Things to do at night in Newcastle

Newcastle has a great variety of places to eat, from expensive, top-quality restaurants showcasing the talents of young and creative chefs, to fun, relaxed cafés and budget-friendly Chinese restaurants (mostly around Stowell Street in Chinatown). The popular chain restaurants are down by the Quayside. A great place to eat is Blackfriars. It’s housed in a beautiful stone building dating to 1239 and offers superb traditional British dishes made with local ingredients. Mains could include pork loin with a bacon and cheese floddie (potato cakes, originating from Gateshead, and traditionally eaten for breakfast) or a Doddington cheese and onion Wellington with chive cream sauce. For afters, dig into sticky toffee pudding with green grape ice cream and Brown Ale caramel. Do book ahead as it’s popular.

Newcastle’s boisterous pubs and bars are concentrated in several areas: in the Bigg Market (between Grey St and Grainger St), around the Quayside and in the developing Ouseburn area, where bars tend to be quirkier and more sophisticated; in Jesmond, with its thriving student-filled strip of café-bars; and in the mainstream leisure-and-cinema complex known as The Gate (Newgate St). The main LGBTQ area, known as the “Pink Triangle”, focuses on the Centre for Life, spreading out to Waterloo Street and Westmorland and Scotswood roads.

Newcastle is known for its lively night outs and the city’s biggest club night is Shindig, taking place on Saturdays and switching locations around the city. Gigs, club nights and the LGBTQ scene are reviewed exhaustively in the magazine, The Crack which is available in shops, pubs and bars. Digital is a great spot for a dance and stands as one of the city’s top clubs. It has an amazing sound system pumping out a variety of musical genres. If you like cheesy classics, look out for Born in the Sixties nights; while house, funk and disco fans will get their fix on Saturday’s Love nights. Enjoying the city’s clubs is certainly one of the best things to do in Newcastle at night.

Newcastle is a top city for some live music. The Cluny is based in an old whisky bottling plant and is the best small music venue in the city, with something going on most nights, from quirky indie bands to contemporary punk-pop. Cluny 2, around the corner at 34 Lime Street (same hours), is its spacious sister venue, with less frequent gigs.

There’s more to Newcastle than just night outs, it’s also famous for the arts. Tyneside Cinema is the city’s premier arthouse cinema, with coffee, light meals and movie talk in the Art Deco cinema café. The gorgeous restored décor includes Persian-inspired gilded stucco, stained glass and mosaic floors. The Theatre Royal is a grand venue for drama, opera, dance, musicals and comedy. It also hosts the annual RSC season in November. Attending a show is one of the most rewarding things to do in Newcastle at night.