Cafe Salsa is one of those rare places that can be recommended for both happy hour during the week and dancing on the weekends. I've been there more often than not with friends who live and work in Alexandria because it really is the best happy hour deal in Old Town: Every day from 4 to 7, all drinks and appetizers are half price at the restaurant's second-floor bar.

That's less than $3 for a plate of ropa vieja empanadas (large, flaky pastries stuffed with shredded Cuban beef) and a spicy green dipping sauce, or 50 cents more for a huge chicken quesadilla that's lighter than it looks, though filled with chicken and peppers.

Cafe Salsa offers a number of beers that match the nuevo Latino cuisine -- bottles of Negro Modelo (Mexico), Presidente (Dominican Republic) and Cristal (Peru); and Dos Equis (Mexico) on draft. But look around the room, you'll notice that everyone seems to be drinking from the same glass -- one filled with mint leaves and chunks of lime, and topped by a towering swizzle stick of sugar cane. That's Cafe Salsa's mojito, and it's one of the best around, though execution can be a little uneven when the bar is packed. (Purists may balk at the use of club soda and a splash of sour, but bartenders will hold off if you ask first.) I know the mojitos craze is a bit tired, so there are other drinks worth your attention -- just ask for the drink menu.

I lean toward the Caribbean rum cooler, a heady blend of four rums, orange juice and pineapple. It's so good you may find yourself tempted to order a third before you realize what hit you. For something lighter, the Latinopolitan jazzes up the staid cosmo with citrus rum and fresh mint; elsewhere, the Brazilian caipirinha takes an interesting twist when fresh mango is added.

While the cocktails can transport you to exotic climes, the bar is an austere, dimly lit room with some nice touches, including the art-deco-style lamps and the large mirrors hanging on dark wooden walls.

Busier happy hours are especially cramped, as groups who order a couple of appetizers to share have a hard time finding places to rest the enormous plates. Problems are compounded by the layout -- the long, wide bar is positioned in the center of the narrow room, with a row of high tables and chairs on the opposite wall. As a result, crowds can stand a maximum of two deep at the bar, and customers are constantly squeezing up against one another to order drinks, filing toward the bathrooms or to get to the dining area at the front of the building, where, several times a week, tables are cleared for a makeshift dance floor. (If you're claustrophobic, it's best to head for one of the few tables in the far back of the room.) Come back after 10 on a Friday or Saturday and the place will be hopping with a mix of salsa fans, couples and girls'-night-out parties. Aside from the odd detour into 50 Cent or Terror Squad, the DJ spins Spanish-language hits that get folks at the bar singing along and fill the striped tile floor with slick, confident dancers -- as well as some who look to be practicing the moves taught during Tuesday night's salsa classes.

Be warned: Though there's no cover charge to dance on weekends, weekly lessons with SalsaMagic cost $20 per couple or $13 per single, with instruction from 7:30 to 9:30, followed by a DJ all night. It's far easier (and cheaper) to visit on a Friday night.

-- Fritz Hahn (May 2005)