Pub entertainment schedules change as often as Italian political alliances so look out for flyers and posters to keep abreast of what’s on. If you can manage to back-translate the mangled English of these documents into Italian it usually helps to understand what they are talking about. Most nightspots are desperate to pull a crowd so if you have a hot idea that you think might work, go ask them. One day you too may be standing in front of the uni for hours on end offering badly-written flyers to the unwashed.
Il birraio > One of Perugia’s claims to fame, this classy place is in all the quality guidebooks. At the birraio the beer’s brewed fresh in the huge copper kettles you can see inside the door. It has a relaxed atmosphere unlike most of the city’s subterranean pubs, there are even windows with a great view. They also have a large room downstairs, complete with eclectic furnishings and even more of that great beer (though you’ll find fine wines and cocktails if you wish). From behind the duomo, take the middle road (the only one that rises), Via del Sole, and don’t stumble off to the right. It’s almost at the end on the left (number 18 after the street turns into Via delle Prome). Open every day but Monday, 20-02:30. Be sure to check out the birthday book on the left as you enter the bar.
Domus > Who wants to go home at midnight? Well now you don’t have to! Domus is open late for all you partiers who think that even at 2 A.M. the night is young. Come and get your groove on until the birds sing, or at least until 5 in the morning. Domus’ dual bars and resident DJs will keep you moving. It’s the only after-hours disco club in the center of Perugia. To get there, you pass Caffè Morlacchi (see below) on your left hand side and continue straight until you reach the second street on your left. Turn onto that street (Via del Nespo) and Domus is immediately on the right. Hours are 23-5:00
Dempsey’s> Dempsey’s is the place to be to watch all of Perugia drink on the cheap and it’s the easiest place to make friends. Be sure to introduce yourself to Andreas-your hard rock host. You wouldn’t expect a man who likes bands with names like “Muncipal Waste” and “Cattle Decapitation” to be a simpaticone, but he’s been voted Perugia’s nicest guy four straight years. Catch him with his Led Zeppelin shirt on and Zach in the bar and you get a free drink from the latter. Centrally located in Piazza Danti across from the front of the Duomo.
Elfo’s Pub > Although it’s been through many incarnations, the actual sala of Elfo’s is the oldest pub in Perugia, founded in the storied year 1968. It was a circolo (like a private club) for a while, then the first vegetarian restaurant in Perugia: in the ‘70s a now-famous zen monk handpainted its buddha on the wall. Luckily for all of us, it’s now public. Go down via dei Priori a bit and take your second left into via Sant’Agata, to number 20. Enter and find a cozy sala (note the bike hanging-touch it for good luck) and good-natured manager Natale. You’re here to relax and listen to rock with a capital R, dangit. Natale has six different beers on tap as well as a bunch of different beer (Belgian too!) in bottles, all at very reasonable prices. Boasts the best Guinness in town, and is now serving Indian Pale Ale as well. Happy hour until 21:00 with a pint of your favorite blond at a special prices. They also have a kitchen for fried stuff and panini. Drop by every day of the week from 19-02:30. Oh, and that screen’s for sports, too, so if you’re feeling deprived of the NFL, look no further. If playing sports is more your thing, then come play darts!
Loop café > The loop has become a veritable “art container” in continual transformation: it’s easily the number one bar for live music, from free jazz to post-rock, with frequent international-level singers, not to mention the space available for artists and photographers to grace its walls. Add to that the frequent book and poetry presentations and dance parties with reggae, electronica, and indie-mods and you got yourself a home-away-from-home. The Loop’s open during the day, too, when you can sit back and relax on the comfy couches while someone adventurous bangs something out on the piano. Even the coffee’s special -the only place in Perugia you can get the long toasted variety. Try a spritz for an aperitivo, out in front in Via della Viola, or by night order whatever cocktail you like. It’s also the only place you can get a Carlsberg special brew. So what do you say -Loop it tonight? Drop by Via della Viola number 19.
Caffè Morlacchi > I can’t hear that name without thinking of the Morlocks from H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine, but no little grey men will spirit you down to their underworld if you go there. It’s an intimate if sometimes crowded place populated with teachers and students from the Faculty of Humanities just across the way. The owners are ready to make you up a great drink or share a laugh. Morlacchi gets cultural with poetry, quality concerts, and art exhibitions – drop by to find out when. They have an aperitivo every day, with a dj or live music (often jazz and blues) on the weekends. Hannah’s table is in front of the window in the front left – but if she’s not there you can have it. Predictably, it’s at Piazza Morlacchi 8, open 8-01:00 every day except Sunday, when hours are 17-22:00.
La Tana dell’Orso > From the University for Foreigners going to the town center you will find it halfway up the hill on your right in Via Ulisse Rocchi. Casper, Alan, and their staff are all extremely friendly. Go during the day for a bite to eat (ask for the student menu if applicable) and some free WiFi. At night, come to dance and have one of the many drink specials. Offers Kareoke nights and a big TV for watching football games (the European kind). Very popular with students. It’s open from 12-2:00.
La Perla del Deserto > It’s probably easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than to recreate the ambience of an Arab teahouse in Italy. Despite the lighting, Mahmoud has made a reasonable job of it so far…like most things less than 2000 years old around here, it’s a work in progress. Get stuck into Arab cakes like basbousa, assorted teas, fruity hubble-bubble pipes and Turkish coffee while you lounge with your harem (harem not provided) on the exotic cushionry. Belly dancing on Thursday evenings and Latin American Fridays. Closed Mondays, otherwise open 18:00-02:00 at Corso Garibaldi 106, 075.947.2299
Reset > Italians would crawl miles over broken pottery to drink good coffee, so don’t bellyache to me that reset is a bit out of town. 20 minutes’ walk away at Via d’Andreotti (go down via Pascoli next to Gallenga and keep on goin’) gets ya summa dat joe wid giò. Lots of shiny bits, fancy lounges, chic styling and even a red carpet entrance. Exotic beers as well and outdoor tables for the cigaretterie. Glam it up, baby boo.
Kandinsky Pub > This place is half artsy, half funky, the pub of Perugia’s leftwing scene, but also its goofballs. Silvia likes it and so did I, from the moment I saw the art nouveau lettering on the outside. It’s at Via Enrico dal Pozzo 22. To get there, go to Porta Pesa and drop a small rubber ball. It will roll across the intersection and down Via xiv Settembre (towards Palazzina Prosciutti, for students at the University for Foreigners). Just ten metres from Porta Pesa, go left down the metal stairs; at the bottom go straight and then your second left. Kandinksy is named for a famous russian expressionist and shows it – there’s lots of art on its multicolored walls, as well as lots of artsy Italians.