Underneath the rush of Interstate 280, along the eastern side of Potrero Hill, sits a nightclub that looks nothing like the neighborhood’s dreary industrial buildings. Bordered by tall wooden fences, palm trees rest their green, jagged leaves over the sides of the walls like open arms, encouraging curious outsiders to venture in.

On the nightclub’s balcony, partygoers are seen socializing, gossiping and enjoying a lime-infused Corona or refreshing mojito. Inside, masses of people border a disco-lit dance floor, while two dance instructors count out steps on a raised stage to the dancers below.

For many, Monday nights are dedicated to checking e-mail, school projects and bedtime reading. However, for the San Franciscan who wants to start their week off with a buzz, Café Cocomo offers Monday night salsa lessons to whoever is willing to shake their groove “thang” on the dance floor.

Café Cocomo has become a local favorite for San Francisco salsa aficionados. Dancers often flock to the club on Thursday and Saturday nights to shimmy and swivel to the beats of DJ Fab Freed and Luis Medina.

The club never considered Monday night salsa classes until a local dancer suggested that the club have a night where people could come and enjoy a proper salsa lesson.

Passionate dancer and teacher Fernando Delatorre helped make the Monday night salsa classes a reality. “I have been teaching salsa dancing for about eight years. Nowhere in the city had a place for people to salsa on a Monday night until I started teaching lessons at Cocomo,” he says.

Delatorre was ecstatic about teaching lessons at the club, but he needed a partner to demonstrate steps with him. Mimi Takeuchi grew to love salsa dancing and Spanish music after she took a trip to Costa Rica. After moving to San Francisco, she became a regular at Cocomo.

Delatorre took notice of Takeuchi’s natural skills on the dance floor. The two became friends, and Delatorre asked Takeuchi to be his Monday night teaching partner.

“I’m not a teacher, I just love to social dance,” says Takeuchi. “When Fernando approached me about helping him teach, I was hesitant at first, but he quickly turned my confidence around.”

After the couple started teaching the class, Monday nights became a hit for both expert and novice salsa dancers. Clubgoers can take a 90-minute lesson for just $7 and enjoy the club for the remainder of the evening. The lessons are divided into three parts: open footwork, a beginner combination and an intermediate and advanced combination.

“The class is wonderful because anyone can do it,” says Takeuchi. “It doesn’t matter what your ethnicity is or how old you are; it’s just about having fun and letting it all out on the dance floor.”

“I look forward to coming every week,” says regular attendee Kaz Ardekanian. “Fernando and Mimi make this dance look like an art form and watching them just makes me want to have fun and shake what I’ve got.”

With the enthusiastic crowds, Cocomo’s makes a fun date spot or alternative to the usual dive bar. Monday night bartender Will Prouty enjoys working this colorful event, “It’s cool because you see a lot of the same people and new faces every week,” says Prouty. “On Mondays it isn’t about getting drunk and hooking up, it’s mainly about the dancing.”

Café Cocomo
Monday night lessons: $7 at the door.
cafecocomo.com for more information