Mel-O-Dee

What a fun place! I met up with some friends here for karaōke. It’s in a random shopping plaza so I wasn’t sure what to expect at first. The crowd here is pretty diverse and everyone loves to sing and have a good time. The karaōke area isn’t that big so go early if you want to grab a seat/​table.
The bartender we had wasn’t that great though. The drinks we ordered weren’t as strong as other reviews stated and my AMF was disgusting. Maybe it was an off night? I’ll give it another chance.

Love this place. The bartenders are great super friendly. We always have a blast here. My husband loves singing karaōke. We have always felt welcome.

Real drinks, real people and always attentive to the patrons. If you have good vocal cords hit a karaōke night. Sports are on multiple tvs for the big game. And did I say real drinks.

Love, love, love this place. Awesome staff and owner. Drinks are cheap and strong. My favorite weekend spot

I was going to put this off, writing this review, as I do most things, but this place deserved a prompt response. Great karaōke vibe, people dancing to your song, and helping you with backing vocals if you need it — and I did. This was my fourth time singing karaōke, and I appreciated the support from everybody — one dude said I nailed the song feel like makin’ love. The clientele and the workers all seem like one big team to make sure every one has a good time. Bathrooms are really clean and empty every time I had to head that way — that;‘s where I went to get psyched for my song — the bathroom lobby is behind the ‘stage’, so it kind of feels like you’re backstage.

6÷27÷15 Wow will I never go back here. The woman who checked IDs, total sweetheart. But I went with a group of co-​workers who love to karaōke, this was our first time trying this place. They got there at 9 and put in song requests, I got there at 9:45 and an hour later they still hadn’t gotten to sing one song between them. Despite the KJ rudely informing my friend «one song per person», we watched the same 5 people go up over and over for 2 and a half hours. After a while, it didn’t feel like karaōke, it felt like «In Concert». And then it felt like torture. I don’t mind if people aren’t amazing singers but I really minded that it was a Saturday night, the place was packed full of people making requests to sing and the ONLY ones who got to (for way too long) were the same group. I get it, they knew the KJ but come on, they don’t even have this kind of favoritism in San Fran karaōke bars. And how do you selectively exercise a «one song per person» rule? Do you think we don’t see the repeat performers?
The ONLY good thing was that the drinks were dirt cheap. But in an effort to not be slurring when they finally tried to go, my friends weren’t drinking that hard. I got so frustrated I just told the bartender to close our tab because we’d been there two and a half hours and were tired of waiting so we were just going to bail. She was kind and went to talk to the KJ who then got super angry at ‘being questioned’. She promised 30 minutes more and my friends would be up so we actually stayed. And were treated to him having a talk with the 5 mic hogs who proceeded to death glare at our side of the room for shutting down their private concert. But give me a break. It worked. They still went up but there were new performers sandwiched between their repeats. My friends got to sing and I got to get the hell out of there before dawn.
When you’re having fun, you lose track of time. I went with a group to Jaguar Karaōke in Oakland, private booths, total blast, we were there 4 hours and had no idea. When you’re being tortured, like we were at Mel-O-Dee’s, time moves SLOW.
After, I told another friend about our experience and she had experienced a similar thing on another night there. Her first and last trip too. I get why the regulars go back, or the people too drunk to realize its the same people performing on repeat but everyone else? RUN.

I really like this place. It’s sort of off road so you can have to look for it a little bit but this place is always jammed with people, and they have karaōke five nights a week. So you should call for the times. But the place is always filled to the limit with happy people. Like with most karaōke bars is always a couple really really find talents but I would say so many people in here are such great singers. And the people that work here are very very nice and are hospitable and make you feel welcome. It is a full bar with a Jäger cooler and it has a karaōke room in the back which is full functioning and very fun and definitely has a lot of regulars that come here to enjoy it. Definitely recommended.

Came from out of town 3 times — each time
The guy who is DJing cuts people off by 10pm. Haven’t had the chance to sing here once as the guy shuts it down too early bc of requests. Good place to sing, but get here early otherwise you’ll spend the night watching a group of 20 singing together and take up all of the guy’s time to «DJ»

I have to admit, I was a little skeptical coming here. A friend of mine suggested it and so we decided to celebrate both our bdays last month.
Bottom line, not enough places like this exist. Most karaōke places these days are in the Asian style, where you rent a private room for you and some friends. To me, that’s not very fun. This is the kind of place that makes karaōke fun. You got people willing to dance and it’s not too intimidating because everyone is just out to get loose and have a good time.
Some reviews say that the song list is lacking but I thought the book had a great selection. There were some newer songs that people did (I remember hearing some Rihanna and Katy Perry) but honestly, nobody wants to hear new songs that most people don’t know at a karaōke joint. The songs that got people moving and having a good time were 80s and 90s jams (arguably the best years for party jams anyway).
The only downside really is that the place will put off most young folks. The bar area was full of a bunch of older guys but the back was more for the late 20s and 30s crowd, where the karaōke is. Also another minor note is that the singing area doesn’t really have a monitor for sound, so it’s kind of hard to hear yourself and the music when you’re the one singing. But other than that, it’s everything you could want in a karaōke place.
So queue up a throwback jam and enjoy having fun with a chill crowd at Mel-​o-​dee.

The bomb! I have never done this. After a few people I got the idea and dive right into it with Mondance from Van Morrison and the Love me Tender by the King. I was going to go for a third one but before I knew it was after 1 a. m!!! Had to leave… Oh well, next time! Crowded but really friendly and great party people from all over the rainbow! I must go back soon.

On a very random Saturday night me and a friend came in here to find this place to be pretty cool. But not really my place or maybe I wasn’t having enough to drink to enjoy. It has a very divey/​karaōke bar feel because that’s what it is. Lol And I told my friend next time we go we have to karaōke so until next time. It’s a must try because it’s in the middle of a shopping centre so it’s not exactly what you expect. But it’s a very casual place. Service was nice and other customers were friendly too!

Pretty awesome. Went here with friends on a Thursday night. Very cool crowd, real people, no hipsters, no «bro-​grammers» just a nice mix of black and white folks, Asian and Latino folks, everyone seemingly «normal», just people who like to drink and sing. No pretentious douchebags — a nice break from the San Francisco scene.
Decent sound system, although a tad loud, «strident», might hurt your ears if you get too close. But the interface with the monitors and the KJ all worked well.
They’ve got a nice dance floor, and people definitely got up to dance on more than one occasion. If you pick a funky groove, you’ll get the crowd moving.
Yes, it’s a little weird that this bar that feels like it’s transporting you back to the Eisenhower era is sandwiched in between Petco and Trader Joe’s. I don’t know too many «strip mall bars», but we got over it quickly enough. Plenty of parking, there’s an advantage!
I would totally go back to this place. It worked well, the people were cool, and we all had a good time.

It doesn’t get more East Bay than Mel-​o-​dee! Generally, establishments that try to do too much wind up not doing anything at all. Not so, at Mel-​o-​dee. A symbiotic relationship occurs in this magical place: the affordable and generous drinks loosen you up to SANG your heart out. The people (usually a diverse crowd, age-​wise too) respond as though you’re the pied piper, and move onto the dance floor and get down. The temperature in the room rises; people need more drinks, and the night goes on and on and on. While the ambiance isn’t the prettiest, the place is clean, and the staff are quick and polite.
Bring some friends, get your drank, sanging, and groove on, at Mel-​o-​dee.

Best local spot… «where everyone knows your name» or want a strong drink, friendly chat with the bartender and a laugh with good friends!

Awesome crowd! You have to check it out! Great folks that came over here. Delia runs the DJ and karaōke! Drinks are served strong. Private parties are welcome… small place by its by Trader Joes. Would never know its here. I would not sing here as compared to the singers here, I would be boo’d! Lol

I’m a sucker for dive bars with the cocktail class sign on the exterior of the building. This place is a complete throw back. It’s like they decorated in 1971 and said, «It’s perfect. Don’t touch a thing» and then didn’t. We were in on a Friday and coming in at 7 PM, we got the last table and four chairs in the rear Karaōke room. It was mult-​age, multi-​cultural and multi-​talent. There are clearly regulars who seem to come up over and over again (most of whom bring enthusiasm rather than vocal chops) while others turn in their slips and wait forever to get on. I like the sound system and the screens which tell you who’s up next and who’s up after that. The KJ really kept things moving. Someone else mentioned that the song selection is small but I thought it was great.
As the night wore on, it got REALLY crowded and REALLY hot back there. One of the females in our group was accosted by a drunk guy and groped a bit and a guy (I couldn’t tell if he was a bouncer or a regular guy) came up, asked my friend what happened and dealt with the situation quickly and without drama and the «drunk uncle» was bounced out of the joint. The Mel is in a shopping center and it’s around the side and not well lit or signed so you may miss it the first time.

Mel o Dee was by far the best karaōke bar I’ve been. Everyone that sang was really into it, and majority of people were super talented!
I loved the vibes I got when I walked in, very friendly, and supportive. The drinks are cheap and the bartender is awesome.
The location makes ms really happy, right next to trader joes. They have a huge variety of karaōke songs, and a lot of the customers are older and sing frank Sinatra type songs.
It’s so great! Definitely check it out if you like cheap drinks and rad karaōke!

Karaōke dive bar, with some awesome wallpaper. I went here with a meetup group and had a great time.
The beer kinda sucks, various dive bar offerings, but you can bring your own food. The place is hiding on the south side of a strip mall, and is handily close to Bart. Definitely worth checking out in El Cerrito.

Its a decent place. Feels pretty divey, generally nice people. The crowd is mid 30’s through 50’s I’d say. I am 29 and I felt really young in there. You get the OCCASIONAL 20 somethings, but not often. I used to go there on the weekends if I didn’t have any plans because its right down the street from where I live.
I’m apparently ‘banned’ on Fridays and Saturdays now. One night a while ago, I got too drunk and made some offensive flirtatious comments to Autumn, one of the bartenders. (Nice young Asian woman.) I guess she got pissed and the owner (Ralph) told me that I shouldn’t come for a month… So, like 4 months later I came back and now the story has changed and he says I shouldn’t come on Fridays and Saturdays because that’s when she works.
*shrugs*
I was a regular customer in there and I had never done anything wrong and even went back and apologized to the owner after it happened. So, nothing against the bar, the owner, or even the bartender, but myself and my sister [who liked to go and sing] will not be back.
Live and learn, I guess. But, hey, if you like a semi-​older crowd and you like singing semi-​older songs, hit it up.
Karaōke — The song choice is ehhhh, OK. I don’t think you’ll find a song from the last 5 years in there, but I’m not sure on that. The crowd is a bit older anyhow, so I guess people like singing their old favorites and stuff. Karaōke is pretty much just for laughing at your friends anyhow.
Drinks — Strong and good.
Staff — Nice. My favorite staff member is a woman, who I believe is the owner’s wife and her name escapes me right now. She’s pretty cool.
Summary
I wanted to give a higher rating, but I just couldn’t due to the lack of resolution with what I had discussed earlier. If I hadn’t been faithfully going there for a while and it was my 3^rd time there, I would have been fine, but I came in the very next day and apologized, and I had been there numerous times before. I dunno. Not my establishment, of course, but, I dunno. Whatever. Taking my business elsewhere. :)

I have been coming here for years! The drinks are cheap, the crowd is never the same (which makes it exciting every time you go in), and Ralph, the bartender and owner, is terrific and down to earth. I have been here with co-​workers, family, and friends which means it’s a place a lot of people can agree on. However, if you’re not an open-​minded fun go-​getter, you may not enjoy it as much but this place really doesn’t depend on people of that sort since it is usually packed to the front door.
If you’re in town, go by for some drinks and karaōke fun!