Nightlife

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Buenos Aires is whatever you want it to be: cool, sexy, chic, fabulous, alternative. Argentina’s Travel has created a guide of over 50 of the city’s best bars and clubs to help you make the most of your time in the Paris of South America.

This goes beyond the typical, updated every three or four years guide. We live here and let you know what is happening, now. Below is our guide to Buenos Aires’ best Bars. Click to check our Clubs, Gay and Lesbian and Tango nightlife listings.

Bars

Ocho Siete Ocho

878 Thames
Palermo Soho
4773-1098

Beyond cool, 878 is currently in vogue as the city’s hippest, formerly underground, nightspot. The bar doesn’t have a sign on the door, but if you ring the doorbell of 878, a waitress will let you into an expansive room with high ceilings with exposed beams. Despite its secret, almost speakeasy entrance, the atmosphere inside isn’t intimidating. The bar’s drink menu is practically a bible. If you can’t pick your poison, one of the bartenders will serve you up something delicious.

Bangalore

Humbolt 1416
Palermo Hollywood
4779-2621

An English-style pub, Bangalore serves up authentic Indian food, cold drafts and enough good cheer to put any weary traveler back on her feet. Particularly popular with long-term expats, the bar brings in a good mix to its picnic tables that straddle the sidewalk out front. Located around the corner from Niceto Club, the pub is a great place to start off a Buenos Aires night of debauchery.

Bar 6

Armenia 1676
Palermo Viejo
4833 6807
http://www.barseis.com/

Good drinks, an intimate space, and located in the heart of Palermo, Bar 6 is a classic. Its high-ceilings and big windows compliment the posh vibe that comes with the elegant—and attractive—clientele. Start here with a few friends and a few cocktails and groove to the DJ’s beats.

Bar Abierto

J.L. Borges 1613
Palermo Viejo
4833-7640

While its food is fairly mediocre, the drinks are good and the space itself is very bright and welcoming during the day or the long Buenos Aires nights. Bar Abierto is a good place to go to indulge in some casual beers with friends.

Bar Seddon

Defensa 695
San Telmo
4342-3700

A pharmacy in the nineteenth-century, today this classic Buenos Aires café, restaurant, and bar is open for lunch, dinner, and late into the night. The live music is standard, good techno beats and remixed pop, the ambiance extremely friendly, with lots of hostelers and Argentines, and the food excellent; three reasons that this is one of the must see bars in San Telmo.

La Cigale

Av. 25 de Mayo 722
Centro
4312-8275

A supposedly French-themed bar, La Cigale, which means cicada (you know, the bug) is more reminiscent of a lounge bred with a grungy LA bar. Cultural confusion aside, this is the place to be on Tuesday. The cocktails are strong and the DJs on the weekends mix until the small hours. Red leather booths let couples get cozy. A long bar provides intimate attentions from the bartenders. Note: the lines here can wrap around the block.

Farmacia

Bolivar 898
San Telmo
4300-6151

Considered one of the most gay-friendly places in the city, the walls of this small bar and restaurant are covered in the work of local artists. For drinks, stick with wine, beer, or coffee; this is not a cocktail lounge, but a place for lounging with friends before the night gets going.

Green Bamboo

Costa Rica 5802
Palermo Hollywood
4775-7050
http://www.green-bamboo.com.ar

The cocktails at Green Bamboo are so undeniably inventive and luscious that even dedicated wine worshipers get loopy on ginger, mint, and lemon concoctions. A tiny spot, the superchic resto-bar has the perfect vibe for a dinner for two. Take your new/current boyfriend/girlfriend.

Gibraltar

Peru 895
San Telmo
4362-5310

A sister pub to Bangalore, Gibraltar is one of the most English pubs in Buenos Aires. It’s hugely popular with expats but sees a fair share of Argentine regulars. The Indian food is spicy, the barman speaks English and there’s a pool table. Crowded and loud, there isn’t much room to maneuver, but who needs to maneuver when you’re sandwiched between good looking natives from Australia and South Africa?

Kilkenny

Marcelo T. De Alvear 399
Retiro/Centro
4312-7291

The most well known of Buenos Aires’ Irish pubs, Kilkenny is a big, loud bar far from any kind of Irish pub roots. On most lists of places to go in Buenos Aires, we don’t recommend it. If you want to get drunk and hook up with someone with like goals, go here. Otherwise, skip it.

Le Bar

Tucumán 422
Centro
5219-0858

The hottest new bar in town. A martini lounge and restaurant, this ultra-chic hot spot was started by two French expatriates to introduce high-end French food to Buenos Aires. With sunken seating, a roof top terrace, towering ceilings and deluxe design, Le Bar is the sophisticate’s choice.

Milion in Recoleta

Milion

Parana 1048
Recoleta
4815-9925
http://www.milionargentina.com.ar

Tucked away from the street, this turn-of-the-century mansion is an enduring favorite for its elegance, backyard courtyard and terrace and extraordinarily perfect cocktails. With narrow hallways, creaking wood floors and softly lit lighting, Milion is a classy retreat from the masses.

Plaza Dorrego

Defensa 1098
San Telmo
4361-0141

As traditionally Argentine as it can be, this classic and historical bar on Plaza Dorrego has a portrait of tango crooner Carlos Gardel, a national hero, on the wall and the names of countless tourists engraved into the woodwork. Right on the corner of the plaza, the bar is an ideal place to stop for a pint during the San Telmo fair on Sundays.

Post

Thames 1885
Palermo

Unlike the majority of Palermo’s bars, Post is small and low key. The walls are covered in sketches and graphic art done by a slew of local artists. Drinks here are extremely reasonably priced for a bar so close to Plaza Serrano and the supply of popcorn is never ending.

“The Red Door”

Piedras, next to the Tango Hostel at 680 Piedras
San Telmo

Despite the fact that this bar has no sign out front and no name, you can still easily find this bar by its bright red door. Ring the bell and ascend a long staircase to get to this hip little lounge over San Telmo, where you can play pool and chill on comfy couches. It doesn’t get crowded until after three am, and when it does it’s a mix of foreigners and locals in the know. The drinks are good, but don’t order the mediocre house wine.

Soul Cafe

Baez 246
Las Canitas
4778-3115

As the name suggests, this bar is home to 70’s funk and soul. Attracting a slightly older crowd, this is a place to go if you want to listen to some boogie music with friends and soak up some retro decor. It’s got a great, and different vibe from the rest of the bars on Baez St, making this a favorite. The sushi is pretty good for bar sushi.

Sullivan’s

El Salvador 4919
Palermo
4832-6442

A huge bar, Sullivan’s is a two-story Irish pub within stumbling distance of Plaza Serrano, the city’s open-air party spot. The size of the place means seats are usually available. And the chocolate pie is excellent.

The Temple Bar

Marcelo T. De Alvear 945
Retiro
4322-0474

One of the many Irish pubs in Buenos Aires, this one is actually worth going to by virtue of its English and Irish beers on tap and its pool table and darts. The waiters do both bar service and table service, so when things get hectic, it can be a bit hard to get a pint or a plate of food. However, the staff and the crowd is friendly and it is sure to be packed on weekends.

TAZZ

Serrano 1556
Plaza Serrano, Palermo
4833-5164
http://www.tazzbars.com/

Reminiscent of a 50’s diner, the walls of TAZZ are lined with vinyl booths but the menu is mostly Mexican. The center of the bar is full of pool tables, all of which will be full by 11 pm on a Friday or Saturday night.

Voodoo

Báez 340
Palermo
4772-2453

Somewhere between a club and a bar, Voodoo has DJ’s from beyond Buenos Aires and an atmosphere of true cool. It is a place to see people and been seen, whether that be at the bar, on the dance floor, or in one of the lounge chairs.

Utopia Bar

Serrano 1590
Plaza Serrano, Palermo
4831-8572

One of the many bars situated along the plaza, Utopia has a quirky exterior ambiance as well as good food—the hamburgers and the pizzas are particularly worth a try. It is good place to relax with a friend and a beer or two as the sun sets on the plaza and porteños wait for the dinner hour to commence. Go for people watching Saturday and Sunday, when the fair covers the plaza.

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