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TRAVELLER
73
Del Toro on nightlife
◆
Cocktails at Smoll (
9 Carrer
de la Comtessa de Sobradiel;
tel: +34 933 103 173
) aren’t
fancy, but they are made
with love and you can buy
everything in the bar, from the
glasses to the furniture.
◆
La Concha (
14 Calle Guardia;
tel: +34 933 024 118
) is a shrine
to the Spanish actress and
singer Sara Montiel, mixed with
boleros and souped-up Arabic
tunes. Reliably wacky and fun.
◆
Ocaña (
13-15 Plaça Reial;
ocana.cat
) is a bar, restaurant
and club in one. I love the
candle lighting at sundown
and nightly themed parties,
particularly Friday’s Roxy Bar.
◆
For house, go to La
Terrrazza (
13 Avinguda
del Marquès de Comillas;
laterrrazza.com
), an open-air
club in a faux villa. The music
is fresh and lively, the crowd
young and cool.
◆
The midnight drag-queen
show at Cabaret Berlin (
22
Bailen; carlitosgroup.com
) is
über
-kitsch and complimented
by burlesque – or go for the
weekend disco dancing.
BARCELONA
THE PARTY MAESTRO
Alfonso de la Toro
‘Fonsi’ del Toro has been a fixture on Barcelona’s nightlife
scene sincemeeting his boyfriend in 1993 at Estudio 24.
“Back then, the city was open 24 hours,” he recalls. “I liked
the freedom it gave you. These days, there are a lot more
rules, but there’s still a scene if you knowwhere to look.”
Estudio 24 is long gone, but del Toro’s love of the
night has endured and today he hostsmany of the city’s
best parties, helping to create an image to lure punters
Left,
nightlife supremoAlfonso de la
Toro;
below,
restaurant bar Ocaña
in. Flamboyant costumes, wild dancing and artistic
performance are all part of themix he brings to the table – or
should that be dance floor? He’s a pro at getting the party
started, having worked at all the top spots: La Terrazza,
Fellini, Matinée, Razzmatazz – as well as his day gig tending
the bar at Schilling (
23Carrer Ferrán; cafeschilling.com
).
His top tips? “Don’t miss the closing party at La Terrrazza
at the end of September and Sitges Carnival in February.”