Dirty Sixth Bar Transforms Into Latin Music Club by the Group Behind Mexican Restaurant Gabriela’s

Hospitality heavyweight Gabriela Bucio is turning closed Dirty Sixth bar Buckshot into a Latin music wonderland, Mala Fama. Mala Fama will open on Friday, July 28 at 422 East 6th Street in downtown Austin.

Mala Fama, which is Spanish for “notoriety,” will be a three-story indoor-outdoor dance club, serving cocktails and hosting DJs and bands playing Latin music like reggaeton, perreo, and hip-hop. There will be a rooftop patio that will serve as a stage and an indoor bar pegged to serve as an LGBTQ space, La Factoria. Like Bucio’s other concepts, expect decor that makes liberal use of fluorescent pink and lots of neon signs.

This is the latest of many openings for Bucio’s Gabriela’s Group, which she co-owns with her brother Arturo. Gabriela’s Group started in 2018 with Mexican restaurant Gabriela’s on East Sixth, and also includes two other nightclubs: Mala Vida a few blocks away on Sixth Street and venue Mala Santa in Far East Austin. Gabriela’s Group has also expanded into Houston with Mexican restaurant Gabriela’s Midtown.

In a press release, Bucio says: “We are proud of the diverse crowds that stop by every weekend and we hope this Mala Fama will allow us to reach more fans, while showcasing what makes our Latin culture so special. Get ready because even more openings are on the way.”

Buckshot, a shot-focused bar, opened in 2012 and closed earlier this year.

Mala Fama will be open Thursday through Sunday from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m.