Yost Theater

Yost is an old theater like club venue (think Belasco atmosphere) but is leaps ahead of what Belasco is. Yost is really one of those clubs that bring out talent and people come strictly to listen to music and have a good time! Of course there will be a few groups looking to party and be wild but it is a club, you can't say they shouldn't be but for the most part, they don't bother you or ruin the vibe. Yost is small but quaint club and they just recently added a bunch more strobes and visual effects so it really is like a rave for maybe an hour or two but you'll be sent back to reality once the event ends. It's kind of strange because this is one of the few clubs that will allow you to bring gloves or to just be super casual (i.e. you could walk in wearing a tank and shorts).

In short: Yost, EDM, chill, music, fun place to just hangout, no pressure!

This venue actually surprised me in a good way!  It was a LOT better than I expected, especially for Santa Ana.  I came here on a Friday night for my brother's birthday.  It wasn't too crowded here, but I liked that about it.  There were people on the dance floor, but no one was kicking and shoving each other, and the crowd was calm.  Boom Jinx played that night, and my brother had table service, so we had a grand ol' time with our bottles and the use of the top level.  THAT WAS AWESOME!  The view from up there is cool, and the lights made it all the more better.  

To add to that, the bartender's pours were SUPER generous!  He was a great bartender, and the drinks were worth it.  The bouncers were very nice, and even carried away drunk people on their shoulders and gave them water to help them out a little instead of giving them the boot and not caring.  Overall, EXCELLENT staff and great venue.  The music was good, and everyone had a fun time!

Ohhhh my damn. Where do I begin? Okay, this was my FIRST 21+ club since I turned 21 two weeks ago. Yost Theater is definitely a hot joint.

It was once a theater and converted into a night club so you can imagine how open and large ceilinged the interior would be. Right after the entrance has a tiny little window for the kitchen where you can order food. Past that there is one large dance floor where the seats once occupied and a separate area for those ordering bottle service. Upstairs houses the VIP section. There's a live DJ spinning electronica music and up on stage with him are 2 dancers raised on their own stages. Laser lights vibe and dance with the music; shooting across the entire dance floor above the crowd. The sound system is phenomenal! My heart was literally rattling in my chest. Oh, and how can I forget the bar! The bar is located right before the dance floor with ample room to walk up and order your drinks. Red lights help display the many bottles of alcohol lined up behind the bar. And the bartenders are quite nice.

OK now let's get down to the nitty gritty:

* Venue = 4.5 ~ 5.0 stars
- I give it this rating because the place could use some decorating to give it more of a clubby feeling instead of just plain old black paint on the walls. But it's dark anyways so who will really notice?

* Music = 4.5 stars
- electronica is not really my kind of music but you can never go wrong with the beat. My only wish is that they would play more remixes with current songs from the radio a little bit more. (They did remixed some songs but only about 2 times the entire night).

* Food = 2 stars
- the food was the worse part of Yost Theater. It's clear music is their focus but I was really hoping their food would be at least decent. I would give it 1 star but I only ordered two items: beer battered bacon wrapped bratwurst and Indian spiced wings. The bratwurst was terrible! It did not taste like it was fully cooked and was covered with so much ketchup that that was all I could taste. Also, the bread was hard and stale which made chewing difficult. The Indian spiced wings had good flavor but had no texture. It was as if they just steamed the wings and slathered them with the sauce. I was so disappointed.

* Crowd = 5 stars
- Because it's a 21 and over club, the crowd of people are far more mature and respectful than 18+ clubs. There aren't many hoochies or d-bag guys prowling the dance floor. Everyone is friendly and just wanna have fun. There are more people in their late 20's and early 30's but that's probably why there isn't much drama here, except, of course, for the occasional drunk who has had far too many drinks and starts punching everyone in sight. Luckily security was on him like white on rice and kicked him out before anyone was seriously injured.

* Bathrooms = 3 stars
- The ladies bathroom is a tiny room cramped with about 6 cabinet-like stalls. I don't know how they managed to fit those stalls in there but they did it. The tiles inside are cracked andsome stalls dont even lock. So you either have to hold onto the door yourself or have a friend hold it for you. But there's a lovely lady in there who hands you paper towels and has an assortment of candy and perfumes for your disposal.

*Location = 3.5 stars
- Coming from the valley to Santa Ana is a drive so that's my main gripe about Yost Theater. The city is clean and very residential, plenty of cop cars patrolling the area. But it's worth it coming all this way.

* Parking = 3.5 stars
- Right in front of the club is a public parking lot where you pay at the meter. It gets really full so good luck finding a spot. There are also parking meters on the streets if you can find a place. We parked in a small lot right across the street from the main lot and only paid $5 for the entire night. It was the weirdest meter ever. It wasn't electronic , you had to fold your money 4x and stick it in the slot with the number of the space you parked in. I believe theres a parking structure where you pay $4 between 4th and 5th st.

*DRINKS = 4 stars
- only because they are pricey. And my long island tasted nothing but alcohol. I recommend sex on the beach for you sweet drink lovers and an Adiós Motherf**ker for you party people!

***OVERALL***
Yost Theater gets 5 stars (rounded up from 4.5) because it has such a fun, inviting atmosphere. Good music nice people (& I forgot to mention I got to go upstairs in VIP room simply by asking the security, maybe it was because the club was closing in 45mins). I definitely had a great time and will come back again!