Stag Nightlife Guide to Newcastle Quayside
| Top Reasons to Visit Newcastle Quayside |
|---|
 | Bars - The Quayside's bars are as stylish as they come, with the city's best views. |
 | Restaurants - You've got pie and mash restaurants and the all-round classic, Spoons. |
 | Music - The Glasshouse is a landmark live music venue on the banks of the Tyne, along with top buskers at cool pubs. |
 | Shopping - Every Sunday, hundreds flock to the Quayside Market - dedicated to crafts and food. |
 | Art - The Baltic sits pretty on the Quayside, but the real art to this district is the sleek bars (and the pints). |
The Quayside is for artfully leaning against the bar with a malt whisky and attempting to impress the lasses with nee coats on. The vibrant area, surrounding Newcastle’s famous River Tyne, is the city’s hub for art, music and craft beer, and has undergone massive regeneration.
Set to a backdrop of the Millennium Bridge and Tyne Bridge (we love wor bridges), this nightlife zone is bursting after dark. Bars line the banks of the water, spilling into the streets in summer, and combine the drinking the Geordies are famous for, along with panoramic views. You’ve also got our most iconic attractions (we’re not talking about bridges), in the form of the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Arts – hosting temporary and exciting exhibitions – as well as the Glasshouse in Gateshead. The Glasshouse is also our original live music venue, regularly hosting live bands and even the Radio 6 Music Festival.
You’ve got your pick of all sorts of venues on the Quayside, including glass-style bars, old-school pubs and even VIP clubs that have attracted Floyd Mayweather.
Pitcher & Piano
108 Quayside, NE1 3DX
Visit WebsiteThe Pitcher & Piano is, by far, the most popular Quayside venue, sitting pretty next to the Millennium Bridge. It’s glass-fronted, boasts gorgeous crowds and even better beers. The venue directly overlooks the water (and the bridge) and is one of those bars that get even busier in the warmer months (as warm as the baltic North East can get…). The outdoor terrace is packed with ‘after work’ drinkers and locals enjoying the sun, and there’s another terrace on the first floor that can be privately booked. This place mixes food with pleasure - unique in that you can tuck into delicious evening meals, but spend your entire night here. There’s even a top DJ every weekend, along with a massive range of craft beer. Pro tip: subscribe to the newsletter and get a free drink for your stag weekend.
Aveika
10-15 Sandhill, NE1 3AF
Visit WebsiteMoving further down the Quayside, you’ve got Aveika – and this is upmarket personified. Aveika is a modern, Japanese-style bar with a sushi grill and classy drinks. That’s not to mention the outdoor terrace - as plush as can be - with comfy sofas underneath the protection of the Tyne Bridge. As the home of its very own ‘Miss Aveika’, the crowds are all you’d expect from Newcastle (and then some). The girls are glamorous in short dresses and high heels, and the bar staff are even suited and booted. Consider this place for your evening meal, as even Floyd Mayweather has dined in this place. And, once you are done – move onto the multi-room bar, boasting a top floor VIP area and magnums of Champagne. It’s got your name all over it.
Livello
Lower Dean Street, 39 Side, NE1 3JE
Visit WebsiteDescribing itself as “Newcastle's Best Bar and Late Night Venue”, Livello has classy pink booths that are fab for big groups, epic lighting and an awesome outdoor courtyard. The courtyard has a wonderful undercover terrace, which is surrounded by lush green plants and has heat lamps and a bar. You can enjoy great music, innovative cocktails and table service. Cocktail-wise, you can expect a mixture of classics like mojitos and cosmopolitans etc, but you’ll also find quirky ones like Toffee Apple and Marshmallow Martinis. Some of the drinks even come with fireworks on them, how’s that for snazzy? With its electric atmosphere, this is a brill place to ‘Livello it up’!
The Bridge Tavern
7 Akenside Hill, NE1 3UF
Visit WebsiteThe Bridge Tavern is a firm favourite with the locals. They actually brew their own beer in house, in association with Wylam Brewery, which is the region’s leading craft brewer. It has two bars, one upstairs one downstairs. There’s some lovely outside seating downstairs, but the best thing is the outdoor terrace upstairs, which gives you amazing close-up views of the iconic Tyne bridge. It’s surrounded by greenery and has heat lamps, making it a lush place to chill out with a pint. This fab pub has seen the likes of Johnny Depp and Sam Fender have a drink there, which is pretty impressive – and almost as impressive as their cracking Sunday dinner, which really is one of the best around!
No. of Bars: Two
Sports:Yes
Beer Garden:Yes
Live Music:No
Fancy Dress:No
Happy Hours:No
Akenside
Dean St, NE1 1PQ
Visit WebsiteAkenside is a buzzing pub, with a warm atmosphere, that will delight fans of live sport, as they stream live football, rugby and boxing regularly. It has Sky Sports and BT Sport giving you access to a wider selection of sporting events. It’s one of the only places on the quayside that streams live sports. They boast a massive range of craft beers, ciders and premium lagers, plus gins, rum, tequila and an extensive menu of cocktails. It has a pool table and a beer garden. If you’re feeling peckish then they do stone baked pizzas and tapas. It’s a fab place to go for a hair of the dog pint on the Sunday morning.
No. of Bars: One
Sports:Yes
Beer Garden:Yes
Live Music:No
Fancy Dress:No
Happy Hours:No
Slug and Lettuce
Exchange Buildings, NE1 3DW
Visit WebsiteThe Slug is a classic on the Newcastle Quayside. The stag friendly pub chain is seriously popular, and unique to the area. The venue is set underneath the Tyne Bridge – in one of the city’s best locations – boasting unparalleled views of the river. There’s seating outside to enjoy those impressive views, or you can keep toasty by the floor to ceiling windows. They serve all the food comforts to keep you going through the weekend, along with a whole load of beer and shots and bombs. Said bombs include the Jammy Doughnut, JD Tennessee Fire and Orgasm. Make of that info what you will…
Head of Steam
11-17 Broad Chare, NE1 3DQ
Visit WebsiteHead of Steam is the unofficial head of craft beer bars on Newcastle Quayside. Set in one of the oldest buildings by the water, and with a huge brother just opposite the train station, this is part of the beer boom foundation taking over the city. Speaking of, you’ve got keg beers – such as Tontine and Vedett Extra Blond – cask ales and bottled beers, as well as a dedicated beer tasting room to sup it like a pro. However, there’s also massive space in the bar for regular folk to take the load off, and even sample the tasty meals.
No. of Bars: One
Sports:No
Beer Garden:No
Live Music:Yes
Fancy Dress:Yes
Happy Hours:No
Offshore 44
32 Sandhill, NE1 3JF
Visit WebsiteSituated in a Grade II listed building, this charming pub has exposed wooden beams, roaring open fires and a warm atmosphere. Fans of live music are going to be delighted because they regularly host acoustic sessions that will possibly also include a sea shanty or two! The prices are very reasonable and will be cheaper than some of the flashier waterside bars. You can get 2 for £12.00 cocktails every Friday and Saturday all day, with cocktail options such as banana colada, watermelon daiquiri and chilli margarita. It’s a fab spot to stop for lunch as this is THE place to go for pie and mash with 10 amazing pies to choose from again at a very reasonable price.
No. of Bars: One
Sports:No
Beer Garden:No
Live Music:Yes
Fancy Dress:No
Happy Hours:Yes
Hard Rock Café
The Guildhall, Sandhill, NE1 3AF
Visit WebsiteThis is one of the only cafes (if not the only café) in Newcastle with its own gift shop. This famous American franchise will wow you from the moment you walk in with all of its epic Hard Rock Café Memorabilia, including guitars mounted on the walls and displays with iconic outfits in them. It’s open plan and set over two floors with plenty of space for all your pals, but it is popular so you might want to book ahead. They offer some fun signature cocktails such as Hurricane (a New Orleans Classic) and a Caribbean Mojito, plus a range of beers, wines and spirits. It does classic American comfort food with a huge choice of sharing plates. Don’t let the word café put you off as it is open till 1am on a Friday and Saturday making it an ideal spot for late night drinks.
No. of Bars: One
Sports:No
Beer Garden:No
Live Music:Yes
Fancy Dress:No
Happy Hours:Yes
The Hooch
81 Quayside, NE1 3DE
Visit WebsiteThe Hooch boasts some of the best views of the quayside. It has a big ceiling to floor window that’s perfectly centred on the Millennium bridge. It’s lovely in the day, but even better at night because you can relax, with a drink in your hand, and watch as the Millennium bridge changes colour. Very often, they will host DJs who will play a range of music from soul to jazz to funk to neo-soul. Sometimes you will have performers come and perform an acoustic set. It’s a chilled-out bar rather than a party bar, but is well worth checking out if you fancy a chill drink before things get messy. It’s not the biggest venue around so we’d recommend booking a table.
No. of Bars: One
Sports:No
Beer Garden:No
Live Music:Yes
Fancy Dress:No
Happy Hours:No
Cash, Cabs and (Not Quite) Kebabs
Cash Machines
Onto the cash, you’ve got a few spread out to choose from (stretch those legs) – including one behind the ever-loved P&P, an ATM at the Tesco, just behind the law courts, and one right next door to The Bridge Tavern.
Taxis
The Newcastle Quayside is slap-bang in the centre, within easy walking distance of all nightlife zones. Although, we recommend a taxi if you are coming from Jesmond. The Bigg Market is the furthest district, taking only 10 minutes to get from the legendary Filthy’s to a pint in the Slug and Lettuce. However, if you insist on a taxi, you’re looking at a couple of quid – tip the driver. The Newcastle Quayside does have a dedicated taxi rank behind the Pitcher & Piano to take you back to your hotel, as well as bus links on the main street.
Takeaways
If we’re honest (and you know we are), the Quayside isn’t the typical destination for takeaways, and you’ll have to walk up the start of Dean Street to get your hands on a burger. There's one slap bang in the middle of that and Grey Street, selling pizzas that have never looked so inviting. If you walk even further up the road to the Bigg Market - home to the cheeseburger - you'll find even more options to soak up that booze. But, we do have a Greggs and a Michelin-starred restaurant on the Quayside, so silver linings…
Newcastle's nightlife is huge and, after all that info, we can assume you're ready to plan your stag do. You can build your own Geordie celebration on our massive Newcastle stag weekends page.
*We know all there is to know about the Quayside, and all info on the zone was correct at the time of publication - 31/05/2023. Probably.