I checked out the milonga at Leonardo’s recently, typically a salsa venue on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles.
It’s a fantastic space, nice dance floor, and there’s a stage for performances, of which milonga organizer Linda Valentino has had a few, with local and visiting tango orchestras.
There’s a bar and Mexican food served…I hear the tacos are great.
The $12 entrance fee used to include a drink, but that’s been recently canceled. So it can get pricey (like Milonga El Floridita can be, too) if you want to eat, drink and dance.
It starts early, 7 p.m., and ends early, 11 p.m.
Maybe Linda will make it a later milonga, as word on the street is people are going later rather than earlier, and are disappointed it ends too early.
Click here for address and map
This milonga is designed to be similar to the “matinee milongas” in Buenos Aires, so it starts earlier for those who have to get up early, but would still like to go out and dance on a weeknight and not have to wait until 9 pm. We would like to extend the milonga to midnight, but we need larger numbers so the owners can justify staying open & paying their staff the extra hour. We average 65-80 people per week (sometimes a few more), but we’d like to get to 90-100 so we can lobby the owners for that extra hour. So come down and bring your friends! We have the best classic tango music in town, and the space is wonderful–the closest thing to BsAs in L.A. And you can dance, have a drink and a couple of tacos for about $20. Considering that some milongas in this town charge $15 and then give you water in a dixie cup, I think that’s a good deal! Dancers need to remember that the club owners are there to make a living–they can’t afford to give us a free dance floor.
AND NOW WE’RE OPEN UNTIL MIDNIGHT! Entry is $8 for those who enter after 10 pm.