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Condesa, Roma, Centro Histórico, Coyoacán, and Polanco stand out as Mexico City's hippest neighborhoods. If you're looking to do some barhopping and want to foot it, you can do so in La Condesa. The Zona Rosa has lost ground to Condesa, Roma, and Polanco in the past few years, but it's still packed on Friday and Saturday nights, and everything is within walking distance. Niza, Florencia, Londres, and Hamburgo streets are teeming with bars and discos.
Night is the key word. People generally take in dinner and a show at 9 or 10 pm, head to bars or nightclubs at midnight, then find a spot for a nightcap or tacos somewhere around 3 am. (Cantinas are the exception; people start hitting them in the late afternoon and most close by 11 pm.)
You should have no trouble getting around on your own Always take official hotel taxis, sitio (stationed) taxis, or use the safe taxi apps Yaxi or Uber; it can be expensive to barhop this way, but your safety is worth the cost.
Juan Hernández opened Salón Tenampa in 1925, and was the first to introduce mariachi, originally a folk music of his home state of Jalisco, to Plaza Garibaldi. Now Plaza Garibaldi is the place to hear (and hire) not only mariachis, but also groups playing regional music styles from around Mexico. Spend the night under Salón Tenampa's historic brick arches sipping on tequila and hiring the mariachis by the song (prepare, if you can, to sing along).
A small bar with delicious cocktails, Scotch is a great place to stop after dinner in Polanco. Although ccasionally filled with smoke from cigarettes or sparklers, the music and the vibes make up for that.
Serving Mexican and imported artisanal beer, including three brands brewed on-site (you’ll be engulfed by the scent of malt while you imbibe), seating at this small bar is mostly communal and against dark walls with tattoo-style art. Snacks (including charcuterie plates and guacamole with grasshoppers and pork rinds) are served each afternoon, with a special brunch menu on Sunday.
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).
A dark back room and naked, muscular, bar-top dancers make for a cruise-y atmosphere at this long-popular Condesa gay bar. It doesn't attract as much leather gear anymore, but is a favorite of otters, bears, and guys who favor Scruff as their favorite hookup app.
A wall of windows allows the fashionable patrons of this posh champagne bar to enjoy views of lush Parque España. Inside, beneath a coffered ceiling and vintage light fixtures, you can sip bubbly or any number of well-poured cocktails while noshing on upscale bar fare. There's also seating on the rooftop deck.
A moody subterranean jazz bar tucked into the basement of an art deco building straight out of Gotham, Zinco is as chic a place to pass a night as Centro has to offer. Keep an eye on their website for up-to-date performances of some of the city's best musicians.
