Wonder Ballroom

01/30/09

Unless You Are In LOVE With The Performer Wait For Their Next Venue......

by VindicatedBobbi at Citysearch

I was very disappointed in the parking availability. We arrived 2 hours early before the show and still had to find another place to have our dinner as the restaurant in the ballroom literally had such minimal seating for dinner that there was nothing available and clearly those seated were waiting for the show and had no intentions of leaving. The Restaurant next door Tora Bravo: food was good, service absolutely sucked and somehow our tickets to the show were stolen from our table. Unbelievable experience. Luckily I ran into the performer before her show and she put us on her guestlist (whew). The gal in the box office was as unsympathetic as she could possibly be when we told her our tickets were stolen and was clearly annoyed when she was forced to give us tickets from the guest list to get in. Performer was AWESOME....Venue SUCKED!

• Pros: I adore the performer that i went to see that is pretty much it!
• Cons: parking, restaurant seating, customer service, friendly atmosphere, area familiarity by employees

04/25/09

Can I give 0 stars?

by Randyl at Citysearch

This place is a joke. No re-entry policy would be fine, but there is no place provided to get fresh air or a cigarette break.

Don't like the opening band? Too bad, you're trapped.

Need a drink? I hope you have cash because they take cash only, and you can't leave to get money somewhere else unless you want to pay again to re-enter.

The manager, Nathan, refused to give me a refund on my $45 because 'the show went on as planned and it was loved by the masses'.

I told him I hope they put my money to good use because they won't be seeing any more of it in the future.

• Pros: Great for masochists who like to be disrespected
• Cons: No re-entry policy is ridiculous

04/11/09

Wonderful Wonder Ballroom

by Aloysius at Citysearch

I heart The Wonder Ballroom! It's a great space, the staff are friendly, down to earth & the talent coming through just keeps getting better. In the 3 1/2 + years since it's opening, I have been fortunate enough to see some great, great music there... The Meat Puppets, Raphael Saadiq, Stereolab, Peeping Tom. The list goes on & I'm honestly a bit mystified by the critical nature of some of the reviews posted here as the venue's policies seem to mirror most of the other clubs in Portland. I defy anyone to find a concert venue in Oregon that continues to serve alcohol after the performance has concluded (at least in the main concert space) Also, in case you haven't noticed, re-entry is a luxury that more & more clubs are doing away with due to liability issues... I'm just sayin' that The Wonder Ballroom is a welcome addition to the Portland music scene... Word!

• Pros: No pretention, no muss, no fuss, just great shows!

03/23/09

Make your own FUN - they help you with that

by beavertonbest at Citysearch

R sadiq was one of the great shows - this place rocked and they found my cell fone and called me to come get it

• Pros: food was great,
• Cons: show started a bit late

03/23/09

crazies

by rockyfan at Citysearch

was just at the ol Wonder for Hot buttered - great night, and been there a bunch.

I have NEVER had a problem with staff.

• Pros: best sound, best size
• Cons: have to park ...but take a bus

03/15/09

To Bad to be true

by Mojoke at Citysearch

So went to see a show, not sure what could cause a staff to be so rude in a general manor. Just throwin people out at the end of the night and closed the door with no reentry early so people were stuck outside in the rain on new years in the cold, then in the end they ended up tossing everyones jackets on the sidewalk in the rain yea great way to make us all happy.ive been going out for a while first time i left a venue hating it, Its been three months since then and its still buggin me but now i feel better. BOTTOM LINE party else where they dont allow any fun.

• Pros: good artist do come through
• Cons: disgustingly rude staff,i had to go once!!!

01/01/09

Wonder why this place is still in bussiness Ballroom

by gregory123 at Citysearch

It's unfortunate that a venue with so much potential is run by a staff that is so rude and aggressive. They claim to have an open door policy, but good luck trying to get back in if you step outside for a minute. In an attempt to minimize the crowd they wouldn't allow me and several other people to re-enter the venue on the grounds that we were to intoxicated, which we were clearly not (no stumbling or slurred speech). It was very frustrating to have paid 56 dollars for my ticket and get kicked out 10 minutes before midnight on new years eve. When I spoke to the manager (Nathan) to try and get back in he was a complete tool and treated me like I was a bum off the street, not someone who had just spent about 150 bucks to be there (2 tix @56 bucks apiece plus drinks). So if your planning on going to the wonder ballroom to see a show, expect nazi-like staff (not bartenders they were nice), high prices, and complete lack of respect for the band and it's patrons.

• Pros: nice venue with a seperate bar/restaurant
• Cons: Staff is very rude & disrespectful, They end shows much earlier than advertised.

10/26/08

You will regret giving this place your money.

by cpruitt89 at Citysearch

Specifically for Baby Loves Disco on October 26th.

The staff I encountered were rude and dismissive.

The Baby Loves Disco event specifically says there are 'afternoon cocktails'. This is a lie.

Wonder ballroom did not open the bar and did not staff it and Baby Loves Disco crew didnt care because you already paid $15 a person to get in (doh!).

If you value money, save it for a place other than Wonder Ballroom or Baby Loves Disco.

• Pros: Nice neighborhood.
• Cons: Wonder Ballroom.

03/04/08

Great building...poorly run venue. Needs new management.

by 1whiskey at Citysearch

I went to see the Gutter Twins play...my first show at this venue and one I was excited about. Well, the building itself is beautiful. But while the band put on a good performance, this is an awful place to see a show. After parking 5 blocks away on a Monday evening, I was informed by the bouncer at the door that my camera "was a problem". They don't allow photos or video at the venue (unusual in among venues in Portland). No mention of it on the website, nor was it printed on my advance tickets.

Once inside, it's $5 for a little plastic cup of beer or $4 for a PBR (the main bar is a little crowded balcony up a steep flight of stairs). The acoustics are dreadful...either their sound equipment stinks or their sound man does. Horrible, muddy mix. The show ended at 10:45...by 10:50 they were literally kicking people out! I went to buy a t-shirt and a beer (yes, to spend more money there), and they were already shut down!

Bad sound, bad policies, unfriendly staff....bad place to see a show. Portland has a lot of great venues...Wonder Ballroom is not one of them.

• Pros: Great Building
• Cons: Everything else

02/13/08

Not up to snuff

by Zagatello at Citysearch

It's description sounds interesting enough, but this place doesn't deliver. Poorly maintained, the restroom was filthy. I mentioned it to the staff and got an indifferent brush off. If you want to have a top quality event, try someplace else.