Ahh, drag shows...my guilty pleasure. Yeah that's me in the corner with the sunglasses and hoodie on praying that no one sees me. Yeah right... I'm always front row!!!! I have seen quite a few but when our waitress at the restaurant we dined at recommended 801 Bourbon for an after dinner treat, we decided that we had to go.
I wasn't expecting much from the setup but the opening host/ess (not sure what to form to write) made me laugh so hard that I knew I was in the right place. Very vulgar, I like it!
Sushi was the opening act and I presume the owner of the establishment and boy did she put on a show! Such a personality she has. Definitely rocked the place. If I'm ever in the keys again, I will for sure stop by!
Didn't get a chance to try out the downstairs bar. Â Only reason we went here is because one of the drag queens chatted us up as we were walking by. Â My wife was so intrigued that we came back an hour later for the 11:00pm show. Â $10/person and you head upstairs. Â It was very different for me but entertaining in some ways. Â The room was already crowded when we got there around 11:30 so we grabbed a seat way in the back. Â The bartender was very attentive and came over to us to get drink orders. Had a Jack and Coke and wife had a water which came out to $7.00 so not cheapo but not terrible.
The queens sing (lip-sync to songs), dance, tell jokes, and even do shots with customers on-stage who are celebrating birthdays, weddings, graduations, etc. Â There appeared to be regulars there. Â Folks throw money on stage like a strip club and the dancers regularly come by with a tip bucket.
One star only because the drinks were cheap. The worst gay bar I've been to. The bartender was horrible and if you weren't one of the few locals you had to wait forever to get a drink even though the bar only had a few people in there. Too bad this place will only survive on tourists' money. You think they would improve their service knowing this.
Review Source:Had a fun time here for a drag show last Saturday night! Â My husband and our "family" friends made reservations for the 9pm show and really had a good time watching my husband get picked on...a little.
We've all been to drag shows, and seen some really good performances, but what we haven't seen are some of the things that make the 801 different from other drag shows. Â For example, my husband was half-willingly pulled on stage (I can't remember which song), and the drag queen pulled his shirt over his head. Â Ok, not a big deal, but my husband gets shy showing his chest/back/belly in public. Â She then unbuttoned his pants and literally started pulling off his pants and boxer briefs, but he caught her before she yanked them down. Â It was pretty funny, and YES, I tipped her...but that wasn't the type of interaction we expected.
We tipped a total of $18 (not counting the tips we added to our drinks), during the 90-minute show. Â I really thought this was more than just good, especially compared to other groups. It felt like either my husband or I were constantly stuffing bills into the drag queens' cleavages, multiple times, yet they kept flipping us off for tipping in $1 bills. Â Really? Â I mean, I get that it's partly tongue-in-cheek when they flip us off, but when they call us assholes a few times and flip us off more than 3 times, it gets old and started to turn us off. They really had to call us assholes?
One thing I must mention -- A couple of songs later, one of the drag queens pulled another guy on stage, yanked off his shirt, and then pulled his jeans and boxers down. Â Yep, there we were staring at his bare butt. Â Mmhmm...the people who were seated to the side of the stage got to see his willy, and the guy was not embarrassed. Â That could have been my husband! Â Ha~!
Overall, we had a fun time here, and I'd recommend it, but I would not sit right in the middle next time as their expectation was such that we did not tip enough money (even though most tipped nothing and must have felt that the $10 cover charge was enough)...and we were a bit harassed for it.
The drag show was entertaining but I've seen better. One of my friends was checking us in at their bar on facebook on her phone and she got called out. I understand doing it in a funny way but the queen who did it called her a bitch and got in her face, making her drop her phone. I love that drag queens interact with the audience, but this felt uncomfortable and awkward. Overall it was definitely entertaining but there are better shows out there.
Review Source:Such a great show!
Maybe one of the best drag shows I've seen. Ever. I'm not kidding. I've seen plenty of tired, unrehearsed, poorly costumed and untalented queens and this is NOT the case at 801. The girls are on fire, hilarious, beautifully dressed and really got their routines going on!
I went with a friend who goes every year for his B-Day and we were sat right in the front with amazing seats. Anyone in the audience who has a special event - definitely call ahead and let them know, so you can try to get a reserved seat in the front. And remember to leave your shyness and modesty at the door, as you may just be dragged up on stage (pun intended). In fact - special event or not, try to get as close to the front as possible, so you can really get in to the show.
I don't want to give away too much about the show, so I'll keep it short and sweet. But trust me Yelps, if you are looking for great adult entertainment, that's raunchy and raucous, then 801 is you spot.
I love drag shows and my friends and husband had never seen one so we tried this place. We loved it!
Each entertainer had a a lot of different style songs and outfits that showed a variety of talents. Â We laughed, admired their skills and beauty, and had a great time. Â Marilyn was a great emcee with witty bits in between acts and tight skills during the lip sync. The staff was friendly and attentive.
The best part though? The drinks were totally reasonable. I expected a pretty big bill from past experience at other places but they were more than reasonable for a show.
Was this the best drag show ever? Probably not. But seriously, for $10 bucks this was definitely the best hour and a half of live entertainment that you can get.
Stumbled into this bar after a long night of heavy drinking. We had shots of tequila, long island ice tea (totally gone at this point), and then upstairs for the drag show. Drag show was nothing special but fun and hilarious. Can't complain, would come back again (if anything for the cheap drinks!).
Review Source:This was my first time experiencing 801 - and boy am I glad we did! Â From the moment I walked in the door, people were just genuinely nice and outgoing. Â I even ran into someone who I knew 16 years ago working there. Â Greg, Dawn, Karen & Michael are the best darn bartenders - and will do every thing they can to make sure you are having a good time. Â There are 3 different bars under one roof, so there is something for everyone.
Review Source:My friends and I were in Key West vacationing but unfortunately we were there during the week. And because we were there during the week the nightlife was completely dead. All except the 801 Bourbon Bar.
As we were walking down the street to find a decent bar we noticed the 801 Bourbon Bar was by the far the busiest that night. We walked in and there was a drag show. It was very entertaining and comical. Most of them lip sync to the songs of their choice. The performers will walk around as they perform collecting tips.
Overall it was a good experience. Not my top choice of bars to vacate but the experience was good. Bartenders and cocktail servers were friendly.
Had a great time here on our recent trip to Key West. Â Went to the show upstairs, and it was so much fun! Â The performers play their heart out to the audience. Â It was a great mix of raucous entertainment.....singing and dancing, and a good deal of
humor mixed in. Â The" ladies" get the audience involved and the bartenders are attentive and very accommodating. Â If you have never been to a drag show, we would
highly recommend you visit 801 Bourbon to see what you are missing. Â The audience was a mix of gay and straight couples, and no need to feel out of place if you are straight. Â I had to drag my husband in for the show, and as much as he did not want to have fun, he had a blast! Â The performers obviously love what they do and it really shows! Â They are great and they have so much fun while they are on stage and entertaining the audience. Â While I loved them all, they are so personable and beautiful, I have a soft spot in my heart for Desiree....she really rocks..... Â Loved this place and can hardly wait to go back! Â
Run, don't walk, to 801 Bourbon to catch a show!!
Wow, this place was so much fun and a great welcome to Key West. Â The drag show was such a good time. Â I even got my pictures with all the Queens. Â Greg (bartender) took great care of us and made our stay in Key west feel very welcomed. Â I ended up coming here every night for a drink. Desi was our favorite performer.
Review Source:On our annual trek through Key West involves many stops in 801. Why? Â Well let me clue you in: it's a great place. I don't care too much for the music, but the staff are always friendly to me and my wife and the rest of our crew, and we enjoy the hell out of the shows.
The best kept secret? Sunday Bingo. You. Must. Go. Â But don't, really, because I don't want it to be too crowded when we go back this summer ;-)
Very disappointing visit to 801.  Have visited Key West many times in the past and I'm afraid this bar has seen it's day.  $10 cover was a waste of money to see booger drag!  If you're straight or you've never seen drag this place may be acceptable, or if you're looking for unfriendly staff  with attitude (bartenders and drag queens like) this is the place for you.  Staff is so concerned with tips that they fail to recognize that personality, friendliness & performance go far.  Sushi was the one redeeming quality at 801; stick to Bourbon Pub across the street!
Review Source:We stopped here while doing the tourist walk up and down Duval Street because we had purchased the Key West Bar Card which gaurantees 2 for 1 drinks for the first purchase in any bar named on the card. It was mid afternoon and the place was fairly empty. The bartender acknowleged us and said he would be with us momentarily, which became about 10 minutes as he tended to the gay clientele and ignored us. We were about to leave when he came over to take our order. I ordered a Miller Lite and Deb ordered a mixed drink. Once served the bill was $16.00. I attempted to use the Bar Card and was advised they didn't accept the card during the season. The bartender was snippy at the least. I really felt like we were unwelcome because we were a couple, not gay. We should have left but paid the bill, finished our drinks and left.
Review Source:We first went to Aqua, but they said they couldn't honor reservation. Despite the fact that I called and emailed the manager and received confirmation two weeks prior to the 12 of us driving from Orlando to attend their show. So, we went to 801 as soon as we could. 801 had a friendlier crown, great drinks, and a more laid back atmosphere. Check it out if you are in Key West!
Review Source:Fabulous!! OMG this is an absolute MUST in Key West. I don't care if drag shows are not your thing...they will be after you see this show. I have been to many, many, many, drag shows from all over and this one will always have my heart. If you are looking for an out of control good time, this is it. The bar staff were all completely awesome, we had a good time with them. Seriously...check this place out. If you leave Key West without going here you are seriously missing out.
Review Source:Drag your ass here for the Drag show and the strong drinks.
The drag queens here are very talented and funny. I had a great time sipping on my drinks and watching the show.
The staff is wonderful I lost my ID at the end of the night, Since they were already closed I called them and they said, "No, we haven't seen it but it could have fallen on the floor, if we find it while cleaning tonight we will give you a call when we open during the day.
Sure enough they did find it and they did call. The bartender there also gave us a discount on a drink while we waited for the manager to bring down the ID.
Thank you guys for being absolutely fabulous.
I spent my thirtieth in Key West.
after getting a tattoo down the street i went over to 801 bourbon with my friends little doggie. Â
first of all, they allowed the dog to sit on my lap and have martinis with me. Â second i got trashed. Â third, when my friend tippi finally arrived we got more trashed.
the clientelle was so nice and funny. Â we got to meet some of the drag queens and i even got invited over to someones house (i'm past that stage in my life). Â i kindly declined, but didn't decline their offer of shots!.
this was the last night of a week long vacation in key west. Â all i have to say is i had such a good time i wasn't fit to drive until georgia.
love, juston
They play pretty good music at this place. My friends pulled me up on this huge box so the whole bar could see me shakin my bootay. My other friend stuck so many $1 bills down this dancer's boy shorts she funded his sons college for the first year.
They have hot guys with hot bodies dancing on the bar. It's entertainment at its best. We went Halloween weekend and it was even better seeing people dressed up in costume.
Ladies and gentlemen, introducing Key West's famous winnebago ....the one who comfortable seats 8 people....yes, it is everyone's favorite RV ..... meet RV Beaumont....and the crowd goes WILD!!!!
We were lured in to the Bourbon bar while walking on Duval street after dinner. The ladies were selling tickets outside and invited us to come in. We were early for the 11pm show but sat around the bar to have a drink (or two...or four)
RV was the lead drag queen and he was hilarious. The team performed various songs that were altered to funny lyrics. The original singers would be proud! Some examples:
1. My hairy beaver (a take on the classic "you give me fever")
2. Do you want to f*ck my p****hole (a take on Cher's "do you believe in life after love?")
3. Hot flash (a take on another classic "hot stuff")
.....and so on
I had the best....RV and the team were funny, friendly, and very entertaining. The crowd was mixed....many straight couples and pretty boys.
Special mention to Boa, the hipster drag queen from Chicago.....who knew there were hipster drag queens??
Every night of the week is a different show with different performers. I have seen the saturday, sunday, and monday shows....and they all are fabulous!
A must see, if you are in Key West!
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