Pick up a copy of Clubs et Concerts at the Office de Tourisme or Bordeaux Plus at a newsstand; both detail the goings-on in and around town.
A play or an opera could make a good start to your evening. Grand Théâtre, place de la Comédie (tel. 05-56-00-85-20), has a busy, diverse performance schedule.
You'll find gambling, drinking, dining, and people-watching at Casino de Bordeaux, in the Hôtel Sofitel Bordeaux Lac, rue Cardinal Richaud (tel. 05-56-69-49-00). Rooms containing slot machines operate daily 10am to 4am. There's no admission charge. To enter the more formal gaming rooms (site of the roulette and blackjack tables), you must present a passport or an identity card. They're open every night 9pm until 4am. Live entertainment of some kind usually begins around 8pm Friday. The casino has an informal brasserie on the street level, where fixed-price menus cost 20€ to 25€ ($26-$33), and a restaurant one floor up, where fixed-price menus begin at 31€ ($40).
Animated street life rules the inner core of Bordeaux by night. Head to place de la Victoire, place St-Pierre, place du Parlement, place Camille Jullian, and place Gambetta; the latter swarms with students. Night owls in Bordeaux gravitate toward quai du Paludate, where restaurants, bars, and discos remain open until the wee hours.
Two trendy, glamorous bars are L'Absolute Lounge, rue de la Devise (tel. 05-56-48-80-00), which occasionally schedules live "electro-jazz"; and La Casa Latina, 59 quai Chartrons (tel. 05-57-87-15-80), where merengue, salsa, and bachata might make you think that you've landed in the Dominican Republic or Brazil.
The leading gay bar, BHV (Bar de l'Hôtel de Ville), 4 rue de l'Hôtel de Ville (tel. 05-56-44-05-08), is in the heart of town, across from the town hall. The handsomest men of Bordeaux, or so it is said, turn up here daily 6pm to 2am. Drag shows take place from September to June on Sunday at 10pm.
A good choice for dancing is Sénéchal, 57 bis quai de Paludate (tel. 05-56-85-54-80), with its 1970s decor and just as classic 25- to 45-year-old crowd.
