By gone places / Bulldog, disco that disappeared in 2018
El Bulldog Café was one of the few venues in the 90s for major Spanish rock bands to perform live
By Alejandro Pohlenz
Rafael Villafañe, along with a partner, created one of the most significant nightclubs in the country in 1977: Baby’ O in Acapulco. He is the half-brother of Mildred Villafañe (whom I met in the 80s while she was working at Televisa), the inventor of the hugely successful Flans concept in 1985.
In 1992, Mr. Rafael opened Bulldog Café on Sullivan Street, known for its “gallant life,” in the Cuauhtémoc neighborhood of Mexico City. This marked the beginning of a historic trend in our country's music called Rock en tu idioma.
Discoteca with Live Music
Bulldog became a discoteca (we didn’t call them nightclubs back then) that embraced great bands like Maná, formerly Sombrero Verde, in which Mildred was also involved. At that time, Maná was skyrocketing with hits like "Vivir sin aire" and the track that has sold 10 million copies: "¿Dónde jugarán los niños?"
The illustrious Bulldog stage also hosted Café Tacuba (formed in 1989), Molotov (1995), Fobia (1987), La Castañeda (1989), La Cuca (1989), La Lupita (1991), Kinky (1999), among many, many others.
Just Wait in Line
The party at Bulldog was unbeatable. Strident, irreverent, carefree; I also remember it was one of the few nightclubs where you didn’t need anything to get in—just stand in line, which could get quite long, as it was always packed with people.
In 1997, the Sullivan location closed, and a new Bulldog opened in Mixcoac in 2000, which survived until 2018 when it finally shut down for good.
For many, it was considered the Mecca of Mexican rock. Unfortunately, we no longer have places like this in CDMX.
What We Loved: El moradito (vodka with grape juice).
What We Didn't Like as Much: Always packed to the brim.
Address: (The second) Rubens 6, corner of Avenida Revolución, 03730, Benito Juárez, CDMX
Hours of Operation: Closed permanently.
