Iconic dance venue to open in St Kilda

The venue that helped helm the revolution of dance music in the mid-late ‘80s is set to open a beachside location in Melbourne.

Café del Mar, the beach club and brand, has been at the forefront of EDM via its headquarters in Ibiza since 1982. In 1994 the first Café del Mar compilation CD was released and since then 18 more have been issued to also include chill-out music from DJ/producers like Moby, Underworld, Chicane and Thomas Newman.

Café del Mar’s Australian Founder Michael Vale has said he will open a sunset bar at St Kilda later this year. The 500 capacity venue will feature three bars and one café on three levels which include an open air rooftop patio and digital screens featuring Ibiza sunsets during the winter months. The location was designed by the Café del Mar intellectual property.

“Café del Mar in Sydney is what I call an urban model for a corporate market,” Vale told TMN. “Café del Mar in Melbourne will clearly be a beach club, a far more casual atmosphere and far more true to the Café del Mar in Ibiza.”

The brand opened the location at Sydney’s Cockle Bay wharf last November. The same month Café del Mar Australia was accused on Facebook by the Ibiza headquarters of opening the Sydney location without permission. However John Zappia, Director, Café del Mar Australia issued a statement where he noted the license was granted by Ramon Guiral Broto, one of the Founders of Café del Mar Ibiza.

Vale said he plans to launch the venue with a renowned DJ from Ibiza and also release CDs, much like the series of compilations which are now synonymous with the brand.

“It’s all about the music,” Vale told TMN, “and Cafe Del Mar Melbourne will not only reintroduce CDM Music but will actually create a number of Australian CDM CDs to be purchased anywhere in the world.”