Where to Party in Cabo San Lucas

Cabo San Lucas’ bars and clubs serve up celebrations to suit every taste

 

Cabo San Lucas is a town that likes to party. As the sun sinks over the mountains, the libations flow and the bars and clubs fill with everyone from sport fishermen on shore leave to incognito A-listers behaving badly. But there’s more to the scene than upside-down margaritas and boozy Macarena line dances, and you don’t have to be a spring breaker gone wild to join the party. The town at Land’s End offers many flavors of relaxation, from laid-back beach bars to pulsing dance clubs, quiet jazz to driving rock and supple sauvignons to lime-laced tequilas. Here is a sampling of the best ways to celebrate a Cabo vacation in your personal favorite style.

Cheer

Die-hard sports fans like to know the score, even when on vacation. Those who don’t want to fight for a view of a small screen down at the corner of the room can head to the Mango Cantina. Though relatively new, this marina-side sports bar has already become one of the town’s favorites, with steaming major-league action to 16 high-def screens. And you won’t have to settle for potato skins and wings, because the kitchen turns out a full spectrum of breakfast-to-late-night offerings that include regional Mexican and fresh seafood—plus Buffalo wings for those who just can’t do without. Closer to the town center, and air conditioned for those steamy summer afternoons, is the spacious Desperados, where wall space is split between Hollywood memorabilia and a collection of plasma screens that are kept tuned to the sports channels. After the games are done, the action shifts to the dance floor, with a disc jockey most nights and live music several times a week.

Dance

When you are ready to swap flip-flops for dancing shoes and spend the night moving to the mix, you need look no farther than the corner of Marina Boulevard and Ignacio Zaragoza Avenue, where the site once occupied by the Zoo has been transformed into the Pink Kitty Nightclub. The vibe is young, hip and beautiful. Italian glass chandeliers hang overhead, and eel- skin leather seating lines the corners—a decor management refers to as “modern baroque boudoir.” Sound and lights are state-of-the art, disc jockeys are imported from the West Coast, Vegas and beyond, and the requisite VIP area awaits to accommodate celebs and special occasion splurges. Equally fabulous is the Passion Club, which is located at the ME Cabo Resort. House and dance music dominates, and there are separate lounge and VIP areas with table service and top-shelf brands. Passion is best known for its themed parties, including one of the Cape’s most memorable New Year’s celebrations and an off-the-hook anniversary party each April.

Party

Over-hyped or totally awesome. Whatever your option of Cabo’s anything- goes watering holes, no vacation would be complete without a stop in one of them, if only to buy the T-shirt. But should you choose to give in and cut loose, you might find yourself hanging upside down like a prize catch at the Giggle Marlin, rocking out when Sammy Hagar makes a personal appearance onstage at his Cabo Wabo Cantina, or being goaded into an exhibitionist strut by the gregarious staff at El Squid Roe. Just be warned, it will take stamina to close these joints down, because the tequila flows freely and the action goes well into the wee hours.

Chill

If barefoot and beachfront is your thing, head for the office. No, not that familiar cubicle back in the states, but rather Cabo’s original waterfront hangout, The Office on the Beach. This thatched palapa has been a fixture of Médano Beach since the 1970s when it was a hangout for windsurfers and locals who dropped by for a quick cerveza and a fish taco. As Cabo grew from a quiet fishing village to an international destination, so too did the Office’s menu. Breakfast patrons can now opt for lobster omelets, while the dinner fare includes a range of fresh seafood and steak offerings, along with regional favorites and a notorious 16-ounce margarita. Tables spill out onto the sand, and the iconic rock formations of Land’s End loom in the background. The beachfront action can get lively in the afternoon and often spills over to the next-door Mango Deck. Here, a DJ presides and in-the- mouth tequila shooters are dispensed by a roving server who keeps his bottles in a hip holster, ready for deployment. For a quieter take on beachfront refreshment, head a quarter-mile up the sand to Tabasco Beach.

Quaff

If you are here for the beer, you can get it fresh from a pair of microbreweries located within walking distance of the marina district. The Baja Brewing Company blazed the way, serving up a selection of craft beers on a rooftop terrace at the Cabo Villas Beach Resort. Offerings range from blonde ales and ambers to oatmeal stout and a fruit-and-vegetable brew. A favorite savory accompaniment is the Beer Pizza, which as the name suggests, incorporates a bit of the brew into the dough. The menu pays homages to traditional pub favorites such as shepherd’s pie and onion rings, but also offers fresh fish and pastas. In early 2013, a second microbrewery joined the mix. The Ramuir Cerveza Artesanal Mexicano is a partnership between a local restaurateur and Tijuana-based microbrewer Cerveceria Ramuri. The downstairs restaurant cooks up a savory mix of entrees from land and sea in an open-air kitchen, while the best view in the house is from the rooftop beer garden, where handcrafted brews flow from tap and bottle.

Savor

With Cabo being just a quick hop from California, it’s no surprise that a bit of the Golden State’s wine culture has found its way south. The Los Cabos Winery was founded by Robert Turnage, who relocated from Santa Cruz, Calif., to establish the region’s first full-spectrum winery. Here, house labels are blended, barrel-aged and bottled in a temperature and humidity- controlled environment, and an adjacent retail venue offers a range of labels for sale. The venue is also home to wine tastings and one of the town’s premier restaurants, where meals are savored against a backdrop of live or recorded jazz, and a private wind cave awaits those seeking a truly intimate dinner setting. Another local favorite for oenophiles is the DOC Wine Bar, where chef Emanuele Oliviero cooks up traditional Italian favorites from locally and organically sourced ingredients. To complement these culinary offerings, owner Pietro Gioco has curated an extensive wine list that highlights Italian and Mexican vintages, with more than 200 labels to choose from.