One of the things that make the difference between a suburb and a downtown is the presence of great third places: bars, cafés, pubs, discos, places to hang out and meet new people, establish new connections and put some serendipity in your life. Living in Geneva or Lausanne gives you access to lots of third places, but not all towns may give you the same possibility. « Living in Nyon » has listed an useful list of third places in Nyon, here is their list:

Les Brasseurs a pub (micro brewery) in the centre of town that also serves food. Try their « flammenkueche » sort of a cross betwen a thin pizza and a quiche. Their hamburgers are good too. Popular with a young crowd at the weekend.

Differenciels (see my favourites, cafés and restaurants)

Quai 23 a bar near the lake that serves pasta and pizzas. 

The Fisherman’s Pub seems to attract the expats and the sports fans to watch matches on their widescreen TV.

Usine à Gaz is a club with live music almost every weekend from rock to reggae to rap.

« La Parenthese«  A basement wine bar in the old town

« L’After » A Nightclub near the lake (I’ve never been, so can’t report back on this place)

There is also a social singles networking club called Glocals with its own website. This is for the whole of the Lake Geneva area. It was launched a while ago and seems to be successful as they organise lots of events and parties throughout the year with some events in Nyon.