Gypsy Restaurant and Velvet Lounge

Note: I found this un-​posted, in my reviews, so I figured– «why not?» contribute this gem. It at this point, won’t hurt the bartenders (who rock/​rocked)… I’ve never had a problem with people profiteering off of jackasses.
=========
The bartenders are nice, always have been but this place gets one star for bringing so many jackasses into the neighborhood, and being such a cesspool of human interaction. I would recommend literally every other bar on 21^st before gypsy. If you’re not sure about the gypsy, ask yourself, «does it burn when I pee?»

In comparison to many other dive bars in Portland, I really liked Gypsy! The music, the eye-​candy and the drinks were all pretty good. If you have a little hip hop fetish and like to dance with others instead of being lame and sitting/​standing by yourself with drink in hand, this is the place for you.
Lighten up people, Complaining about this place is not even fair. I’m not from here but have been to a bunch of the bars and none are as cool as this. :-)

Had a DJ, gave out some swag. The karaōke that some people do is interesting as always. But that’s why we visit places like this. Beer, Chicken, Good.

Seemed a little on the not-​so-​clean side, and it wasn’t even that busy.
The karaōke was fun and I like the open-​ish dance floor area.
The food leaves a bit to be desired. I was a little irked they kept both my credit card AND my ID just to keep a tab open.
No cover to get in, even on a Friday night, I am a huge fan of that. I typically avoid places with a cover and frequent ones without.

If I could rate this place be no stars it would be zero
This pathetic establishment poses as a fun bar. THATS LIKE JEFFERY DALMER posing as a legit babysitter. Be mindful of the power happy bouncers at the door. I slurred one word in my address so apparently I am unable to continue my night in the party I created for this bar. Fuck this place– don’t spend a cent of your hard earned money here. Ever. PLUS they measure your booze, quiz you at the door and their atmosphere sucks. THIS PLACE COULD CARE LESS and so should you.

I don’t really know what to say about this place… Their bartenders aren’t very friendly and don’t really speak to you unless absolutely necessary. They stop serving certain drinks at a certain time, and start collecting drinks at 2 AM. A friend of mine asked for a drink with light ice, at which point the bartender stated she couldn’t do that because the drink would resemble a shot too much. I guess I just felt like this place was kind of a buzz kill… literally.

A good place to go if you don’t feel like bar hopping on 21^st Avenue and like to be entertained by other people’s drunk singing shenanigans ;) — just an opinion of someone who’s not local.

Medefinitelythinks not! For the first time in my history of going to bars in my legal life, this place MEASURES YOUR DAMN ALCOHOL! WHO DOES THAT? Why!!! I ordered an old fashioned, crappy. The cherry they served with it was the neon pink cherry that you’d find in a jar. Bleck! I’m not a fruity drinker, but my friend and I decided to share a fish bowl just to say we got a fish bowl at some point in our lives. Nasty. It’s like I drank a fish bowl full of kool-​aid + 30 packs of sweet and low. No alcohol taste what-​so-​ever. Later on in the night, my friends were taking shots… THEY MEASURE SHOTS TOO!!! Lame. I just decided to stick to Jameson on the rocks.
I know how I want my alchy to be like: worth my damn money and tip. Sorry, but measuring my liquor with a sassy attitude causes me to measure your tip on the short side. I’ll only forgive if there’s an alcohol shortage, which I highly doubt.

I was pleasantly surprised with Gypsy. Was quite sure what to expect with the karaōke, but I liked the atmosphere — lively, but if you are able to find a big table, you can still keep to your group. Lots of good people watching!
I would give it a 4 star rating because I did have a really good time, but unfortunately their drinks were really awful. They must be making drinks for drunk people who can’t tell the difference, but they were so weak. We even ordered an AMF fishbowl which was $ 25 and I’m pretty sure there were only a few shots worth in the whole thing. Disappointing.

Looking for good food, karaōke, video poker, a jukebox and stiff drinks in the heart of NW? Then the Gypsy is your place.
It’s been a staple in the NW neighborhood for eons. Or 50 years. Tomato, tomatoe. I’m not really sure, so don’t quote me on it, but the owners have been around forever, so it’s possible this was their first venture.
Unlike pretty much anywhere else in that hood, they actually have a parking lot. Not a lot of good it’ll do ya on a Friday or Saturday night, but you can probably grab a spot during that day. After all, they have really good breakfast and brunch eats.
Their 50’s retro décor is probably their original look and has come full swing and back into style.
The ex and I used to come here for dinner a lot. Not just because he lived down the street, but because he LOVED their stroganoff. He claims it’s almost as good as his mothers. That wouldn’t be saying much, since she’s Australian and I thought her cooking was weird… but I tried it myself and really liked it.
I’m a cheese freak, so I usually ordered their mac-​and-​cheese, but when I was feeling really crazy, I’d get their chicken sandwich, club or burger. All of which are very good.
Besides the good eats, I like the Gypsy because of it’s originality. It really makes you feel as though you’ve stepped back in time, to the «I Dream of Jeannie» or «Happy Days» era. In an age when everyone is trying to be fashion forward, it’s nice to visit the Mad Men era — when people got dressed up to the nines to fly in a plane or go out for a night on the town.

Nachos for $ 8.95 and no discount for area service workers. Never again.
I keep telling myself not to revisit the Gypsy menu nor their very slow service. I work in the area and sometimes it’s nice to support the local restaurants around me by eating out. I must say, the last 2 times I’ve had food from the Gypsy was horrible. I have nothing at all against the wait staff. They are always super friendly and you’re always greeted with a warm smile and hello, but really, customer service (once you’ve ordered) seems to fall by the wayside. Also, I was the only one ordering in the whole place, and it still took 20 minutes for nachos. And I guess there was a black bean shortage because it looked like there was maybe a spoonful thrown in the nachos with a pinch of jalapenos. The rest was just chips, some melted cheese… for $ 8.95!
This place may be nice for hanging out and drinking with friends, but as a dinner choice, I will definitely pick some where else in the neighborhood from now on.
I only mention the service worker discount because it is pretty common on NW 21^st Ave. Local businesses trying to help each other out.
Meh. I’ve experienced better is right on.

A friend and recently met up with her early-​twenties-​aged co-​workers at the Gypsy on a Saturday night. It was… not the worst. Not really good though, either.
PROs: The energy of the place was — kinda cute. Lots of adorable young things, running around with that curious mixture of enthusiasm and lack of true confidence. There was plenty of amusing action to watch, and there was a decently dance floor going.
CONs: Have to start with the drinks. Took FOREVER to get, and the bartender skipped over me a couple of times to serve people who weren’t there as long — annoying, and poor tending skills. Had even less luck with the cocktail waitress, who also took forever and didn’t give us any kind of check but charged us more than the bartender for the same drinks — and they were in smaller glasses. The specials included «long island» and «long beach» in them, and people near us were buying «fishbowls» and drinks with blue shit in them. Amateur hour.
Their version of karaōke was to intersperse a couple of songs an hour between music, so I wouldn’t recommend going for that (although it could be different on non-​weekend nights).
And the the flip side of all that cute young energy? Depending on what mood you’re in and your general tolerance for the teeny-​bop — most people over over the age of 26 or so will likely find the Gypsy to be anywhere from annoying to infuriating. Even on the low end of the irritation scale, it’s not really fun… I personally won’t be going back any time soon if I can help it.
But if you’re young and just wanna drink blue drinks and maybe shake your ass a bit? Go to the Gypsy! Make out with several people! Enjoy your youth in the glorious squandering way that we Americans do! I’m not even being sarcastic… go get it, young ‘uns!

They shoulda called this place the Woods because people are dancing like crazy fucking animals in there
Best karaōke night of my life. Normally, we all know if you are listening to karaōke you aren’t dancing, because ever dumb motherfucker, including myself, wants to sing a sad slowjam, some KC & Jojo shit from 1995 or even worse I Believe by R. Kelly. This dj does a cool thing where he breaks it up and plays some karaōke slow jams for the drunks, and then plays some actual dance songs to keep you grinding. Okay judge this playlist as you will, because I will treasure it forever but that’s just me:
–Fiesta Fiesta, R. Kelly + Jay Z
–Today was a Good Day, Ice Cube
–Back dat Ass Up, Juvenile and tha Ca$h Money Crew (including lil Lil’ Wayne)
–Goodies, Ciara + Lil’ Jon + Petey Pablo
–Muscle Cars, E-​40
This and so much more. Plain to see it was a great night to be dis short crazy bitch right here.
But let’s talk about the drinks:
well, I was drunk on some kind of raspberry chocotini. My girl was drinking some mojito shit. Normal priced. Waitress was kinda rude but you know, whatever, it’s 21^st. The girls are paid to look cute, not to be friendly or helpful. I concede because, well, they look cute.
This is very important: this is the only place I know of in the area that will fulfill your dirty hip hop needs. And while swaying to the Decemberists or spinning glow-​sticks downtown to techno from 2003 may burn calories, only grinding to hip hop will in fact make you sincerely less wack.
And that is a fact.

Be warned: Laughing and having a good time translates into ‘you’re cut off’ and having to wear a wrist band to signify you’re not to be served.
This happened to a friend in the group that I was with. We’d literally been there for five minutes and were making our way to the bar when the bar tender pointed at her two people behind the row at the bar and said that she wouldn’t be served. We weren’t rowdy or belligerent; it wasn’t warranted at all. It was a snap decision based on something other than blood alcohol level. When the wrist band was refused we were told to leave.
So…we left and will not be returning.

EHHHHH.
That’s all I have to say about Gypsy.
It’s an OK spot if you’re in the area but beware on the weekends of seriously bad karaōke singers and people giving you the stare down.
I like Gypsy for Happy Hour. It’s usually not crowded and they have good deals during the week. Their fish bowls SEEM like a good deal but I think they are seriously lacking on the alcohol content lately. You are probably better off getting a Long Island. I don’t reccommend the food. Although if you just want a burger and fries it’s not too terrible.
But alas, EH. If it’s during the week sure, weekend, not so sure.

Paging Dr. Kevorkian!
It’s hard to watch a bar that you previously really liked, flounder. It’s failing in all of the ways it needs to improve to stay afloat. They had most of the same employees for years, that knew all of the regulars. This is one of the biggest selling points of a neighborhood bar. Now the staff from top to bottom has changed. The front line employees haven’t been trained well, and the management only seems to step in once there is a serious problem.
The food quality has gone downhill tremendously. We used to get several pretty standard, solid selections on the happy hour menu. Now the menu has lost some of the best items, and it’s barely passable. The drinks have gotten weaker too.
The lower bar was open for happy hour before, which is cozier. It no longer opens until hh is over. Bummer.
I can’t say that there is much to bring me back. I make a stop every 6 weeks or so to see if it’s gotten better, it hasn’t.
I hear they have karaōke on the weekends. During the week they started UFC and quiz nights. I can’t comment on them since I haven’t attended.
I hope they find a way to come back, but I think they may be at the point of no return. Sad: (

What is up with all the negativity I’ve been seeing for the Portland bars here? Come on, people– take off your monocles and recognize that these are dive bars, and yes– they even exist on NW 21^st.
No neighborhood is exempt from these dingy types of joints that welcome everyone, from the newly turned 21-​year old college student to the cougar looking for some young prey.
At this place, my expectations weren’t that it was going to have a polished, gorgeous, sultry ambiance, a la Sapphire Lounge in SE. If I were to get dressed up in my spiffiest gear, I might just take my bottom on over to a place like PCG or Andina for drinks– coming to a place like Gypsy, expecting it to look like a P. Diddy music video and complaining about the décor and people is just… weird.
From the outside you can tell it’s a bar, a place to sing karaōke and the kind of joint where you can enjoy some drinks with your buddies.
There was a good collection of people, some cute & just chilling and having fun. I easily grabbed a table on the edge of the dance floor, and got to watch the singers and the dancers make fools of themselves (although some of them did kick ass). Awesome.

I don’t quite understand how this place is two bars, one part lounge one part restaurant. Which one is which?
I stayed in the North end, the side with the sweet classic pinball machine heads mounted in the walls. Great big round cozy booths and some okay tunes playing in the background. Kickass bartender kicking ass and taking names at the bar. She widdled down a mob of thirsty customers down to a bar full of happy fools all with drinks in hands smiling in a matter of minutes and then took time to serve up some sandwiches to our table. She is worth more than any tip you give to her because she’s earning it. Oh and speaking of sandwiches… They serve the best tasting club sandwich I have ever tasted period
After the glow of a drink and laugh of a conversation grows dim I look for my out and I’m on to the next bar… Viva 21^st Ave Bar Crawl!!!

This place just looks like a shit hole… can I say that???
Normally just having karaōke and fishbowl beverages will get you a solid 3 stars in my book.
What will get you 2 star is saying that you have karaōke and then not.
What will give you 1 star and put you on my shit list is saying that you serve fish bowls and closing the bar down at 1am…
buzz kill.

What would you do if I sang out of tune… would you stand up and walk out on me?
NOT IF WE WERE AT THE GYPSY. In fact, you would probably stand up, take another swig of your iridescent fish bowl drink that is actually glowing in the black light, and start dancing to show support.
It’s true: the Nobbies of the West Hills have been slowly creeping down the mountain, devouring 23^rd, then 21^st… on their mission to meet up with the rebellious fruit of their loins…“the Pearlies.“
And as the NW has evolved from the once seedy underground bar scene into the idillic definition of shabby chic (NOT craiglist’s definition), the Gypsy has not evolved, proudly staking its bright purple claim of terrestriality in the habitat of 21^st street.
Truly — the Gypsy is like walking into a time warp where black and neon are still mile markers of style and class and «Deborah» Gibson still proudly reigns as just «Debbie». The Thursday karaōke competitions have grown to olympic proportions, and they throw in some top 20 hits so that you can «dance it off.»
It is easy to scoff as you go in — but once you see the prices, taste the food, and play with the little plastic animal toys that come hanging on your drinks, you may want to stay for just «one more song» (or 10).
No shame. The GYPSY is a classic.
One star off for the Gypsy being, as Brenna S. quotes: «cheesy as hell.»