Salón Los Ángeles
Lerdo 206, Guerrero, Cuauhtémoc, 06300 Ciudad de México, CDMX
5555975181
For a real old school kind of night out it probably doesn’t get any better than a trip to Salón Los Ángeles in the traditional Barrio de Los Ángeles (a few blocks away from the Plaza de las Tres Culturas in Tlatelolco), a celebrated dance hall with a lot of tradition and prestige within the city’s nightlife. The Salón Los Ángeles opened in 1937 and hasn’t closed since, its rich history and tradition, along with the colorful characters that have forged its tales and stories, have been witness to the rise of danzón, swing, chachachá, and mambo. Several feature films have been filmed at this location including: “Esquina Bajan” (1948), “Una Gallega Baila Mambo” (1951), “Danzón” (1991), and “Cantinflas” (2014); as well as music videos, tv commercials and other assorted special events, like a celebration by Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes 40 years of his book “The Most Transparent Region” in 1998.
The Salón Los Ángeles is almost like a cathedral of dancing in the city and its layout is dedicated completely to enhancing the dancing experience, including the quality of its dance floor, which consists of 1,300 meters of wooden floor. The location was even the recipient of a special award given out by the Auditorio Nacional, a Luna in 2013 for “a special place, home and hearth of those who like to make the floor shine”. The ballroom can usually be packed on weekends, and it’s normal to see many patrons in a sort of disguise, but which is actually the old school attire of dancing pachucos, complete with oversized suits and fedoras with a feather stuck in the rim, their partners dressed elegantly in brightly colored dresses and high heels. One can hit the floor and practice the steps required to execute a perfect Danzón, or just admire the characters and the atmosphere unfolding upon the checkered tiled floors as the sweet music of Danzón and Rumba fill the air.
“Those who don’t know the Salón Los Ángeles, don’t know Mexico”, boasts a sign inside the hall and even though the nightclub is quaint compared to other more modern clubs around the trendy parts of the city, the Salón Los Ángeles is still a unique experience as if from a bygone era that still attracts a good number of tourists wishing to get a glimpse of old-school Mexico City.
