Aneya: Here's the Clinic, with their tiny sign.
Aneya: Inside the Clinic, cool colors and wall art.
Aneya: Retro bras and panties are draped over all the lamps.
Aneya: Wacky doll heads hang above the bar.
Aneya: The lovely Bar Cathedral.
Aneya: The tiny Bar El Diablito.
Aneya: Inside El Diablo.
Aneya: The delicious Victorino, with their funky off center mirror.
Aneya: Bajo Llave, which looks like a house, but is in fact, a cool underground bar.
Aneya: And, finally, the always lovely Cafe Escondido.Lauren: Since it's the weekend (almost) Aneya and I decided to share some of our favorite places to hang out on the weekends (or weekdays) and get a drink. These are a few bars, pubs, and restaurants that are within walking distance of our apartment and are excellent. All these bars are either in Barrio Lastarria or Bellas Artes.
Aneya: We figure if anyone reading this lives in Santiago, we'd give them a heads up on cool places in the area. If not, you guys can read (and click on the links) to check out all the cool bars and restaurants we've discovered in our almost 4 months of living here.
Bar The Clinic--
Lauren: If I owned a bar, I would want it to look a lot like this. It has retro adverts, literary quotes written in cursive on the ceiling, an adorable patio with trees and Christmas lights outside , and the decor is black, white, and red -- like our apartment. The drink selection here is really impressive, with pages devoted only to their variety of reds and they have nice dinners, but excellent lunches. Aneya and I went here for lunch the other day and got their fixed menu which is probably better than their dinners. They also own a super anti-government, popular newspaper, have a lounge upstairs, and own a nearby boutique.
Aneya: The Clinic is just too cool for school, man. Everything about it, the hidden sign, the long hallway leading to the pleasant patio (complete with fountain and outside bar) to the quirky, old fashioned lingerie hanging from the lamps. It's just a damn cool place, completely retro and sophisticated. It's a local hangout for businessmen, whether it be 12 noon or 12am, the place is always packed. It definitely has a better lunch than dinner, lots of cocktails and a great wine selection.
Catedral--
Lauren: This place is amazing. It has really wonderful food, and excellent atmosphere. Low lighting, and green-wood paneled walls give it a very cool ambiance. I had probably the best caprese sandwich I've ever had here. Good mixed drink and wine selection, this place has a huge bar. After about 10 p.m. (when everyone starts to have dinner) they have live music on a decent stage, and you have to walk up a winding staircase to get to the restaurant which is on the second floor, giving it the feeling of being kind of hidden.
Aneya: Another great find, just a block or two away from our apartment. A long, winding staircase leads to upstairs (there are three levels) which features a nice big bar, and a stage, for the live music they have every night. Great food selection, and drinks, as always, are divine.
Lauren: I love this place. They have all sorts of vintage gadgets stuck on the walls, with old photos, and the walls are clearly the walls of a building that have been torn down so that their frame is exposed and chotchkies sit on the wooden beams. They have appetizers, but this place has a really good beer selection. This was where I found one of my new favorite beers, Paceña. It is small and a bit cramped though, but super cute and the majority of people who go here seem to be college kids.
Aneya:I haven't actually been to this one, but we did go inside the other day so I could take pictures, and it looks super funky and cool. Old pictures of Marilyn Monroe and the Beatles hanging from the walls, exposed beams and cool gadgets are everywhere. It's super tiny though, so get there early before all the good spots are taken!
Lauren: Aneya and I love this place. It's cute, with a patio and upstairs area, little wooden tables, and amazing food. I got the chicken rissoto, but substituted the chicken for mushrooms and had the first wild mushrooms in months. I feel like they were morel, but I could be mistaken. Whatever they were, they were tasty and mushrooms so naturally this place was an instant love for me. It's really small, and cute, with dark blue lighting. The one thing I hate about this place is that the smoking section seems to be every section, and I feel like I can't taste my food beyond the smoky air.
Aneya: We found this place on one of our many strolls through Lastrarria and instantly loved it. We shared a bottle of white wine (super cheap) and I had camembert crab ravioli, which may sound disgusting but is in fact delicious! Yes, people do smoke everywhere, it's hard to avoid here. This is a great place for dinner and drinks, at any hour.
Lauren: Literally meaning "low key" you have to walk down the stairs of what feels like someone's house before finding this place. It's in a stone basement, and really feels hidden. Although the pictures on this website show a well-lit place, it's really dimly lit and has a very intimate setting.
Aneya: This place is really cool, but kinda scary. You're walking into what looks like someone's house, and there's no light in the staircase, leading down to the bar. But once you get there, it feels like you're in a cave. An awesome cave, with loveseats and a bar and cool art hung on the walls. Not to mention you're underground! They make a nice, strong tequila sunrise, too.
Cafe Escondido--
Lauren: Cafe Escondido had to be someone's house at one time. It's tucked away in the corner of a small residential area down a narrow cobblestone street and you can eat in the different rooms of the house. Upstairs is the smoking section, which I'm increasingly discovering seems to be the rule around here, but the small coral-colored rooms are very intimate. Great wine and beer and the apitizers are great. Aneya and I shared a delicious potato tortilla and cheese, pickle, olive platter which was fantastic.
Aneya: Oh, this was definitely someone's house. You can tell because when you go to the bathroom, you not only get toilets, but a shower as well! That's an odd thing to see in a restaurant. But in any case, this place has great music, good food, and cheap bottles of wine. And it's tucked away (right next to Bajo Llave) in a cute little residential street.
And these are only a few of the countless bars tucked away in our city. There are many more to discover, I'm sure. But this is what we've found so far. Not bad, huh?
-- Aneya & Lauren
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