10 Best Bars in Alameda Central, Mexico City

The slogan of this classic dance halls says it all: "Whoever doesn't know Los Angeles doesn't know Mexico." A flashback to the hot pink splendor of Mexico's mid-century boom years (it opened in 1937), Salón Los Angeles is a fairly quiet place on most nights, where older couples from the surrounding neighborhood come to dance to live bands playing salsa, cumbia, and danzón. But when big acts come through town, the hall, large enough for 600 people, bursts to life. These are the nights to be here, so keep an eye on the line-up on their website. Just note that this is out of the way for most city visitors, so plan to take an Uber to get here.

A classic cantina in the colonia Tabacalera, 5 Caudillos serves up botanas (snacks) that rotate through weekly specials, with options like chamorro (roasted pork shank) and solomillo (pork loin) drawing crowds on Thursday. Musicians play daily after 4 pm.

One of a handful of cantinas competing for the title of oldest in Mexico (it was founded over a century ago), Tío Pepe is about as atmospheric as it gets. A Tiffany-style stained glass window, a heavy wooden bar running the length of the room, swinging wooden doors, and unflattering fluorescent lights add up to make this the paradigmatic Mexico City cantina.

This nightclub is known for its drag contests, musical tributes, and overall exciting entertainment. Things get going on the later side and reservations are recommended. Drinks come tableside from attentive servers, with all seats in the house having a solid view of the stage.

What was until recently an empty lot on one of the city's busiest avenues is now the closest thing Mexico City has to a beer garden: there's a small green lawn, picnic tables, potted plants hanging from a postindustrial steel grid, and big open windows in the concrete facade that open onto the traffic outside. The bar serves a wide range of craft beers, including several on tap that are made in-house. The food tends toward barbecue standards like burgers and hot dogs. You may occasionally stumble upon a band playing or a trivia night. For more details, check out their website.

One of the relatively few terrace bars in the city, La Azotea ("The Rooftop") occupies a small space in the restored art deco building known as Barrio Alameda. Technically a restaurant serving sandwiches and grilled meat, La Azotea is a beautiful place for an afternoon beer (they have a good list of craft brews) with gorgeous views over the trees of the Alameda and the spire of the Torre Latino. It closes early at 10:30 pm.

One of the best, and certainly the most famous, of the city's remaining pulquerías, La Duelistas is most first-timers' bar of choice for sampling fermented agave sap. Always busy, Las Duelistas is a psychedelic trip of a place. Try a sampler of the day's curados (pulques flavored with pureed fruits and vegetables). Just keep in mind that it's cash-only.

An emblematic pulquería of the colonia Doctores, Hija de los Apaches is a perfect place for a prefight drink before wandering a block over to Arena México. Serving up mugs of fermented agave, flavored in house with pureed fruits and vegetables, Hija de los Apaches turns into a salsa club most evenings of the week. There's no doubt it's a lively, down-to-earth, singularly Mexico City kind of place.

This expansive rooftop bar at the edge of the Plaza de República combines elements of modernist chic, tiki bar greenery, and Mexican crafts in a way that, against all odds, works beautifully. Combine that with extraordinary views of the Monument of the Revolution and this makes for a great place to spend an afternoon or evening over beers (or something stronger).