Sotto Night Club Bars & Clubs in Madison – GayOut Guide
Gay Bars & Clubs LGBTQ+ Friendly

Sotto Night Club

Google (185) 3.7
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What reviewers say

Visitors praise Sotto Night Club for its affordable cover charge and drinks, with many enjoying the DJs and the inclusive atmosphere where they can express themselves. However, some reviewers have experienced long wait times in line, issues with staff professionalism, and one incident involving bathroom access.

74
/ 100
GayOut Score
G3.7
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Address
303 N Henry St, madison

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About this place Sotto Night Club

Sotto is a basement dance club at 303 N Henry Street, just off State Street downtown. It is known for Latin Thursdays and DJs on Saturdays, and the crowd is young. Travel Gay lists it, but we found no regular queer nights or LGBTQ+ community events, so treat it as a mainstream club where mixed groups are comfortable rather than a gay bar. Google rates it 3.8 from about 190 reviews, and some reviews mention cover charges and a strict door. It's a short walk from Woof's and the Shamrock. If you want a dance floor that is actually gay, FIVE Nightclub on the south side is the better bet.

Features

Dance Latin DJ sets Dance club Cover charge Late night (after midnight) Gay-friendly (straight venue)

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Community Reviews

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Google Reviews

Verified by Google
3.7
★★★★★
185 reviews

Based on 185 Google reviews.

Michaela “Mikki” Benisch
Michaela “Mikki” Benisch Jun 2026
★★★★★

I go on Saturday nights, and DJ Jimmy is the best, hands-down. $5 cover and good deals on drinks, like $3 long islands and $4 rail mixers until midnight. Their other drinks aren’t that expensive either, and they pour HEAVYYY! I think it’s an inclusive space, you get to express yourself without judgement from anyone and just get to dance. Love love love it!

Jake Leow
Jake Leow May 2026
★★★★★

So, I really used to love sotto. They self identify as a queer space with the flag that is, and has been, in the window. Unfortunately I was asked to leave the bar because I am a cis passing queer male that elected to use the bathroom labeled “W” at the request of a cis passing female who was with me. This is even after receiving the consent of everyone in the bathroom. Not a queer space. Not safe.

Makyla Moua
Makyla Moua May 2026
★★★★★

The manager “Sean” (name given by employee) was very unprofessional and terrible to us . We waited in line at the FRONT for 1hr in a thunder/lightning storm. I understand being at capacity but there was no communication. After we were finally let in after 1hr, my boyfriend expressed to ME in our OWN PERSONAL conversation that this was not done well and management should’ve dome better. Sean, the manager, stated “if you don’t like our management, leave.”. This is absolutely unacceptable for a manager. If you hear your guests having a bad experience, the managerial and professional thing to do is make it right. We love sottos but this response was so unprofessional. After my boyfriend spoke to her and let her know it’s nothing personal, it was just disappointing, Sean FLICKED her MIDDLE FINGER at him. I’ve never experienced something so unprofessional. I voiced my concerns to the employee pictured and was met with a laugh. We will not be back after this experience and we will spread awareness on your treatment to paying customers.

Benjamin Schmidtke (Sgt. Softbuck)
Benjamin Schmidtke (Sgt. Softbuck) Mar 2026
★★★★★
Jason Gomez
Jason Gomez Mar 2026
★★★★★

The vibe

Justin Davis
Justin Davis Mar 2026
★★★★★

I would like to preface this review with the fact that I work in the bar/restaurant industry and have quite a bit of patience and understanding when it comes to hospitality workers. That being said. These bouncers have no idea how to do their job. Not only was I in line for an hour and a half but a solid 20-30 minutes of it was spent being first in line. I watched what I guesstimate AT LEAST 40 people let in from the line leap before the regular giant line. I understand letting in people who paid more; that comes with the territory. But I thought Sotto actually had standards. They were letting in people wearing slides, hoodies, and just general casual clothing. Various people, who I assume were friends of the bouncers, completely skipped both the regular line and the line leap. Once I got into the bar finally, none of these people were dancing and negated any form of a “nightclub experience”. If you are going to go here just know you’ll wait forever in line, then wait forever for drinks, be in a sausage fest, and ultimately be in the club for a max of 2 hours (if you get in line at 10:30)

Susana Canales
Susana Canales Feb 2026
★★★★★

The best place to spend your 22nd birthday! It wasn't mine, but I definitely recommend it. The guys at the reception were very professional.👌 Definitely a highly recommended place. The place is very clean and the DJ is 100% recommended.👌💯

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Last updated on 8 November 2026

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