Cuba Cafe

Can’t believe that I haven’t been to the Cuba Café until now as it’s a great bar. Tucked away down Port Street in the NQ the Cuba Café is a great place to head for a drink if you fancy somewhere a little bit quirky with amazing décor. A lot of effort has been put into the interior. There are radios hanging from the walls, Cuban style posters and other types of Latin American memorabilia. The bar is a little limited as they only serve rum and lager but the atmosphere is terrific and the music they play means you feel like your on holiday. A great pick me up on a Winter’s evening.

I am surprised that no one has written a review about Cuba Café yet. This is a small little Cuban bar hiding next to Port Street Beer House in Northern Quarter.
Cuba Café has been around for a while, and they also have regular salsa classes here and the people who come here to dance seem like proper salsa enthusiasts. I love such places because I am a Salsa dancer and I thought the only place that had no-​nonsense salsa in Manchester was Kopa Cabana but I was so glad to find this one yesterday. I have to say that this place is not buzzing or filled with people, but if you fancy doing some salsa while sipping on a beer or even just watch people dance this could be a great destination!
I have not tried the food here yet, but I saw some people having the food and it looked pretty tasty. Drinks don’t cost you a fortune so you can happily afford more than one even at the end of the month.
Verdict: If you are a lover of Salsa and Cuban music, you will love this place!

Sometimes I wanna go to a cooler-​than-​thou cocktail bar that plays minimal tech remixes and has a doorman. Sometimes. But usually I wanna go to a fun, down to Earth café bar where I can drink a nice cold beer and shake my tail feather to Gloria Gaynor. On a Saturday night, Cuba Café is the perfect place to do just that, with a great mix of funk and Motown classics to get your toes tapping.
As Emma-​Louise has pointed out, the décor at Cuba Café is just lahhhhvely: every bit of wall is covered with posters, pictures and… stuff, and suitcases hang from the ceiling. Suitcases! Yamazing.
There’s a great dancefloor, with a decent provision of little tables to sit and gossip around, when you’ve gotten a bit out of breath from shaking your booty to a cheeky bit of Whitney (RIP). There are booths up near the bar, which you can hire for a special occasion (£60 for the 6-​person booth, £80 for 8-​person) on Saturdays.
Cuba Café cares about their regulars, too, which is what keeps me going back. With the exception of the booths, they won’t reserve a table, or shut the whole club for a private party. And why should they? The mix of people that end up at Cuba Café is one of the things that makes it so great: everyone’s having a great time and the over-​25s limit (though me and my mates were under-​25 when we first went… don’t tell anyone!) means there’s a more grown-​up feel.
The Northern Quarter (though I love it) can be a bit pretentious at times. This place is cool on its own steam, without being too cool for school.

Very weird place this but definitely from people who have visited, always good fun. Can only hold about 150 people each night but its strict over 25s policy on Friday and Saturday nights dissuades most students from attending here during the week. However, unlike other clubs in Manchester, this is friendly and a great atmosphere of people inside. Definitely has a distinct Caribbean charm with the Cuban theme running throughout the place making it out-​there and definitely different from all other venues.
Prices can be slighty more expensive at times but expect 40s/​50s/​60s/​70s/​80s music to attract you in.
For those not of the nightclub elk, then the beginner’s salsa classes during the week make this a doubly interesting venue.
Recommended!

Copacabana is Manchester’s most well-​established Latin American venue, and it continues to grow in popularity. There’s regular salsa dancing classes (for all levels), a well-​stocked bar with friendly staff and even decent food, if you can resist the dancefloor for long enough to sit down.
What really makes Copacabana stand out is the atmosphere. As soon as you enter to the sound of the salsa music, you can’t help but relax and have a good time.
It can get very busy on Fridays and Saturdays — these nights are popular with hen parties — so choose one of the quieter nights if you prefer a more general introduction to what Copacabana can be like.

Whoa. There’s been an effort with the décor here and I mean an EFFORT. All sorts of bric-​à-​brac from Cuba has been collected over the years and now adorns the walls in a way that manages to be endearing and kitschy cool as opposed to tacky. Ah, you’ve got to blame the Northern Quarter location for that. These NQ bars get away with everything.
Cuba Café is an unusual Manchester institution. First of all it is the only place in the city to learn salsa. Forget those La Tasca basement classes, they only exist to make that microwaved Tapas nightmare look good. Here, you can rock up on a Tuesday or Wednesday, no partner necessary, and they guarantee to teach you the basic steps of salsa within a week or your money back. It’s only £5 a class anyway and they welcome the rhythmically challenged. I think they see it as a personal quest. I’ll definitely be testing the classes out soon.
They have private lessons too and a social dancing session on a Friday night, but from what I’ve experienced the club itself is plenty of fun too if you just fancy a night out. They play a superb mix of music from funk to rock n’ roll and the obligatory salsa as well as tunes from the 60s and 70s. The over 25s policy means the clientele tend to consist of professionals simply letting their hair down, and it sure as heck keeps the troublemaking ruffians out.
With £2 tequilas and some of the nicest staff you could hope to meet, you can’t go wrong. So get your dancing shoes on because there’s no excuse any more. I’m talking to myself as much as you guys.

Tucked away in the most Northern Corner of the industrial but bar rich Northern Quarter this little beauty is a safe haven from the the half baked, over eager youths that spoil many drinking session around town.
Operating a strict over 25’s policy at the weekend, this is a bar that really cares about who it is serving rather than how many drinks it is serving. The atmosphere is always fun, friendly and relaxed.
Filled with lots of old radios, posters and brikka-​brak the bar does a fantastic job of transporting you to 1940’s Cuba– if only for a few hours.
But be warned– the regulars here can do more than help prop up the bar, they can really move!
If you don’t fancy spending your Saturday night being shown up by an 85 year old who can execute an authentic Harlem Shuffle, why not pop along during the week and take part the regular dance classes offered?

i have been here to cuba café a few times in the past with my girly friends to have a laugh during a salsa lesson! If memory serves i thnk there is an age limit to get into this place of 25 and over which is great as you don’t tend to get all the teenage binge drinkers and students in here. It is usually full of mature professional adults who have come out to let there hair down and have a laugh. They always play great music in here and there is always a great atmosphere within the place. they sell the best drinks in the city from very rare cocktails to very rich and expensive champagne!

Cuba Café is hidden in the Northern Quarter and although doesn’t suit everyone, is somewhere cosy to learn to dance, whether that be salsa, tango or whatever you want! The evenings can be hit and miss– weeknights can be salsa, or tango, or R’n’B depending on the crowd that night which can be a little frustrating at times. Saying that, they have an over 25’s policy on the weekend which can keep the rough element out and allow you to enjoy the ambience, décor and personal service.