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Hotel Esplanada
Dili is quite a backwater and the Hotel Esplanada helps a lot. Hotel Esplanada is a two story building with the entire top floor an open air bar. That is better than it sounds since local mosquitos carry dengue fever and malaria so bring your repellant. Still, its a great place to see the expat community and UN workers. The Hotel Espalanada is one the waterfront in Dili, not too far from the Korean Embassy. There are no identifiable street numbers there nor many street names so this will have to do. The sea view is worth it and the company is great.
Johnny Volt says check it out.
Oasis
Putrid toilets usually. Loud off-key caterwauling from drunken patrons attempting Karioke on some nights. Also have live bands occasionally.
The best music is usually found on the jukebox. Talent Scouts from Nashville occasionally frequent here, but usually on nights when the bikers & their wannabes are sparse. I don't recommend any food here. Be forewarned = you take your chances of joining the "Disease of the Month Club" if you take home an easy free pickup partner from here.
Bill's Bar
I remember my dad taking me there when I was little and he place is exactly the same. Bill's bar hasn't changed in almost 35 years. Two stinky bathrooms, no food, beer can sculptures behind the bar.
The patrons (and that being kind) are a mix of druggies, drunks and derilicts.
The place usally closes around 5 am and opens around 11am. There was one time when one of the drunks had his head down on the bar, they thought he was sleeping, when they went to wake him they found that he was dead! He had been there for a couple of hours and no one noticed. The beer on tap is cheap and cold, and the bartenders friendly. A great place for people watching.
The Yale
There are a lot of "Blues" Bars around the world, but the creepiest, dankest, most-ready-for-demolition and, therefor, one of the best is the old Yale bar in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
This dimly lit brick building would surely become a mass grave in the event of the predicted "Big One" earthquake that experts say is due any time now, and the musicians try their best to emulate said big one with the shear volume of their playing. You can walk in perfectly capable of hearing birds sing, and leave with as much audible ability as a granite boulder. The compensation for this is the fact that these guys not only play LOUD, they also play exceedingly well. Read more »
Big Jer's Titanic
Overlooking the Carribean Sea and central market. Forty-five minutes from Guatemala. American and Belizian food. Cold beer and mixed drinks with friendly people. Local information center.
Black Watch
This nearly windowless neighborhood Scottish pub is located right in the heart of downtown Los Gatos and is considered by some to be the area's best dive bar. The place is popular with its customers--from bikers to college students. Those who frequent the pub are invited to bring in their own pizza, burritos, sushi and other take-out food to satisfy any hunger pangs, and when it's not crowded, they can even bring their dogs in to rest on the dark carpet. All of this adds to the atmosphere of this sleazy bar where the night owls don't emerge until the sun goes down. Things can get loud, crowded and rowdy. Read more »
The Zanzibar
Affectionally known by all as "The Pansybar", this 24 hour joint is located on KIng street in Newtown, a suburb not unlike Greenwich Village I suppose. Decked out in faux Morrocan, the leopard print carpet, imitation fire and cheesy mid nineties euro-pop make for a mix which is similar to the feeling you get after your 16th Black Russian at 5:30 am....probably iit's only redeeming feature is it's infamous badge draw, which has hiteight Grand in recent weeks. Oh, that and the fact they will serve you 16 Black Russians with a smile. Nuff said...
Random bars
Unknown
if downtown everything closes down you will have to go to the "carretera" the main road to managua.
thats where the disco's are and of course some sleazy bar.
take the road from hotel europa (which is not the main entrance to town) and ON THE WAY TO the "carretera" is on your left hand a "cantina" i forgot the name(excuse me but it was late already)
regular "ranchero's"blaring from the stereo but the funny thing was a ditch all around the place, i mean also under your feet if you sit at the bar!!!!
so obvious to say there is no other toilets in this place!!!
keep one thing in mind. if you have to vomit... the locals turn around and vomit against the wall
enjoy
Cloudburst Bar
Cloudburst bar is a nice little hole in the wall. Not much to look at, but great ambience, pleasant people and the best music to boot (or dance, or whatever takes your fancy...). Makes a nice change from all those "you could be anywhere" places for those of us who neither need nor care for the hand holding. Nothing special on the drinks list, but spirits are served strong and the beer almost as a slush. The owners can tell you more about the town than you'll ever need to know.
El Cangrejo
I have only been there a few times. It's open until late, and it depends on the night what's going on. It's a bit like San Francisco, Amsterdam, but way less sleazy. However, I once did see a travestite dance show there, and the clientele is definitely tourist free.
Lee's 4 Cocktails
Lee's 4 Cocktails is truly a sleazy Bar. The decor as you walk in takes you back to 1974. The walls are covered with imtation plastic wood paneling for that sleazy feel.
The carpet, probably original, is not a place you'de want to pass out on from drinking to many of your favorite cocktails as it is stained with memorys of good times passed. Lee's, like any good sleazy bar, has all the regular games from darts to Golden tee gulf.
If video poker is your bag, they have that too. The restroom is where lee's truly shines. It's facilities are so old you can almost smell the first person who used them oh so many years ago. Piss stained restroom floors add a caliante vibe you'd be hard pressed to find at any respectable watering hole. Read more »
The Handle Bar
Skanky bikers unite! I nominate The Handle Bar in Youngstown, Ohio as one sleazy bar!
This is the home of seventy five cent draft beer and washed up haggard barwenches who wear orange and black Harley Davidson inspired tank tops without the aid of a supportive undergarment!
This is one dimly lit bar, which is just as well as many of the patrons would scare the living bejeezus out of you if you encountered them in the harsh light of day. There is a nice selection of bras hanging from the ceiling as ladies are encouraged to show off their assets upon first visit! Read more »
Miami
Recommended by "friends who know", located at 3831 St-Laurent, a place with loads of regulars, and more alcohol per dollar than in many other places around the area. Quoting from another review (see link) and confirmed by the "friends who know", "Melissa Auf Der Maur of Smashing Pumpkins and Rufus Wainwright were both regulars when they lived here."
Grossman's Tavern
Hearsay, but from a trusted source, and with a website promoting the place through reviews such as "The crowded tables will be full of half-filled pitchers of draft beer, and the air will be layered with a smoky haze." and Everything is covered in a layer of grime and ashes.
This is not a case of bad housekeeping; this is character. This is the real deal.
It's at 379 Spadina, about a block south from College.