Buenos Aires After Dark: Unveiling the City’s Hidden Bars
Buenos Aires has earned itself the nickname “The Paris of South America” due to its beautiful architecture, rich cultural history and overall European vibe. On the topic of its great nightlife, you’ll usually hear about the clubs that don’t really get going until 2 am and stay open and raging past the sunrise.
What they don’t tell you about? The fantastic speakeasies. Buenos Aires is home to 15+ speakeasies, all of which have their own twist on the hidden bars in the 1920s United States. They truly go all out on the themes, which we are incredibly thankful for.
While we didn’t have time to visit every speakeasy, we certainly plan on going back to Buenos Aires and hitting them all! Let’s get into our favorite speakeasies in Buenos Aires.
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Our Favorite Speakeasies in Buenos Aires, Ranked
We rated our experience based on the entrance, the drink presentation, the overall ambiance, and how creative the menu was. We only got drinks at these speakeasies, although all the speakeasies mentioned in this article serve food as well!
Unfortunately, we didn’t make it to Uptown, which would probably take one of the top spots on our list. Uptown is in an old metro station and is extremely popular, so make sure to make a reservation in advance! Most speakeasies in Buenos Aires are in the Palermo neighborhood, so speakeasy-hopping is easy to do! Most of these speakeasies take reservations, but you probably don’t need to make one if you’re visiting on the weekdays!
1. The Hole
The Hole is an incredible speakeasy in Buenos Aires inspired by the infamous Alcatraz prison. Expertly crafted cocktails named after notorious inmates create an unforgettable atmosphere where you can imagine Al Capone himself raising a glass. To order, you talk to a “guard” through a small window, and then give your drink tokens to the bartender. The drinks had “blood drops” in them, the waiters wore inmate uniforms, and overall, the bar could not be decorated better. This was by far our favorite speakeasy in Buenos Aires! You can dine in the cells for $17/person, or at the tables pictured below. Make your reservation here!
- Overall Rating: 4.25
- Entrance: 5
- Drink Presentation: 3
- Ambiance: 4
- Menu Creativity: 5
2. Boticario
Boticario is a speakeasy located in an old pharmacy, and the owners took this theme and ran with it. They serve water in beakers, decorate with various medicine bottles, kept the original medicine cabinets, have bartenders wearing scrubs, and more! The menu changes every two months, and they are very creative. When we went, the drinks were based on the 7 deadly sins. If the main room gets full, there’s an additional bar upstairs!
- Overall Rating: 4.25
- Entrance: 3
- Drink Presentation: 4
- Ambiance: 5
- Menu Creativity: 5
3. J. W. Bradley
J.W. Bradley was someone who really liked trains. I don’t even think he was a real person, but the owners of this Buenos Aires speakeasy really impressed us with their design. The entrance was awesome; you go into a small train and watch a video before entering the bar area. This place made you think you turned back time to the 1920s or even earlier. The drinks were extremely creative…have you ever had a popsicle or even lollipop served in one of your cocktails?
- Overall Rating: 4
- Entrance: 4
- Drink Presentation: 4
- Ambiance: 4
- Menu Creativity: 4
4. Frank’s
Franks is one of the more popular 1920s themed speakeasies, and definitely has one of the best entrances. You’ll definitely stand around like an idiot for awhile trying to figure out how to get in. First, you find the password via the clues on their Facebook page, then you show up, tell the password to a bouncer, they give you a code, and you dial it into the phone booth. Then and only then are you let into Frank’s Speakeasy. The interior is super fancy and they host live music, so A+ for ambiance! It does get crowded, so try to come early!
- Overall Rating: 3.75
- Entrance: 5
- Drink Presentation: 2
- Ambiance: 5
- Menu Creativity: 3
5. Florería Atlántico
Florería Atlántico isn’t in the Palermo neighborhood, but it is certainly very popular! Located beneath a flower shop, this has some of the most unique drinks we’ve ever had; popcorn in a cocktail was certainly a first for us! If you’re not in the mood for a cocktail, you can get a bottle of wine for cheaper than most cocktails! We gave the ambiance a mediocre score, but the whole speakeasy smelling like flowers is a huge plus!
- Overall Rating: 3.75
- Entrance: 4
- Drink Presentation: 4
- Ambiance: 3
- Menu Creativity: 4
6. Parque Botánico
Parque Botánico takes the cake as far as drink presentation goes, and not just because the bribed us with free popcorn! The bar is filled with plants (although most of them are fake), which we loved. While this is called a speakeasy, it barely gets away with this designation – it isn’t hidden whatsoever. We recommend sitting in the outside area!
- Overall Rating: 3.5
- Entrance: 2
- Drink Presentation: 5
- Ambiance: 4
- Menu Creativity: 3
7. La Calle
While we marked this as our least favorite speakeasy in Buenos Aires, it seems like a great place to party. We just happened to visit at 8 pm on a Monday night. It’s not the ideal place to relax and have a drink, but I’m looking forward to returning, this time closer to midnight on a weekend!
The DJ booth is actually inside the van, there is a decent size dance floor, and there is delicious-smelling pizza perfect for some late night munchies. The drinks were well-made, and the service was good!
- Overall Rating: 2.25
- Entrance: 2
- Drink Presentation: 2
- Ambiance: 4
- Menu Creativity: 1
Keep Exploring Buenos Aires…
- The Best Things to do in Buenos Aires on Your First Visit: A Complete Guide
- How to Get Around Buenos Aires: Public Transportation, Taxis, Walking & More!
- Tigre: The Ultimate Day Trip from Buenos Aires, Argentina
- How to Get from Montevideo to Buenos Aires
- How to Exchange Money in Argentina: Your Complete Guide to the Argentina Exchange Rate
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