It is a little before midnight on a Saturday and the tables outside the bars of the old town are only now filling up. Inside, a guitarist is tuning up, and the first drinks are arriving. In Montevideo, this is early.
The city's nightlife is unhurried and largely local. It is concentrated in a handful of walkable pockets — the historic centre, a few parallel streets further east, and the residential districts along the coast — and it rewards visitors who are willing to eat late and start late. It suits people who prefer conversation, live music and dancing to a scene built around spectacle, and who do not mind being the first customer in the room.
Where to go out in Montevideo
1. Ciudad Vieja
The old town is where you will find cafés, bars and small dance and music venues, and it is the easiest place to encounter local culture on a night out. Bartolomé Mitre, in the pedestrian area, has plenty of cafés and bars to choose among, though prices there tend to be higher than elsewhere in the city. Several establishments run a happy hour, and in good weather you can drink outside.
The streets 25 de Mayo (Bacacay) and Sarandí are also pedestrianised and hold a range of bars and restaurants with a good atmosphere. Among the named places in this area are the Shannon Irish pub on Bartolomé Mitre, El Pony Pisador at the corner of Buenos Aires, and Bar Valentín Pub Rock, which works as a bar by day and becomes a disco later in the evening. Baar Fun Fun on Soriano, near the Teatro Solís, is a classic tango bar with live performances on weekend nights and an entrance fee when they play; its clientele mixes old and young, and it has both indoor and outdoor seating.
2. San José and Soriano
A little east of the old town, San José and Soriano run parallel to Avenida 18 de Julio, and both streets have good places to spend the night. This is a useful middle ground if you want to move between a meal and a bar without crossing the centre.
Soriano is also where you find La Bodeguita del Sur, essentially a dance school and a bar where you can drink, dance or learn to dance salsa and other styles, and Nueva York on Piedras at the corner of Colón and Cerrito, a sympathetic old-town bar that is good for tapas, chivitos and a beer and stays open late.
3. Pocitos
Pocitos is a popular district for drinking and partying, with several well-liked bars. It is also the focus of New Year's Eve, when people gather at Pocitos beach as midnight approaches and continue at the bars in the district afterwards.
Because it is a residential neighbourhood rather than a nightlife strip, a night here tends to be more spread out than in the centre. Plan on moving between venues rather than settling into one street.
4. Tango and milonga venues
Montevideo's milongas are laid back compared with the coded and exhibitionist ones of Buenos Aires, and they are almost solely frequented by locals, with a high standard of dancing. They take place in dedicated venues, bars or public squares, and Hoy Milonga Montevideo lists what is on.
If you want to watch rather than dance, El Milongón on Gaboto is a place for typical Uruguayan dance and music, including tango and candombe. If you want to dance, the milonga circuit is the way in, and going as a spectator first is a reasonable approach.
5. Candombe bars
Candombe, the drum-centred music associated with Uruguayan carnival, has its own venues. La Casa de Becho on Nueva York is a place to go if you like candombe; it is also where the composer Gerardo Matos Rodríguez wrote "La Cumparsita" about a century ago.
This is a niche rather than a district, and a night here is about the music. It suits visitors who want to hear something they will not hear at home.
6. Craft beer bars and brewpubs
Montevideo has a small but established craft beer scene, with taprooms and brewpubs in several parts of the city. Mastra sits inside the Mercado Agrícola and has a wide range of styles brewed on site. Montevideo Beer Company, with addresses on Bulevar España and Solano García, is a popular hangout with indoor and outdoor tables, ten to fifteen beers on tap, and a mix of house ales and beers from other Uruguayan breweries. Cervecería Shelter, at Patio Cervecero, is a rustic patio bar with a limited food menu and a short range of house ales, closed Sunday and Monday. Oso Pardo on Obligado is a large warehouse-style space with craft beers and a food menu, with longer hours on Friday and Saturday.
These places suit an early part of the evening or a quieter night, and several close well before the clubs do.
7. Football and the Rambla
Two daytime or early-evening options carry over into a night out. The Rambla, the 22 km waterside roadway, is where people bike, fish, drink mate and take in the views, and it is lovely at sunset. Watching a match at the Estadio Centenario or the Estadio Gran Parque Central is another way to start an evening; ticket prices vary with the type of match.
Both are best treated as a first act. From the Rambla or a stadium you are a short ride from the bar districts.
How a night out unfolds
Before midnight there is very little going on in Montevideo. Bars are open before that, but you might be the only patron. Dinner and the start of the evening are correspondingly late, and the night runs long: some bars stay open until two or three in the morning, and dancing venues later still. If you arrive at a bar at nine and find it empty, that is normal rather than a sign you have chosen badly.
Festivals and events worth timing a trip around
- New Year (31 December into 1 January) — festivities begin before noon on 31 December in the old town; people spend the evening with family, then gather at Pocitos beach as midnight approaches and continue at the bars in Pocitos.
- Carnival (from the last week in January, running about 40 days) — Montevideo's carnival mixes European and African elements, with costumed parades and candombe drumming, and includes the murgas, musical-like stage performances held in several parts of the city.
- Parade of the Calls (first Saturday in February) — the highlight of the carnival season, followed by a street music festival, both centred on candombe.
- Montevideo Comics (usually a weekend in May) — the largest comic convention in the country, with conferences, exhibitions, comics and souvenirs for sale, role-playing and card games, films and cosplay contests.
Frequently asked questions
What time should I go out in Montevideo?
Later than you might expect. Before midnight there is very little going on, and while bars are open earlier you may be the only patron. Aim to eat late and arrive at a bar well after eleven.
Where can I hear live music?
Several bars in the old town host live bands and performances, including the Shannon Irish pub and El Pony Pisador on Bartolomé Mitre, and Baar Fun Fun on Soriano, which has weekend performances and charges an entrance fee when it does. El Milongón on Gaboto stages typical Uruguayan dance and music.
Can I go dancing without knowing how?
Yes. La Bodeguita del Sur on Soriano is both a dance school and a bar, and you can have a drink, dance or learn to dance salsa and other styles there. Montevideo's milongas are laid back and almost solely frequented by locals.
Is there anywhere to drink outside?
Yes, weather permitting. Many establishments in the old town have outdoor seating and a happy hour, Baar Fun Fun keeps its outdoor seating open in winter, and the craft beer bars on Bulevar España and at Patio Cervecero have outdoor tables.
Decide which district suits the night you want, book nothing in advance, and plan to start late.