Nueva Costa Dorada

Fergus (30 June 2005)

Not really a restaurant, more of an all-encompassing evening experience: culture, food, alcohol, entertainment, singing, dancing AND it's open until 3am. Really very hard to pick a more fulfilling night out - some very seriously talented flamenco dancers putting on a floorshow in a cabaret-style atmosphere. Loads of sultry native Spaniards and Latin Americans keep this place feeling authentic [it helps if you speak Spanish, particularly when ordering food and drink at the crowded bar as all of the staff are Spanish with varying degrees of English capability]. The audience is very mixed in age - trendy young Colombian retail workers sat next to wizened old Spanish grannies, and absolutely NO attitude. Their interactivity with the dancers is genuinely heartfelt approval [no rubbish here - it's a showcase for up-and-coming talent and established performers alike]. Don't let the shabbiness of Hanway Street put you off - its seeming dereliction adds to the surprise of descending into the basement to find such a vibrant atmosphere. For a pre-Dorada drink, try the basement bar of Bradley's, or the even more eclectic "Sevilla Mia" right opposite. Top Marks all round - affordable, brilliantly unencumbered talent and entertainment. GO.