Overrated overpriced and downright arrogant.
This place is an offence to lesbian women. Very unfortunate, as it is the only place many women know.

I have been to Candy bar at least 15 times since 2008. Last week Thursday, I wanted to take my friends visiting London for a fab lesbian nite out. It turns out, the woman at the door pretending to be a door host, told us that they have a strictly 3 women - 1 men policy to get in. I have never felt so embarrassed in my entire life, being a Londoner myself and having visited the bar many times before. We had no choice but to leave immediately. We still do not understand what kind of policy this was, you could see the bar was pretty empty on a Thursday night. Anyhow, I strongly do not recommend anyone to go to this place. Not to mention the terrible and out fashioned door host, she left us with a really dry taste of this bar. Never again. Good luck.

Just found this bar by accident and what a lovely accident indeed! Thanks to the blonde bar girl who served us crazy cocktails or night and the shots with the cream! Music was excellent, really was varied I must say and always think that's important in a bar in London. 10 stars from me!

We absolutely loved the place! didn't have a single problem getting served the bouncers were lovely (one even spent 10 minutes helping my gf find me when we got separated new years eve, even though the club was really busy!) Everyone was really polite and helpful. We're definitely going back!
The drinks are a bit pricey but then the measures are HUGE!! so you cant complain.
Yes i got hit on a fair bit but then a blonde in a corset will get that where ever you go. Frankly i absolutely adore the place and it's somewhere that i'd happily take all friends to (gay and straight)

It's a shame there are so few lesbian bars in London as this bar is really unfriendly and has an unpleasant vibe. The staff have a bad attitude and the door staff have no diplomacy skills and are incredibly and unnecessarily aggressive. They also seem to be suspicious of lesbians who don't conform to the spiky-haired, low waisted baggy jeans type. Avoid this place if you want an enjoyable evening.

After reading the last reviews it made me very worried about going to the Candy Bar. I had organised a night out there for a friends birthday. She is the only lesbian in the group and there were 18 of us who went. We all dressed up, looking very glamorous and the head security guard (female) was more than happy to let us in, knowing full well most of us were straight girls. They were a very friendly bar, service was good, security was good, music was brilliant and atmosphere was great. Bearing in mind we were a large group of straight girls, they all accepted us really well. Quite a few of my group got chatting to other women and they totally understood why we were there and made us really enjoy ourselves.

We were very over dressed and it was quite a laid back, relaxed, club so maybe if we go again we wouldn't glam up quite us much. But, what was we really expecting.

Good night out, enjoyed by all of us...would definitely return in the future!!

Go to Candy Bar if you conform to their idea of what a 'lesbian' looks like. My cousin is a lesbian and she dresses like a girl. The bouncer took one look at her and said the bar was full. Bullshit! As I could see inside the bar and it was practically empty.
To be honest after reading the reviews on here I'm glad we didnt go.

Very unfriendly bar. Went last night (Saturday) myself (gay man) and my best lesbian friend. Where made to wait behind a group of 12 straights. Then we were told 3 times that there were too many men already in there so i wouldn't be allowed in. Other lesbians were allowed in (members i assume) until my friend asked point blank if we were likely to be let in - at which point we were then allowed. Lo and behold there were 2 other guys in the place.
Obvious sexual discrimination going on at this venue. Since when were gay men classed in the same category as heterosexual's?
The bar staff were equally unhelpful and friendly - waited for ever more to get served whilst customers waited and the staff chatted and play slapped each other.
The bar was hardly busy yet there was a queue to go downstairs with customers told to queue or not get downstairs.
A very clicky unfriendly and unwelcome experience that won`t be repeated.

We went last Saturday night -- yup the C5 hype is there and despite the perception there's been a change the loos are disgraceful -- it's a girl bar ffs we like a good loo. No red bull at 1.30 and ran out of diet coke at the same time. Understaffed bar and the C5 stars got served before us even though we were waiting. It's worth a visit and a shame there's not much competition around for all girl venues. Anyone know of a club for sale??

Don't even bother, unless your a regular they won't even serve you. We waited 20 mins to he served on a Monday night even though they have given you a cocktail menu and waiting to be served. Very disappointed as I though Candy had turned over a new leaf with the merge with Ku bar. I ended up going around the corner to The Edge where I was served within a few minutes. Avoid at all cost.

This is great now - friendly girls - music that weve heard of and smart sofas to relax on upstairs - Friday and Saturday nights get rammed with an up for it pop / indie disco vibe - rumour has it theres going to be a television series all about the bar on Ch5 in the summer - get in there early before all the tourists come to meet the bar staff...

Now that the Candy Bar is part of the Ku group, things have changed. Not only is the decor really lovely now, they have also added lots of sofas on the first floor for girls to lounge around in. Fabulous! Drinks prices are reasonable now and the atmosphere is really friendly.

Door prices have also dropped to £3 at weekends and members gain bigger discounts so it's well worth signing up.

I've been down at a weekend and the place is full or lovely girls. It's a must for any gay girl visiting London to soak up the atmosphere of this legendary bar.

The West End has very little cool places to offer girls and Candy Bar is far from being the top place to go and be seen!

It starts from the moment you have to pay to in the gaff!! Its a bar!

And a small one at that so charging on the door is ridiculous! The place needs a complete makeover to be honest.

Its small, cramped, smelly and pay attention to the other reviews on here that mention the toilets!

They are grim!!No one should be subjected to that and you can always judge a place on its toilets!

If I could give it no stars I really would - sorry! I sound so miserable but honestly Londons Lesbian scene sucks!

I've been with my girlfriend for 4 years and we've yet to find a cool, slick, clean, funky, friendly girl bar we can go to!

well reading the other reviews I have to say it seems like the place I was in was extremely different!!!

Was there for the very first time this weekend after travelling over from Ireland, and I have to say had a great time there......

the staff were very friendly, the clientelle was a mix of younger and older...... (when i say older maybe the oldest was about 40).....

toilets ok need improvement but overall the atmosphere was excellent......

A visitor to London with my girlfriend, we visited Candy Bar on a Friday night 23.01.09.I have to say the place is awful. If this is the best that the West End has to offer gay woman, that is so disappointing.

We paid £6 to get in, which was a total rip off because nothing was going on. The place has 3 different floors - upstairs is a cloakroom (which costs £2)and pool table - when I visited there was also a bucket catching water from the leaking roof. Downstairs is I guess a cellar bar, with a dancing pole - which was a little bizarre to say the least - a member of staff stood at the top of the stairs to the cellar bar counting how many people were going down - which was a laugh really becuse the place was pretty dead.

The highlight was when the ambulance turned up to help a young woman who had maybe had a few too many!!The toilets were awful - I managed to get some toilet roll from a member of staff, but this was only because I was telling her how awful Candy Bar was, including the toilets.

The toilets were dark, no lights, dirty and very smelly.The floor in the bar was also very sticky due to spilt drinks = you did keep sticky to the floor in this place.The best thing that happened is that we met a really nice couple in Candy Bar, who were also visiting London and don't leave too far from Leeds (where I come from) - we are going to stay in touch.

We did speak to the staff to let them know what we thought. I have to say travelling to the capital and going to Candy Bar, which is, you are told, the hub for gay girls in the West End - God they have some work to do. The staff told us we would be better coming back on a Saturday because it is an older crowd - I am 30 - obviously over the hill for Candy Bar!

its nice that there is a place that lesbians can go and be safe and party, but you are restricting those lesbians that have male friends that would like to understand their world, and would like to party with there lesbian friends.

I went here on the weekend with my lesbian friend - both her and I (one of each preference - sexually, I might add) - found the place to be calm and soothing. Friendly staff, not overly done in any way. Couples sitting down having a pint, reading the news, even some blokes where in there - friends with the barmaid apparently. Nice pink dim lighting. Only thing missing is a few tables.

End of sunshine story. The toilet facilities in this place is appalling! No lighting, no toilet paper, slippery floors, nothing had been cleaned... dirty toilets (as far as I could see) - and a foul funk wafting from the room itself...
- Get this sorted and you earn another star from me!

I heard so much about the Candy Bar and was very disappointed when I got there. Un-friendly, cliquey staff, over-priced drinks and absolutely FILTHY toilets: the sanitary disposal units were overflowing, horrible dank smell of urine and really poor lighting.Candy Bar seriously needs to sharpen up!

we went to the candy bar last week and it is much more friendly now, last year i went and it was really clicky, now the drugs and attitude are gone it has a much better vibe.

this one of the few places i would choose to relax or have a dance in the west end.

The Candy Bar, now under new 'management' (if that's what they want to call themselves), is totally out of touch. The new staff are inexperienced, unfriendly, VERY RUDE and the place in general has a very bad vibe. Plus, why is everyone there South African now? Candy Bar is just...really really bad. Don't go there if you want a good night out with your friends/lovers. The women there are old, washed out South African lesbians; all seemed to be friends with the staff so you can imagine what it was like being there. The place was empty (all the cool kids are now heading off in other directions...Trash Palace, Ghetto or good ol' G.A.Y.). Drinks are expensive, more so than before. The music is something you'd hear coming out of the phones of 14 year old girls on the bus - unrecognizable and 'do your head in'. OH, and the toilets are GROSS!!! They are metal basins with piss/water everywhere, feels like pissing in prison (I'm assuming). Urgh, just don't go there. We all used to love Candy, but now....it's a horrible, dingy place with horrible people, horrible staff. I feel sorry for anyone going there who things it might be like the old days. Don't make the same mistake we did! DON'T GO!!!