As students return to Waterloo for the term and start heading out to Uptown, here’s a heads-up on why you should think twice before going to RARE Nightclub & Events Centre:
A while back when attending RARE, the line for the women's bathroom downstairs was extremely long, so staff directed a group of us upstairs to use another washroom, explicitly telling us it was a unisex bathroom. While I was doing my makeup in the mirror waiting for my friend to finish in the stall, a male guard came into the bathroom, started yelling at me to "get out" and that "this isn't a fashion show," and physically forced me out. Since we were told it was unisex, male security had full access to walk right in, which made the intimidation even worse. I wasn't doing anything wrong, just waiting for my friend. Separating intoxicated people who came together in a crowded club is a safety issue. When we brought up how security acted, staff told us that "99% of the time there’s an issue with security, it’s the customer’s fault." They didn't ask what happened or care to listen. I left a 1-star review on Google under my legal name describing the experience.
A few weeks later, my friends and I went back. When the bouncer scanned my ID at the door, a warning popped up on the scanner screen. Instead of explaining what was going on, the bouncer just kept aggressively demanding, "What’d you do?" They only let me in after my friends advocated for me. My friend went straight to management to ask why my ID was flagged, and management admitted to her that it was put in the system because of my 1-star review.
About an hour later, management called me outside. They didn't ask about the guard's behavior or show any concern for safety. The entire conversation was them complaining about how my review hurts their business, asking me, "If you left such a bad review, why are you back?" They cared about their public image, not what happened to a customer inside their venue. I felt so uncomfortable and cornered by the situation that I ended up taking the review down.
In their public reply on Google, RARE claims they don't operate a unisex washroom, say they "do not ban or flag patrons simply for leaving a negative review," and called my account inaccurate. I was simply repeating what staff told us on the night of the incident regarding the bathroom. Claiming they don't flag people over reviews is flat-out untrue: my ID was flagged in their scanner system over that review, their bouncer interrogated me at the door, they admitted the reason to my friend, and then they cornered me outside to complain about their rating.
They act online like they take concerns seriously, but when something actually happens, they retaliate and focus entirely on their reputation.
Just be aware that if security mistreats you here and you leave an honest review, management will prioritize their Google rating over your safety.
