Babylon Bar Nicosia

Hidden in a side road off one of Nicosia’s busiest streets is Babylon, which hit the scene in 1993, and is now a popular den for Nicosia’s chilled crowds, attracting a wide age group (resting mostly on a mid-twenties clientele) with its laid-back atmosphere.

It’s one of those longstanding forts that you welcome in waves of enthusiasm mostly around early September every year when the breweries go on a gift-giving frenzy. With their troops of two meter Scandinavian goddesses in 9inch heels, armed with caps and t-shirts and bottle-openers, they invade and Babylon’s garden becomes a battleground of beer-promotion not to be missed. The patio, veiled by the overgrowth, is open throughout the summer and although it can get pretty crowded, the dim lights preserve a dome of privacy around each table. The garden also proves a popular setting for football aficionados as games are often broadcast on the big screens in the cool outdoors.

During winter, customers retreat to the cozy indoors where its mystique décor of candle doused bottles, reddish glow and walls covered in musical memorabilia - like posters boasting two pound entrance fee to see The Doors - make you nostalgic for times you never knew. At the same time, the familiar classical rock tunes of your teenage days (maybe it’s time to change the CD), inspire hearty cheers to happy years. And when the night calls for a challenge, the pool-table’s always a fun place to start a ludicrous bet.

The bar offers a wide range of beers, cocktails and other drinks, as well as modest range of tasty meals including burgers, fajitas and salads (nothing over a tener). Be warned: those who attempt to skip the calories will fail miserably as the compulsive nibbling of pop-corn which never seems to run out is impossible to contain.

All in all, it’s the kind of place you keep coming back to. If you’re a Babylon kind of person you probably already know it, and if you don’t, now’s the time to find out!

Babylon

Where: Iasonos 6, Nicosia

Contact: 22 665757

When: 8pm-2am daily