Empório Café

Relaxed place for a happy hour with friends. At the main point of João Pessoa, it is quite fun on karaoke days. LGBTQIA+ main audience

Relaxed bar, with good options of dishes, has karaoke, is well located and when I was attended a stand up show, a bit time consuming

Great , we went to the comedy show and had dinner and then had a very fun karaoke we loved and recommended. We'll be back as soon as we're in JP

In the past, Cafe Emporio was a great little gay bar with wonderful food and drinks. I'd come early, get a table on the veranda, have a dinner, and then move inside for some dancing and drinks with friends. Now, things are completely different. The entrance had been one street in from the beach road, and because it was the only gay bar in Jampa, this street became a congregating spot for the LGBT community. Noticing this, Cafe Emporio didn't like this and decided to renovate and change things. They didn't like that some young people who couldn't afford the cover charge would stay on the street instead of paying to come inside. Cafe Emporio's owners changed the entrance to the other side of the building, facing the beach road, expanded to include the downstairs floor, moved the cafe for food downstairs (instead of on their lovely veranda upstairs overlooking everything on the boardwalk), and prohibited anyone from entering the actual "bar" until 9pm. The new cafe area downstairs is nowhere near as pleasant --- the inside area is too small and felt confined --- the outside tables were amidst the crowds of people shopping at the many stalls immediately in front and offered no appealing view. Because of this, we decided to choose another restaurant to eat, and to meet friends at Cafe Emporio later for drinks and dancing. When we arrived at Cafe Emporio after dinner, we discovered a lot of black-suited rather large men attempting to look formidable guarding the entrance --- it was NOT welcoming or friendly at all! One of the nicest things about Cafe Emporio in the past was the friendly and welcoming atmosphere. This is completely gone! Even the waitresses in the cafe weren't very friendly. But the vibe and tone of the line of men in costumes of "black suits" really told me that Cafe Emporio had changed for the worse. Additionally, there is now a cover charge to enter the gay bar ALL THE TIME! In the past, if you came early for dinner, or if it was not a busy night, no cover charge. Now, Cafe Emporio collects a cover charge when the bar opens at 9pm, and as it gets later, the cover charge increases to R$40. Yet, because of the blacked out windows and a customer's inability to see inside (except to see anyone who might be standing on the upstairs balcony) a customer cannot tell if they will be paying R$40 to gain entrance into a complete empty bar or a bar that is full of people. Cafe Emporio used to be a really friendly and welcoming gay bar serving the LGBT community. Now it's unfriendly, and might be in the process of losing its LGBT clientele --- there were a lot of non-gay people there. Whatever magic that Cafe Emporio had seems to be lost now. I really hope that Cafe Emporio will read this review and change things. If they don't, someone else will open a gay bar that serves the needs of Jampa's LGBT community.

Nice bar! We went there for a jazz session which was really good. The food and the cocktails are very tasty

I am staying in Joao Pessoa right now and I discovered this café which I have to say is really nice. The terrace is very cosy, the food is good and the crew is really kind. I definitely recommend this place :) Cheers

It is a gay bar (maybe the only in João Pessoa). Nice music, fear prices and kind people. Gay men and women in a good atmosphere.