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NOTTINGHAM | Bars, Restaurants, Clubs & Nightlife

578K views 5K replies 143 participants last post by  Leemick1981 
#1 · (Edited)
Well every other forum has one of these with plenty of discussion in each one so I thought I'd start one here.
Nottingham is renownded for having a good nightlife but IMO it seems to of declined in the past few years especially as the police don't seem to agree with the opening of new clubs etc due to the trouble of the past in places such as The Works.

I think Nottingham could easily sustain 2 or 3 more big clubs but I'd like to see them offer something abit different from the norm rather than just be a place that plays commercial music and attracts people that end up getting in fights. Media used to be terrible for trouble especially at kicking out time. Mode also had a few incidents. The bar/club near Sneinton Market even had a shooting in it.

What would you like to see in Nottingham to promote it's nightlife? Not all of you may be into this sort of thing but it does bring a huge amount of money into the city.

I'd like to see maybe 2 or 3 large clubs open that don't just play pop/dance music all the time. Alot of places in Leeds seem to be really popular especially clubs that play electro etc. Quite a few clubs seem to do special events with a certain genre of music. Alot of places are hosting dubstep and bassline nights which seem to be popular and attract a wide range of people.

What resturants and bars would you like to see introduced into the city? There must be some we don't have.

Discuss.
 
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#122 ·
Yeah, but when you are in the Lace Market/Hockely, it's a fair walk. And like someone else said, not many places let you in after a certain time.
To be honest I pretty much agree, was just playing devil's advocate really.

I hate going out in Nottm these days, thankfully I don't have to much as I no longer live there but when I come back to visit family/go to the footie, etc. it depresses me a little. It used to be great but now it just appeals to townies and chavs.

Less reflex, more bomb IMO.
 
#123 ·
Thankfully loads of place now seem to be under offer and ready to reopen - the old Geisha bar is now set to be a new Asian influence bar/restuarant, Sugar bar is under offer (been closed for a while), the place near Scuuh on Market Square is under offer plus the leisure space under Hockley Mill (near what used to be Berlins) also has Let By boards on it.

Plus, looking at the FHP website the site where the Bomb used to be is also Under Offer! (Please bring back The Bomb - clubbing in Notts is really crap for a big City!)

Personally, I still love heading out into Nottingham - I live and work right in the centre but too many closures have limited what venues you can head too. Its still light years ahead of Bristol and, in IMO, Leeds though.
 
#124 ·
Notts is ahead of Leeds in terms of retail and especially resturants and bars. When it comes to clubs though Leeds is miles ahead especially when Notts doesn't have a decent club (if any) that are open until the early hours of the morning. Leeds has clubs that are open until 8.30am and in some cases 10am.
Nottingham has an advantage over Leeds in that the city centre is really compact (this can also be bad too in terms of violence with so many people in a small area) which means moving from bar to bar is within easy walking distance.
 
#125 ·
Thankfully loads of place now seem to be under offer and ready to reopen - the old Geisha bar is now set to be a new Asian influence bar/restuarant, Sugar bar is under offer (been closed for a while), the place near Scuuh on Market Square is under offer plus the leisure space under Hockley Mill (near what used to be Berlins) also has Let By boards on it.

Plus, looking at the FHP website the site where the Bomb used to be is also Under Offer! (Please bring back The Bomb - clubbing in Notts is really crap for a big City!)

Personally, I still love heading out into Nottingham - I live and work right in the centre but too many closures have limited what venues you can head too. Its still light years ahead of Bristol and, in IMO, Leeds though.

Being a Bristolian I've got to pull you up on that Redarmy!! How can you say that Nottingham is light years ahead of Bristol in terms of night life when in the paragraph before you say that clubbing in Nott's is crap? :bash:
When was the last time you went to Bristol for a night out (if ever)? It's a great spot, and due to the fact that venues are not crammed into a small area like Nott's you get less aggro from inbred muppets. If you have been to Bristol recently then I suspect you just found the same old commercial shite along the Harbour that can be found in Nott's too, but if you had bothered to look around you'd have found some great venues around town like The Thekla, Apple, Browns and plenty of other stuff around Park Street/Park Row, Welsh Back, Clifton Village, Whiteladies Road!!
 
#126 ·
Sorry - think I've inadvertently started a Bristol V Nottingham argument here!

Actually spent a lot of time in Bristol (lived there for a while and I'm there in a fortnight) and too me its the place closest to Nottingham in terms of atmosphere, style, amenities etc. Know what you mean about the Harbour Side area but I love Clifton and (some) parts of White Ladies Road.

However - there isn't the variety that Nottingham has to offer and some of the so-called bigger streets (Corn Street) really declined - still love the place and I'm there every couple of months - I just really prefer the Nottingham option (clubbing excepted but then I am nearly thirty so I'm getting picky!)

Leeds - I've always seem to have a bad experience there and wind up encountering some real muppets. Probably started off in the wrong way though as I ended up in Bondai Beach with the revolving dance floor on my first visit. I gather now that was a really bad idea!

Plus, clubbing is only one small aspect of night-life - I love eating out and there really is no better place than Nottingham for variety and choice.
 
#127 ·
I went to Stealth last night. They played pretty good music, loads of people there, no trouble at all but earlier on in the night when we were walking from the square I realised that there are loads of arseholes that go out in Nottingham. Blind drunk people shouting, stepping in front of cars, chanting things and just acting like idiots. It must give such a bad impression to foreign visitors that are in the city centre at night.
The toilets in Stealth are pitch black too you can't see a bloody thing. Apparently it's to prevent people from taking coke in there. It means though that the floor is covered in piss and it stinks.
 
#128 ·
Ok, little survey here...

Favourite Restaurant, Bar and Club in Nottingham

I'll kick things off.

Restaurant- Le Mistral- Food is delicious, an excellent and comprehensive wine list and the friendliest staff possible!

Bar- Saltwater/Pitcher and Piano- Despite them both being quite pricey, the cocktails are made professionally and both are iconic. The terrace at Saltwater, and the church conversion of P&P both speak for themselves really.

Club- Not much of a clubber anymore, but I think Stealth/Rescue Rooms on saturdays as they have a huge variation in music, food, a nice outdoor bit and theres never trouble there that ive seen.
 
#129 ·
Restaurant- I think 'Le Bistrot Pierre' has the best food that I've been to, but there are so many in Nottingham. Kayal on Broad Street is the best Indian.

Bar- Brass Monkey has great cocktails but I agree for 'wow factor' Saltwater and P+P are best. Bar Eleven on Goose Gate is good too.

Club- for me, it's NG1 as I swing that way!But otherwise I'd say Rescue rooms/Stealth on a Saturday night is brilliant.
 
#130 · (Edited)
Restaurant: Chungs (in Mapperley). Amazing Cantonese food, friendly staff who've been there for years, and great atmosphere.

Bar: Brass Monkey/Bluu/Saltwater/Coco Lounge are my favourites. All serve great cocktails and you don't get the riff raff that a lot of other places attract.

Club: I'm not a huge fan of clubbing, but Cookie Club has always been pretty good.
 
#131 ·
Anyone been to the new Vienna restaurant yet (where Hard Rock used to be)? The re-fit looks good and the menu seemed nice, but havnt had a chance to go yet.

Also, Derby Road has two new bar/pubs open about half way up, one where the Hand and Heart was, the other next door. At the top on Canning Circus, Ben Bowers has closed, and has been ripped out. A new restaurant 1884 is due to open soon.

Finally, the old restaurant next to the Ropewalk bar, thats currently painted a horrid colour has scaffolding up on it, and the plaster work is being chipped off. Good news, that was a real eyesore IMO.
 
#133 ·
For those of you who were asking about Vienna. Review in todays Metro

Vienna waltzes off with the plaudits
by AL NEEDHAM - Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Vienna
With the country apparently teetering on the brink of recession, Nottingham - with its twin obsessions of shopping and the night-time economy - has felt the wind of change blowing up its civic skirt a lot sooner than most. As a result, any restaurateur looking to start afresh in the area is either criminally insane or knows that they're going to have to pull out all the stops to make a splash in an already crowded scene.

Thankfully, our night at Vienna left us with the impression that the people involved know what they're doing. A combination of prime location, superior decor, outstanding service and quality food (albeit with a few odd twists that don't always come off - but more of that later), means the place slips effortlessly into the upper echelon of Nottingham restaurants.

The first thing you notice about the place is the fact that - thank God - it isn't the Hard Rock Café any more. The former tourist magnet now has an interior that its beautiful outer shell has been crying out for. The artefacts purloined from Status Quo and Rush have been replaced with one of the swankiest refurbs this side of the Lace Market. Dark woods, cream textures and burgundy hangings create an airy, spacious intimacy. But the biggest change is that someone has actually opened the curtains, allowing you to gaze at some of the finest examples of Watson Fothergill's architecture. So far, so good.

After getting stuck into a bottle of Berri Estates Shiraz 2006/07 (£14.95), we perused a menu put together by award-winning chef David Lem, who has been trained by Gordon Ramsay and Marco Pierre White, which must make him exceedingly proficient at what he does, as well as a tad deaf. The overriding tone is nouvelle British; mainly traditional fare, peppered with quirky additions that leap off the page and beg you to try them.

My friend's oven-roasted pigeon breast (£7.95) thankfully wasn't locally sourced 30 feet away in the Old Market Square; it came in compact, tight rolls of meat, wrapped in slivers of Parma ham, stuffed with more meat and complemented by an apple cake and drizzled beetroot purée. The pigeon-leg lollipop on the side, however, was a step too far. Coated with what appeared to be bonfire toffee, I can't see it catching on at Goose Fair.

My crab and avocado wafer sandwich (£7.45), on the other hand, made a perfect starter, and it took supreme measures of willpower not to pick it up, devour it in three bites and ask for another. The wafer was satisfyingly sticky and complemented the filling to a tee, as did the hunk of tomato jelly and the shot glass of Bloody Mary sorbet (which we'd like Wall's to make into a Calippo flavour as soon as possible). The staff shuttled back and forth, enquiring but never intruding, and even offering samples of their mushroom consommé.

The mains were even more impressive. The organic salmon roulade (£15.45) was a densely packed fist of prime fish with a subtly crisp outer layer, balanced with the fluffiest, non-glutinous lemon and crayfish risotto I've ever had the pleasure of nicking off someone else's plate, rounded off with braised Mediterranean veg. Similarly, the saddle of lamb (£16.95) was a tour de force of traditional fare spiked with new trimmings, accompanied by comfit shoulder, a splendidly moreish cube of fondant potato, roasted salsify, perfectly wilted baby spinach and thyme jus. Both dishes were deceptively filling, adventurously laid out and up there with the best examples of their kind I've tasted in town.

After another free sample - this time, a lime crème brûlée that needs to go on the menu post-haste - we sipped liqueur coffees and got stuck into the most eclectic dessert menu in the parish. My orange parfait with orange and lemon thyme jelly and warm madeleines (£6.95) was quite easily the orangiest dish I've ever sampled (it even came with a shot-glass of orangeade, sitting in a puddle of orange syrup), but my friend's ravioli of cherries with bitter dark chocolate mousse and pistachio foam (£7.45) took the biscuit, if not the whole packet. Pasta with cherries? Sort of - the cherries nestled in shells of a more pancake-like demeanour. Like most of the dishes on offer, it sounded odd, but it actually worked.

The only downside to Vienna is that it could easily put a sizeable dent in your wallet (around £45 a head all-in). But it's great to see a restaurant with such lofty goals in the centre of town, and there are grazing and set menus available if you don't want to push the boat out too much. There's also a concerted effort to make it a proper venue (with DJs and live bands), and you have to admire their rescuing of a tarnished venue. We recommend it without hesitation.

11 King Street, Nottingham. Mon noon to 12.30am; Tue to Wed 10am to midnight; Thu to Sat 10am to 1am; Sun noon to midnight. Tel: 0115 947 4201. www.vienna.uk.com
 
#136 ·
restaurant:

barely been to any so **** knows. too expensive for me. which is a shame because i love food.

bar:

Alley cafe, or Ride. decent music in both usually. niether of them are Westside tho. good old days! anyone remember Westside? it was a classic place! there are quite a few nice pubs that do decent beer.

club:

this is where Notts falls on it's arse. Igloo is actually pretty good but hardly a clubber's dream. Stealth is occasionally decent but generally suffers from being a total ponce-hole. i have on occasions experienced a decent up-for-it atmosphere in there, tho! Blueprint (on Alfreton Road) can be pretty good but they have a rubbish sound system, and the place is too often empty. the fact it's so far out of town is a bonus as you don't get random townie cocks there causing trouble. The Bomb = sorely missed.

to be honest anyone under 23 is too young to know what proper clubbing is. it's something that does n't exist in Notts any more. kinda sad, because anyone who seriously thinks Stealth is 'a club' or Steath vs rescued is a 'decent club night' really needs to experience a real club - which you'd have to go to London or Manchester for. and it's becoming rarer there as well by all accounts.

we do still have the almighty Garvey Centre tho! i shall be there at some point over the next few months no doubt. a proper filthy, disorganised hole just like a club should be
 
#137 ·
Where's Alley Cafe and Ride Ranny? I've never heard of Igloo, where's that? Is it expensive?

I agree that Notts really can't compete in terms of clubs. I've not been to Halo in Notts but I have been to the one in Leeds and it's shit.
If you want good clubs Leeds is definately up there with Manchester etc. There is such a huge variety of clubs.
 
#138 ·
Alley Cafe is on the opposite side of the road to the Odeon site on Long Row, its basically the next alley way on from the one where Cucamaras is. Ride is amongst the bars that run down the side of the Cornerhouse, roughly opposite Nandos I think, and I agree Ride is a great spot. No idea about Igloo though?! It's not one I've heard of before.....I'm intrigued......
 
#139 ·
Igloo used to be called The Edge. it's on Lower Parliament St, near the arena. usually a fiver or so to get in for most nights, drinks are about average price. i used to go there loads when drum n bass was worth listening to, and they have some decent dubstep nights there if you've heard of Misst? they usually get a good sound system in there too.
 
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