Borgo Hi-Fi opened on Christmas Eve 2025 as Bologna's first listening bar, set inside the Borgo delle Erbe arcade of the Mercato delle Erbe with a vinyl-only DJ booth, a tuned Hi-Fi system and a short cocktail and wine list.
Tip: Saturday nights book up; reservations via prenotazioni.borgoerbe@gmail.com. Sunday tardeo runs from afternoon into evening with a softer playlist.
Address: Via Ugo Bassi 25, 40121 Bologna
Lab 16 runs a cocktail room and kitchen under the porticoes of Via Zamboni a few doors from the Two Towers, pairing an aperitivo buffet, a small dinner menu and a vinyl-led listening programme that swings between indie, rock and pop.
Tip: Aperitivo from 18:00 includes a buffet with the drink; reserve a table inside if the live programme runs that night. Outside seats fill fast in summer.
Mascarella 22 anchors the south end of the Via Mascarella jazz strip with a small cocktail and gin counter, a vinyl-led soundtrack, an English-speaking bar team and an outdoor stretch that joins the Salotto del Jazz programme in summer.
Tip: The bar serves on the street from June to August during the Salotto del Jazz; book inside in winter. Margarita and spritz lists are the strong end.
Osteria del Sole has run a bring-your-own-food wine room on Vicolo Ranocchi since 1465, run today by the third-generation Spolaore family, with three euro glasses of Pignoletto and Lambrusco poured at a long counter and wooden tables.
Tip: No kitchen of its own; pick up mortadella and bread at the Quadrilatero salumerias first then carry it in. Cash only at the counter.
Mutenye runs a craft and German beer bar on the Pratello strip, with a 30-tap pour, a deeper bottle fridge of Italian micros and German classics, a back room set up for football and an outdoor stretch that fills past midnight.
Tip: The pub is open until 03:00 every night so it picks up the Pratello late crowd after the osterias close. Cash and card both work.
Bar de' Marchi runs from a corner of Piazza San Francesco at the foot of the Pratello strip, with three euro amari, students and Pratello regulars in the late hours, and outdoor tables that hold the basilica view through the small hours.
Tip: Cash gets the cheapest pours; cards work too. The piazza in front fills past midnight with the Pratello spillover crowd.
Nu Lounge Bar runs a tiki room under the Quadrilatero porticoes on Via de' Musei, with a ceramic-mug back bar, fire-and-dry-ice drink presentations and a list that runs from canon tiki classics to house variations, drawing the World's 50 Best Bars discovery list.
Tip: Cocktails sit around 11 euros; book a counter seat to see the fire show. The kitchen sends hard-shell tacos and poke bowls if you want a base for a longer sit.