Qi Ultra Lounge

Just went here for the first time last night to celebrate the new year. Overall the club is nice but there were a few things that bothered me. First off club opened 20 minutes late. Came early so wouldn’t have to wait in any lines but the club wasn’t even open. Second the online pricing was VERY confusing. The ticket I had purchased was a ticket for 2 when it had said nothing of the sort online. I had purchased 2 separate tickets for my boyfriend and me when I could have just bought 1. So got wayyy overcharged. Last this club also advertised a balloon drop for the new year, but no such thing happened at all.
Besides those things I will say I had a nice time. The open bar was also nice addition to this event and the bartender was friendly.

We ended up going to Qi after dinner with friends. Chad Hugo was spinning that night so there was probably a little more people attending than usual. We got there around 12 and stood in line until 12:45 or 1 because they were at capacity. The place is a little smaller than most lounges in the city and it’s got some fairly priced drinks. The night we went it was a nice, mixed crowd. Like most bars, lounges, and clubs I say give Qi a shot. Check to see if there is a special event first. Otherwise you may be waiting for a while.

I was out with three friends to celebrate my birthday. The bartender switched my card with some random person. They got it back before any damage was done, so I thought all was well. Then someone spilled a drink on a patron next to me by accident and she slugged me! When we left a group of 20 grown men who came out of the club and jumped me and my friends. The bouncers watched the whole thing and didn’t do anything to help until it was almost over. I do not need to party with people like this.

I was NOT a fan of this place at all. I had never heard of this place but my friend had bottle service ordered so we went along for the ride. All my friends who live in the city were confused as well — none of them had ever heard of it. We figured it must be new.
It initially gave me that creeper vibe when I walked in. Not sure what it was but it was almost like a velvet dungeon or something. The crowd was super random and it seemed like we were crashing in on a private party. It wasn’t crowded at all but the group that WAS there seemed to be taking over the whole thing (including our couches which we had reserved since my friend had bottle service). After that, a promoter/​bartender came out and poured shots for us from the bottle. He spilled half my shot all over my pants and didn’t even apologize to me.
The music was whack… Mix of techno and rock? I have no idea how to even try explaining it. On top of all that there were these two random «exotic dancers» behind us dancing in leather and bikini tops. Who no one even gave any attention to. Definition of a random night. Weird vibes and weird music. Only plus, the bathrooms were very clean.

Went here for a girlfriend’s bday party. Loved it for its classy vibe and pumping music. (Although that night, the DJ wasn’t great and was mixing some weird shizz) No matter, still had a good time with the girls as always!
When we left there had been an accident on the corner where my friend and I parked and a police officer wouldn’t let us cross to it. We had to walk all the way around the block to it. As we walked past the lounge, the security guard recognized us and asked if we were alright. We explained to him what happened and then I asked if he could walk with us since he was cute – oops, I mean because it was dark and it was gonna be a long walk. He had to stay at his post but asked another guard, who happened to be the hot head honcho, to go with us. Will was really nice and walked those looong blocks with us and talked to the police for us. Though we ultimately couldn’t get to our cars because it was officially a part of the crime scene, he did his best to help us out and we got a ride from some of our other friends.

I didn’t like the music at all… so I didn’t love it. The place is really nice inside, however.

My friends have been here plenty of times and decided to celebrate their birthdays here at the beginning of the month. I expected it to be poppin that Friday night, but it so was not. I got there before 10:30 and there were still people sitting at the bar, apparently there was some sort of Business networking event that ended around 9ish with people lingering.
I asked for a cocktail menu but the bartender, just asked me what I like to drink and sweet, fruity, strong, etc? With my criteria he made me a fruity, but not too sweet vodka based drink. Loved it. though yes, didn’t really taste the vodka.
The place is nice, a little on the smaller side, but still decent sized. The area isn’t the best for parking and has some sketch people walking around/​loitering outside. The DJ played really good music, but it was so dead. I’ve been told if there’s no promoter promoting for that night that it’s pretty empty. 3 stars.

Gaudy

Good space. Parking was easy. They have two rooms — house and hip hop. Laser beam lights in hip hop room kinda cool. Music was ok. $ 3 cover (normally $ 5) on a Friday night (lame). Cocktails were mostly juice. Crowd was diverse.

This place is definitely an anomaly. But perhaps a good one? My friends and I stopped by on a Saturday night and there was hardly anyone there (mind you, this is a good thing in my book). Yup, the 4 stars is mostly going toward a lounge with decent music where you can actually sit down.

This is a little cute bar but watch out when you use your credit card to pay. They over charged my card. I hate businesses that is dishonest.

Situation
— Thursday night
— House music playing
Pros
— Great décor, spacious
— Clean and decently laid out Men’s room for a lounge/​club
— The bartender’s are friendly
— Great DJ booth
Cons
— Cocktails are served in small glasses
— Tiny dance floor
Overall
— Pretty cool for a Thursday night

Qi Ultra Lounge fills an interesting gap within the neighborhood — upscale-​ish neighborhood bar. Drinks were expensive, bartenders were too slow, DJ was a train wreck, and the layout caused a lot of traffic jams inside the bar.
Granted I was here for a private party, and the list was way bigger than what this place had for capacity, the overall experience was lacking. The drinks were expensive, horribly made, and too a long time. The layout was one of the worst that I’ve seen. They had so many bottlenecks that I wonder if it was done on purpose. Right as you walk in, the bar cuts the walkway into a space big enough for two people to walk shoulder-​to-​shoulder.
I really wanted to like this place. But I also need to be fair to our fellow Unilocalers and offer my true feelings on this place. I’m not coming back.

came here on a friday night and got in with no cover. that’s always a plus
the décor is nice. had an upscale feel to it
i attempted to order a jack and coke, but they didn’t have jack so i went with an alternative whiskey. i then ordered a goose and soda, but they didn’t have goose so i had to order a belvedere and soda. i also ordered a heineken, but u guessed it, didn’t have it, so went with amstel light, nope, so settled for some wierd local beer. i then ordered a jameson on the rocks, but they only had jameson gold, so i went with hennesey. thank god they at least serve henny! after getting my first 5 drinks turned down, i was pretty stoked that they serve henny. so stoked that i probably had 10 of them in an hour fearing that they would run out.
the music was terrible… it was mostly this wierd house music. i personally like hip hop when i’m out, and learning to appreciate EDM, but this music wasn’t doing it for me. at one point the DJ started mixing in dr dre’s xxplosive and i got excited thinking it would be a turning point in the music, but dr dre’s xxplosive was quickly mixed into more euro lounge music… sneaky DJ
this place definitely has potential though. my recommendations would be to expand on their drinks menu and change up the music…

My experience here may be a bit different. I was here for a private event with a group. We walked in and it was dim; the interior is beautiful with gold cranes danging from the ceiling above the bar. There’s 2 side rooms that shoot off from the bar. One of those is the main dance room and there’s a stand for the DJ. The walls were lit up blue by project lights. Kind of felt like Little Mermaid… under the sea.
The event was for Halloween, so they had a special drink menu — a lychee vodka (the lychee looked like an eyeball), chocolate mint soju, and sangria (in a black cauldron with dry ice!).
The bartenders were great and I had a pretty good night with some friends… although the DJ was terrible. Oh well.

(See pics) Review #1238. Came here on a Tuesday. It was super quiet and had a total of 6 people the whole evening with the DJ spinning. The decoration and vibe of the evening was chilled and was a good place to sit back and enjoy a drink or a few on a Tuesday evening.

this place is pretty awesome… located in soma, Qi Ultra Lounge is an upscale venue with a very chill staff…
walked in for a couple drinks the other night and had a great time…
great décor…
reasonable (almost cheap) prices on drinks and bottle service…
perfect for small or large group parties…
trust me on this… the place «smells» great LOL… it just does, i swear…

I can’t express my delight at having a super cool, sleek, friendly neighborhood bar with a little more class than Bloodhound and a lot less call girls than the W. And delicious drinks to boot.
The staff is pretty much world-​class, everyone is really friendly and informative. The space itself is indescribably cool — we have needed a new place like this in SOMA for a while now. Great improvement on the former (and much beloved) Annie’s Social Club space. I will be spending a lot of time here. But probably not drinking a ton– drinks are REALLY pricey (but worth every penny). Go here to sit, sip, dance, see and be seen. It’s an awesome venue. Live music/​DJ pretty much every night as far as I know, too!

Temptation.
Lust.
Seduction.
Qi Ultra Lounge has them all. Qi will tempt you with their signature Air, Fire, Earth, and Fire Cocktails. Qi will lust you with its ambient house music. Qi will seduce ALL your senses with their aquatic-​exoticness.
On July 21^st, Qi had its first grand opening in the former Annie’s Social Club in SoMa. I didn’t attend their grand opening party which was hosted by Donovan but decided to check Qi out this week for happy hour.
Upon walking in, both Mr. NSS and I were at awe of the sensuous décor. Rich golds, flowing water effects against the sexy mermaid murals, a huge U-​shape purple and blue illuminated bar, and plushy sofas makes this one ultra-​lounge to be reckoned with. Think Infusion Lounge and Monroe but much sexier and with easier parking.
Qi is an upscale lounge not a nightclub and it intends to stay that way or at least that’s what I was told from the staff. With 10 bottle service areas, it a good place for a celebration and to pop ‘em bottles! The DJ and dancefloor are in a separate room across the bar. They’re trying to steer away from Top 40s, so you will mainly hear EDM music that won’t be blaring like other lounges/​clubs (they want you to be able to hold a conversation with people).
Sorry, no funny drunktard stories from Miss Party Rock herself. No dancing on couches. No falling and spraining my ankle in the bathroom stall. No faceplanting onto the bottle service table. Most importantly, no innocent victims were harmed that night. Thankfully.
It was a Wednesday night after all…
OTHER NOTES:
*Friendly staff. The bouncers and bartenders were friendly and professional. Dexter, the manager/​owner came by to introduce himself which was nice.
*Cover, crowd, and music will vary depending on who’s promoting so check out Qi’s events’ page first (Grand Launch Party tonight hosted by Nettie and Grand Opening Party tomorrow night hosted by Sebastian). I’ve been to parties hosted by both promoters (Nettie is an Asian crowd and Sebastian is a mixed crowd) so expect a $ 10 – 20 cover depending if you make the guestlist cut-​off times.
*Dresscode: Dress to impress; no sportswear and/​or tennis shoes.
*Bottles start at $ 270.
*Cocktails are EXPENSIVE at $ 12 – 22 and I barely got a buzz off two (minus one star).
*Happy Hour is only on Tuesday and Wednesday 6 PM — 12 AM. Drink specials ($ 6 wells) are from 6 PM — 8 PM.
*FREE Coatcheck.
*Capacity: Less than 200.
*3 stalls in women’s restroom.
*Street parking. Nearest garage is the Yerba Buena Garage on 4^th/​Mission which is open 24 hours.

I came here for the grand opening hosted by Donovan.
It was free entry until 10:30pm if you RSVP’d for the guest list.
I think it was $ 20 for women if you weren’t on the list? Ouch.
Not gonna lie, came mostly for the hour-​long hosted bar, free Smirnoff!
Broke college gals gotta drink!
I thought the inside was beautiful. Gorgeous, gorgeous lighting.
Pleasant amount of comfy, white leather (I think) seating, small space but still cozy.
Nice clean, large bathrooms for the women.
The security staff were friendly and welcoming when I arrived a tad early.
They informed me about the lounge and how it had themed cocktails.
A DJ, Donovan himself I think?, was playing some nice background house music.
They have these elemental-​themed cocktails ranging from $ 12 – 15.
Will definitely need to save some money for that next time I come back :)
Again small space, but intimate, and pricey so I’d take away a half star but I’ll just round back up to 5 because it was super classy :)