We had no idea what we were in for, but a bunch of our new Brazilian pals suggested we rendezvous…read moreat Igrejinha for an early one. In a city where the usual going out time is, oh I dunno, like 12am, I was really pleased when I heard we'd be meeting around 8/9pm. So, note to those of you looking for a cool spot before you hit the discotheques, Igrejinha is perfect to get the mood (and cocktails) going. First thought was: super cool ambiance. Igrejinha literally translates in "little church" and while I didn't quite feel like I was in a little church, I certainly felt like I was at a friend's really cool house party and I loved the layout -- the small bar in the main room, the little hallway that leads to a few steps that leads to a cozy dancefloor, and then behind that, a mini terrace where all the smokers congregated. This made it really easy to mix and mingle and meet people (of which we met many). The many people we met were varied. Lots of gay people (mostly men) and lots of alternative folks. This isn't a cheesy, techno thumping gay bar, so the gay guys here didn't walk around with glitter covered chests. Just the opposite, these were more the kinds of dudes I'd almost always welcome being around. The cocktails were fantastic and when my friend recommended I get the best drink ever... and that the best drink ever is a long island iced tea... I got scared. Very, very concerned that I was heading quickly in the direction of a night I'd likely never forget. But instead, I tried her long island iced tea, and it tasted more like a fancy Brazilian version. Somehow, and I didn't know this was even possible, Igrejinha makes a mean, classed-up long island. The other drinks were great too and the bartender was super cool. After drinking and chatting and watching other people smoke, I hit the dancefloor. It felt something like partying in the 90s -- kinda grungy, but definitely respectable. Will I be back? Yeah, totally.

My boyfriend andd I visiting SP and truly enjoyed the bar. Friendly staff, great music, perfect…read moreatmosphere and non cruisy. Cocktails were delish and the bars decor was true to church feeling.

Not receptive of foreigners.... Recommended by local bartenders from other botecas and once arrive…read moreand asked to checked in, a list was waved in front of my face... even though no special events were going on.... was asked to leave due to not being local.

Think sauna with the lights on :) this place is a cool cave like theme with 3 or so rooms to enjoy…read more Bartenders are friendly and , drinks are reasonably priced. A mix of women and men , and that one straight couple ... But rest assured , this club is GAY! You enter with your tab in hand , and pay when you leave. Seems like it's the happening place for Thursday's !

On a night binge in Sao Paulo I staggered here with a huge group of friends that started us off to…read morea fantastic start. We drank a lot of beer here for not a lot of cash and it was awesome! There was only one thing I wished, This place should have been larger! I mean we were 20 deep and probably could have shut this place down, but the more of us there were the more locals came in, I think we could have had over 60 people in that place and we weren't leaving. . . *sigh* memories. This is a place to stop by for beers then stagger down the street to one of what looked like 20 clubs... just note that if you're not too careful you may stagger into a gay bar-- which if you're not in the right mind for it you might find yourself caught of guard. But hey, that's Brazil!

For the most part, I felt like I was back in the United States because the majority of the music…read morewas American Pop. There were stark differences to how you get into the club here. For one, I was confused by the people looking like they are standing in line. In fact, they are actually not. They were pre-drinking on the street. I even saw vendors on the street selling alcohol which was very interesting. The only place I know of in the US that allows drinking outside is in Vegas. Also, I only brought a photocopy of my passport because I didn't want my real one stolen. They were nice enough to accept my passport as proof of age. So they give you a card to track all your expenses including an admission fee of R$50. The club opens at 1130pm so it wasn't so packed when we got there. To my surprise, they played all American music for the first couple of hours. It was nice, but I was also looking forward to Brazilian pop music in which they did play later on in the evening. Drinks were very strong! Just the way I like it! I did appreciate those bartenders dressed in sailor outfits. Overall, it was a good club although some areas were cordoned off. Maybe those were VIP areas? Who knows. At the end of the night, you settle your bill at the front.

From the owner: De Madonna à Beyoncé, de Daft Punk a Calvin Harris. Gente bonita, glamour e jogação na balada mais…read morepop de São Paulo.

For Christmas Eve, it was one of the only gay bars still open. Luckily Bar Da Lôca was still open…read more The ideal seat is really outside, but they were all taken when we got there so we sat inside, but adjacent to the door. I'm not used to bars being so bright, but it is refreshing to go to a bar with light so you can actually see their lovely face. First, we started with a Skol beer, a Brazilian beer to be exact. It costed R$9 for a 600mL bottle. What a great deal! Then we had Caipirinhas which were utterly strong! The bartender knew I wanted a strong drink, although it was probably too sweet. I was pretty buzzed by the time I finished my drinks. I think it is a good place to pre-drink before heading out to the clubs.