Coko Bongo

I’ve passed this club many times along Ave. Revolucion. I’ve always heard loud music and many people going into this place, so this time around I decided to give it a try.
The cover charge was $ 13.00US. The inside of the place is actually a lot smaller than I thought it would be. The music was popping, but the crowd was not really my scene. There was a mixture of quality in the crowd, but the drinks weren’t too bad. The place is rather narrow, but has an upstairs portion. The upstairs leads to other seating areas and rooms playing other types of music.
This club is mostly frequented by locals in their early 20s. My buddies and I stuck around for maybe 30 minutes and moved on. It didn’t really suit our fancy, but other people may find it more appealing.
The restrooms were pretty badly maintained, so I would not use them here. Other than that, the place serves as an ok destination for a night out in TJ.

Way too loud. Watered down drinks. Did I mention way too loud… left after 20 minutes.

Call me oldskool– the type of old fool that knows a thing or two about a good beat. But fast forward to today and these kids are listening to some rubbish. The music is so loud here, that it not only makes your ears hurt but your body too.
I wound up being a wingman for my buddy, so there was little choice in my selection of even coming here in the first place. Little did I know we paid 170 pesos or more to obtain admittance. We were so buzzed, I elect not to read the signs «All You Can Drink».
Walking in it felt like Wizard of Oz with the green emerald of the lighting system. Soothing to the eyes, but the music was unbearable. We sat down and was offered a table. Within minutes the beer arrived in little plastic cups.
I observed the mayhem, which made sense on what is getting this generation impregnated. They start off with moving their hips that would make Dirty Dancing look like Clean Dancing. How dirty was it? It was just a dirty as the poor floor these lost souls were moving to.
Eventually the music become recognizable. The group of us made it to the dance floor only to be in the heart of these hooligans. Sweat, bad lighting and too many petos on the dance floor was present. Get me outta here, I shouted in my mind!
When I departed the foursome to use the restroom, my friend was no where to be seen. All I could do was watch and witness a few glasses being shattered, a few push and shoves of a drunken fight and the one hot mess that was dancing without her shoes on. Oh what a night!
El Gordo: AYCD– All You Can Drink or soon-​to-​puke done in good fashion.
El Flaco: Please tell the DJ that sirens should only be used sparingly.

Cuando conocí este lugar, pensé que sería igual a los bares de cancun o playa del Carmen ya que existen iguales con el mismo nombre, pero cuando entre me lleve la sorpresa que era totalmente distinto a aquellos.
Desde el logo, solo tiene el mismo nombre, sin embargo aunque entre engañado me la pase súper bien, casi todos los que van al lugar son 100% americanos y hasta los meseros hablan inglés, me la pasé súper bien ya que las americanas son de mente abierta y ellas se vienen a divertir y pues lo que importa es la fiesta eso hace que se arme muy bien la fiesta.
Las bebidas preparadas están entre 5 y 9 dlls dependiendo la que pidas, y no hay cover en este lugar pero si te piden un mínimo de bebidas para entrar que son 3 que prácticamente es como cobrarte cover pero a diferencia de que te dan producto que respalda lo que gastas.

I’m by no means a Tijuana clubber, so take this as your TJ for Dummies by Dummies Guide. Cover was $ 14 USD, but that’s not bad with a limited open bar for alcohol. Rolling with a large group got us the perks of having our own private area and a server to bring us drinks. We tipped him generously upfront, and he would be bringing us round after round of drinks. Really though, don’t ask, just drink. We got started with a orange cocktail, followed by a blue cocktail, then more orange cocktails, then beers.
-=-Table Service-​=- This ain’t Hollywood, so you’re not going to be paying $ 200USD per bottle. We were seated in the balcony area by the DJ. Pretty dead up here, but you can almost call it VIP since we had a security guy guarding the stairs. Don’t ask me how he knew who to let up. If you just nodded, he’d let you pass. The most desirable party tables would probably be upfront near the door since this is where most of the crowd was hanging. Also, if you need air, there is a 2^nd floor balcony that looks down on the street. At any other bar in LA, this would be crowded with smokers, but in TJ… you just smoke anywhere.
-=-Whistling Tequila Guys-​=- These are guys that wander around with a tequila bottle and a whistle. He’ll forcefully cock your head back and try to pour tequila down your throat. If you let him, then it’s at a cost, open bar or not. Really though, it’s relatively cheap at $ 2 – 3 USD per shot, but it’s one of those «wish I knew that» before I got him to do all my other friends.

Si algo me gusta de la ciudad es la diversidad. Cualquier gusto o capricho, por oscuro y retorcido que sea, Tijuana está lista para cumplirlo. Y no piensen mal, estoy hablando de diversión sana.
El último en pie de la época de oro para las discotecas de Tijuana, CokoBongo es una tradición que sobrevivió al paso del tiempo gracias a sus constantes cambios y a su sentido de adaptación. Todo el fin de semana lo puedes ver a reventar.
Debo admitir que yo ya sabía a lo que me enfrentaba cuando entré por primera vez. Y como no saberlo, si aún se habla en los pasillos sobre el CokoBongo. Después de un rato en la lista de espera, entramos para toparnos con la música hit en… ¿Qué género es? Diría que son los remixes de las canciones pop del momento, además de los éxitos del reggaetón más sonados en el 2008 (la mejor época del género).
La bebida no es cara. Cubetas de 10 medias, botellas si te quieres ver nice, o la siempre dispuesta caguama, si el qué dirán te importa menos que la botella. Sin duda este lugar existe para quienes gustan de ese ambiente, y para quienes disfrutan probando cosas diferentes.
Lo que si rescato del lugar es su sistema de taxis libres. Tienen varias unidades con itinerarios y tarifas fijas. Esto con el fin de evitar que manejen en estado inconveniente. No conozco si los precios son excesivos, pues teníamos conductor «resignado», pero sin duda es más barato que los gastos de un hospital.