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Africa

Entertainment in Africa

  1. A

    The Red Room

    The Red Room's sole focus is music. Every Saturday night The Red Room wakes up when the dance set arrive and do their thing, shaking it to new and old alternative favourites like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Billy Idol, Marilyn Manson, Wolfmother and Nine Inch Nails.

    reviewed

  2. B

    Scotts Nightclub

    Tangier was hugely popular with British homosexuals before legalisation in 1967, but today's gay scene is a mere shadow. Scotts Nightclub is one of the few places retaining a gay reputation, along with the Tanger Inn on weekends. Get to both late in the hour.

    reviewed

  3. C

    La Vie

    Next to the South African Broadcasting Company’s studios, this is one of the very few places you can have anything from breakfast to late-night cocktails within sight of Sea Point promenade. Lounge on the outdoor terrace and enjoy the thin-crust pizza.

    reviewed

  4. D

    Six

    Six has single-handedly shifted the 7th St dress code, thanks to its so-far-above-average cocktails and so-better-looking-than-you clientele. This is a wonderful place for a drink. Fabulous artwork, soft orange and red colour scheme, iconic reggae, and soul and house music at a level conducive to hearing key questions: want another one?

    reviewed

  5. E

    Kadjinol Station

    This lounge bar and global-food restaurant off Rue Sarraut also has the most interesting film selection in town, with a strong focus on world cinema, as well as Hollywood classics and recent hits. Film viewings are free with purchase of drinks and/or food.

    reviewed

  6. F

    Queen's Nightclub

    If you want a night out moving to an African beat, this is the only regularly operating option in the capital. This is a pretty raw scene, where women without male company are very likely to feel leering looks lurking on them. It gets busy after midnight.

    reviewed

  7. G

    Wakili Guinée

    Recently opened by local musicians, Wakili plans to feature drum, balafon (xylophone) and kora (a harp-like instrument) players on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. They also intend to open some budget-priced guestrooms with air-conditioning.

    reviewed

  8. H

    La Veronica

    The sort of place you would go to before swishing off for a night at the opera. It's sophisticated and stylish, with natural stone, arty giant photos and an interesting, iridescent emerald-green light behind the bar, which sounds awful but somehow works.

    reviewed

  9. Butterfly Lounge

    The hippest place in town is stylish, cool and bright and has live jazz in the garden on Thursday nights. With the young Ivorian elite spending freely on cocktails and Johnnie Walker, it pulls off a New York vibe. It's right near the Notre Dame church.

    reviewed

  10. I

    Buzz 9

    Funky multilevel bar with metal banisters decorated with birds, moon, stars and even spacemen. There’s a large menu of potent cocktails, all around the R30 mark, and light snacks are available. The action spills out onto sidewalk tables when it’s busy.

    reviewed

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  12. J

    Petit Poucet

    A die-hard relic of 1920s France, this strictly male-only bar was where Saint-Exupéry, the French author and aviator, used to spend time between mail flights across the Sahara. Today, the bar is low-key but is an authentic slice of old-time Casa life.

    reviewed

  13. K

    Nu Metro Cinema

    The first entry in a chain of modern multiplexes springing up around Nairobi, showing new Western films fairly promptly after their international release. Seats here are pretty steep, but that's still cheaper than the popcorn at a London picture house.

    reviewed

  14. Le Boeuf sur le Toit

    Out in the up-and-coming suburb of La Soukra 'the beef on the roof' is named after a surrealist ballet; it's a restaurant with a dance floor and terrace, and regular DJs, live gigs and Sunday jazz evenings, attracting Tunisia's most cosmopolitan crowd.

    reviewed

  15. L
  16. M

    Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López

    Santa Cruz is home to football team CD Tenerife, which plays in Spain's second division. You can buy tickets at the taquilla (box office) of the club stadium, Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López , or call into the club's headquarters.

    reviewed

  17. N

    Le Bar a Cas

    A studenty in-the-know set favours this funky drinking spot with violet walls and a décor that distracts. Snag a seat on the buzzing street terrace or in the vivacious room. Feeling peckish? Keep up your strength with a beefsteak or an omelette.

    reviewed

  18. L'Hacienda

    The main nightclubs in town are Zaza and the huge Mexican-style L'Hacienda , which both get going about midnight. Young Malagasy girls and middle-aged vazaha (foreign) men are the main customers at both, but the environment is generally OK.

    reviewed

  19. O

    Oleander Café

    This small elevated café has limited stocks of food and drink, but the terrace is so surrounded by greenery that you barely even notice the busy road below, providing a perfect respite from town if you happen to be around the Nairobi Hill area.

    reviewed

  20. Swingers

    While it’s ‘grab a granny’ most nights of the week, you’ll need to book ahead for a table at the renowned Monday-night jam sessions hosted by Alvin Dyers, leader of the house jazz band, at this legendary Cape Flats venue.

    reviewed

  21. P

    Sliver

    A gay and gay-friendly crowd fill this spacious, fun venue with a fairy-light-festooned courtyard and rooftop chill-out areas. Upstairs thudding-hard house and bare chests are the go, while downstairs, house and anthems keep the dance floor crowded.

    reviewed

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  23. Calle José Antonio

    There's plenty of nightlife choice in town, ranging from gritty local bars to intimate chill-out cafés - and just about everything in between. The main moving-and-shaking clubs are located on one short strip of central Calle José Antonio .

    reviewed

  24. Q

    Monopol Centre

    One great entertainment space is the Monopol Centre , which has a cinema, terrazas, bars and small clubs. Our favourite is the Lounge Bar, which doesn't get going until after midnight, but has funky DJ sounds and a spacey, industrial vibe.

    reviewed

  25. R

    Taco Bell

    On the 1st floor, with an open balcony overlooking the street, this popular bar has DJs from Thursday to Sunday. Food is served but there's not a burrito in sight - we suspect the Taco Bell Corporation doesn't know they've borrowed the name…

    reviewed

  26. Zaza

    The main nightclubs in town are Zaza and the huge Mexican-style L'Hacienda, which both get going about midnight. Young Malagasy girls and middle-aged vazaha (foreign) men are the main customers at both, but the environment is generally OK.

    reviewed

  27. New Afrika Shrine

    The spiritual home of Afrobeat, Fela Kuti's original Shrine was burned down, but this replacement is run by his son Femi, who plays on Fridays and Sundays when he's in town (cover charge payable). It's a huge shed, but the music blows the roof off.

    reviewed