Bars

I guess clubbing suggestions are always welcome when one is in a new town. How many times I’ve tried to explore clubs randomly and failed? Yes, I’ve found some, but they’ve not been my taste.

So this one, club Venus, is one of my favourites in Tallinn. It’s central, you don’t have to go too far. They have an age limit of at least 21 years so it does not turn into a teen pary (there’s nothing wrong with teenagers partying, don’t get me wrong).

The music differs a little with different party themes of course. Check the next parties out at the website.

Tickets are usually available in advance from the web so if you’re sure that you want to go, it’s worth buying them in advance. Plus you can pass the queue.

Oh and the place is open during most of the weekdays, so if you’re looking for something during the week, this is really the club you can go to.

… and don’t take the picture too seriously, it is an ordinary club, this photo is from a special event, unfortunately you can’t see poledancers there every day.

III Draakon is a little “buffet” that has managed to keep its raw medieval interior for hundreds of years in Tallinn Town Hall. The “dragon” is basically a part of Olde Hansa restaurant that is filled with tourists just beyond the street, but they are so very different. All the food in here costs only € 1 (elksoup, blood sausages, different pies filled with elk, boar, apple, carrot or cabbage) and all the drinks cost € 2.50 (homemade light and dark beer, glög and schnapps). This tavern is a typical “it’s on me” place as it simply cannot hurt anyone’s wallet.

Note that with the drink you are allowed to catch a cucumber from a barrel. It’s not really a pickle, but rather a very salty cucumber. Can be extreme to taste this one! 

For me “Draakon” is as medieval as it can get nowadays and in the interior only a ghost is missing. Raw limestone walls, no electricity allowed (everything is lit with candles), food is cheap and simple and waiters (who by the way have to pass a special test in a knight school!) look like they’re from a fresh Bosch painting.

Tip: Elk soup and clay beer is a must!

Cubanita is a great place even without the salsa. My favourites are the large and tasty cocktails they make (two for the price of one most of the time it seems…from 18:00 to 23:00 actually), also the smoothies. The food is just as delicious.

I usually go there on Wednesdays or Thursdays. These are salsa (and bachata, sometimes also other Latin styles) nights. Around 21:00 or 22:00 there’s always a quick dance lesson. A teacher shows the sometimes very basic moves but sometimes it gets a bit more complicated. I’ve seen this last from 10 minutes up to half an hour. Everyone dances and changes partners. After the lesson the floor is free for everyone, the music keeps going until about 01:00 at night. You don’t necessarily have to come with a partner, you can find them on the spot.

If you haven’t danced before, you can always give it a try. Or you can watch the others dance, sometimes there are “pros” dancing, and that is just… WOW. So, enjoy!

By the way, there should be a salsa party in town every day except for Friday and Saturday, but I am not sure how they are on other days. In any case there’s usually information here.

And I almost forgot: on the first two floors you can smoke shisha.

Kochi Aidad is a complex of a bar, restaurant and a cafe near the port, right next to D-terminal. So if you have to wait around the terminal, that’s the place to go to.

I’ve been to Kochi Trahter mostly on weekend nights. Then there’s always live music and dancing, which creates such a fun atmosphere.

There’s a long list of draught beers and bottled beers from all over the world. It’s the perfect place for doing a “tour around the world” with beers, usually you’d drop long before you managed to try them all.

The waiters are dressed in old style costumes and if you play along, they’ll also behave a little like in the old times. There’s a lot of space, so you can also go with a larger group of people.

Food is also delicious, I’ve tried sprat sandwiches and snacks only, but I’ve seen lots of delicious plates around.

Kama House is situated in an old legendary Soviet furniture factory called Standard where my father used to work 30 years ago. This building is situated in a neighborhood called Kopli and it has been abandoned for quite a while until some enthusiasts decided to open up several shops and a restaurant, Kama House Köök, here.

The restaurant used to advertise itself as an Estonian cuisine place (Kama in fact is a name of a typical Estonian thing – a four crops flour that you usually put in keefir – a yogurt-like milk drink), but the menu offers more international dishes. A bit ironically, this Estonian cuisine restaurant offers one the best hamburgers in Tallinn (fast food and hamburgers are not so popular here in Estonia). There is an option to order hamburger with multi-cereal bread, but don’t hurry to go for it – multi-cereal is just a usual toast bread. As an appetizer you should try a tapas plate which consists of different kinds of smoked meat, including smoked elk.

The products that KAMA makes their dishes of are locally produced. The atmosphere is very warm and an open hall and open kitchen create the feeling of some sort of unity with the visitors and staff.

An extra benefit – Kama has a very good choice of bottled beers from around the world.