Read about my latest nights out in my home city of Newcastle. Here you'll find information about all of Newcastle's hot spots, including reviews of the best bars and clubs Newcastle has to offer. From the Diamond Strip to the Quayside, cocktails to beer. It's your one-stop Newcastle Lifestyle Blog, with plenty of guides and advice on what I'm getting up to in the city.
Nectar cocktail bar is a relatively new establishment in Newcastle, located in Pilgrim street in-between Alvino and where Popolo used to be. It’s on the top floor, the 3rd floor in fact, so be prepared to walk up a few stairs. I have only been in as a bar on a weekend night, however this place is also open through the day and is a restaurant as well as a bar.
The Place
It’s quite a small venue, which is fairly cosy with the set up being with comfortable seating and tables, and two areas for drinking or eating. As you walk in you have the bar immediately at the front, with the seating or standing areas either side. A cool kind of set up if you’re going with a girl or a couple of friends. It’s open late night which is a great, having been there quite late on in the night it’s a cool chill out kind of vibe with not too many people there and you can wind down and enjoy the rest of your night.
The crowd is a mix of 20-somethings and early 30s, with contemporary styles of music.
Drinks
This is a cocktail kind of venue, with a big cocktail menu for you to peruse. If they aren’t your thing, traditional drinks such as lager is always an option. Prices are quite average for this end of the town, expect to pay £3-4 for beers, and £6- for cocktails.
Essential Info
NECTAR BAR IS NOW CLOSED
Opening Hours: 7 Nights A Week, ‘Till 2AM (Weekends) Weekend Entry Cost: £FREE! Music: House, Chart, Hip Hop, RnB Recommended Age: 25-35 Guestlist/VIP: NO Bottle Service:NO Stag & Hens: NO
Address / Directions
Nectar Bar, 86 Pilgrim Street, Newcastle, NE1 6SG Closest Metro Station: Central Station Other Nearby Bars: Alvino, Bacchus Official Website:
Traditionally a vodka bar, Revolution is one of the finest bars in Newcastle. Located on the corner of Collingwood Street, It’s in a prime location situated close to the Central Station with plenty of nearby bars.
Recently refurbished you can enjoy the décor including the huge pillars and amazing ceiling of this building, which is a former bank.
From real ales to cocktails, Alvinos has all the drinks you could want. One of the best bars in Newcastle, it manages to combines a cool chilled back atmosphere with a lively friendly spirit, a true old fashion cocktail bar with great music inside, great people and plenty of seating over 3 levels including a few cosy hideouts.
Drinks
As far as drinks go, you’re pretty much covered at Alvinos. bottled beers, draught, guest ales, a large selection of cocktails and more, classics such as a Mojito can be yours for under £6.
The Place
As mentioned, the bar has a sort of 3 levels, with the middle being tiny but space enough for a couple of friends, with a couple of hideaway spots on the ground floor too. The ground floor also houses plenty of seating and tables out in the open, and has classic bar games such as pinball and fuss ball. With 2 separate bars, you can get drinks on the ground or top floor. The top floor has tables and seating area inside, open but secluded enough to not be bothered by other tables. The top floor also leads to an outside terrace, the place to be in the summer with an outdoor DJ, or if you smoke you can go here and stay warm under the heaters in the winter.
Located on Pilgrim street, this is one of Newcastle’s best places to go if you’re a young person looking for a good time with a laid back attitude.
It was a shock yesterday when I heard about one of my favourite bars, in fact the 2nd best bar in Newcastle according to the latest index, Popolo announced it was closing down. Not only a shock to everyone who loves it, apparently the staff did not know a thing either. I love that end of the town, it’s a pretty cool place to go and chill, nice bars away from The Diamond Strip, and had a good number of people which is why it was surprising to many to hear about it’s closing.
Today it emerged that all may not be lost, and Popolo may be opening it’s doors again, but in a new location…The Quayside. The word is that they are moving there to a much bigger place, in fact 3x bigger across 2 floors. Where will this be? So far there is no word. I was down the quayside a few weeks ago and it’s a ghost town in comparison to the past; Offshore, Chase and Jimmyz all closed, and places such as Pravda, Blue/Julies 2 and Casa gone a long time ago.
If the size and fact it’s supposedly on 2 levels are anything to go by, Jimmyz could be the place as it was quite a size, Chase also has a basement and split level too, both of these venues have been on the market recently following their closure. Either way will they get back the atmosphere it created on Pilgrim Street? A firm favourite among 21-35 year olds, the award winning cocktail bar attracted the trendy-cool but down to earth crowd, with a laid back vibe.
So that’s another bar in Newcastle shutting it’s doors, at least for now.
Located right next to the Central Station you’ll find Jalou. Formerly known as Destination, Jalou has taken on a new look, with stylish décor and a vibrant cocktail menu to match. Perfect for meeting friends, going out with the lads or lasses, or having a casual drink. Upon entering you’ll have to walk down a couple of steps to get into the bar, where there is a large seating area outside complete with tables and heaters. Head on inside for the bar, with plenty of standing space, and lots of tables and chairs for you and your mates.
The music on offer is house, with most people being around the 21-30 age range. You can party all night long for free, with the bar staying open until 2am at weekends.
Drinks At Jalou
Jalou is a cocktail bar, which also sells a variety of other drinks such as draught lager, alcopops, bottles and of course wine. Cocktails are from £7 to £9, and they do a large selection of Mojitos if that’s your flavour. Classics can also be drank, classic martinis, old fashioned and margaritas are on offer. Something which should not be missed is the Cookie Monster for £7.50.
No VIP style bar would be complete without the choice of full bottles of spirits and champagne. Get a bottle of Prosecco, or if you’re a player upgrade yourself to some Cristal.
Under Pouring Drinks At Jalou
The cocktails at Jalou used to be brilliant, and something which you had to go to the bar just to experience. However lately, they have been rather disappointing. On several occasions I have seem cocktails being under poured, and no real care, time or effort has been taken to make the drinks. It seems now they are trying to churn out as many drinks for as little cost as possible, mixing up big batches of cocktails to split between glasses if you order more than one, and packing the glass with ice to fill it up. The image below was a Cookie Monster I bought a few years back, and they don’t look much like that anymore, with stale oreos used, and not a well made cocktail at all.
Jalou free pour cocktails, which means that the bartender should be skilled and trained to be able to pour out a legal measure accurately, but this does not seem to be the case. They offer a cocktail making masterclass which I think they should let their staff go on.
Sadly I would no longer advise getting a cocktail, and stick to a regular drink.
Jalou Dress Code
Dress code is an unusual smart-casual, with an edge on smart, although don’t be surprised when you see guys wearing baseball caps, as this is a common theme. You may not be admitted if you are seen to be dressed too casually.
Hit Or Miss?
Despite the problems with cocktails, Jalou is still worth going to. The atmosphere is good, with RnB music being played out, a good crowd, outdoor seating at the front and a dancefloor in the middle, it continues to be a good night out at the Weekend, and is free entry. Check out more Newcastle Bar reviews to find other great nightspots to visit in the city.
Jalou, Neville Street, Newcastle NE1. Closest Metro Station: Central Station Closest Other Bars: Head Of Steam, Long Bar, Revolution, Tokyo, Flortias, House Of Smith Official Website: Jalou.co.uk
Taking over from the old North Bar is Science. A new bar to the Newcastle scene, it’s been going since late 2013 and located just up from the Central Station if you’ve never ventured to the old North bar before. It’s a very small venue, and used to be an old ticket office for the station. Gone is the disco balls and retro porn posters, which have been replaced with science décor including the periodic table of swearing, and an animal rug.
Drinks are what you would expect, with plenty in terms of bottles and cocktails and draught beer. Dress code is quite relaxed, casual is fine but you may feel out of place with most people in Newcastle going it smart-casual on a weekend.
One of the best features are the blackboard tables. Chalk is on the tables, which means you can have a laugh with your mates and write whatever you feel like on the tables. This quirky little gimmick is quite innovative, and provides you with a bit of fun while chilling with your friends, and is something new and different from bars in Newcastle.
A cool bar to hang with your friends, or take a girl for a relaxing drink.
Essential Info
Opening Hours: 7 Nights A Week, ‘Till 2AM (Weekends) Weekend Entry Cost: £FREE! Music: House & Beats Recommended Age: 20-40 Guestlist/VIP: NO Bottle Service:NO Stag & Hens:NO
Address / Directions
Science Lounge Bar, Neville Street, Newcastle, NE1 5DH Closest Metro Station: Central Station Other Nearby Bars: Jalou, Centurion, Revolution Official Facebook: Science Bar Facebook
Situated near Revolution on Collingwood street aka The Diamond Strip, you’ll find Floritas. Dubbed as a Miami Bar and Tropical Garden, Floritas is a favourite for those looking to enjoy a cocktails or two, chill out or dance the night away. On entering the bar there’s seating, with a bar on the left side, and dance floor opposite. Nearer the back of the bar there is more seating, with an outdoor area to chill out in, which is primarily used as a smoking area.
Music on offer is the usual house beats, which goes on all night on weekends with occasional live music such as bongo playing. Dress code is smart casual, leaning towards the smart. The clientele can be a real mix, but at weekends this usually attracts the younger crowds of 20-25 year olds.
Drinks
There’s a vast array of drinks on offer; From draught beer to bottles, wine, alcopops, spirits and shots, as well as a large choice of cocktails. Cocktails start at around £6 which will get you favourites such as the Double Cush Wor Kid, Pink Lynchberg and classics such as a Mojito and Old Fashioned. If you’re in a large group of just feeling like you want to splash the cash, full bottles of spirits and champagne can be bought, with Absolut going for £95 and NV Moet for £70.
Opening Hours: 7 Nights A Week, ‘Till 3AM (Weekends) Weekend Entry Cost: £FREE! Music: House, Chart, Hip Hop, RnB Recommended Age: 20-35 Guestlist/VIP: YES Bottle Service:YES Stag & Hens: Dress Smart (Fancy Dress may be allowed at discretion)
Address / Directions
Floritas, Collingwood Street, Newcastle, NE1 Closest Metro Station: Central Station Other Nearby Bars: Madame Koo, House Of Smith, Revolution Official Website: floritasbar.com
Think of 50s style, glitz and glamour and you are thinking of House Of Smith. It’s located on Collingwood Street aka The Diamond Strip, close to the Central Station, and like the bars in this area is more of a trendy style of environment. If you’re looking for a nicer, higher class of bar with table service, this is a contender. House of Smith is owned by The Apartment Group, who also own Floritas and Madame Koo which sit next door to HoS. It used to be called Baby Lynch, which was “The neighbourhood bar in the city” but they decided to change it to a trendy cocktail bar, much like the other bars on Collingwood Street.
The Crowd & Music
The crowd and music is much like you find throughout the Diamond Strip. As these bars are all next to each other or close by, you’ll probably find yourself bumping into the same people in bar after bar, if you’re going around these bars as that’s what a lot of people do.
Nightclub Nights
House of Smith is home to several nights including Club Tropicana, Waikiki, Pin UP, Jungle, Press Play, S@S and Say The Word.
Dress Code
You should dress up fairly smart, especially if you’re going at the weekend. A shirt and smart jeans will be fine, a jumper, smart T-shirt or
Drinks
A large selection of drinks, with cocktails starting at around £7.50, or if you’re feeling extravagant go for a full bottle of champagne or spirits including vodka, tequila, rum and whisky. Drinks prices are quite high, even for the average price of the area.
Hit Or Miss?
House Of Smith can cost £10 to get in at the weekend, and once inside the prices are huge. If you want a VIP night and want to pay for a booth and bottle service, once again this is higher than most places. Since it does not really offer anything other bars on the same street does better, I have to say you should give House of Smith a miss. It is not terrible and not the worst place to end up on a night, however there are better alternatives. Going for one drink could be feasible, but not if you have to pay for entry.
Information
House Of Smith, 26 Collingwood Street, Newcastle, NE1 1JF
Opening Hours – 7 Nights a week. Till 3AM (weekends)
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Hello blog 🙂
Shit I am tired! We were out last night, I can’t remember what time I got in, maybe around 2am, but make the mistake of listening to music until 4am! Then made the further mistake of waking up at 9am and not bothering to try to go back to sleep, so I feel shattered!
Last night we went out in Newcastle as we do, and started off in Jesmond and went to Osbournes. It was pretty good. We had intended on going to As You Like It, but the hilarious taxi driver convinced us to go to the town. For the entire journey he was telling us about how The Diamond Strip was the place to be, it was the place with the girls, and we needed 18 year old hot girls He was an old guy, and was talking constantly about younger women, I tried telling him I like older ones who have something interesting to say about themselves but he was having none of that 😀 He then told us “When I was 21 my wife was only 5” and we all laughed!! The taxi driver was a legend, as many of them are.
We went to places like Tokyo which is always pretty good, and Perdu. The taxi driver should go into predicting the future or something because we did meet some girls, they were cool, one girl in particular who I met 😉 I did not get her number/give her mine, I have such a paranoia about giving my number out I really should have though. I should be like the other losers, “I’ll add you on Facebook…” haha :p
It was so hot out in Newcastle last night! I knew it would be quite warm beforehand because I checked, so I did not wear a coat but I did wear a shirt and a cardigan…My got I was boiling! The night ended like most do, a Subway sandwich, I have such love for their flatbread now 😀
When I go out in Newcastle I keep hearing people talk about Geordie Shore, or are asked by tourists and people who have come up to Newcastle where so-and-so bar is, or in general people talking about bars which are seen in Geordie Shore. Well here is a guide to Newcastle, and the bars featured in Geordie Shore.
Background
First of all if you are coming to Newcastle then you probably want to go to more bars than the ones featured in the show; You will probably be here for a whole night or two, and Newcastle has so many bars to choose from. Not only that, most bars are set in areas, the main ones being:
As you can see from the map, if you wanna do a Geordie Shore style bar crawl then you don’t have far to walk; All these bars are more or less on the same street, almost next door to each other. For the purpose of this I have included some other bars since some are similar, in the same area or just on because you should go to more bars! 😀
You’ll also notice it’s really close to the Central Station, so easy to get to 🙂
The Diamond Strip
It’s currently considered the cool and trendy place to go, and has bars such as Madame Koo, Floritas, House Of Smith, Perdu and Bijoux. Round a couple of corners you have Tup Tup Palace (nightclub) and Ohso. Geordie Shore were famously banned from Perdu and all the bars it’s associated with (The Fluid Group), but I have included it in this guide because it’s the same type of bar as the rest.
The Bar Crawl – Old skool style, no pre-drinking, this is Newcastle, go out for the whole night, not at 11PM!
Start Off – Union Rooms
Let’s make this easy, you can walk pretty much in a straight line for this bar crawl and have a great night. We’ll start at Union Rooms. The Union Rooms is a Wetherspoons chain and is usually a good place to start. It can be busy, but it’s a good place to get a couple of early drinks in, they are cheap, sell a big variety, and you can just chill a little bit before the real start of the night 😀 If you want to start with food, you can get it there, since they do meals. There is no music in this bar, it’s definitely a “meeting” or talking bar.
This is what Revolution looks like, on the corner, with the other bars just down the road
Inisde Revolution on the higher level, it’s pretty full!
Revolution – Cocktails, racks of shots, music, vodka
I love this place, the building is big and amazing, it was actually a former bank. Cool architecture, but let’s talk about the drinks. Revolution is typically a vodka bar, but it does sell beer and other drinks. They do racks of shots, where you can get 12 shots, as well as pitchers of cocktails for all your mates. It’s usually always packed, lots of girls, good music. Price is not the cheapest, but if you get a cocktail you WILL taste the alcohol in these. It’s almost always busy, sometimes it can take a while at the bar but this is a great place.
Walk past Madame Koo and you will find Floritas next door. Here you will be able to get more drinks, listen to the house music, dance, chill, talk, whatever floats your boat. Have a cocktail, get a beer, or if you wanna splash the cash get a bottle of your favourite spirit or champagne.
You can sort of see the queue for Perdu, this part of Newcastle gets busy at peak times
They banned the Geordie Shore cast from going here, but I have included Perdu because it’s a similar type of bar and in the same area. If you are going on a Saturday night at the end of the month expect to queue at peak times, and their door policy can be quite selective. The music is house, and the drinks are not the cheapest, it’s still a decent spot and can attract a good crowd. If you don’t wanna queue, head round the corner to….
Ohso
Just round the corner from Perdu is Ohso. Walk in and you have a choice to make; Go upstairs, for a slightly quieter experience where there is music, or to the larger downstairs. Be wary of the times you go, despite it being a bar and not a club they charge after a certain time to get in.
A favourite of the Geordie Shore lot which means it’s got a lot busier, Bijoux is down the street from Perdu/Floritas and across the road. It’s quite a small bar with a back area with seating, the main bar area has tables with a bit of a dancefloor, with a small VIP area. Book yourself a comfortable table which is basically on the dancefloor for an amazing night.
House of Smith, used to be Baby Lynch
Madame Koo, House Of Smith or Tup Tup Palace
It’s probably time to hit a club now, and the choice is yours. You can head back up the road to Madame Koo or House Of Smith, or check out Tup Tup Palace. Koos is a place for everyone, various music and a diverse crowd. Tup Tup and House Of Smith are the places to go if you are looking for a more upscale end to your night, with house music pumping at Kinky Disco in Tup Tup you can dance the night away. Both clubs embrace the “Dress to impress” statement, to fit in with the crowd you have got to be looking your best.
It’s probably 3AM now, so time to get something to eat and go home! 😉
Mimo, billed as a cocktail bar, just round the corner from Revolution
Other bars – Mimo Official Site
There are a few more bars I have added which are in the area. Mimo is just round the corner from Revolution. They offer a load of cocktails at a reasonable price, if you are looking for a drink or two early on it could be the place.
A late bar which can be good, The Empress is really jumping with loads of great music and a good crowd. The drinks are pretty good, it can take a while to get served depending on how busy it is, and there is usually some kind of offers on.
“A good night out is more about the people you are with, rather than the places you go. You can have an amazing night out anywhere with the right group of people.”
Have fun in my amazing city, Newcastle 😀 If you want to know more about all the best bars in the Toon, check out my Newcastle Bar Reviews which has the latest information and updates on Newcastle nightlife.
Credits Photography: Michael84.co.uk (iPhone/Sony HX5/Canon 600D) do not use this pictures without written permission.
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