One of the buzz words in Newcastle when talking about nightlife and bars is “The Diamond Strip“. This is mainly used by bars and promoters to make the area sound cool, chic and expensive, and it does have all three. The Diamond Strip is the place to go out in Newcastle, as W1 is the place in London.

The Diamond Strip is basically a street in the centre of Newcastle which runs between the Central station and Swan House (aka 55 degrees north). This is Primarily Collingwood Street which then turns into Mosley Street further down. The bars which are on The Diamond Strip are: Revolution, Madame Koo, Floritas, Baby Lynch, Perdu; All of these are on Collingwood Street. Further down the road this turns into Mosley Street, and Bijoux bar markets itself as on The Diamond Strip, as does the nightclub Tup Tup Palace which is not on the street at all.

There are other bars on Mosley Street however they do not use the label of  The Diamond Strip. They focus on the ‘funpub’ and cheaper end of the market.

Who goes to The Diamond Strip and whats it like.

The kind of people who go here are 20-35yr olds, young, cool, mature people. The area attracts these kinds of people by selling a range of drinks including cocktails, bottles, and long drinks. You will not find any girls here drinking pints with a straw.

The layout of all the bars is modern and contemporary,  with comfortable places to sit and talk, private booths are available at most places with or without advance booking.

Prices are expensive in comparison to other areas of Newcastle, for example the Bigg Market. Some bars in Newcastle try to attract customers by selling cheaper drinks, such as the trebles bars like Mushroom Bar. The bars on The Diamond Strip sell more sophisticated drinks at higher prices.

The drinks prices are not as expensive as you might think, with a cocktail costing around £6 and cocktail jugs available from Revolution for £14 (£10 if you have a VIP Card) which can serve 6. Bottles will be around £3.20, wine and Champagne anywhere from £10 to £500!.

One of the biggest problems with this area is the label which goes with it, therefore the people it attracts. The majority are fine, nice people having a good night out. But since this is the ‘upper class’ area of Newcastle you do get a few pretentious idiots, late 20 – 30yr old men who think they they are the better than everyone else; Aswell as 21yr old girls who think they are Paris Hilton. Because of this the doormen want to let ‘the cool kids’ in, and if you dont look like one you might not get in the place if there is a queue. Wear the wrong thing, look a bit off, and you will not be getting in if the place is busy (on the other hand if its quiet you will never have a problem-double standards!)

As for the queues, you will queue at peak times (9pm – 11pm) at these bars at the weekend. This is especially seen at the start and end of the months, as this is when people get paid.

The Bars

Revolution

Revolution is on the corner of Collingwood street and i would mark this as the start of The Diamond Strip. This was a former bank, and has an amazing decor, with huge pillars inside, there is nothing else like it in Newcastle. It is a vodka bar, selling a large number of vodkas, aswell as bottles. If this isnt your style, you can get a cocktail from their extensive menu, or if there is a group of you why not get a jug. Another speciality is “the rack” of shots. 6 vodka shots of you choosing, or choose from the set menu.

Madame Koo

Madame Koo is the newest member of the collection of bars from the people who own Floritas and Baby Lynch (next door). This is a very new place, and i am not impressed with it. It has a very open window, with no decor making it look sparse. Maybe it will change in the Future.

Floritas and Baby Lynch

The other 2 members of group owned by the same people are Floritas and Baby Lynch. Floritas is marketed as a Miami Bar, personally i dont see this. Baby Lynch is a smaller bar, and marketed as a neighbourhood bar in the city, which i think it does well. You can sit back, relax and have a drink. Both bars have DJs playing music, Floritas is Funky House whereas Baby Lynch is more mixed playing out some alternative and hip hop beats.

Perdu

Perdu bar is further down the road, again a modern contemporary bar. They play out chart, RnB and Funky House in terms of music, and is open until 3AM on a Saturday night, making it a cool late bar if you dont fancy going to a club. There is plenty space to dance, and many seating areas.

Bijoux

The last bar is again further down the street, and across the road. It is Bijoux Bar. This was recently the navy bar, and before that @home. This is a really cool place, with a nice layout. It is split into 2 sections, with a main room and a more private area away from the bar. There are some booths which can be booked, and directly opposite that is the bar. In the middle is the dancefloor, which i think is a really cool layout, you can be seen dancing from all angles which is not always a good thing! They sell drinks at moderate prices, also selling some premium drinks at a higher price.