The Penguin Piano Bar & Restaurant

This place used to be a blast. Now the volume is set so low that none of the old raucous energy remains.

Fun and entertaining! Attentive and friendly staff! Great energy and entertaining experience!

Atmosphere: 5

Service: 5

We went in on a Friday night and had a group of 10 people and requested several songs- spent over $100 and for mediocre performances. Then when we requested a few songs and just expected them to be played without having to pay anymore money, they ignored us. And we were at least more than half the people in the place paying money so it was super disappointing

Really disappointed with the new owners. As a college student who loved the old penguin, the new management is making me not want to continue to come. Workers at the door said the cover charge was $10 plus another $10 for the bottomless cup (throwback Thursday special) however, I got charged $27 after checking my account later in the night. I wish they still accepted cash and didn’t lie to me about the price of cover… not happy

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 1

Service: 2

I used to love Penguin before it was rebought. It is our Mom’s Weekend and we decided to come to enjoy some nice music. We got there right at opening, paid cover and found a table in the back. To preface, this table was COMPLETELY available and had no reserved sign whatsoever. Around 10:30, a worker comes to our table and tell us all that we need to leave the table. This was completely out of the blue, and he said it had been reserved the whole night. We were all confused because our waitress said NOTHING about this and had been taking care of us all night. The manager ended up coming to the table and saying we needed to leave or else they were going to call the cops (for sitting at a table?). Our waitress came over and ended up admitting that she knew the whole night and it wasn’t her job to tell us. The manager ended up comping half of our tab, but when we left we saw him give high fives and hugs to the men who took our table (clearly his friends). This was absolutely ridiculous and my friends and I have lost all respect for this business.

Atmosphere: 5

Service: 1

When I went in, I didn't know what to expect; pleasantly surprised! Jake, the bartender, was great! Wow, he was fast& friendly! The piano music with drums, complimented each other! Got me dancing!
Had a superb time; one of the best times ever! Thank you to all of those, that literally made my night out in Columbia, one of the best, I've ever had! Come here again? Oh, yeah... can't wait!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Had an absolute blast at this piano bar. Definitely a must do!

Atmosphere: 5

I enjoy the penguin bar. The band is always great & the bar tending staff is always polite. My only issue with this establishment is that they don’t care much for the democratic principles our nation was founded & charge veterans full cover.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 3

This is a fun place to visit. The two pianos plus drummer are a great mix. You will quickly find yourself joining in the sing-alongs having a great time. As is typical at piano bars, you can make requests (don't forget to add a tip), so go ahead and request your favorite songs.

We were excited to check The Penguin out and weren’t disappointed. Food was delicious with reasonable portion size and price. Very friendly service and clean, comfortable atmosphere. Only critique is I couldn't stop sliding down the slick barstool every few seconds lol

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Never coming back. Tossed an ICE CUBE to my daughter (I’m 60) and 3 frat boy quasi security guards asked us to leave at 12:30AM. 4 Sororities and fraternities will never be back over this harmless jester. I can see why the place was 40% full. I’ll wait in line and pay a cover elsewhere before ever coming back here. No service once you walked in. Buyer beware.

Fantastic experience, that you will get nowhere else in Columbia. Rare and unique musical talent that will take piano requests from Journey to Snoop Dogg. Loved it

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Get gru off the stage

Fun evening venue

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 2

Recommended dishes: Cheeseburger

Love coming here! I’ve always loved it as a going out experience, but I recently tried it as a dinner and music kind of jig. Sophia was our server and did a fantastic job (even when we asked to move tables) and it was just a great night altogether.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5