It's a dive in a box. The bartender is really friendly. There isn't a "patio" but the back door is open to the parking lot, where you can smoke. It's a cash only bar, with an ATM.
La Garnacha doesn't serve beer. This is a good place to go for a few drinks, then hop over to La G for some grub.
I think I'll dedicate my 100th review to a sketch little place called Flame Club.
My friend lives right around the corner, and keeps telling me about this place. Â "It looks really sketchy and there are no windows, but the drinks are really strong and really cheap. Â So we get like 3 drinks here, then we hop on over across the street to La Garnacha and get a burrito there. Â OH AND THEY HAVE SHUFFLEBOARD." Â Sounds like a plan.
So I get there, and it looks REALLY, REALLY sketch. Â There are actually 0 windows, and looks shady as hell. Â I go in, and find that the bartender is a really entertaining guy. Â I order a rum and coke, and it's $3. Â Super strong! Â Tasted like at least half of the drink was alcohol.. for $3. Â Good start. Â
Off to shuffleboard. Â I lose a practice game against my friend, then DESTROY him on my first real game. Â Got some cheers from the random couple sitting next to the shuffleboard for getting the puck to land exactly on the edge without having it fall off for MAXIMUM POINTS! Â 21-9. Â Hustled, son!
We had another drink before leaving, then headed off to other bars. Â At the end of the night, we came back again to Flame Club, and ordered one more. Â It didn't really hit me until about an hour later, in the midst of eating my burrito from La Garancha. Â Then BAM, KO, good night. Â
Was a lot of fun! Â
I do feel bad for that guy that was sitting there by himself at a table, drinking a beer and looking depressed. Â Other than that, fun place!
Yes! Strongest drink I've had away from home.
This place definitely has a hipster vibe, but the music? What the? Rihanna and shuffleboard don't mix. This is a bar, not a frat party. The bartender's mustache screamed Cold War Kids but my ears were ringing with Jay Z.
Love the strong drinks, but only you can decide if that's worth enduring a night of bad radio.
Flame Club ROCKS!!! We had such a great there, playing shuffleboard and drinking Brass Monkeys. Also enjoyed "discussing" with the bartender exactly what made up a Brass Monkey. He cited the Beastie Boys to shore up his position that it was a 40 + orange juice, but I trumped that BS with Wikipedia. It's  vodka, rum, and OJ. But the way the Flame Club bartenders pour, you cannot drink two of them. At least, I can't. Great bartenders, great shuffleboard--the Flame Club ROCKS!!!
Review Source:DIVE BAR FUN: Â On a whim, we stopped here one night because we had driven by a million times and were curious. We walked in and there are no windows (think Zelda's with no pizza) and it's like a different world, from the drunken older gentleman trying to pick up a girl 20 years his junior, to the lady that clearly smokes more than I breathe, and other nice folks just having a good time. Everyone there was friendly.
Once when we were in there and some guy at the bar asked my bf, "hey! did you just touch my girl's ass?!" His "girl" (and my bf) looked shocked until the guy started laughing, saying, "nah, man just messing with you," adding, "she does have a nice ass though doesn't she!" Whew . . . thought there was going to be a bar fight!
CASH ONLY: Â It's a cash only spot, but don't worry, they have an ATM and you don't need much because the drinks are cheap.
STRONG: Â What I love the most are the strong drinks. It only takes 2 drinks there and it's over for me, yes, I will need a ride home, thank you. Nothing pretentious here - and avoid asking for a fancy or complicated drink (I did that the first time I went and the bartender looked at me like I had 10 heads).
SHUFFLEBOARD: Â Don't miss out on the shuffleboard. It's great fun with a buzz and even though I suck, I still enjoy it (except when the drunk guy kept taking the pucks off the board - dude, keep your hands off my pucks!). Â
FINAL NOTE: Â Check it out if you've never been. You'll be entertained and you'll stumble home too!
What happened to you Flame Club? Â I visited you a handful of years ago with he Dive bar connoisseurs group. Â At that time it was an awesome dive bar, just go grab a drink and mess around with the bartender. Â Fast forward to a week ago......got there around 8 or so, bartender from Boston, totally funny. Â The taco's are good, but I like more traditional tacos. Â Drinks still poured strong, but then, the clock struck 9:30.....All of a sudden the jukebox switches from mellow to ghetto, along with about 15 thugs that stumble in. Â Most of the patrons from earlier leave in 30 seconds and I feel like I have been transported to South Sac and not in Mid town anymore. Â We bounced soon after that. When I remembered...wasn't someone stabbed here once?
Tip, come here early for getting your buzz on, carouse with the witty bartender, and scarf a taco or two, leave before you make a cameo on COPS.
Good bye old friend, I will miss you. You have been a great liver. You got me through college, but I do not think you will last long now that I know I live near Flame Club
The drinks were cheap and oh so very strong, stumbling distance from my place, accessible for friends in midtown, and the bartender was AWESOME
The fact they have cheap delicious tacos may help soak up the alcohol, but I also could see myself marathon drinking here.
Other yelpers are right, its a windowless dive bar that could define seedy from the outside. But inside they have vintage lunch boxes and friendly patrons
Come here. Come here soon. Because I am about to lose my liver and I am gonna need a new friend.
Flame Club is that windowless concrete box in the decent sized parking lot on 16th near the interstate. It looks sketch as hell and with no windows, there is no way to peek inside to see if it's less intimidating on the inside. But I was there to meet up with some friends and eat some tacos for their Taco Tuesday deal ($1 tacos? Sold!), so I pushed on through.
6 or so wood tables are between the (full length) bar and some shuffle board. On the walls are the jukebox and (weirdly) 4(!) flat screen tvs. The bathroom is large and clean. It's bright inside and not too loud. I thought it was a good place to chill with friends.
The tacos? They were pretty excellent. You order at the open door by the back door/bathroom. They have two types - meat or bean. I got both and actually preferred the bean ones.
The drinks? All the basics and very strong. The bartender was totally willing to follow me on my idea to have a beer with a shot or so of whiskey (I read about it in an in-flight magazine. Swear!).
My impression of the Flame Club? I like it. Despite looking as awful as a whiskey beer sounds, they both are eminently satisfying. I'll be back.
I am a conisseur of dive bars...and this one meets all the requirements. Not only is it stumbling distance from my house, but it is dark, almost cave-like. Love. With a bartender who is appropriately cynical, snide and bitter what other entertainment do you need besides the juke box (with a good selection as diverse as the bar-fly regulars)?
Really...if you want a drink in a dark cozy place for cheap, with entertainment of the unexpected and random variety...there is no better dive!
What can I say? I love Flame club. It's a brick box, no windows. It's a definite dive bar. Don't be scared, just go in with $10-$15 (cash only, but there is an ATM) and leave drunk. It's not so much a romantic date night type place. It is a get messed up type place though. Drinks are now at the whopping price of $2.75! One Flame club drink is like 2-3 drinks anywhere else. Their mixed drinks come only with a splash of the mixer, so for those who like watch their calories and order vodka sodas (like me!) - don't do that here. Unless you want a barely-bubbly glass of vodka.
Tuesdays are awesome - $1 tacos (beef or bean) are amazing! You go to the back and order straight from the kitchen. Peggy gets busy, so treat her with some kindness and respect folks!
Tuesday nights are the place to be here. Tacos Tuesdays are handmade fresh by an awesome lady.
When I first came here years ago, I thought I was on a set for "Americas Most Wanted,". There's all sorts of different characters here. One jukebox, one large screen TV, shuffleboard table, and a pinball machine along side some round tables. You can't get anymore "dive" than this. Staff here pours cheap strong drinks. Warning, this place is tiny and loud.
We got lit at the Flame Club. Lots of Dive Bar regulars showed up for this classic Sacramento dive bar with the neon sign. Even a few Yelpers made an appearance.
There are no windows. So before you enter The Flame Club you never know what you're gonna get. Could be two regulars slumped over the bar or twenty patrons enjoying the jukebox, shufflboard, or PLAYBOY pinball.
I ordered a Stella and then switched to Coors. It's the Banquet beer. Seemed more appropriate to drink Coors at The Flame Club. Later on in the evening the Tamale Guy showed up in the parking lot. I had the hungries!
Hey, it's a dive. Â The drinks are cheap, and if you're cute, the bartender tends to pour "heavy!"
The decor may be lacking, but the local "color" livens it up. Â You may see people from every ethnicity and walk of life (over 21).
The Old Skool juke box provides the music, so you're prone to have anything from Queen to M.C. Hammer play. Â
One time, when I was there, Bohemian Rhapsody came on and everyone sang along... this includes the gangsters, the hipsters, the rockers, and the glam girls!
The next song was "Poison" by Bel Biv Devoe and everyone kept singing along!
This is my very first bar. When I started going there, they did not have a bouncer and ID people. They also allowed smoking inside. Thank God it changed.
Positive: very cheap, very strong, taco tuesday
Negative: dank, scarey ass people
This is the bar you go when you are seriously broke and need to drink but don't want to drink alone at home.
It is a fine place to go with a friend or group of friends, but not by yourself because there are some random crazy characters that stop in. Very mixed and clashing crowd.
Everytime I've been there, there is always something for the bouncer to do. Wether it's breaking up a fight or throwing out a drunk ass. Never a boring night for them.
Bartender is kind of an ass and that jukebox is waaaay to loud. So loud you have to yell into your friend's ear and you still can't hear. Louder than a rock concert.
I can't believe I haven't reviewed this bar yet as many times as I've been here.
This is the best dive bar to start your night off because of two very simple reasons.
*The drinks are cheap (all you need is $15 at most and that includes tipping)
*The drinks are strong (3 mixed drinks will give you a nice buzz)
This bar only takes cash but there is an ATM machine.... the crowd is really diverse here because the bar is open from 6am till 2am. In the morning there are bunch of old timers and at night its a mixed younger crowd from all over Sacramento.
Flame used to be more street punk than ghetto, but times have changed, and only a handful of weatherbeaten tattooed regulars bear witness. Â Even the jukebox is all new-fangled. Â
Question of the evening: Â does a 500 square foot dive bar really need three TVs, including one gigantic boob tube propped up in the middle of the room on a makeshift wooden pedestal?
Discuss amongst yourselves.
Like any bar with an electronic jukebox, your experience is only going to
be as good (or as bad) as what happens to be playing during your stay. Â If you're lucky you'll get a lull in the music and take full advantage of it. Â For the record - we were the assholes who played the Cramps, Merle Haggard, and the Ramones. Â As the last song ended, a HUGE woman with an ass that was trying to crawl out of her pants was stuffing dollar bills into the machine, trying frantically to get back into the "in da club" vibe. Â Ugh.
Drinks are still stiff, and large, although if you order a martini here the bartender (or one of his minions) may punch you in the face. Â Stick with straight shots, beer, or vodka + rocks. Â Trust me.
The Flame Club seems to have an unwritten policy/motto- come in, get dangerously drunk on cheap drinks, get out. Not a bad thing if you live within walking distance. Dangerous if you have any kind of motor vehicle- so don't do it. Walk, pedal-bike, public transpo, or take a cab.
Seriously, nothing more really needs to be said about this neighborhood bar. To paraphrase Dave Chapel- the Flame Club- It'll get you drunk!
This is the only bar in midtown that can legitimately be called a dive. I have personally seen 3 gang brawls break out at this plate. I have also bought drugs here no less than 10 times.
When I was 19, this was the only place I could drink at because they never checked my ID. Then, about 2 weeks before my 21st birthday, this old lady who was subbing for the usual bartender carded me. She said I was banned for life.
Two weeks later, I show up on my birthday and ask for a free shot. The bartender, who's been pouring me drinks for the last two years smiles and asks how old I am. I said, "21."
I don't get to come here as much, mostly because I have a girlfriend now and I'm afraid that if I take her here, some homeless miscreant will rape her. Still, this place is good shit.
THE best place to get good and tight!
I have been coming here for almost three years and no matter who is working behind the counter! You will get a strong drink!!! Â $20 usually covers it for two people.. depending on if you are staying or going somewhere else after. Â
Like so many reviews before mine, This really is the Best Dive bar in Sac. Â good Jukebox, ridiculous drinks for cheap and $1 tacos on Tuesday nights. Â What more could you ask for? Â
I also like it because of the super easy access to the freeway. (its right off the 15th/16th street exit) Â
One last note: Â Please don't forget to be generous with the tips! Â These guys have earned it! Â Peter is always a gentleman and never fails to get ya taken care of!
This place is great: everyone wants to be your new best friend.
Went there on an early Saturday afternoon and discovered this is where grizzled retired blue collar types go to die. Each stool jockey is a colorful cartoon and it's tough not to bust out laughing each time a drunken mumble is uttered. More friendly they could not be.
Get a BL and sidle up next to anyone in there and they're sure to wax on about the good ol days. Thumbs up.
It is what it is. Â There is shuffleboard, the drinks are still dirt cheap and seem to not be affected by inflation, the bartenders are tops and there is always funny drama unfolding to watch if your bored. Â Great jukebox and did I mention the drinks yet? Â Besides being inexpensive, they are bound to put a little hair on your chest. Â Tie one on you will as your bound to get intoxicated quickly while still holding onto your credit card.
The only thing that kept me from throwing another star out there is that its really dirty and in a foul neighborhood. Â My friend once got mugged at gunpoint while walking to her car and I have had my fair share of not so funny encounters there. Â Also, like four years ago, my friend had a cockroach crawl onto him and just a few months ago we were all kicked out because the toilets were overflowing. Â Ahhh, the charm of the flame club. Â Of course my good experiences outweigh the bad which is why I will definitely be back. Â
Anyone remember when the "F" burned out on the sign and it just said "Lame Club"? Â This place is a Sacramento legend.
And, yet another update. . .When Annie (the day cook) is there, you must go here for lunch! Lunch is $6 . . . and HUGE portions . . . Oh and DELICIOUS! Â Yes, all caps, because it is that GOOD. Â Call ahead to find out if Annie will be there, and what yummy grub she'll be cooking up that day. Fridays are usually some type of Mexican, and the other days are just wonderful surprises.
Not all in one oink-filled day, but I recently had the most amazing Ruben sandwich, taco salad, pork chicana, chicken enchilada, homemade cheese tamale, and coleslaw (which I normally don't care for coleslaw) . . it had golden rasins and walnuts . . . fricken YUM.
My other favorite night spot. Â Actually, I've dubbed this my favorite bar of all time. Â No credit cards... ATM machine, but I suggest bring a 20 and you'll be set. Â
List time:
1. Â Cheapest AND strongest drinks ANYWHERE. Â Not either/or, but both. Â Two greyhounds will get you obliterated, and they are only 2.25. Â Wow.
2. Friendly staff. Â They recognize you once you've been more than twice in a month. Â The doorman will shake your hand and say what's up, and then ask for your friend's ID. Â Always made me feel like a big man. Â And the all of the people that work there are nice, non-pretentious, and they run a good show. Â They don't take any bullshit and will throw your drunkass out if need be.
3. Shuffle board. Â Always free. Â The table is a little warped but goddamn if isn't the most drunk fun you've had. Â
4. Bike accommodation. Â I never biked here, but there were always bikes inside (hipster alert!). Â I thought it was cool they got to bring them inside.
5. Digital Jukebox. Â All sorts of great stuff... bar classics, some more obscure rock, lots of non-mainstream rap, and oldies. Â Wasted a lot of money in this jukebox. Â And your selection will be up in under 20 minutes.
6. Â Seating. Â I always had a place to sit here. Â Lots of people cruise through for just one or two drinks before heading somewhere else, so you can usually get a spot pretty quick.
7. Â Taco tuesdays. Â I came once when I was a meat-eater (ahhh, blissful days of ignorance) and their tacos ROCKED. Â 1 buck on tuesdays. Â nuff said.
8. Â The people. Â The best bar characters you will ever meet. Â They don't judge you. Â They are too drunk. Â You can come here alone and actually meet nice people. Â I've never found that ANYWHERE else. Â
I miss you flame club. Â Don't think I wont be back.
In a city full of bars that remind me of why I left Sacramento to begin with it is refreshing to find one that is essentially what you might find if a few well behaved hipsters wandered into the Tenderloin for an evening of drinking in SF.
The lighting is a little too bright but in a horror film asylum scene sort of way, there are rickety old tables and chairs circa 1970, a juke box full of random tunes, a tender who knows how to pour a cheap strong drink and serve it up with a joke, old drunks who want to forget, young drunks who want to sit with the old drunks, a few regulars who will give you a territorial stare and a few who won't shut up.
The restrooms are frightening, thought he bartender will actually take care of them if you point out they are not functional - yes, the same bartender who makes your drinks. Your super strong drinks that will sneak up on you and bite you in the ass and find you at Murder Burger later incoherently babbling about cheese fries. Yes, its that sort of bar. Awesome!
The flame club is a model dive bar.
Yes I met the bum and the hooker and the pimp. Â But that's part of the fun right. Â I've also met some really cool people and a few friends. Â The shuffleboard is tilted so your pucks to to the end and then end up halfway back on the table.
The drinks are stiff and cheap.
When people say, "no frills," they are totally not kidding. Upon walking in, I wasn't certain whether I was opening the back door, side door, or front door. I didn't have a problem with the sketchiness, the lack of windows, or the decor... no, no, I can definitely appreciate a dive bar. What I can't stand is a mean, bitter bartender, I don't care how much alcohol you pour into my glass. Plus, the shuffleboard wasn't well salted and it was warped.
If you don't own a place to live, then sure, come here for some cheap drinks. But if you're trying to be thrifty, gather your friends and split a couple handles because you can make your own stiff drinks in the comfort of your own place - sans bartender.
Ahhhhhhh Flame Club. By far the best dive bar in downtown Sacramento. A dive bar for true dive afficianados. The kind of place where you can meet the oldest prostitute in Northern California, who claims that all her problems stem from people being jealous of the fact that she is from Hollywood. The kind of place where lost souls go to mingle and old men go to die. A killer juke box and a shuffleboard, stiff, cheap drinks and a laid back attitude complete the scene.
Now, there are hipsters in Sacto that will tell you the Flame was better 7 years ago and in many ways they are right. Back then we called it Fight Club and the only thing keeping it from being a saloon were the swinging doors.
Back then there was a certain underground feeling then that is gone now. The bar was frequented by equal parts rockabilly, underage kid, homeless crackhead, hipster and drunk. It was the kind of place you could stumble into at 3:00 pm on a Tuesday and find a drunken assembly member with his mistress sitting next to 3 retired bridge laborers telling war stories sitting next to a spoiled rich hipster reading Bukowski. Plus, the drinks were $2 then opposed to $2.50 now. But even with some conformity, it still can't be beat anywhere in town.
The drinks are the strongest ever. Holy crap. Their Jack & Cokes are changing lives. Hell they're changing history, people. Example: One person I know picked up a girl from here. She let him put it "back there" THAT NIGHT. Without. Protection. Last I heard they were up in Portland trying to kick the heroin habit they later developed.
If you are unused to seeing faces of color in this area's bars (and you undoubtedly are, don't lie!), you will be a little taken aback on your first Fri or Sat night visit.
Also, if you're trying to adjust your hair/makeup in the girls bathroom, watch out for the door flying open at warpspeed. People here aren't sober enough to open it slowly and that bathroom ain't big enough for the both of youse.
The Flame club is a large, brick hat box or a small brick building in a parking lot with an interior that has the feel of some bro's basement wreck room crossed with a much sketchier bro's basement wreck room.
The drinks are cheap and stiff. The crowd is usually some mix of hipsters with hankies hanging out of their overly-tight jeans back pocket to big heavy rowdies. I've never witnessed a fight there, but I've seen people plenty drunk acting a bit boisterously. Behavior that might seem really out of place other places, but isn't really all that threatening, and which seems to be tolerated more at the Flame Club.
I'm not crazy about the Flame Club. When I've had fun there, it's had more to do with who I was with than the establishment itself or anything that's conducive to the environment. But since the place at least doesn't bring everybody down, and since the drinks are cheap and the bartenders are generally pretty cool, I like it okay.
In my experience, the Flame club usually seems to operate as some sort of vehicle between, before or after other night time events. Generally, it seems like the flame club is fun if you're going with a bunch of people who you know who were already having fun. I don't think I'd ever just opt to show up there willie nillie or to meet just to hang out with one or two people just to relax. I might, but I can think of other places whose atmosphere are a bit more geared towards that, at least in my opinion.
I did take a friend there once right after he had just moved to town. We were kinda bored.
Considering I've been here a whole ONE time I'm obviously an expert, right? Â But I found it friendly, diverse, and quick with the cheap strong drinks. Â It was Taco Tuesday and the tacos were damn good in the Jimboys vein of taco. Â I also thought I saw my old smack addict roommate from like 10 years ago, either that or it was some other grumpy chick giving me nasty looks. Â That's was interesting. Â But everyone else was friendly and having a good time. Â Seemed to be filling up when we left with the more hip crowd - pretty much anyone is more hip than me though so I'll let you draw your own conclusions. Â
I'm looking forward to going back.
ETA: Â I went back. Last night. Â I'm now in love. Â All I had to do was cock my head to one side and make eye contact to get another beer, the bartender is THAT good and THAT on it! Â Also, good fun crowd to watch the Warriors with. Â Â Eclectic doesn't even begin to describe it.
Flame is one of my favorites. Definitely in my top 5 places to go for cocktails. Actually, #1 place to get drunk, like it or not.
This is why flame is so awesome:
* $2.25 cocktails. The alcohol is poured 1 1/2 inches from the top of a tall glass with a splash of whatever mixer. Top shelf drinks are still dirt cheap compared to anywhere else.
* Taco Tuesday. $1 tacos (similar to jimboys). Deep friend corn tortilla shell sprinkled with Parmesan. They will even give you free salsa and sour cream. Ive only tried the veggie ones. Really good! At first i refused to try them because its not the most classy place to eat. But, try it, you'll like it.
* After just 2 drinks you will be buzzed.
Friend: "I think that bartender dosed me."
Me: "Huh? Dosed? I don't speak drunkenese... what are you saying."
Friend (exasperated): "DOSED! Like slipped something in my drink. Cause he hates me 'cause I didn't tip him."
Me: "Why would you think you were dosed?"
Friend: "Because I can't see straight, and I'm dizzy, and I can hardly walk to the bathroom. I've only had 3 drinks!"
Me: "That's cause you're drunk dear... you are totally drunk."
Yep, the bartenders here pour the drinks strong. Flame Club is also a good place to engage in the boozy arts -- darts, shuffleboard, etc. One point off for the potential dosing, but really, I think my friend was trashed.
Nevermind the creeps and jerks who hang out here... the place is amazing.
The room is small, it's a complete dump, but it's one of the greatest bars in town.
The bartender (Jane) knows your drinks, she makes them stiff, and they're dirt cheap. Plus, there's free shuffleboard! Also, the regulars know about the "secret" menu. Tacos, $1 each, but you have to ask for them.
If you plan on spending a night on the town, be sure to stop at the Flame Club first to get wasted for little to nothing, and you might be surprised who you run in to.
This place is a hell-hole.[
But I love it every time I come.
Which seems to only be on pub-crawls these days.
Cash only, stiff as f*ck drinks.
Its a creepy box of a building with no windows.
Plenty of parking, bad jukebox... good video games... good shuffleboard.... bad regulars.... seems like all the raging alcoholics who've been kicked outta everywhere else go here.
But tuesday taco night?
Oh yeah.
And if you stop in early enough to avoid general douche-baggery, this place can be a really fun place to get fucked up before moving on.
It would be very convenient if I liked Flame Club more. Â Everyone else seems to love it and it's right down the street from my new apartment. Â
Maybe it was just a bad night, but the bartender forgot to make our drinks, the people there before us had purchased about an hour of bad, bad pop music on the jukebox, and it was too light for my divey tastes. Â
I'm going to make an effort to like it, but I'm not making any promises.
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