Sole Karaoke Bar

This past weekend my girlfriends and I celebrated L’s birthday and since we are so karaoke obsessed we decided to try a bar setting instead of our usual living room stage.

Sole Korea Restaurant and Bar is located at 628-8th Avenue SW. The karaoke bar for the restaurant is accessed from the alley (yes, I said alley) and down the stairs to the basement (yes, I said basement). While the alley is well lit and the entrance has a large banner with the name “SOLE” on it, it is still a back alley so we made plans to arrive in pairs or groups for safety. Once down the stairs we were met with friendly greetings and escorted to 1 of 4 private rooms. The large private room was equipped with everything we needed for a fun girls night of singing. Comfy leather couches, long tables, bench seating, 2 mics, karaoke system, party lighting  and even a tambourin and maracas for the back up singers. The only thing that we didn’t have was air conditioning (it was broken) because lets face it, 13 singing and dancing women can generate some serious heat. The service is attentive. The menu is for food made in the restaurant upstairs although there isn’t much for those wanting traditional bar fare like nachos but they do have wings and french fries. Most of the menu is traditional Korean dishes but don’t let that stop you from trying it.

The karaoke remote is a large square with a lot of buttons covered in Korean writing but they have a laminated card that translates the buttons into english as well as a very extensive music library filled with thousands of songs in english and korean ranging from 70’s classics to top 40 hits. My performance of Guns & Roses hit Sweet Child O Mine was hall of fame worthy, sorry there is no video proof.  It’s all part of the experience and ‘charm’ of the establishment, just go with it and you’ll have a blast. Sole Karaoke Bar is a dark, dirty, somewhat sketchy type of establishment but if you’re looking for something edgy and a little dangerous, this is your place. The bathrooms are clean even if the floors in the bar are not.

My only tip for newbies is to request individual tabs for all drinks and food to ensure an accurate account of what each person orders. Keep in mind that each person in your party must spend an average of $20 in order for the $100 facility fee to be waived. We had a little drama at the end of the night because we were under the minimum tab to waive the fee but one of our gals went to bat with the owner, Kevin and sorted it all out. Call Kevin to book a private room for your next karaoke night!