Justin: Check out the Twin Cities area’s sexiest — and most surprising — dance party

I won’t even think about getting out on the dance floor without four tequila shots and very dim lighting. For me, dancing is a spectator sport — and there’s nowhere better to practice it in the Twin Cities than salsa dance nights at the Mediterranean Cruise Cafe in Burnsville.

Yup, Burnsville.

That may shock folks who believe that suburban culture is limited to happy hour at Applebee’s. But the Middle Eastern restaurant throws Latin dance parties every Saturday night, turning its 6,000-square-foot floor over to 12-piece bands and a wide range of hoofers.

On a recent weekend, 75-year-old Mario Vazquez of Brooklyn Park showed off the moves he’s been honing since he was a kid in Mexico City, swearing that he can dance three hours straight as long as he can find enough partners who can keep up with him.

“It’s good to dance your sorrows away,” Vazquez said, during one of his rare breaks.

Nearby, a group of teenagers celebrated a 17th birthday, soaking in the festive atmosphere under ornate chandeliers. It would be a stretch to categorize their bouncing up and down as salsa dancing, but they were having too much fun to care.

“This is the best kept secret in the Twin Cities,” said former Burnsville City Council Member Suzanne Nguyen. She learned salsa from her husband, Son Nguyen, who used to teach at Arthur Murray Dance Studios. ”We’ve traveled all over the world and never found a place like this.“

Salsa Saturdays is the brainchild of Tim Owen, a Spanish teacher at Eden Prairie High School.

“People come here to remember and forget,” Owen said as people lined up at the front door to fork over the $15 cover. “They come to remember culture and tradition and they come to forget the stress of the week.”

He initially got hooked on Latin music in college.

“I went to a DJ night and there was this short little fat, bald dude who got all the attention of the beautiful women because he could dance,” he said. “The classic model types were sitting by themselves at the bar. So I thought, ‘I should learn how to dance.’”

While Owen was managing the band Salsabrosa, he approached Mediterranean Cruise Cafe owner Jamal Ansari about letting him host Latin music parties after the restaurant’s belly dancers were done with their shifts. Ansari agreed to give him a four-week trial. That was 15 years ago. They’ve rarely skipped a Saturday since.

“If you don’t have entertainment, you’re just like other restaurants,” said Ansari, whose self-promotional spiel is as smooth as his restaurant’s hummus. “This separates us.”

It’s also refreshing to see so many people in their finest outfits, a rarity in winter, when Minnesotans are more worried about staying warm than looking snazzy.

“In America, people only dress up when they go to weddings,” said Ansari, who is constantly interrupted by customers eager to say hello. “But these people are old school.”

The fact that his patrons are noshing on kebobs and falafel while Latin music fills the room isn’t as odd as it might sound. No one seems to mind that the band speaks and sings almost exclusively in Spanish. Immigrants from around the world connect to the family-friendly vibe.

“It reminds me of Vietnam, where people bring their kids, who sleep in their arms while they’re dancing,” Son Nguyen said. “You don’t see that in America.”

Nguyen also appreciates the location, next door to the Ames Center, with its ample free parking and a sense of security.

“It’s not like downtown Minneapolis, where you pray for your life,” he said.

Before the band kicks into gear around 10:30 p.m., Owen takes to the mic, welcoming the crowd and assuring them that troublemakers will get the boot. Conversations about politics are discouraged.

“There’s a number of different political perspectives and culture backgrounds here, but that’s not an issue,” said Owen, who estimates that about 40% of the clientele are regulars. “They speak the common language of dance.”

Diversity is also reflected in the bands. Salsa del Soul, one of the four bands in regular rotation, specializes in classic tunes from the Spanish-speaking Caribbean region, designed for a wide variety of dances, including timba, bachata, merengue and cha-cha-cha. But the nine-piece orchestra isn’t afraid to toss in a cover of “Stand by Me.”

“We’re just people who like to play music together, regardless of what country it comes from,” said Salsa del Soul percussionist Shai Hayo, who was born in Israel. “It’s a testament to what the night is all about and what this country stands for.”

That open-arms atmosphere is what keeps Mercedes Moreno coming back week after week.

“I come here to get away from the stress of my job,” said Moreno, who works with sexual assault victims in Twin Cities Latino communities. “It recharges me for the week ahead. It’s the one day of the week I can come out and shine.”