Bar Zuka closing

nickclayton

Active Member
Just heard from a mate that after a lousy season Mark's decided to 'knock it on the head' and Bar Zuka in Ibiza port is no more. It's a sad day. Zuka has become an institution and Mark is certainly once met, never forgotten. I haven't had chance to speak to him to see what he's going to be up to. But next summer won't be the same.
 
oh, thats poo..... i spoke with mark the other day and he didnt mention anything about it!! :(:(:(

zukalogo.jpg
 
this is really sad news, and a worrying sign of the times for ibiza when a bar that's been open for 18yrs (i think) has to now shut

Zuka is a lovely bar, and Mark is a great host who always makes you feel welcome and always has a few stories to tell ...

when we were in there early sept he was telling us about a €15K he'd been landed with for still being 'open' at 4.30am one night ... apparently the bar was closed, they just happened to have the door still open and were cleaning up etc. ... wonder if this has something to do with this closure. :rolleyes:

a night out in ibiza town won't be the same without stopping by zuka ... :cry:
 
this is really sad news, and a worrying sign of the times for ibiza when a bar that's been open for 18yrs (i think) has to now shut

Zuka is a lovely bar, and Mark is a great host who always makes you feel welcome and always has a few stories to tell ...

when we were in there early sept he was telling us about a €15K he'd been landed with for still being 'open' at 4.30am one night ... apparently the bar was closed, they just happened to have the door still open and were cleaning up etc. ... wonder if this has something to do with this closure. :rolleyes:

a night out in ibiza town won't be the same without stopping by zuka ... :cry:

agree completely. it was our first stop on both previous visits, nice & very helpfull guy, lovely bar.
 
He still has that €15k fine hanging over him and it seems most of the other bars in the port have similar penalties against them. Some are actually much larger. They're working together at the moment to try and get them overthrown in court.

But that's not the main reason he's given up the bar. Along with just about every other tourist-oriented business he's had a lousy summer. Nobody expects next year to be any better. And it's hard work running a bar even if you've got no customers. In fact hanging around can be even more tiring.

When I spoke to him last night he sounded relieved to have the weight off his shoulders. As he says he's had the responsibility for the last 12 years for paying for everything from the toilet paper to the rent and Hazel's wages.

It's a shame, but, he reckoned carrying on would have cost him his sanity....
 
He still has that €15k fine hanging over him and it seems most of the other bars in the port have similar penalties against them. Some are actually much larger. They're working together at the moment to try and get them overthrown in court.

But that's not the main reason he's given up the bar. Along with just about every other tourist-oriented business he's had a lousy summer. Nobody expects next year to be any better. And it's hard work running a bar even if you've got no customers. In fact hanging around can be even more tiring.

When I spoke to him last night he sounded relieved to have the weight off his shoulders. As he says he's had the responsibility for the last 12 years for paying for everything from the toilet paper to the rent and Hazel's wages.

It's a shame, but, he reckoned carrying on would have cost him his sanity....

i can see the point. we were in there, early/mid july at 1am & we were literally the only people. give him some love from spotlight when you see him next!
 
I went to see Mark deejaying at Base Bar. "Eclectic" may be the word to describe his style :confused:. Fridays at Base Bar are intended to be a regular event. We'll see.

I've met Brandon Block in Base Bar too. First time we'd chatted for about 20 minutes before I asked: "What do you do for a living?" Fortunately Mark stepped in to subtly point out my ignorance :oops:.
 
when we were in there early sept he was telling us about a €15K he'd been landed with for still being 'open' at 4.30am one night ... apparently the bar was closed, they just happened to have the door still open and were cleaning up etc.
which reminds me what 1 y dos in figueretas posted on facebook back in september:

As some of you may know, the Ibiza Council changed all the rules this year. The major rule that affects everyone is the new opening and closing times for all the bars, restaurants and clubs.

In short all the clubs have to be closed by 6am, and all the bars have to be closed by 3am.

No major stress really - just means we get a little more time to sleep, a few hours less to try and make some money.

However the enforcement of these rules has now gotten a little bit silly.

One night in July, we had two couples sitting outside the bar having a quiet drink, when husband number 1 got a little upset and decided to smack his wife! So being the nice people that we are, we allowed wife number 1 and couple number 2 to come and sit inside the bar while husband number 1 went for a walk to calm down.

At the appropriate pumpkin hour (3am) we closed our doors and shut shop. Whilst we were cleaning up, the three slightly hysterical and very afraid customers sat on our sofa to recollect themselves.

A while later, husband number 1 returned even more irate than before and started banging on the door and screaming and shouting. We tried to tell him to be quiet and go away but as with most ignorant and aggressive people he was not listening to reason.

After he verbally abused us and then physically threaten Una, I proceeded to call the police to hopefully take him away.

Boy was this ever a mistake!!

The police showed up within 7 minutes by which time wife number 1 had joined her husband outside as she believed this was the only way he would calm down.

The police then decided that we were open beyond our allocated opening hours and issued us with a ticket.

Well the ticket came in the post two days ago and we are currently facing a fine of anything between 15,000 and 30,000 Euro.

Yes you read those number correctly, my finger did not get stuck on the zero key.

Needless to say we have lodged an appeal and now await the judges decision, which will be forthcoming once the judge has spoken to the policeman concerned.

Basically our word against his!!

So watch this space and please put good words in with whomever or whatever you believe in that the judge believes us and not the policeman.

Because if the judge believes the policeman, unfortunately Bar 1 y Dos will be no more.


in related news, according to UH during the last days the local police in ibiza town has been visiting the music bars open during the winter to remind them the closing times
(3am during the week, 3.30am on weekends).....
 
1 y dos

which reminds me what 1 y dos in figueretas posted on facebook back in september:


That is just a terrible story:-( They are such lovely people. I've met them when I was on Ibiza for the first time and to me their mentality entails what Ibiza is about.
I really hope they don't have to close shop. Could you tell me where they can be found on facebook mackie?

Edit: never mind, search actually works on facebook :)
 
I take it Bar Zuka is now indeed closed. Does anyone know if anythng else is happening to the venue, or what Mark will be up to now?

Real shame to see it go.
 
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