Entertainment in Europe
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A
Blue Note
This jazzy pub-cum-dance-bar has a great summer beer garden and usually no cover charge.
reviewed
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Jáma
Jáma (‘the Hollow’) is a popular American expat bar plastered with old rock gig posters ranging from Led Zep and REM to Kiss and Shania Twain. There’s a little beer garden out the back shaded by lime and walnut trees, smiling staff serving up a rotating selection of regional beers and microbrews, and a menu that includes good burgers, steaks, ribs and chicken wings.
reviewed
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C
Cross Club
An industrial club in every sense of the word: the setting in an industrial zone; the thumping music (both DJs and live acts); and the interior, an absolute must-see jumble of gadgets, shafts, cranks and pipes, many of which move and pulsate with light to the music. The programme includes occasional live music, theatre performances and art happenings.
reviewed
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D
Á Capella
A tiny, 14th-century chapel transformed into a candlelit cocktail lounge, À Capella regularly hosts the city's most renowned fado musicians. The setting is as intimate as the music itself, with heart-rendingly good acoustics. Be forewarned that these shows cater directly to a tourist crowd, but the atmosphere and music are both superb.
reviewed
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E
Riegrovy Sady Beer Garden
There’s a good-natured rivalry between this beer garden and the one across the river at Letná as to which one is best. We're not sure, but this one is pretty good. Order beers at the bar and carry them to your table. To find it, go to Polská, turn up Chopínova, and enter the park across from Na Švíhance.
reviewed
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F
Angelina
Take a break from the long trek along the Tuileries gardens and line up for a table at Angélina, along with lunching ladies, their posturing poodles and half the students from Tokyo University. This beautiful, high-ceilinged tearoom has exquisite furnishings, mirrored walls and fabulous fluffy cakes. More importantly, it serves the best and most wonderfully sickening ‘African’ hot chocolate in the history of time (€7.20), served with a pot of whipped cream and carafe of water, that prompts the constant queue for a table at Angelina. Buy it bottled to take home from Angelina’s small boutique.
reviewed
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Reduta Jazz Club
The Reduta is Prague’s oldest jazz club, founded in 1958 during the communist era – it was here in 1994 that former US president Bill Clinton famously jammed on a new saxophone presented to him by Václav Havel. It has an intimate setting, with smartly dressed patrons squeezing into tiered seats and lounges to soak up the big-band, swing and Dixieland atmosphere.
reviewed
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H
Tupperware
A Malasaña stalwart and prime candidate for the bar that best catches the enduring rockero spirit of Malasaña, Tupperware draws a 30-something crowd, spins indie rock with a bit of soul and classics from the ’60s and ’70s, and generally revels in its kitsch (eyeballs stuck to the ceiling, and plastic TVs with action-figure dioramas lined up behind the bar). By the way, locals pronounce it ‘Tupper-warry’.
reviewed
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I
Café en Seine
The wildly extravagant art-nouveau style of this huge bar has been a massive hit since it first opened in 1995, and while it may not be the 'in' place it once was, it is still very popular with suburbanites, the after-work crowd and out-of-towners. Maybe it's the glass panelling, or the real 12m-high trees; but most likely it's the beautiful people propping up the wood-and-marble bar.
reviewed
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J
Le Piano Vache
Down the hill from the Panthéon, this bar is covered in old posters above old couches and is drenched in 1970s and ’80s rock ambience. Effortlessly underground and a real student fave, here bands and DJs play mainly rock, plus some goth, reggae and pop.
reviewed
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Vittula
Great (though tiny and very smoky) underground (both senses) bar just off the Big Ring Road, with international performances, cutting-edge DJs and some cheap Slovakian lager.
reviewed
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Szimpla
This distressed-looking, very unflashy place remains one of the most popular drinking venues south of VI Liszt Ferenc tér, with live music Tuesday to Thursday evenings.
reviewed
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M
Local Café Bar Lounge
With its swirling colour scheme, funky soul, disco and deep House beats and a predominantly gay crowd, Local is Chueca in a nutshell.
reviewed
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N
Café Central
Grand Central has a rich history – Trotsky came here to play chess, and turn-of-the-century literary greats such as Karl Kraus and Hermann Bahr regularly met here for coffee. Its impressive interior of marble pillars, arched ceilings and glittering chandeliers now plays host to tourists rather than locals, but it’s worth stopping in for a look. There’s live piano music daily from 5pm to 10pm, and the plaster patron with the walrus moustache near the door is a model of the poet Peter Altenberg.
reviewed
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O
't Velootje
Push through the heavy, unmarked door and take care not to trip over old bikes, or whack your head on the kero lamps cluttering this tiny, darkened garage as you take a seat at a low wooden picnic table. Lieven De Vos has turned his bicycle workshop into an informal bar, of sorts - ask for a beer and Lieven will bring out whatever he selects; his opening hours are 'whenever I feel like opening until it closes down' (try after 21:00).
There are plans to expand the pub to accommodate Lieven's collection of antique bikes; the expansion is scheduled to be complete in 2010, Het Velootje's 25-year anniversary.
To find the pub, walk north along Oudburg until you see a pile of…
reviewed
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P
Gravediggers (aka Kavanagh’s)
The gravediggers from the adjacent Glasnevin Cemetery had a secret serving hatch so that they could drink on the job – hence the pub’s nickname. Founded in 1833 by one John Kavanagh and still in the family, this pub is one of the best in Ireland, virtually unchanged in 150 years. In summer time the green of the square is full of drinkers basking in the sun, while inside the hardened locals ensure that ne’er a hint of sunshine disturbs some of the best Guinness in town. An absolute classic.
reviewed
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Q
Mariinsky Theatre
Home to the world-famous Kirov Ballet and Opera company, a visit here is a must, if only to delight in the sparkling glory of the interior. Use the website to book and pay for tickets in advance of your visit to the theatre and to the acoustically splendid new concert hall, which is nearby. The theatre-themed souvenirs are for sale in the Mariinsky gift shop. None of it is cheap, but where else can you get a ‘Property of Kirov Ballet’ T-shirt?
reviewed
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R
Di’Vino Wijnbar
Finally, a dedicated wine bar in the Jordaan. It serves only quality Italian wines (glasses €4 to €6, bottles €19 to €55), plus divine charcuterie and cheese plates (€6.50 to €17.50). The polished wood bar, flickering candles and lofty corner windows beckon you in – though the snuggle-into-me blankets strewn about the tables and chairs outside are equally inviting. Choices, choices.
reviewed
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S
DGI-Byen
Lying just south of Central Station, overlooking the tracks, you’ll find Copenhagen’s best leisure and sports complex, featuring a large indoor swimming pool, bowling alley, spa, restaurant, cafe and hotel, among other facilities. On offer at the spa are a wide range of beauty treatments, different massage therapies, algae and salt baths, mud packs and acupuncture.
reviewed
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Teatro Joy Eslava
The only things guaranteed at this grand old Madrid dance club (housed in a 19th-century theatre) are a crowd and the fact that it will be open. (The club claims to have opened every single day for the past 29 years.) The music and the crowd are a mixed bag, but queues are long and invariably include locals and tourists, and even the occasional famoso.
reviewed
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Sarajevo Brewery
Above the river on the south bank stands a large red-and-cream edifice with fat copper drainpipes, this is Sarajevo's famous brewery. Part of it has been converted into a cavernous bar, all dark stained wood and brass railings, serving the brewery's draft draught plus a very pleasant dark beer that slips down easily. Meals are also available.
reviewed
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Reduta Theatre
The Reduta Theatre is home to the Black Theatre of Jiří Srnec, who was a founding member of Prague’s original black-light theatre back in the early 1960s. Today the company’s productions include versions of Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan, and a compilation of the best of black theatre from the early days.
reviewed
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Colle Bereto
The local fashion scene's bar of choice, uberstylish Colle Bereto is where the bold and the beautiful come to see or be seen for breakfast, lunch or at aperitivo hour.
reviewed
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Café Bar Inspire
Coventry's Christchurch church was destroyed during World War II, leaving only the spire, which now, slightly sacrilegiously, shelters this bar. This is forgivable as it is very good. It serves an international selection of bottled brews, as well as baguette and salad snacks throughout the day.
reviewed
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Captain Cook Pub
There’s not much to say about the CC except that it enjoys an enviable location diagonally opposite the basilica, the terrace is a delight in the warm weather, there are four beers on tap and the staff are welcoming and friendly. And for us, that’s sufficient.
reviewed