Updated 7/3/13 with the latest venues
San Jose is often called the "Capital of Silicon Valley", but what many people don't know is that San Jose is also one of the salsa capitals of the US! San Jose, and the Bay Area in general, is just full of salsa events, and on any night of the week you can find plenty of places to go to get your salsa fix.
Here is a list of 5 great places to go salsa dancing, right in San Jose:
1) Azucar Latin Bistro
Azucar is a great salsa spot, located right in downtown San Jose next to Safeway. Azucar often has live salsa music on Friday and Saturday nights, but the best night to go dancing is on Monday nights, when all the best dancers drop by to get their week off to a good salsa start. In addition to the dancing, Azucar is known for their fantastic Mojitos (guava is my personal favorite) so be sure to stop by the bar while you're there.
More info on Azucar Latin Bistro
2) Agenda Lounge
Wednesday nights, Agenda Lounge is the place to be. Located right in the middle of downtown San Jose, the Agenda Lounge is one of the most popular salsa spots in the Bay Area. On some nights they also bring in live music from top musicians and have performances by local salsa teams. They also have a full bar, so if you're feeling thirsty there's plenty to choose from at Agenda.
3) Top Dance Ballroom Salsa Fridays
This is a relatively new dance studio that's opened up that offers salsa lessons and dancing every Friday night. Located off of Bascom, this spacious studio is a great place to go dancing, and it's open to dancers of all ages.
More info on Top Dance Ballroom
4) Hot Salsa Saturday
Formerly known as "Hot Salsa Friday", Hot Salsa Saturday or HSS has been moved to Saturdays and takes place at the Dance Boulevard in San Jose on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Saturdays of every month. This is one of the largest salsa socials in the Bay, and attracts a large crowd of both beginning and experienced dancers. Dance lessons taught by ESPN World Salsa Champion Michelle Castro.
More info on Hot Salsa Saturday
5) Mambonova Social
The Mambonova Social takes place on the 2nd Saturday of the month at Dance Boulevard (the same location as Hot Salsa Saturday). The features dance lessons, performances from local dance groups, and dancing until the wee hours of the morning.
More info on the Mambonova Social
6) Tekila Rock
Tekila Rock is the newest event on this list, but it is quickly growing to be one of the most popular salsa parties in the South Bay. Hosted in Sunnyvale, just 15 minutes north of San Jose, Tekila Rock restaurant/bar that has live salsa music from great musicians every Saturday night. The bar has a spacious dance floor and a great drink selection, and there is plenty of free parking to boot. If you love live music, then you will love Tekila Rock. There's no better place in the South Bay to go dancing on a Saturday!
Hopefully that's given you enough places to go dancing to keep you busy during the week! I only touched on the events that are held near San Jose in this article, but if you venture north to Mountain View and San Francisco or head south towards Santa Cruz and Monterey, there are even more places to go salsa dancing. Have fun exploring!
