One of Belfast’s original style bars which pointed the way forward for city socialites.

The Venue
Owned by the same people as Irene and Nan’s, Bar Bacca is dimly lit and there are statues of Buddha everywhere. It has a wooden and a stone floor and dark-wood ceiling.

The illuminated, panelled bar is on the right and there’s a funky metallic fireplace feature hollowed out into the wall on one side. It’s on two levels with the raised area on the left which incorporates a sunken area, if that makes sense. There are alcoves and plump brown square ottomans to sit on. There are more Buddha statues on their own little plinths, wall mirrors angled down and orange and blue spotlights. The big French windows in the front are opened up in the summer.

The People
Bar Bacca gets very busy on a Friday at around 6.30pm when the offices turn out and the styles are a bit more untrendy and nine-to-five. But you get girls with highly polished nails, glittery bangles and beads later in the evening and at weekends as well as guys in smart leather shoes, logo T-shirts and jackets.

The Food and Drink
You’ve got Stella, Magner’s, Guinness and Bass on tap and there’s Miller, Budweiser, Tiger and Corona in bottles. There’s a long cocktail list all for around £4 to £5 each and they do a particularly good Basil Collins (Bombay Sapphire Gin, lemon juice and homemade basil syrup) for £4.50. Other blends are Golden Delicious, Mango Melt and Flirtini. Bottles of wine cost around £12 to £13.

There aren’t that many items on the food menu, which is usually a good sign. There’s bang bang chicken tempura for £4.50 and tiger prawns with a roast pepper salsa for £4.50. A bacon ciabatta with garlic mayo is £4.95 and a salt and chilli squid is £4.50.

The Last Word
Bacca is smooth and chic and a happy hunting ground for white-collar workers trying to pursue office romances outside work time.

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