Music venues & clubs – All our local tips

This bar with DJ’s is one of my favourite places in town; full of energy, hosting different dj’s every night. It is a very tiny spot, crowded and with loud music, often referred to as a hole in the wall style bar. Definitely not a place for a good chat!

I love the kitch decoration and the atmosphere, very informal (no door selection, no dress code, no charge for entrance). You can have fun and even dance for a while. The music is usually electro/trash, but it can depend on the DJ. The crowd is usually young, alternative and up for it.

The only inconvenience is that they close at 02:00, a bit too early considering that after ten minutes you will forget it is a bar and not a club! If you want to go for a beer (or two), consider that the place starts to kick off at 23:00 and during the week it can be a little quiet. Check out the website for what’s on.

Only one down side, if you are fussy about your toilets, this is not your place!

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Atomic Bar | Bars, Music | Beer € 6.00
Via Felice Casati 24 | Centrale/Greco
21:30 – 02:00 daily

Colonial Fashion Cafè is a very nice and particular cafè placed very close to one of the most popular areas of Milan: Colonne di San Lorenzo, where hundreds of people use to hang out for walk or a beer.

This Cafè offers a huge selection of both coffee (from Ethiopia, Jamaica, Brazil and El Salvador) and tea (18 sorts).

The interior decoration is really well-groomed, with comfortable armchairs, beautiful pictures and loads of ornaments of all sorts! The fun thing about it is that you can buy whatever you want, and most of the objects carry a price lap.

I usually go there for a cup of tea. I recommend the “Cina Verde alla Menta”, a Chinese tea with menthol flavour. With every cup of tea they serve you small cakes and biscuits: very British!

On Tuesdays and Saturdays there are live jazz concerts.

Not much parking place in the surrounding and remember that yellow parking lines are just for residents!

Picture: Colonne di San Lorenzo by Bernt Rostadt

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Colonial Fashion Cafè | Coffee & tea, Music | Tea € 2.50
Corso Magenta, 85 | Ticinese/Genova | +39243511054
Mon – Fri 07:00 – 0:00, Sat 07:00 – 02:00, Sun 07:00 – 0:00

If you mention “Galleria” in Milano, everybody will think of the magnificent Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, the biggest and best of several shopping arcades built in the mid 1800s. But unless you happen to have won a big lump of money, few of us can afford the restaurants those restaurants (much less to shop in the very upscale stores).

Galleria Meravigli is more recent, built in 1930s in an airy Liberty style; it’s much smaller, and it doesn’t host fancy shops. On the other hand, it’s the beautiful setting for a different night out with good food, great food and, on most weekends, exciting tango nights!

Tango has a big following in Milano. Forget about plain rooms with elderly gentlemen and women, here it’s an experience for all ages; it’s a young and fashionable dance, without losing all its charme and romanticism.

Even if you can’t dance you can en

joy (with an excellent cocktail in your hand) the sight of people confidently dancing around the floor in sensual embraces, with the music ranging from traditional tangos from almost a century ago to the latest electronic tango successes by bands such as Gotan Project and Bajofondo.

And who knows, maybe the music and the atmosphere will lure you into trying a few steps–the regulars will be more than happy to show you the ropes.

An insider tip: try the maracuja vodka sour, probably the best in Milano!

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Galleria Meravigli | Bars, Music
Via Meravigli 3 | Centro | +39028055125
19.00 – 02.00 daily

The “Casa 139″ is so called because it actually looks like an apartment (Casa means home) and 139 is the number of the street where it is placed, via Ripamonti.

This disco is an ARCI cultural association which means that the first time you will get here you will have to buy the association card (€15.00) which will last for a whole year and will let you in for free not just in Casa 139 but in all the other ARCIs!

I know this place since I have been performing here with my band and I really found it full of atmosphere and great interior decoration with great use of red and gold. At the ground floor you can find the relax-area, upstairs the bar and the stage.

I always find very easygoing people and it’s not hard to make new friends. As in all the ARCI associations, prices are quite fair.

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La Casa 139 | Music | Membership card € 15.00
Via Ripamonti, 139 | Porta Romana | +39245488267
Mon, Thu, Fri & Sun from 19:00

Whilst some may mourn the loss of Le Trottoir from the original Brera zone, this bar is alive and kicking in another part of town in a very historic building next to the new Porta Ticinese (one of the city doors).

It’s really centred perfectly in the heart of Milan’s nightlife. It is a historical meeting point for the artistic scene but on the weekends it is more of a live music venue with energetic, live music usually of the funk and soul genre.

On the second floor, a DJ plays dance/top 40 whilst the outdoor seating area can be great for a little peace and quiet. It can get a little crowded on the weekends but it’s a good place to pick up the pace a little after a quieter drink in the nearby Navigli area. You will find people from all walks of life here!

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Le Trottoir | Bars, Music | Entry from 22:00 € 10.00
Piazza XXIV Maggio 1 | Ticinese/Genova | +39028378166
11:00 – 02:00 daily

Don’t get confused by the name, Nidaba theatre is not a theatre but a live music pub. Just right in Navigli area you can find one of the few live music pubs in town.

The place is very small  and you will be surprised by how many musicians they can stuff onto the extremely tiny stage!

The main advantage of this pub is that you have music 7 nights a week, you don’t have to pay any entrance and a beer is 6 euros, the normal standard in the area.

The atmosphere is hot and dark, sweaty i would say, as i imagine jazz clubs should be in New Orleans. But it is not just about jazz, one of the good points of this place is that every day you can have different kinds of music and you can have fun like I did with a fantastic irish music group or an amazing 50’s American rock and roll band (it seemed like they were from the tv series “Happy Days”!).

A nice place if you want to do something different and escape from the often poshy Milan atmosphere… check out the website for what’s coming up!

Music usually kicks of around 22:00 – 23:00.

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Nidaba Theatre | Bars, Music | Beer € 6.00
Via E. Gola 12 | Ticinese/Genova | +390289408657
21:30 – 02:00 daily | Closed in August | Music 22:00

This bar is just a few minutes away from Piazza Duomo but as it is tucked away in a small street you may not find it. Although, I must say I’m always surprised by how many do!

A good place for a post shopping or Scala drink without the exorbitant prices you can find around the Duomo. It’s not a place that gets really busy later in the evening so it’s a great place to enjoy a quiet drink and chat with friends. Although it can get full with the banking crowd from 19:00 – 21:00.

On the weekends it can get a little more interesting with a DJ playing Top 40 music and very strong cocktails. These strong cocktails have seen some people getting a little excited and getting up and dancing on the bar! It generally kicks on till 2am-3am depending on the owner’s mood!

It’s a great place if you want to organize a big group get together such as a birthday.

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Victoria Cafè | Bars, Music | Drink € 6.00
Via Clerici 1 | Centro | +39028053598
18:00 – late daily