Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Akua
LOUNGE BAR
(Blvd Miguel Pou, Plaza Nuevo Mundo; 5pm-late)
Sure, it's in a strip mall en route
to the Ponce airport, but this ultrahip lounge bar is home to Ponce's see-and-be-seen crowd,
who sip cocktails served on the stem and nod along while DJs spin hip-hop, Brazilian, and
light house music. The furnishings are as sleek as the patrons. During high season, Akua
opens for lunch.
Kenepa's at Café Plaza
BAR
(3Unión; 5pm-late)
After graduating from the Calle Luna party scene, a slightly classi-
er crowd comes here to thin their blood on juice drinks and beer. The tables on the sidewalk
fill quickly, especially when it hosts live music or DJs. When it gets late, the crowd mi-
grates into the narrow quarters to dance.
Hollywood Café
BAR, POOL HALL
(
www.hollywoodcafeponce.com
;
Rte 1 Km 125.5; 6pm-late)
Off the beaten path in
the neighborhood near the Howard Johnson hotel, a mid-20s crowd sprawls into the park-
ing lot from Thursday to Sunday, getting rowdy with Latin rock, competitive pool and
cheap swill. Wednesdays are famous for the 'Noche Del Pelao' - 'night for the flat broke'.
La Taberna
BAR
(119 Villa; 4pm-late Thu-Sat)
This delightfully seedy little place is right off the main
square. A young crowd knocks back innumerable $1.75 Medallas, watches sports on a vin-
tage TV and blasts music at ear-splitting levels.
Shopping
Paseo Atocha, just north of the plaza, is closed to traffic, serving as a busy pedestrian mar-
ketplace with food stands and cheap goods. Here and along the cross streets merchants cre-
ate a street-bazaar feel with racks of clothing, leather goods and suspiciously affordable
designer wear.
Amazingly, Puerto Rico's historic center doesn't have a single bookstore; if you are hard
up for something to read in English, you'll have to drive back to San Juan or Mayagüez.
Utopia
SOUVENIRS
