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Yonge Karaoke
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Music:
- Karaoke
- Happy Hour:
- No
- Smoking:
- No
- Coat Check:
- No
3 reviews for Yonge Karaoke
3 reviews in English
-
Review from Jessica M.
Toronto, ON
4/29/2012
I've been here a handful of times recently. It's a great place if you're in the mood to sing your heart out in a private room without the uncomfortable atmosphere of strangers watching you during public karaoke sessions in bars.
Yesterday night (Saturday) my friends and I went. Although it was quite busy, they gave us an extra 10 minutes (usually they charge 25$/hr on weekends). We had difficulty using their gigantic remote control so make sure you ask for help before you waste your time figuring it out while your precious singing time is going to waste!
I would come back here on a weekday because it's less busy and so they're more willing to give you an extra hour or so, like what happened last time I went on a Monday.
3/5 stars only because the atmosphere is subpar compared to other karaoke joints (ie. TEN23, Bar+ Karaoke) -
Review from Sara-Yan Y.
North York, ON
1/22/2012
We went here after eating at the Korean restaurant next door and we felt like karaoke. It is located in a basement where you have to walk down the stair and it looks kind of sketchy. But we had gone here before a few years back so we knew it was legit. The price was okay, $20/h for a group of four but I've been to cheaper places. The rooms are pretty dark with a nice comfy sofa that was in a U shape going around the room. You can also draw on the neon boards they have hanging on the wall which are already filled with other peoples drawings/words. It adds a nice touch to the decoration of the room.
First things first, I would recommend you bring along a friend who knows Korean if you don't know yourself. The remote is in Korean and so is their karaoke system. The worker would teach you the basic buttons but there are a lot of other ones.
Me and my friends don't sing very well so we like to have the original audio (the artist singing) in the background so we can follow the music easier and get the right tune. And ultimately not sound too bad. Unfortunately, there wasn't that option. I also had a problem with the videos they showed with the lyrics. Usually, the places I've been to shows the music video of that song but here, it was of what I assume Koreans singing live at concerts. There was a wide variety of singers too, old opera singers to young pop singers. Eventually I found the buttons to change the video (after pressing all of the buttons) and my options were Korean movie trailers, nature (videos of waterfalls), and 3D characters dancing. Maybe I'm forgetting a few but there was not the music videos option I wanted.
They have a wide selection of English music, JPOP and KPOP. My friends and I stuck to English music and mostly found what we wanted. They had a mixture of 90's songs (which we wanted) and recent songs. But expect only mainstream songs.
Beer costs $5, which is expensive in my books and Smirnoff Ice Green Apple costs $7. So if you ever want to do some drunk karaoke, I would suggest you drink somewhere else then go. Nak Won is next door and their beer is $3.50, which we drank before going.
There is a score at the end of every song, not sure if it's really measuring your ability to sing, but we got zeros every time (cause we suck that much?)
I would not want to come back because there are cheaper places, they do not have the music video playing with the songs and there isn't the option of the adding the original audio. -
Review from Monica K.
North York, ON
2/25/2011
I've been coming here to sing (or shout) my heart out since middle school. This place offers the most reasonable price in the area, plus they give you tons of service (extra time) during "non-peak" hours. Back in the day, they even gave you a coupon for a free pop, haven't seen that in a while though. The lady at the front desk has been working there for as long as I've been going to this place (almost 10 years). Is she the owner? I never bothered to ask.
To rent out a room for 4 people it's about $20/h, which comes to about $5 per person, that's amazing! They are open from 11AM-I forget when but it's really late. Oh and here's a tip: if you speak Korean, DO speak Korean when you speak to the people at the front desk, you have a better chance of getting extra time. This one time, actually more than once, we got about 2 extra hours in service time. Yonge Karaoke is mostly filled with young high school kids that look older than they really are, and college students looking to relieve some stress and possibly mourn over a recent break up. Anyway they upgraded their TVs, Karaoke Machines and Mikes (now cordless) over the past couple years, so plus 1 star for that.
They also update their song list every month with the most popular kpop, jpop, and mainstream songs. Although they don't have as large a selection for English songs as does Twister Karaoke, they still have a very large selection to choose from, as well as a few other language options. Minus one star because the place is pretty run down and grungy. In fact, it looks pretty shady at first, but it's actually very safe.
