Groove Suite

Groove Suite, we need you in our lives. Why hast thou forsaken us?

Groove Suite please come back soon… you have helped to give Portland some soul and I want nothing but the best for you
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Best sound system in Portland. Not really, but it’ll feel like it. Great place to dance.

Groove Suite is what is is, if you know, you know. Great sound system and good atmosphere.

Baby’s got her groove back.
The first clue that we were in the right place was the windows in the building were rattling from the booming bass. Clue two, as we rounded the corner, people milling about a glowing door of a darkened building, smoking cigarettes.
We made a deal with the door guy to get our gang of four in for less than the posted cover as it was pretty late when we got there. That’s always nice when the door guy does that. No club stamps, just pay and make your way down the stairs to the basement where you will find an awesome DJ mixing really great house/​techo music that inspires dancing.
Groove Suite’s focus is where is should be… on sound, lights and a cool dance ambiance. There’s a couple of couches here and there. An industrial sized fan off the side of the dance floor to keep those serious groovers cool. I am in agreement with Lance A.‘s assessment of the crowd — no pretentiousness that you often find at the Top 40 type/​Hip-​Hop clubs. And I like it!
Baby also likes that she can boogie til 4:00 AM.

This is just what I needed after moving to Portland from Los Angeles. It had been far too long, and I was dying to dance to some *real* house music (not some cheesy house at a mainstream meat market). Finally paid a visit to Groove Suite for Doc Martin. I don’t know what anybody is complaining about. Nice people, great music, cool art, and very intimate, casual, and underground. If you want legit house music without the frills go here.

While Samuel T. said they lack in atmosphere a big difference about this place from more mainstream clubs is that the people are here to dance! It does not have the usual meat market atmosphere. The staff is not pretentious, security cares about making sure things are safe while not taking crap as apposed to some of the more thuggish crews out there.
Having said that you won’t find top 40 music either. This is a great place for the more underground side of electronic dance music, they’re usually playing some excellent house music here. Though I’ve also seen some great electro, techno and junge djs here.
One of my favorite things about this place is that the owners put their money back into the club, as someone who has experience doing live sound and recording, the upgraded sound (by Alignment Sound) is outstanding! They also have a guy running a creative lighting system.
Easily the best EDM nightclub in Portland.

I’ve always been a fan of Groove Suite. The main destination in Portland if you like real House music. They are open Tuesday — Sunday evenings, and every night has great music. The soundsystem is amazing for the space — chest rattling bass.
Super friendly chill staff, casual ambiance, new art each month (they do a first Thursday opening) and great selection of beers.
Groove Suite was formerly Pi-​Rem, if you haven’t been in a few years, they made some nice structural changes that really opened the place up. One of my favorite spots in Portland to go dancing.

I like this spot a lot. Being a spoiled NYC kid before this, it’s hard to find any dance clubs even remotely not disappointing in Portland. Tasty drinks, cover charge not too bad, and if you’re nice to the door guy, he’ll be just as cool in return. The décor is cool, the lounge area is awesome, great art, the music is usually dance worthy, and again, I’m picky as all hell. I read the other reviews and the one constant negative I kept reading was that the crowd is always sparse. For me that’s a positive. I like a real laid back joint, that provides me with enough space to dance comfortably that isn’t full of a bunch of drunken tools. It’s classy. They do also have a full bar. It’s the perfect place to go if you have social anxiety but you still like going out and having a good time.

I was looking for a cool, low-​key electro club in Portland, and I seem to have found it at Groove Suite. The sound system is killer, the talent is varied and solid, and the atmosphere is fun.
Some people say the drinks are pricey, but honestly, there’s rarely ever a cover, and compared to clubs elsewhere, they’re practically free.
The only issue I have is the crowd they attract. It’s often really lame, and the place is usually dead. When there are people here, they tend to be more in their early 30s than 20s, which doesn’t translate into wild underground parties for the most part. Maybe I just came on the wrong nights.
But seriously, it’s a cool spot. Check it out.

The new state of the art sound system is amazing + there was a soundman which made my night
I’m all about dancing and so is this place.
Bartenders can be crabby but they’re proud of it — so OK — it’s cool to be grumpy!
I like it alot though.

Always a Portland favorite place to go — been going here for a year off and on and always THE BEST house music, great relaxed NON meat market fun dance place. They have lots of cozy sofa’s around so if you dont feel like dancing or need a break you can just chill. They announce the DJ’s /​events weeks ahead of time and I recommend you friend them on facebook to get on the event announcement list. Get’s busy at midnight til late.
HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

What can I say besides… HECK YES! Groove Suite is a low key, douche bag-​free place to dance, hang out, and have some drinks. This club generally plays house music with occasional mixes of techno. This is a great place for ANY age 21+ and unlike other clubs in Portland, you don’t get the feeling of being «prey» if you’re a female and you just want to dance. People don’t come there to hook up with chicks or jump down your pants. People go there to dance, hang out, and have a good time. You can feel safe and comfortable getting your groove on.
The staff are really friendly. It generally stays far less populated than most clubs, so the people and staff you see remember you when you come back! I’ve been there when the club has had only 10 people there and also when there has been 100+. Weekdays are almost always pretty empty, Fridays are slightly more populated, and Saturdays have a full house.
The environment is definitely comfortable. A main room with couches and a bar and then three smaller side rooms, one with more couches with a view of the dance floor, one is the actual dance floor, and then around the corner from the dance floor is a room with a projector that is generally playing a video. If you get tired of shaking it on the dance floor, rest assured that there will be a comfortable place for you to sit and plenty of tables to put your drinks while you kick back and relax.
The only downside I’d say is that there are only two restrooms that are shared female/​male, and especially on the busy nights (generally Saturdays), you can expect a 15 – 20 minute wait to use the restroom. There always seems to be a line, so plan ahead if you need to go!
Overall, two thumbs up!

Extremely limited bar selections and the drinks were made very poorly — especially for the horrific price.
The music did not impress me but the art work around did. I also will say that as far as basement club basements go — the layout was pretty good. So, at the very least the club looks good. Just looking good is not enough though and I must say I was happy I was on the guest list. I would have been pissed had I paid cover for that night.

Such an Interesting place. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I was having a flash back to my electronic music scene days. Or if the free drinks at the previous bar were playing tricks on me. But, this place makes you feel like your 19 again sneaking off to a secret underground party.
Other Unilocalers were right. Not pretentious at all… great music… a perfect place to dance if electronic music is your thing. Overall, a very fun time.
Side note: There was this lady sucking face with some dude all night on the dance floor. (obviously completely sober and NOT annoying at all)
1. get a room
2. 1996 called. They want your baby blue sparkly plastic furry jacket back.

So this isn’t my favorite place in town, but it’s ok. I have a lot of friends who like it alot. Their bar selection is very limited, no spirits, and quite expensive. The bouncers are always rude guys too, bartenders are usually cool tho.

I’ve been here on a night when there are only 20 people in the place, and on another when there must have been 150+. Totally different vibes, but both really fun nights. I love to go out on the weekends and dance, but I’m just not really into the whole bump & grind, dress code kind of club. Groove Suite does an awesome job of filling that void in PDX — comfy, underground vibe, big dance floor, lots of places to sit when you’re tired of dancing.
Anyone who isn’t into the usual club scene should try going to Groove Suite and getting down to some soulful house music played through their awesome sound system. Really, even if you’re not into electronic music — go check out one of their «house call» nights! I’ve seen a really wide range of people here, which is a nice change from some of my other fave places in Portland, where you see the same faces over and over.
Also, someone needs to correct the business info here — they do have a full bar. Now, if only they could add a couple more bathrooms…

My one experience at this club was a good one. My first impression was that it was well laid-​out, the couches were very comfortable, and that it works wonderfully as an after-​hours spot.
The problem is that they only serve alcohol until 2 a.m., and there is also only beer, wine and sake served. However, the sake was great, and it seemed to fit with the style of the club.
The DJ was great, and from what I’ve read from others, this seems to be the trend. It wasn’t completely my style of music, but I could easily dance to it and had a great time with my friends.
The best possibility for me to go back: I end up taking something euphoric at an electronic music show, and end up there a little after midnight.

I want Groove Suite to be a 4 or 5 star joint – I LOVE the space and the music is as good as it gets outside of Seattle and San Fran. I’m with Steve G – the bar staff is great (and the drink prices are nice), the music’s good (house Saturdays, everything from D&B to techno Fridays, all sorts of stuff Thursdays and Saturdays), and the DJ never stops – even if the dancefloor’s empty. Add to that the «underground/​secret location» vibe, a great lounge area, a fantastic sound system and a spacious dancefloor and you’ve got the makings of a fantastic club.
But I’m also with Stephanie E here: The problem is turn-​out. The first night I went to Groove Suite (okay, then Pi-​Rem), it was a burner White Party – and it kicked ass. Tons of people having a fantastic time. The visits since have been let downs – not for the music, but because only a handful of folks were there. (Caveat: I’ve been 3 or 4 times in the year since that party, so it’s a darned tootin’ chance that I’ve hit off nights). I don’t like my dance clubs ass-​to-​crotch packed, but I do like them with a hot/​heavy pulse. And I think this is where Stephanie’s got a good point: If you’re going to put a club with the best music in Portland in an not-​oft-​traveled, dicey neighborhood, you’ve got to offer the peeps who show up stiffer somethings than sake and champagne.
That said, it’s a recession and they’ve managed to keep their doors open – they must be doing something right – and they get a lot of traveling talent to play – particularly Saturday nights. I like it a lot better than any of the other «clubs» in the city – I like it enough that I want to see them grow.

Update: Groove Suite now offers a full bar!