BajaNomad

The story of Tijuana's beloved bar Dandy del Sur

Gypsy Jan - 4-28-2012 at 03:29 PM

Dandy del Sur, a timeless wonderland

Por: Genaro Valladolid 27 Abril 2012

By Brenda Colón/San Diego Red

The famous neon sign, a door the wonderland known as "Dandy del Sur.

"How would you like to go to a bar that has had virtually non-stop service for 20 years and still manage to have a mostly young and hip crowd? Would you like to go to place where you can make new friends and run into old ones? How about a bar that caters to straight and gay, young and old, rich and poor, hipsters and businessmen? A bar that has been a hangout for rock superstars, movie stars and Hollywood directors? Too good to be true? This bar is real. Its name is Dandy Del Sur, and it is located in Tijuana's hip and burgeoning bar and nightclub district on Calle Sexta (6th Street) between Revolución and Madero Avenues.

El Dandy, as locals call it, opened in 1957 and has been at its present location for over 20 years, according to its manager Laura García. A resilient survivor, El Dandy has gone through a few incarnations.

At first it was an after-hours hangout for waiters and servers from the bars on Revolución Ave., which brought in thirsty teenagers from Southern California from the 60s through 9/11.

When tourism dried up in Tijuana, local students, artists and musicians started holding impromptu meets at El Dandy, such as literary discussions, concerts, and other cultural performances that soon started a buzz, kindled in part by Pedro Beas (AKA Hiperboreal) of Tijuana's Grammy-nominated Nortec Collective. Now, El Dandy is in the epicenter of Tijuana's cultural revival and an explosion of bars and clubs on Calle Sexta, the new nightlife district that Tijuanenses can truly call their own.

Fresh off a tour in central Mexico, Beas is happy to return to his former artistic hub at El Dandy and its shady cantina ambiance, yellowish and neon-sign lighting, oddly modern jukebox and the waitresses' rough and tumble service. "

BajaNomad - 4-29-2012 at 11:47 PM

http://www.sandiegored.com/noticias/24581/Dandy-del-Sur-a-ti...