The term go-go bar originally referred to a nightclub, bar, or similar establishment that featured Go-Go dancers; while some Go-go bars in that original sense still exist, the link between its present uses and that original meaning is often more tenuous and regional.

Speaking broadly, the term has been used by venues that cover a wide range of businesses, from nightclub

Nightclub

A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...

s or discothèques

Disco

Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...

, where dancers are essentially there to set the mood

Mood (psychology)

A mood is a relatively long lasting emotional state. Moods differ from emotions in that they are less specific, less intense, and less likely to be triggered by a particular stimulus or event....

, to what are in essence burlesque

Burlesque

Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...

 theaters or strip clubs, where dancers are part of a show and the primary focus.

United States

The term go-go bar is often used for certain sorts of strip club

Strip club

A strip club is an adult entertainment venue in which striptease or other erotic or exotic dance is regularly performed. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, but can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style....

s.

In regions where the term is used, go-go bars are considered lower in class when compared to Gentlemen's Clubs, which offer a more coordinated and show-centric experience. In these bars:

• There is no Champagne Court.
• Dress codes are more lax for both patrons and performers.
• There are no staging, choreography, or special effects considerations.
• A House Mother
  House mom
  A house mom can be a paid staging coordinator in a strip club or gentleman's club. The term was used more commonly, especially in pre-1970s writing, for a woman who supervised a fraternity, sorority or dormitory at a college .In the adult entertainment context, the house mother...
  
   monitors activity and assists performers in the dressing area.
• Feature performers usually do not perform at go-go bars.

Southeast Asia

In Southeast Asia, and particularly in Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

 and parts of the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

, go go bars can include a wide variety of indoor bars with dancers and/or hostesses; these typically do not offer striptease. These are most often venues for prostitution

Prostitution

Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...

, and the dancers are usually available to be bar fined by customers.

These are often, but not exclusively, found in red light districts catering to foreigners.