The 10 Best Bars To Visit When Traveling Through Manila
Manila is a melting pot of cultures from all over the Philippines, as well as a variety of foreign influences. This applies to food, music, travel, and all other forms of entertainment. As a result, the city has developed a party and bar culture that caters to guests of all budgets and backgrounds.
Whether you prefer laid-back speakeasies, cheap dive bars, college bars, or loud party venues with constant entertainment, there are establishments to fulfill your needs.
If you are visiting Manila soon, check out our quick guide in the 10 best bars to enjoy an alcoholic tipple.
1. The Curator
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Situated in Legazpi Village, Makati City, this craft cocktail bar offers some of the best drinks you can find anywhere in the Metro. Not only that, but they also have a great collection of specialty coffee from all over the Philippines.
While The Curator does not own a large area for raves, their cozy little spot in Legazpi Village is perfect for meetups, dates, and even small, private parties with top-quality cocktails. The bar also offers packed and sealed drinks for delivery or takeout if you want to recreate the experience at home.
The owners of The Curator often host small events like mixology exhibits and spoken word poetry nights. Some of their best drinks include the Nazareno, The Frenchman, Theme Song Water, Coffee Fernet, and Olympia Coffee.
This coffee and cocktail bar has been voted into Asia’s 50 Best Bars and the World’s 50 Best every year since 2016. If you are new to Manila and are looking for a great spot frequently visited by locals, you can’t go wrong with The Curator.
2. The Back Room
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First opened in 2018, The Back Room has quickly gained popularity in Asia’s bar scene. It was even voted as Manila’s best new bar in 2018. Located right in the heart of Bonifacio Global City (BGC), this classy spot is great for meeting up with friends or business partners. Corporate officials often come here to meet with foreign guests.
BGC is known for its party scene, so for a relatively new bar to stand out immediately is a testament to its quality. The Back Room is found inside the Shangri-La hotel at the Fort, in a hidden spot down a service corridor. Its speakeasy vibe is perfect for low-profile and private events.
While you can get all of your regular drinks from their expert bartenders, The Back Room also offers specialty cocktails such as Jack the Ripper, The Lost Cowboy, Bee’s Knees, and Spellbound. More than just gimmicks, these drinks are carefully crafted and perfected in the bar’s hidden laboratory, where they also make house-made gin and other boozy concoctions.
3. OTO
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OTO is another new bar in the famous downtown area of Poblacion, Makati. When it opened in 2019, the bar immediately debuted as 47th on Asia’s 50 Best Bars list. It is frequented by corporate employees and college students from all over Metro Manila because of its relaxed ambiance, high-quality drinks, and delicious food.
For first-time visitors in Manila, OTO is a great first bar to check out. It has a more relaxed ambiance in contrast to the intimidating aura of the usual high-end bar, all while providing you with great drinks and food at affordable rates.
Try out OTO’s range of bespoke cocktails, such as the Jungle Bird, Paradise Rising, Cuppa Dog, along with their coffee-based drinks. They also deliver anywhere in Metro Manila so you can host your own party at home. You can also pair their drinks with any of OTO’s sandwiches, pasta dishes, or rice meals.
If you are planning to visit OTO soon, make sure to get there early as it is often packed full of regular patrons. Get there around dinnertime or earlier to get a reservation.
4. Dulo MNL
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The aptly named Dulo MNL is found at the end of Guanzon Street in Poblacion, Makati. This bar also doubles as an event space that hosts regular poetry nights, music events, stand-up comedy, and art exhibits.
Poblacion is famous for its drinking and party scene, and Dulo MNL is one of its pillars. This bar is frequented by college students and young adults looking to party with their peers all night. It is also a great place to see some of your favorite local musicians and entertainers up close and personal.
Some of the bar’s best drinks are the Painkiller, Sake Sour, Negroni, and Chai Latte. You can also try the food from their restaurant, Bao Bar. The spiced bird rice meal is popular among regulars, while their pulled pork bao is one of the most popular snacks in Makati.
5. Alegria Cozinha Moderna
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Alegria Cozinha Moderna is another one of those BGC spots that you should visit at least once. Located at the C3 Annex right on 7th Avenue, it is hard to miss. Unlike the other party venues on our list, this bar offers a relaxed experience with limited seating. You will not have to worry about overcrowding and can instead focus on having a fun time with your friends.
Designed more like a restaurant with a bar as opposed to a club, Alegria Cozinha Moderna takes pride in their specialty cocktails, delicious hearty food, and unique take on sangria. Being BGC’s first sangria bar and living up to that title is quite an achievement in such a competitive industry.
You should try out any of Alegria’s nine full-bodied sangria flavors. You can order the full set with your friends and share them as well. Sangria is best paired with good food, so Alegria also offers their own twist on Latin American cuisine.
6. The Wild Poppy
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The Wild Poppy is one of the most popular spots in Manila for college students and young adults. They offer a wide range of affordable yet delicious drinks to be paired with their modern take on Southeast Asian cuisine. Some of their most popular dishes include chicken ren damn, flying chicks, pok pok bites, and dang crispy flakes.
This cozy bar and restaurant also offer famous Asian-style cocktails like Locos Frescas, Wabi-cha-cha, and the Naughty Pirate. The Wild Poppy is known more for a fun, light time with friends as opposed to hard-partying and raves.
This rooftop bar creates a completely cozy vibe with seats accented by pillows, pastel-colored cocktails, floral accents, and an open-air setting. They also often host music nights, spoken word poetry performances, and college nights.
The Wild Poppy can be a good starting point if you are looking to try the Manila bar scene. It is light, affordable, and accessible. College students often bring their friends here for their first bar experience.
7. The Island
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Possibly the single most famous bar in Manila, this place is packed full every night from Wednesday to Sunday. The Island at The Palace is known for throwing the biggest and wildest parties in the Metro. You will find guests of all ages here as it is situated in Uptown Bonifacio, Taguig, near a lot of colleges and corporate headquarters.
The Island hosts nine different food and drink establishments that all share the same large party venue. This is perfect for groups that would prefer a lot of options. If you frequently go drinking with large groups, you will know how difficult it is to agree on which drinks and food to get.
One major thing about The Island that you cannot find anywhere else is the indoor beach vibe. The Palace Pool Club has a couple of swimming pools accented by cabanas and daybeds.
Because this bar prioritizes convenience, The Island provides guests with a prepaid wristband that also serves as your debit card for buying from any of the establishments inside. That way, you will not have to worry about bringing a lot of cash with you.
8. Yes Please
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In case The Island is at max capacity, worry not as Uptown Bonifacio is home to several other high-quality bars that you can transfer to. Yes Please is a great place on its own, so it may be a little disrespectful to simply call it an alternative to The Island.
This bar brings you back to the 90s party scene, complete with foosball tables, neon lights, and seating designed to be interactive. To complete the theme, their specialty cocktails are also named after iconic 90s figures like Tommy Lee, Devon Sawa, and Mighty Mouse among others.
Patronized by both college kids and young professionals, Yes Please is great for meeting new people whether you are alone or with a group. They serve a wide collection of cocktails made by their bartenders as well as hearty food like cheeseburgers, salads, fries, and noodle dishes.
9. iDarts
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Perhaps the most unique bar on our list, iDarts is located on the C3 Annex Building at BGC’s 7th Avenue. Rather than the usual sit down pub or rave club, iDarts has installed a bunch of electronic darts machines all over the place.
The first electronic darts bar in the Philippines also offers a wide selection of food and drinks. They offer local craft beer, cocktails, house wines, as well as specialty drinks like the iDarts G & T and Memory Fap. You can also get the Skull Baby drink with three different mixes to share with up to five of your friends.
iDarts’ hearty selection of bar chow includes BBQ pulled pork fries, Spam cubes, beef nachos, a street food platter, and Korean fried chicken. If you are looking for a late dinner, the bar also has a bunch of rice meals and pizza.
10. Versus Barcade
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Versus Barcade is a great place to have a fun night full of activities with your friends. Located in Uptown Parade, BGC, this establishment is revolutionizing the Manila nightlife scene by combining a rave nightclub with a classic arcade setting.
It features a large game room where you can find the most popular arcade games like pinball, shuffleboard, as well as a bunch of multiplayer racing and fighting games. If you are the type who enjoys spending time in the arcade, Versus Barcade’s delicious cocktails will surely enhance that experience.
This bar regularly hosts Manila’s best DJs for music nights. They also have regular game nights, raves, and throwback events. With their menu of good food and drinks, you can take a break and recharge after a night of gaming.
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