10 - After Dark
ღამე
After Dark
This is the best part of Tbilisi. The most usual part.
Start with -
courtyard chaos
Tbilisi night moves. Pick a starting point and let it go from there. Places are lively at 10pm until it closes.
Wine | Cocktail Factory
@cocktail.factoryThis is the entrance point to courtyard. Go inside anyways and check out their old wine factory. If you are not in the mood for wine, head to Cocktail factory. We had some of the best cocktails here, based on Niko (the mixologists) recommendations.
Fabrika Compound
@fabrika_tbilisiThe courtyard comes alive at night. Multiple bars, outdoor seating, music from several directions at once. Good for moving between places and seeing what happens.
Zeche
@zeche.tbilisiSimilar courtyard energy. Curated selection of bars and spots around a shared outdoor space. Less famous than Fabrika, slightly more local crowd.
Dedaena Bar
@dedaenabarSmall, atmospheric, built around Georgian language and literary culture. Distinctive from everything else on this list in the best way.
End with -
clubs
Tbilisi has one of the genuinely great underground electronic music scenes in the world. Usually you would go there after 1 am.
Bassiani
@BassianiInside the basement of a Soviet-era football stadium. Two rooms, extraordinary sound system, no phones on the dancefloor. The flagship of the Tbilisi scene. A serious place treated seriously.
If you have never done this before, this is still worth experiencing. Just go in with the right attitude: this is not a lounge.
Khidi
@KhidiclubUnder a bridge. Literally. Industrial space, serious crowd, heavy program. A different energy to Bassiani - rawer, more underground if that is possible.
Mtkvarze
@mtkvarzeOn the river. Live music, terrace, good crowd. The kind of place that feels more like Tbilisi than it does like nightlife, which is a compliment.
Aprili
@aprili.tbilisiA bar and music venue in the center. Consistent programming, interesting crowd.
A note on the scene
The electronic music scene in Tbilisi has a real political dimension that is worth knowing. In 2018, police raided Bassiani and other clubs, provoking protests that shut down Rustaveli Avenue in one of the city's largest demonstrations. The scene - and the queer community embedded within it - responded with the slogan "We dance together." The clubs won.
If you go to Bassiani or Khidi, you are entering a space that people have fought for.
Watch: Rave Revolution — the full story