By early evening the city centre starts to thin out, and the places that stay busy are the bars and clubs that keep going until the early hours. You will notice the crowd shifting as the night goes on, from people finishing a meal to those arriving for music.
Harare has a very vibrant club scene, and nights here run late. The soundtrack is broad: local Zimdancehall, amapiano and Jamaican dancehall are popular, while grassroots Sungura and Congolese music draw a working-class crowd and the more well-off tend to prefer Western artists. It suits visitors who are comfortable with a late, music-led night and who want to see how different parts of the city go out rather than follow a single strip.
Where to go out in Harare
1. The club scene
Clubs are the backbone of a night out in Harare and are described as going on until the early hours. What you hear depends on where you go: Zimdancehall, amapiano and Jamaican dancehall are the popular genres, while grassroots Sungura and Congolese music are favoured by working-class residents and Western artists by the more well-to-do.
This suits anyone who wants to dance rather than sit, and who is happy to start late. Expect the music to define the room, so pick your night by genre rather than by address.
2. On The Roof Bar
On The Roof Bar, three blocks north of Harare Gardens on Mazowe Street, offers an open-air social environment for relaxing. It is the kind of stop that suits an early or slower part of the evening rather than a full night of dancing.
Because it is open-air, treat it as a place to sit, talk and ease into the night before moving on to a club.
3. Local beer and traditional drinking
If you want to drink what the city drinks, the local options are Chibuku, a popular beer with the working class sold in "scuds" — large two-litre brown plastic containers — and shake-shake, a prepackaged sorghum beer brewed in the traditional African style that is thick, filling and comes in milk cartons. Both are cheap, and the Chibuku is lumpy and opaque beige.
Locally brewed Castle, Lion, Zambesi and Bohlingers are worth trying and are more popular with suburbanites. This suits a low-key, inexpensive evening and anyone curious about local drinking habits.
4. Wine and restaurants
Wine consumption tends to be the preserve of the middle class, and most restaurants go for South African wines and, to a lesser extent, French and Australian. Zimbabwe does have a small wine scene of its own, dominated by the Delta Corporation and its brand Mukuyu, with newer producers such as Kumusha making wines of better quality that are extremely affordable by international standards.
This suits a calmer, seated evening built around a meal and a bottle rather than a club.
5. Beverlino Restaurant
Beverlino Restaurant sits at 100 Nelson Mandela, on the corner of Fourth and Nelson Mandela, opposite Quality International Hotel. It is well known for its baskets and offers a wide range of food and beverages, and the source notes that the warm savoury food will be brought to your door wherever you are in town.
This suits a night that starts with food, or an evening where you would rather eat in than go out to eat.
How a night out unfolds
The sources describe Harare's club scene as going on until the early hours, so plan for a late finish rather than an early one. Beyond that, the material does not set out when people eat or what time venues open, so treat the timing of your own evening as something to confirm locally on the day.
Frequently asked questions
What kind of music will I hear on a night out in Harare?
Popular genres include local Zimdancehall, amapiano and Jamaican dancehall. Working-class residents tend to favour grassroots Sungura and Congolese music, while the more well-to-do prefer Western artists.
What local drinks should I try?
Chibuku, a popular beer with the working class sold in large two-litre "scuds", and shake-shake, a thick prepackaged sorghum beer in milk cartons. Locally brewed Castle, Lion, Zambesi and Bohlingers are also worth trying, and Zimbabwe has a small wine scene of its own.
How late do nights out run?
The club scene is described as going on until the early hours. The sources do not give specific closing times.
Where can I go for a quieter drink?
On The Roof Bar, three blocks north of Harare Gardens on Mazowe Street, offers an open-air social environment for relaxing. Restaurants, where wine is more common, suit a seated evening.
Decide whether you want music until the early hours or a seated evening with food and wine, then plan your night around that choice.