ok, *I* in particular — had so friggin’ much FUN here! When we walked in, the place was pretty full, but only the perimeter of the dance floor was occupied — by a handful of people STANDING AROUND. (HOW?). What to do if you’re two middle-​aged women in a club full of apparently too-​shy-​to-​be-​the-​first-​on-​the-​dance-​floor 20– & 30-​somethings? Get that party started, that’s what! (One of the beautiful things about being this age — and out in couples or packs — is you just don’t give a damn. ;))
The DJ *deserved* the crowd that migrated to the floor… the guy was awesome. My Seattle-​area dance club experience to that point was Capitol Hill’s Barboza and Bellevue’s Mirror Lounge, and have to say, Karma hit the sweet spot. This was the well-​mixed Top 40/​hip hop (current with some remixed old-​school pop thrown in) I’d been wanting to get with in a club, + a chill atmosphere, sans the pretense of Mirror or the unrelenting, unsolicited let-​me-​introduce-​you-​to-​all-​my-​body-​parts action at Barboza. The crowd was upbeat and didn’t take themselves as seriously as I’d seen (in different incarnations) at M & B. We had a good fifteen years on the oldest person there, and felt totally a welcomed. (Ok… the priming at Clever Bottle may have had something to do with that.) On top of it all, the bartender was the bomb — nice guy mixing well.
Now that I’ve read all the raves about the food, can’t wait to get back in there and EAT.
This was SO MUCH FUN.

I don’t know if I just came on a bad day, but this place was dead on a Saturday night! If this is just how Seattle nightlife always is, then SF kicks Seattle’s a**!
Granted we got in around 1:30am, so maybe everyone left already, but in SF people don’t leave clubs until they’re forced out at 2am! At Karma, there was about 10 people dancing, and 2 people sitting at the bar. Luckily, we were all pretty buzzed/​drunk/​blacked out already after club hopping all night, so it was a cool place to just chill before heading home.

Thai food here is surprisingly delicious (and a bit spicier than most star ratings)!
Enjoyed the Lychee Martini — the Bartender is great.
No high chairs for the bebes probably cuz they rarely get people w/​kids.

Come here if you want to see Mary Kay LeTourneau and her husband DJ-​ing. Everyone I know (including myself) sees them here.
Otherwise, this place is small but not a bad place to dance.

Celebrating my birthday and my friends birthday in Seattle from SD. We saw Karma on the Unilocal 4 star list and decided to hit this place up. Also the fact that the name «Karma» is from Jersey shore! hahaha. We thought we check it out.
Friday – do people not party on a Friday or something? Karma was dead! There were probably like 10 – 15 people in this bar. My friend and I was drinking beer from a hobo bag and the bouncer didn’t care. he called us ghetto… hahaha. Yeah, pretty ghetto for 2 small Asian girls… We finished and came in. The bartender, Kyle was cool. We got to know him. At first we thought he was a little homo because of the way he muddled the drinks and shook the mixer. It was like watching Chippendale gone homo. But at the end of the night we got to talking and hung out with him and his friend after. And Kyle, I know you’re not homo, we’re just playing, you’re awesome and we love you.
Anyway, came back here Saturday night after Trinity Nightclub to hang out with the bartender again. Saturday was cracking though! This place is owned by this Thai woman and she’s always there. ALWAYS. Bouncer & bartender is cool. I would definitely come back to see Kyle. He made Seattle fun for us and would recommend a good time at Karma. btw, music was pretty good, wasn’t all that trance shit.

I came here because I live in the area and always wanted to try out the place. When I saw that they had a groupon, I immediately bought it and went there with a friend.
During the week around dinner time, it is definitely quiet. My friend and I were the only people there. The bartender, who was also our server, was VERY attentive and came over regularly to see how we were doing. He was also very helpful in voicing his opinion on what dishes people liked and didn’t like.
We ended up getting the Beef Chow Fun (which was so good — I would get it again), the Sesame Beef (which was okay), and the Karma fried rice (it was tastelss — needed salt and/​or massive amount of soy sauce for some flavor). But, if you ate the Sesame Beef and Fried Rice together, it was a little better.
I likely will not go back there again for the food. But I would order the Beef Chow Fun to go, as it was good. An extra star for this place because the bartender was so nice and attentive. Otherwise, it is a two star place for dinner, in my opinion.

3.5 stars — amazing DJ on Fri. night who deejays at Acquabar on Saturdays. Small dance floor as prior reviews mention, and acoustics are harsh, but fun crowd on the floor. Unpretentious staff, unlike most of Belltown. Will return.

I thought this place was A-​OK. I heard of this place since David’s (owner) Dad has alot of property around my house and a good friend is staying in one of them. David is a nice guy so I wish I could do 3 ½ stars.
I was able to come here a couple of times… the first was to meet some old skool friends and they had already order some kind of marinated Skewer chicken which was okay nothing devine.
I thought the layout was small but with modern décor and comfy seats… we score a booth so not too shabby. I had a Vod-​Bomb which taste like a DVR (Double Vodka Redbull) which is a plus when the drinks are stiff and you are not paying extra.
The 2^nd time was a mess since someone had a birthday party and took all the chairs but dominated the whole middle which left us a corner by the door next to the bar. We were able to score a few stools for the ladies so we order some drinks. I order the Vitamin C Drink (basically a Screw driver [vodka and orange juice] but with an energy drink mix in it)…the bartender use not the usual redbull but another energy drink which was different but taste pretty good… it was stiff and taste like an orange creamsicle.
So do come here for drinks but avoid if it is crowded… food is okay but you can have so much better.

Another pan-​Asian eating joint in Belltown. Ooh, soo new! No, it’s actually been there for a few years and faces stiff competition from Umi, Kushi, and Wasabi.
The thing that sets it apart from the other establishments are the strong libations, mini dance floor, and budget friendly Happy Hours. Went there on a windy and rainy Monday night and got to experience first hand what they had to offer, which was a slightly americanized version of bistro-​fied asian street food.
We had chicken satay, house special fried rice, beef galbi, garlic chicken wings, mango w/​vanilla ice-​cream, honey walnut prawns (tad too heavy on the mayo dressing), fried banana w/​vanilla ice-​cream & dry cooked beef chowfun. And many drinks (pearfection cocktail, kir royale, raspberry mojitos, some coconut/​frangelico concoction from bartender). Most were tasty, pretty much on par with expectations of taste/​price with the locale.
Waitress was nice and chatty but not in an obtrusive manner. The 9-y.o. niece said it was her fave place to have dinner. Will see how it holds up on future visits.

Hopefully I’m getting some good karma for this review.
I finally found a place where there were no creepy guys doing the dance-​and-​grind behind me. For that, this place deserves 5 stars.
The drinks taste great with a strong kick. It is a bit pricy but you get what you paid for. Service was super friendly even when my friend was getting drunk.
I fully expect the DJ to play techno music the entire night but he actually played a lot more hip hop songs. Great crowd, the place was full of people trying to have a good time and did I mention no creepy guys.
We didn’t try their food, but I don’t expect world class cuisine at a bar.
Definitely going to come back here again.

I’ve been here twice now. Once, on a slower night with some girlfriends, and another time with friends on an off-​chance.
This place is cute, has no cover, the drinks are stiff, and the bartender is super nice. It does get pretty crowded on a busy night, but they have an outside patio which is nice. And if you get there early enough, you can sit at a booth.
I haven’t tried their food, but I hear it’s pretty tasty!