Vango Lounge & Skybar

I came here on a Wednesday evening so it was nice and quiet. The décor has been the same for at least 8 years but it is clean! The 90’s throwback music was fun. Waitresses checked on us frequently, but then again it was slow at the time. We ordered the hummus which wasn’t bad but the hookah had cheap coals which didn’t help smoke up well. It was a bit pricy but considering we had the whole place to ourselves for most of the night I’d say it was worth it and great for a weeknight out.

Owners are very rude, no customer service. The only thing going for this bar is the sky bar and it has limited space.

A friend and I decided to do something different and drive down to Philly for New Year’s Eve. After getting the names of a few places from friends, I chose to go here because when I called they said they’d be playing Hip-​Hop and R&B all night. I was really hesitant after all of the negative reviews but I made a good choice. The crowd was mature, the music was good just as they had said and overall had a nice time. The bar was a bit crowded which is to be expected being that they sold packages which included drinks but other than that I have no complaints. Nice décor, good drinks, and ok food.

Came here for a bachelorette party. First off, the décor was nice and the music was pretty good. That’s about it. If it wasn’t for the fact that I was there to support the bachelorette I would have left.
Their food menu was awful. 90% of it is weird obscure seafood dishes. If you don’t eat fish you’re pretty much confined to the chicken quesadilla. Also, the host of the bachelorette party got stuck with the $ 300 bill because when the reservation for a table was made they required a credit card. When all the girls tried to pay for their tabs individually the server told us «I can’t do that because all the food and drinks are already on one bill» so I said, but I just want to pay for what I ordered and she said «I can’t.» Now the poor host has to track down all the girls and try to get her money from each of us because they don’t know how to operate a business.
Their drinks are expensive because they are poured way too strong, $ 11 for a vodka cranberry. Normally strong drinks are great but not when you can hardly drink them because your throat burns. I’d rather pay $ 7 for a drink with the right alcohol to mixer ratio and actually be able to drink it. Most of the girls couldn’t get past the fact that your drink tastes like straight rubbing alcohol.
Their business practices are horrible. You have to wait 10 minutes to go upstairs regardless of how many people are there. When I went up, there were about 10 people up there. When I went down and came back up. There were about 30 and the wait hadn’t changed. So the wait is 10 minutes for 10 people or 30 people, it doesn’t matter. Also, you MUST buy a drink to go upstairs which is stupid since there’s a bar upstairs. Also, they don’t give out water. I had 2 drinks and asked for water and was told «we don’t give out water» I asked what I was supposed to do if I wanted to sober up to drive and was told «you can buy a soda» Really? That’s your answer to someone wanting to be responsible?
I will never return here.

I close to hate this place and I don’t hate anything. It’s really the service ladies there on Monday (salsa night) are consistently rude and there is always some new rule like they have to hold your i. d or you must check your coat… I’m not a freaking criminal! AND they automatically add gratuity and do it discreetly. The only thing good about this place is the salsa lesson and open 1 and crowd on Mondays. That’s why I gave any stars at all.

Vango is a fantastic place to go if you’re looking to lose weight through the process of starvation and if you like to be waited on by incompetent assholes.
I’m not sure what took 20 minutes to make a vodka soda or how 6 microscopic pieces of sushi equates to $ 13. Luckily, in my baffled state of mind, the server was kind enough to offer to bring a calculator & recalculate my tab in front of me when she initially did it incorrectly. How thoughtful!
This place is seriously prestigious & exclusive. Be sure you buy a ridiculously overpriced drink downstairs behind the judgmental DOORMAN to go upstairs to the packed rooftop. When I went we almost weren’t allowed up it was so full– three people were up there! The servers up there were just so pleasant & their bitchy resting faces really made me feel welcome.
Next time I want to gulp down some delicious & expensive air I’ll be sure to stop by!

Vango has pretty much become my primary spot in Philly once Walnut Room closed (R.I.P.) — and I’m talking before the re-​branded Ten Six travesty. Since then, they’ve started charging a cover (because they knew they would get the fall out from Walnut Room (i.e. people looking for hip-​hop, reggae, trap, Top 40, etc. in Center City West). But I always have a great time here. They always have great DJs spinning and when the place is packed, it’s always a good time. It’s a great venue for Sips but also great on Friday and (especially) Saturday night. I had to bump the score down because the bartenders automatically add a %20 gratuity to your drink purchase. That’s really lame. So if one of the bartenders I don’t know is making my drink, I just tip ONE DOLLAR in cash. That’s a very shady practice… no bueno. Otherwise, great spot.

Friday night, I came here with a group of 11. Great music and nice décor. Pretty nice views too. Out VIP area was a bed and I honestly wish it was a couch with a table because he table was positioned in a corner. Good service, no complaints.

Great place to come and dance with friends or make new friends to dance with

Nah! So not my spot. Went here for a happy hour with my coworkers for a birthday celebration. You walk in and it’s too dark. Well, yes, it is a night club which it’s also on the smaller side. Not a good place for a happy hour. I felt pretty depressed and the red color on walls and seats was just blinding. Grabbed a coworker and went upstairs which was much better. There’s a bar area and a rood top which I thought it was pretty cool until I found out that over there they would allow smoking and hookah. Yes, there’s a cool view of the skyscrapers but it still made me feel uncomfortable. On top of all this, drinks are overpriced for no reason.

The atmosphere is pretty nice; great fiberoptic chandelier over the first floor bar and the upstairs rooftop deck view can’t be beat. However… I must say that there is a certain crowd that goes here (at least on the Friday night I was there) and the music is geared towards that. So if you’re looking for a good time to dance (EDM mixed into top 40’s AND today’s hip hop hits) then this isn’t the Place for you. The music is all rap and hip hop and although the dj was tuned to the crowd I didn’t think the music choice was on point for what I was looking for. Rumor blows this place away but then again this is a totally different place and I’m Glad I finally got to go. Overall I’d say it depends on the type of night you want to have– club or lounge-​ish with hookah and rap music?! Worth a try!

I had big group of people (12) come this pas Saturday night. We love going to this place but the thing a hate the must is that you have to pay $ 10 during the summer just to get in and still have buy a drink to get upstairs. So we get upstairs and order a hookah the girl told us right away that there be $ 7 tip added to it. Which we didn’t like at all plus the girl was drinking on the job smh. So we get a different lady which a better service because we had problems with the hookah and she helped us out with it. My thing is Vango needs to get ride of the cover or the drink policy not have both. They used to never charge a cover to get in that’s why I e didn’t mind getting a drink to get upstairs.

I cannot express how bad of an experience this place was. The manager on duty this ast Saturday evening acted like a complete jerk, so much so that I told him that to his face. I am normally a VERY understanding and calm individual, but could not help reacting to this situation.
Here is what happened:
Arrived slightly after midnight on Saturday night, paid $ 10 cover each to get in with 3 friends, one of whom is pregnant.
Got upstairs, 3 of us ordered drinks, one ordered a water (aforementioned pregnant). I got a goose and club, which I paid $ 13 for (sucker).
We asked to be let up to the skybar. They said our friend with water couldn’t go because she didn’t buy a drink. We explained that the rest of us had, and that she couldn’t drink, but they still refused.
We asked for the manager. The guy WOULD NOT EVEN SPEAK TO US DIRECTLY but instead asked his employee to explain. He said that we couldn’t go up, and just ignored us as we threatened to take our business elsewhere.
So we exited. Since this was within 10 minutes of us arriving, and since they were being so unreasonable, we asked for our covers back for the pregnant woman and her husband. No dice.
Cops came and heard us out, and we’re very professional (even offered to pay back the covers out of their pockets) while this total jerk of a manager just stood there and smirked. Real jerk. When we said that we were going to write reviews about this he said and I quote, «You won’t matter.»
THE. WORST.

My husband and I went for the salsa classes on Monday night. The website says it starts at 8:30. We got there a little before 8:30 and no one was there other than the staff. They asked us what we were there for. I told them the salsa classes. They said it starts at 9 pm. They asked us if we would like any food or drinks while we wait and we said yes. 1. They are really pushy and told us if we don’t buy any drinks other than water we will have to buy a bottle of water. 2. The club/​lounge looked really tacky, especially with the suede wall and pole in the middle of the floor. 3. The food was ok, not great and I ordered a drink since they were pestering so much. It was called The Vango. It tasted like cough medicine! The class was ok but I will never go back there again!

My 4 star review is because me and my husband had the roof to ourselves. The view and lighting was perfect we got to lounge on a very comfortable bed like seating. We went on a Sunday night obviously not too many people there. Downstairs at the bar there was a few people, but we had the sky bar to ourselves, which to me was perfect. Drinks are overpriced, music was bad, and there is a stripper pole in the middle of the dance floor, needless to say this would not be my scene on a busy night. The rooftop is small so I can imagine it wouldn’t be enjoyable on a busy night. Overall it was lovely place to relax with a drink on a Sunday night.

This place is PUREEEEE TRASH!
DO NOT EVEN LET THE NICE DECOR FOOL YOU
On August 28^th, my friend from DC came to Philly to celebrate her birthday. I said they have ITS YOUR BIRTHDAY THURSDAYS. Sponsored by Wired 96.5. We get there and not only does my sister forget her ID, but we ask to speak the manager so we can get our $ 25.00 deposit back. YEAH! Its your birthday thursday says free bottle of champagne and a cake, ummm no. It is 25.00 deposit for 1 – 4 people which is not bad. It says clearly online that you can use the 25.00 towards your tab or refund it. After two of us went upstairs to get the manager it was like 7 people on the dancefloor –_​-​. He agreed he would talk to us outside. We told him about my sister forgetting her ID (hoping we can work on something out). He said no and thats fine (she shouldnt have forgotton but I thought it was strange because he has like –3 people in his club but whatever). So we asked for the refund for the reserved table since we wont be using it and his direct response was «I dont handle the money». And we said «Okay. who does?» and he said «He is in right now». So my sister says «Okay but what is his name, how can we contact him». And he turned around and said «You shouldn’t even be talking to me, You don’t even have your ID».
RUDE straight rudeness. We figured whatever, he must the need the $ 25.00 more than us. BUT I never seen a manager act like that and not even try to help knowing that a table was reserved? It was a rip off. You couldn’t pay me enough to go back.

Why do I let people talk me into coming here? Why do I spend a $ 10 cover to have a bunch of disgusting guys rub their dicks on my ass? The bartender tried to short me $ 10 in change and I was not drunk enough to not notice.

Some notes before reading:
I went here for their Birthday Thursday promotion (Free champagne and cake with $ 25 reservation [that goes toward your tab] and/​a minimum 4 people with you).
It was a Thursday night.
I made a reservation in advance and paid a non-​refundable $ 25 whether I showed up or not, which is clearly stated when you make the reservation.
I had SUCH a wonderful time here. Marissa was the hostess, she greeted us when we came in and really was a professional since the minute we walked in the door. It was not busy this night (I mean, it’s a Thursday night in the winter at 9 pm), we were seated right away and got a drink order. We did not eat here because we had eaten already so I cannot comment on the food. The DJ was so accommodating and after requesting an artist he played 3 songs from him (Frank Ocean) which is unheard of. I was so excited, really made my birthday. The hostess brings out a cake which was really quite delicious and a bottle of champagne to celebrate the birthday. I thought this was a really nice touch and good way to get people in the door.
I can’t comment on a weekend or when the place is busy, but we had a blast here. I think the hostess and DJ really made the night for us, which is why I gave the experience 5 stars. We didn’t get to the rooftop, it opens after a certain time but I think they would have let us if we asked since it was a slower night. It’s a shame because I hear it’s nice and have been wanting to see it.

Check my profile, I almost NEVER give one star reviews. However-​I found myself in Philadelphia for a conference and my license was stolen. Not wanting to let it ruin my week, I decided to go out with a group of about 15 people. What irks me about this place is that the bouncer AND THE MANAGER absolutely refused to even consider letting me in. After seeing a bunch of ID’s with 25 – 29 year old ages on them, the likelihood of me being underage is HIGHLY unlikely (I’m not). I even asked them to black X mark my hands-​I wasn’t even looking to drink, just hang out. NOPE. I ended up cabbing it home alone after one of my gentlemanly friends made sure I was okay.
I have forgotten my id in the past and have never been singled out like this. I have just shown SOMETHING and been let in, especially with a pack of 15 people. The fact that the bouncer left me standing alone in the alley unsafely really annoys me. Good thing I don’t live here-​and we won’t be back in the days we’re still here.

Sooo we think we’re getting overcharged. Actually, my friend does– we definitely are sticking out like a sore thumb… But, they usually charge almost $ 60 for four drinks right???
We didn’t realize the clubs close so early and got there a little late.
After finally reaching the top of a tidous stair case you notice a red chandelier of lights illuminating the entire club. The DJ sits in front of a wall to ceiling window toward the entrace. There was a stripper pole in the center that welcomed lots of twerking throughout the night, and once the initial culture shock wore off we huddled around the back.
As soon as we walked in, to my suprise, almost everyone was freely dancing as dirty as possible.
We even passed a couple that may (or may not) have needed a room far far far away from the bar area.
There were a few things roped off, however I am not entirely sure if the club has a specific VIPsection. On the right wall of the dance floor sheer curtains act as a partitian to a group of white lounge couches and tables. We ordered lots of drinks that were way over priced, roughly $ 10 each. They were stiff and signicficantly well-​made. As an avid party girl (at times) it is my obligation to get tipsy. Two long beach later, I was *there*.
The bathroom was a cramped dissaray of the usual scattered toilet paper and towels clinging to the floor. It had the essentials, but no full mirror :(
The Sky Bar–
Luxe and posh describe the upper deck… With an open and welcoming feel– there are tables and couches expanding from the sliding doors exiting the second level dance floor and bar. It was a lil chilly that night so we didn’t stay out past taking a few selfies. I can see the patio on a warm summer night full and vibrant with great music filtering through the air.
This place isn’t so bad. I have seen better, but I have also seen much much worse. I would say go if you want to hear a blend of hiphop/​reggae and some r n b.
P. S. Definitely Pre-​Drink!