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Filmoteca
UNAM's two cinemas screen films from its collection of over 35,000 titles, selected from an archive (founded in 1960) that has played a pivotal role, not only in Mexican but in international film culture. Among its activities, the Filmoteca actively seeks long-lost films for preservation. It has also played a vanguard role in international film culture, organizing the first Mexican film festival in Paris back in 1963. You can catch the Festival Cinematografíco de Verano (Summer Film Festival) between June to August.
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Foro Shakespeare
Originally a bookshop specializing in theatrical tomes, the Foro opened in 1982 as one of the first venues to stage alternative theater productions. Located in the cosmopolitan surroundings of Condesa, this barriotheater continues to produce an eclectic, often edgy, program, including experimental theater and stand-up comedian shows. The venue includes an exhibition space for local artists and photographers.
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Go Go Lounge
The honeycombed decor in this Polanco antro over a sushi bar seems lifted from the movie Kill Bill, and features what is supposedly the largest mirror ball in Latin America. Merengue, reggaeton and pop keep a post-pubescent crowd bouncing in a series of packed salons. When it gets too sweaty, make your way over to the terrace bar and order a Takeshi (sake and mango ice cream cocktail).
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Hard Rock Live
Occupying a superb old Polanco mansion near the Auditorio Nacional, this branch of the international club hosts the cream of rock en español, with groups like La Cuca, the Nortec Collective, La Gusana Ciega, Zoe and Molotov on stage.
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Hookah Lounge
Moroccan tapestries and scimitars set the tone for this North African fantasy. The fun revolves around the water pipes (from around $100 ), available in a bewildering array of flavors. Wednesday to Saturday nights, DJs produce an eclectic mix of chill-out and Arab rhythms, with no fewer than four turntables. There are also Middle-Eastern snacks.
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Hostal Tequilería Cielo Rojo
Besides offering the most extensive selection of tequilas this side of Jalisco, this boisterous salon on the Zona Rosa's main pedestrian thoroughfare also stocks some fine handmade mezcals from the La Venencia distillery in Oaxaca, including a 15-year-old arroqueño. Mariachis perform nightly, greatly enhancing the whole sampling process.
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Hostería La Bota
This fun and funky bar is one component of the Casa Vecina community arts center, a cultural beachhead in the rough-and-tumble southern fringe of the Centro. Tapas and tequilas are served amidst a profusion of warped bullfighting bric-a-brac and mismatched furniture.
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La Bipolar
Owned by Mexican heartthrob Diego Luna of Y Tu Mam á Tambi é n fame, this popular new cantina displays a naco aesthetic, playing up the kitschier elements of Mexican popular culture. Inside, the walls are fashioned from plastic crates and the light shades are sliced tin buckets while the 50s-era jukebox spins a remarkably eclectic music selection. Besides the Coronas and mezcal shots, they've got updated versions of classic Mexican snacks.
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La Bodega
Fans of the Buena Vista Social Club will appreciate the Cuban combos who perform throughout the day in this rambling, tropically decorated Condesa home. Rumbas, boleros and sones accompany Mexican food, cocktails and dominoes in airy, high-ceilinged salons on both floors. Upstairs is the cabaret club El Bataclán.
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La Bodeguita Del Medio
The walls are scribbled with verses and messages at this animated branch of the famous Havana joint where the mojito was reportedly invented. (Here the cocktail is prepared in classic style with white rum, mint leaves and brown sugar.) Excellent son cubano combos perform in the various interconnected salons above the bar. For snacks, try the masitas de cerdo (fried pork chunks) or stuffed plantains.
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La Botica
Like an old apothecary's, La Botica dispenses its elixirs from squat little bottles lined up on the shelf (these make nifty souvenirs). Available varieties are suitably scribbled on pieces of cardboard - try the cuesh, distilled from a wild maguey in Oaxaca. La Botica has been such a roaring success, they've opened other branches with similar hours at Campeche 396 in Condesa and Orizaba 161 in Colonia Roma.
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La Botijona
Possibly the cleanest pulque dispenser in town, this institutional-green hall near the train station is a friendly family-run establishment, with big plastic pails of the traditional quaff lining the shelves. Coconut and celery are among the more intriguing curados (flavored pulques ) on offer.
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La Casa De Paquita La Del Barrio
Located in the rough-and-tumble Guerrero district, this bastion of popular culture is the frequent venue for TV and recording star Paquita La del Barrio. The corpulent chanteuse customarily performs a sublime set of plaintive ballads, almost all of which express disdain for her suitors - her asides are deliciously bitter. Phone ahead to see if Paquita herself is performing.
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La Gioconda
Dark and light draft beer are poured by the pint in this happening little pub off a pedestrian thoroughfare. By around , the stone-walled space is usually buzzing with a varied crowd in the mood for relaxed conversation and a bit of rock 'n' roll.
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La Guadalupana
Serving spirits for over seven decades, this venerable tavern breathes tradition, from the bulls' heads on the walls to the blasé waiters in white coats. The setting is just right for a tequila, served with homemade sangrita, and/or a few Bohemias. There are botanas and tortas as well as heartier fare like cabrito (goat).
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La Hermosa Hortensia
Opening onto Plaza Garibaldi, this makes a good pulquería for beginners: its hygiene is a cut above the norm, they're used to seeing foreigners, and the atmosphere is 100% 'familiar.'
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La Ópera Bar
After decades as a bastion of masculinity, this ornate early 20th-century watering hole decided to open its doors to women in the 1970s. With original booths of dark walnut and an ornate tin ceiling (said to have been punctured by Pancho Villa's bullet on an otherwise slow night), it's a pleasant setting for a tequila.
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La Planta De La Luz
The 'power plant,' inside the Plaza Loreto shopping mall, is the creation of raconteur and Reforma columnist Germán Dehesa (sometimes called the Mexican Woody Allen). The large supper club alternates between Dehesa's own comedic revues and music performances by well-regarded folk, rock and pop artists.
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La Selva Café
When the crowds and street noise begin to rattle you, duck into this branch of the Chiapas coffee trader, ensconced in the stunning patio of a colonial building.
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Las Duelistas
Now graffitied with pre-Hispanic psychedelia behind the swinging doors, this large pulquería alongside the Mercado San Juan has become the domain of young Chilangos who've rediscovered the virtues of their ancestral beverage. Despite the new look, the pulque is still dispensed straight out of the barrel in a variety of flavors like mango and coconut.
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Los Enanos Del Tapanco
Possibly Mexico City's coolest café, the 'Dwarves of the Loft' doubles as an art gallery. Cappuccinos and quiches are served along with an eclectic music selection. There's live music Friday and storytelling Tuesday evening.
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Love
Socialites line up for Love, upstairs from the fusion restaurant Ixchel, in a typically ornate Colonia Roma mansion. You're unlikely to get in without reservations, and even then it'll depend on your looks. Once inside the velvet-draped lounge, order an apple martini and party like it's 1983 - the DJ will help you remember what that was like.
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Lumiere Reforma
This theater has four screening rooms with just 50 seats apiece, as well as the technology to show the same film simultaneously in more than one sala . Screens quality art-house and foreign releases with a liberal dose of the quirky and unconventional.
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Lunario Del Auditorio Nacional
Major jazz artists from throughout the hemisphere perform at this large, classy nightclub adjacent to the national auditorium. Seating is at tables that ascend back from the stage, and cocktails and snacks are served. Enter off the right side of the Auditorio.
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Malafama
As trendy as its bars and cafés, Condesa's sleek billiard hall doubles as a gallery of photo art. The well-maintained tables are frequented by both pool sharks and novices.
