Bar entertainment in Caribbean Islands
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A
El Floridita
Promoting itself as the ‘cradle of the daiquirí,’ El Floridita was a favorite of expat Americans long before Ernest Hemingway dropped by in the 1930s (hence the name, which means ‘little Florida’). A bartender named Constante Ribalaigua invented the daiquirí soon after WWI, but it was Hemingway who popularized it and ultimately the bar christened a drink in his honor: the Papa Hemingway Special (basically, a daiquirí made with grapefruit juice). His record – legends ha it – was 13 doubles in one sitting. Any attempt to equal it at the current prices (CUC$6 a single shot) will cost you a small fortune – and a huge hangover.
reviewed
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B
Casa de la Música
Aping its two popular Havana namesakes, this place has quality live acts and a definitive Cuban feel. It’s in town and attracts a local crowd who pay in pesos.
reviewed
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C
Wet & Liquid
Here they are, the beautiful people, perched on zebra-striped stools or lounging on strategically positioned sofas, martinis in hand. The buffed body-builders, the fashionistas, the 20-something wannabe actresses corseted into tight black dresses. Popularly considered to be two of San Juan’s most esteemed watering holes, Wet and Liquid comprise two separate bars situated in Isla Verde’s Water & Beach Club. Liquid dominates the ground floor, Wet inhabits the roof. Interconnected by a space-age elevator that is decorated rather surreally with its own water feature, this is where San Juan’s well-heeled and the well-endowed come to swap email addresses. The real glitterati ar…
reviewed
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D
El Batey
If Hunter S Thompson were still alive and living in Puerto Rico, this is where you’d probably find him. Cool, crusty and unashamedly bohemian, the walls of this cavernous drinking joint are covered in graffiti while the low-key lighting will have you groping in your pockets for spare change to light up the suitably retro jukebox. Across the road from the exquisite El Convento Hotel, El Batey is a place to down shots, shoot pool and ramble soulfully about when Elvis was king and the Bacardí bottles still came from Cuba.
reviewed
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E
El Ranchón
Atop a long flight of stairs at the western end of Coroneles Galano, El Ranchón mixes an exhilarating hilltop setting with taped disco and salsa music and legions of resident jineteras (women who attach themselves to male foreigners for monetary or material gain) . Maybe that’s why it’s so insanely popular. Watch your step on the way down – it’s a scary 146-step drunken tumble.
reviewed
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F
La Perla Del Sur
This chipper little bar attracts a crowd of amiable older gents who leisurely push pool balls around the table and practice their English swear words when nothing drops. The drinks are about as cheap as they come (a Medalla will set you back $1.50), making cheerful exchanges of rounds common. There’s no phone and the hours are random, but it’s usually open from about noon to dinner time.
reviewed
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G
Jamaican Bobsled Café
This watering hole makes a good-natured attempt to capitalize on everybody’s favorite fish-out-of-water story – the Jamaican bobsled team immortalized in the film Cool Runnings, which is in a perpetual loop on a corner screen. It’s a good spot for grabbing one of the many rum-based concoctions and watching the hullabaloo along the strip, a sight more engaging than watching John Candy.
reviewed
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H
Roof Club
This is Port Antonio’s infamous hang-loose, rough-around-the-edges reggae bar. Young men and women move from partner to partner. You’re fair game for any stranger who wants to try to extract a drink from you. It’s relatively dead midweek, when entry is free. But on weekends it hops with Crazy Saturdays, as well as on Thursday – ‘Ladies Nite.’
reviewed
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I
Mobay Proper
Attracting a young local crowd, this exuberant bar serves libations on the terrace and has decent Jamaican cooking. Beneath a ‘chandelier’ of Heineken bottles, the pool table generates considerable heat, while dominoes are the rage with an older crowd out on the patio. On Friday night there’s a fish fry and vintage reggae, and live jazz rings in each new month on the first Sunday.
reviewed
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J
Drop-Off
This slightly sleazy but atmospheric basement bar and dance club attracts a mix of locals and staff from the cruise ships, as well as Boddington's draft ale fans. It starts to get jam packed after midnight, especially on weekends when the ships are in port. Check out the aquarium and see if the fish will perform for you after you've had a draft or two. Drop-off is near East St.
reviewed
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K
Opus Bar
With individual candlelit tables, overstuffed chairs and Sly and the Family Stone on the airways, this is Habana’s (good) approximation of a lounge. The wall of windows make it a great sunset spot and performances in the Teatro Amadeo Roldán downstairs are broadcast via closed-circuit TV – a good alternative if the show is sold out.
reviewed
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L
Bar Code
This dance club is sweaty and riotous on the weekends, bringing in Ponce’s young and restless who tend to drink like fish, dance like dogs (the local term for a distinctive step) and party like every animal in between. Beware the Wasikoki, a five rum concoction that’s served out of jugs. Expect a thorough security check at the door.
reviewed
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M
Bar Dos Hermanos
This bar has (so far) managed to remain off the standard Havana tourist itinerary. Out of the way and a little seedy, it was a favorite watering hole of Spanish poet Federico García Lorca during a three-month stopover in 1930. With its long wooden bar and salty seafaring atmosphere, it can’t have changed much since.
reviewed
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N
Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville
This most ostentatious of the beach bars sustains a spring-break vibe all year long. There are big-screen TVs, a basketball court, trampolines in the sea, volleyball, swing hammocks and multiple bars with entertainment. It hosts wet T-shirt contests and the like, and has nightly specials, including karaoke on Sunday.
reviewed
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O
La Dichosa
It’s hard to miss the rowdy La Dichosa on busy Calle Obispo, despite the fact that it doesn’t display its name outside. Small and cramped with at least half the space given over to the resident band, this is a good place to stall for a quick drink before heading off down the road.
reviewed
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P
Cuddy’z
Perhaps the best sports bar in Jamaica, this hip establishment is the creation of the ‘Big Man Inna Cricket, ’ Courtney Walsh. TVs in each booth and a lively bleachers section with an oversized screen make this a great place to watch a cricket match. The Heineken Wednesdays are very popular.
reviewed
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Bosque Bologna
A fern-filled terrace that fills the space of a demolished building on Calle Obispo, the Bologna is always busy with drinkers and diners drawn in by a combination of its effervescent music and highly persuasive waiters. It’s a perfect warm-up for an extended Habana Vieja bar crawl.
reviewed
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Q
Bar La Fontana
Could it be the lounge trend has hit Santiago de Cuba? You might think so walking into this cocoon off José A Saco with low stools grouped around individual tables lining the wall. Just don't order any apple martinis; it's strictly peso beer and rum at this cool saloon.
reviewed
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R
Prado No 12
A slim flat-iron building on the corner of Prado and San Lázaro that serves drinks and simple snacks, Prado 12 still resembles Havana in a 1950s time-warp. Soak up the serendipitous atmosphere of this amazing city here after a sunset stroll along the Malecón.
reviewed
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S
Blue Kafé
You’d never know by strolling past, but hidden within this monocolored lounge is an expansive, open-air courtyard where young ponceños chat and toast the balmy weather, offering a reprieve from some of the more wild options on the block.
reviewed
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T
Indies Café and Grill
Dark yet lively sports bar, patronized by young professionals with an enormous screen behind the bar, that gets rambunctious as the night progresses. Karaoke takes over on Thursday. Ignore the food on offer here as the kitchen pays it scant attention.
reviewed
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U
La Confronta
Amid the well-worn bar stools and Benny Moré paraphernalia you can sample 25 different varieties of cocktail and all the prices are in Cuban pesos, a tempting proposition for a Convertible-loaded traveler. There’s also a limited food menu.
reviewed
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V
Happy Landings
Planted at the end of the airstrip, Happy Landings is a drinks-only dive these days (it used to serve food). Though hardly a font of pulsating nightlife, it may be worth sticking your head around the door to see if anything spontaneous is happening.
reviewed
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W
Kali’s
Sophisticated sanjuaneros love this moody, Asian-themed restaurant and bar. Sheer curtains flutter against dark maroon walls while trendy patrons sip cocktails and order Indian-influenced appetizers at a big bar adorned with candles.
reviewed
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X
Café Plaza
A slightly classier crowd comes here to thin their blood on juice drinks and beer. The tables on the sidewalk fill quickly, especially when they host live music or DJs. When it gets late, the crowd migrates into the narrow quarters to dance.
reviewed
