Cocktail barCellar bar€Vieux-LilleMon-Thu 18:00-00:00; Fri 18:00-01:00; Sat 18:00-02:00; closed Sunday
La Planque hides down a staircase off Rue des Trois Mollettes in Lille, a vintage-dressed cellar where cocktails and half-litre beers both cost 5 euros.
Signature drink: Cocktails and 50cl beers, both at 5 euros
Food: Drinks only
Tip: There is no sign worth looking for. Find the staircase, then keep going down.
Cocktail barCocktail bar€€€Vieux-LilleTue-Wed 17:00-01:00; Thu-Sat 17:00-02:00; closed Sunday and Monday
Amor Amor occupies a former private mansion on Rue Royale in Lille, a hundred-capacity cocktail room with DJs, live performers and a tapas card.
Signature drink: Cocktails, wine and champagne
Food: Tapas
Tip: It works as a bar early and a dancing room late. Come before 22:00 if you want to talk.
Cocktail barCraft beer bar€€Vieux-LilleMon-Wed 17:30-01:00; Thu-Fri 17:30-02:00; Sat 16:00-01:00; Sun 17:00-00:00
La Capsule on Rue des Trois Mollettes in Lille sells no mainstream lager at all, running 28 taps and a bottle list of lambics and sours instead.
Signature drink: Kriek de Ranke, from the bottle list
Food: Drinks only
Tip: The operator counts more than 300 different beers across a year, so the taps change constantly.
Cocktail barBar and bistro€€Vieux-LilleMon-Wed 18:00-23:00; Thu-Fri 18:00-00:00; Sat 11:00-00:00; Sun 10:00-23:00
La Luck on Rue Princesse in Lille pours creative cocktails and natural wine, and now brews its own beer on the premises alongside a bistro card.
Signature drink: House-brewed beer
Food: Bistro plates and weekend brunch
Tip: Weekend opening starts in the morning, which makes it one of the few Vieux-Lille bars that does brunch.
Cocktail barCafe-concert€WazemmesSun-Wed 17:00-01:00; Thu-Sat 17:00-02:00
Lokarria on Rue des Postes in Lille is a Wazemmes cafe-concert with live music, open mics and jam sessions, and an inclusive queer-friendly room.
Signature drink: Lutgarde, from the beer list
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Check the programme before you go. The room changes character completely on a gig night.
Cocktail barSpeakeasy€€€Lille-CentreWed 18:00-01:00; Thu-Sat 18:00-02:00; Sun 18:00-01:00; closed Monday and Tuesday
Shelby Secret Bar on Rue Sainte-Anne in Lille is a prohibition-styled room entered through a vintage telephone, with a long list of built signatures.
Signature drink: Le Tommy, whisky with petit beurre, fig liqueur and sandalwood smoke
Food: Drinks only
Tip: The signature cocktails, Le Finn and Le Lizzy among them, run at 14 euros and change with the seasons.