TIRANA - Travelling in Albania

22
CAFÉS
All cafes and bars offer espresso (kafe ekspres) or Turkish
coffee (kafe turke). More upscale places will also serve
American-style coffee (kafe filter).
Artist Lounge H-5, Rr. Ismail Qemali 12, tel. 068
348 54 90, justfruits@hotmail.com. A unique, bright
and spacious café serving fresh fruit juices and smoothies,
coffee, sweet and hearty crepes, sandwiches, salads and
baguettes. Highly recommended for a healthy snack or
lunch. Q PGB
Bardh e zi H-3, Rr. Sami Frashëri, tel. 224 70 89. The
biggest attraction in ‘Black and White’ is the huge black-andwhite
photograph collection of Albanian artist Artur Gorishti.
Modem and comfortable, this café serves a damn good
cappuccino. Near the corner with Rr. Ismail Qemali. QOpen
07:30 - 24:00. PBW
Café Albert E-3, Rr. Durrësit 59, tel. 069 218 70 66.
The walls of this cosy and artsy café halfway down the long
street are hung with dozens of cartoon caricatures of local
politicians and other media stars; well worth a glance if you’re
following the Albanian news. There’s a selection of wines and
some croissants and other snacks. QOpen 07:00 - 15:00,
18:00-23:00. B
Capriccio H-4, Rr. Pjetër Bogdani. A relaxed bar near the
dictator’s old villa that’s a cool option for a quiet cup of coffee
during the day or for drinks at night when the colourful lights
bring out the best of the locals. There’s dancing at weekends
too. QOpen 07:00 - 24:00, Fri, Sat 07:00 - 02:00.
City Lounge H-5, Rr. Mustafa Matohiti, tel. 069 401
88 99. There’s an artsy copper theme to the City Lounge
where you can head to a relaxing upstairs balcony. As well
as the usual range of drinks you can also choose from a
very reasonable lunchtime menu of the day. QOpen 07:00
- 23:00. PB
Coffee Flower G-5, Blv. Bajram Curri, Galeria mall, tel.
069 330 83 87. The funkiest café inside the Galeria mall. A
popular place with brightly coloured furniture, lounge corners
and a small balcony terrace. Coffee and other drinks only.
Coffee Store I-5, Sheshi Italia. A boldly-named, modern
coffee house overlooking the Kolonat fast food tent beside
the stadium. There’s good coffee, and tasty paninis if you’re
up for a snack. QOpen 07:00 - 24:00.
Book cafés
Epër7shme G-5, Rr. Jul Variboba 2, tel. 227 12 88.
A lovely book café, unfortunately with very few Englishlanguage
titles in the bookshop at the front. Find the
friendly owners and their friends hanging out. at the traditional
Albanian-style café section at the back, specialising
in tea and decorated with intricate wood carvings. The
name means ‘suitable’ - and it’s more than that.QOpen
08:00 - 22:30. PBW
Friend’s Book House G-3, Rr. Sami Frashëri, tel.
226 67 77, friendbookhouse@yahoo.com. For literary
insomniacs: a non-stop bookshop, café and reading room
that also has a quiet study room in the basement. There
are not many English-language titles on offer but you can
always bring your own book or newspaper along. Near
the main police station, just north of the river. Q Open
24hrs. PJBW
Tirana In Your Pocket
Jumeirah F-5, Rr. Presidenti George W. Bush. Named
after a Dubai district and built with Emiratic opulence in mind,
Jumeirah is a three-floor complex with plenty of mirrors, fake
palm trees and a wonderfully kitsch bar on the top floor. Serving
drinks as well as cakes from the ground-floor patisserie,
the bar has a nice rooftop terrace. QOpen 07:00 - 23:00.
Juna I-4, Rr. Dëshmorët e 4 Shkurtit. Sited in one of the
busiest areas of town by the university bookstore, Juna is
busy all day long. Could be the location, or the good fresh
coffee they serve. QOpen 08:00 - 23:30. B
Mojo H-5/6, Rr. Themistokli Gërmenji. Big blurry photos
and big lamps set the scene for Mojo’s hip crowd. A bright café
serving drinks and snacks such as sandwiches and toast,
Mojo is officially a no-smoking café even though everyone happily
ignores that. From 17:00-20:00 on weekdays, free snacks
come with the drinks. There’s a free wifi signal, but on our visit
the tea was stronger.QOpen 07:30 - 02:00. GW
Pastiçeri International I-4, Rr. Abdyl Frashëri, tel.
225 67 50. The only thing international about this place
might be your presence - but it’s still one of the better places
to go to get your sugar-and-coffee fix. Wolf down tarts and
various other pastries - if you can find a seat, that is. The
children will love the small playground in the adjacent park.
QOpen 07:00 - 23:00. Also on Rr. Durrësit, and Rr. Sami
Frashëri. PB
Piazza Café Rr. Ded Gjo Luli, tel. 223 07 06. Piazza
is a great spot to kill time and watch people. The terrace
is screened from the traffic by flower beds, palm trees and
a fountain and is a better choice than the slightly tacky
indoor area. Piazza is one of the few bars that also serves
food: sandwiches, pizza and other snacks. QOpen 07:00
- 23:00. PB
Quo Vadis H-4, Rr. Ismail Qemali 27, tel. 226 65 90. A
fabulously popular café at Tirana’s most fashionable crossroads.
The deep red walls provide the perfect backdrop for
the hip, young and rich to do their thang. We recommend
ordering a coffee, a pint of hair gel and a clipped goatee.
QOpen 08:00 - 23:00. B
Sky Club Café G/H-4, Rr. Dëshmorët e 4 Shkurtit, 5,
tel. 222 11 11. The floor of the glass box on top of Albania’s
highest building revolves slowly to give an all-round vista of
the city (though power cuts regularly put an end to that).
That’s also the main reason to come - the coffee and cakes
on offer are pricey and no better than those at ground level.
QOpen 08:00 - 23:00. P
Stephen Center Café E-5/6, Rr. Hoxha Tahsim 1, tel.
223 47 48, www.stephencenter.com. Set up by evangelical
missionaries who certainly know how to run a good café.
This is one of Tirana’s best, a cosmopolitan meeting place
for locals and foreigners alike. There’s a pleasant terrace
and a cosy smoke-free interior with a poster of New York’s
twin towers. There’s free wifi, fresh juice, 90 lek bottomless
coffee, salads, pastas, sandwiches, pancakes, burgers, pizza,
Mexican dishes, English breakfast and on Saturdays waffles.
Amen! QOpen 07:00 - 23:00. Closed Sun. (600-750 lek).
PAGBW
100 Albanian lek = €0.81 = US$1.04
(6 Nov 2008)
“This is one east European capital the stags might want to
miss” wrote travel journalist Simon Calder in the UK’s Independent
paper. Though we don’t want to encourage the
bachelor party disease to infect Albania, Mr. Calder clearly
reads the wrong guidebooks, as Tirana’s nightlife scene
is not bad and is certainly improving fast. The fun starts
with the lively xhiro (mass evening stroll), and ends at the
bllok’s bustling cafes, bars and clubs. Note that Albanians
prefer sipping coffee to serious drinking, and foreign types
are often the only sad souls knocking back the hard stuff.
Bars
Alfa Club D-4/5, Rr. Barrikadave 14, tel. 224 03 66/222
61 65. A hip young crowd, smoke, drinks and mixed music styles
- all you need for a good night out. Bottle of wine or whisky for
7500 lek. QOpen 23:00 - 03:00. Closed Mon, Tue. PAK
Bon Bon H-4, Rr. Pjetër Bogdani, tel. 069 33 70 001.
A bar on Tirana’s most fashionable nightlife street serving
the city’s best Mojitos. QOpen 08:30 - 02:00, Fri, Sat
08:30 - 04:00. PB
Buda Bar H-4, Rr. Ismail Qemali. Although there are
enough Buddha Bars in the world to start a religion, this is
certainly a nice addition to Tirana’s nightlife scene; a dimly lit
lounge with ottomans and couches to flop around on. There’s
good ventilation, Indian wooden screens, chilled-out music,
and attentive staff. QOpen 17:00 - 01:00. PAEB
Bulevard Café G/H-4, Blv. Dëshmorët e Kombit, Twin
Towers, tel. 228 03 34. Inspired by Tirana and the letter
B (note the shape of the café), the Bulevard is a great night
option serving drinks to a thirtyish crowd on the third floor of
the twin towers. Sit at the bar under a ceiling with photos of
Old Tirana, or hang out in the curious booths lining the walls.
Try to visit when Roberto, a talented Italian artist, croons his
evergreens on weekend nights, followed by DJs. QOpen
07:30 - 02:00, Sun 18:00 - 02:00. Beer 300 lek. PW
Cameleon H-4, Rr. Dervish Hima, tel. 069 205 13 78. A
compact and modern bar in a riot of bright primary colours, Cameleon’s
novelty is the everchanging display of multi-coloured lights
throughout the evening. It’s a little hard to tell what’s in your glass
when everything shifts from blue to orange, but its less annoying
than you might think. QOpen 07 - 00-23:00. Beer 300 lek. P
Caramel Lounge H-4, Rr. Dëshmorët e 4 Shkurtit, Twin Towers,
tel. 068 32 86 666. A lounge bar set on the second floor of
the Twin Towers, with cracking 500 lek cocktails, loungy music and
views over to the pyramid. QOpen 07:00 - 03:00. JW
Charl’s Bistro H-4, Rr. Pjeter Bogdani
36/069 202 29 01, booking@charlsbistro.
com, www.charlsbistro.com. An eclectic,
fashionable thirtyish crowd populates this
fantastic lounge bar with 1960s-80s inspired
music in the bllok area. The somewhat oddly
spelt Charl’s regularly puts on live music acts
from across the region and various other events
from Thursday to Saturday, but the cocktail bar
in the lush small garden spits out great drinks all
week. QOpen 24 hrs. PEBW
Flares H-4, Rr. Brigada VIII, tel. 069 209 99
10, nardimuho@yahoo.com. Squeeze yourself
into this bar at the weekend and be prepared for
a singalong or even a star turn. When the karaoke
is turned off, just relax and enjoy the modern
Albanian art on display. Owners Denis and Nardi
Pub talk
No smoking
NIGHTLIFE
As Albanians smoke like chimneys and and cigarettes
are available on every street corner, many people were
skeptical when the government announced a complete
ban on smoking in public places from 26 May 2007.
Although ashtrays have disappeared from tables, the
ruling is sadly largely ignored. Even in cafes that prominently
display no smoking signs you’ll find smokers, and
waiters happy to provide ashtrays. We’ve tried to indicate
which places are truly smoke-free – but don’t sue us if
you end up inhaling.
work hard to make this a welcoming spot and Flares is justifiably
popular with locals and expats like. QOpen 07:00 - 01:00,
Thu, Fri, Sat 07:00 - 03:00. Beer 300 lek. PABW
Flex H-4, Rr. Dëshmorët e 4 Shkurtit, 56, tel. 068 222
07 00. A pleasant enough bar, but if you go right to the back,
following the corridor on your right, you’re in a different place.
This part is bathed in a relaxing creamy yellow glow from the
overhead canopy - you’re out in the open here. This helps
keep the air moving when the place fills up on Wednesday
and Saturday for live performances by local bands. Near the
Sky Tower. QOpen 07:00 - 03:00. PEBW
Harley Davidson Bar G/H-4, Rr. Vaso Pasha, tel. 069
202 23 31, info@steelwings-albmc.com, www.steelwingsalbmc.com.
Official home of the Steelwings Albania Motorcycle
Club and clearly marked by the multitude of cool rides parked
outside, this rocking bar full of leather-clad motorbike enthusiasts
is decorated with all the usual Americana. It’s a surprisingly
friendly place, and the owners Tani and Dani stress that everyone
is welcome. Come on weekends and enjoy live rock and country
music. QOpen 08:00 - 02:00. EB
Infinity J-5, Sheshi Italia, Sheraton Hotel, tel. 227 47 07.
The Sheraton’s elegant piano bar and lounge is a peaceful
place for a beer, or something stronger, sometimes accompanied
by live music. QOpen 08:00 - 24:00. PE
Kuki G-3, Blv. Gjergj Fishta, Pall. Italiane 4. Get a shot of
culture in this well-hidden new café. The artfully lit grey walls are
hung with modern paintings and other works by local artists,
while minimal and modern music is played on the stereo. DJs
take over the café on Friday evenings and every lazy Sunday afternoon
there’s an art film screening. On weekdays, drop by for
the traditional Albanian lunch that’s served for 350 lek. Beside
the car park, right behind the Friends Book House. QOpen
08:00 - 24:00, Sun 17:00 - 24:00. Beer 200 lek. PBW
Where is the nearest bar / club? Ku ndodhet klubi më I afërt?
I need a... Dua një …..
... beer birrë
... wine verë
... cocktail koktell
... cigarette cigare
... lighter çakmak
... ashtray tabak
... man burr
... woman grua
Where can I find a taxi? Ku mund ta gjejë një taksi?
You have beautiful eyes. Keni sy të bukur.
Your place or mine? Vendi im apo I yti?
Where I come from, that’s illegal. Prej nga unë vij, kjo është jo legale.
Autumn - Winter 2008 - 2009
23