The Best Bars in BGC, Sorted by the Kind of Night You Want

For live jazz and live bands

No Entry Cocktail Club is the answer to "BGC jazz bar". It is a below-ground speakeasy and supper club co-founded by apl.de.ap of the Black Eyed Peas, reached through a loading dock and a dim staircase, and it took Best Design at the Tatler Best 2026 awards. Friday is the regular jazz session, and there is a full kitchen, so you can make dinner and the music one evening. One Neo Building, 3rd Avenue corner 26th Street. ₱₱. Monday to Thursday 4pm to 1am, Friday 4pm to 2am, Saturday 6pm to 2am, Sunday 6pm to 1am. Tip: book on WhatsApp (+63 945 617 5129) for Friday.

Red Manila opened on the Forbes Town strip in March 2026 and is the only venue on that strip with live acts every night, Monday included. Dinner is downstairs: sushi, oysters and dim sum, including a well-liked truffle siomai. The stage is upstairs, where the bill runs from jazz and soul to blues and comedy, and a sound engineer runs the audio each evening. Forbes Town Center, Forbestown Road. ₱₱₱. Daily, 5pm to 2am. Good to know: the line-up changes nightly, so call +63 945 553 1188 to ask who is playing.

For more rooms with a band on the schedule, see Live Music and Jazz Bars in Manila.

For a cocktail worth crossing BGC for

The Back Room is a 1920s-style bar at street level in Shangri-La The Fort, entered from the 30th Street side past a shoeshine chair. It has an in-house gin laboratory and green leather walls, and it is on the Tatler Best 20 Bars Philippines list for 2026, after winning Best Service in 2025. Shangri-La The Fort, 30th Street corner 5th Avenue. ₱₱. Daily, 6pm to 2am. Good to know: smart casual dress, and no smoking inside.

The Attic is hidden behind a shelf inside Soju Express, a liquor shop at the foot of Park West Residences in Uptown. The menu, My Life in Eight Cocktails, tells a story from each of the team behind the bar, and you may bring your own bar snacks. Tatler named it a Best bar for 2026. Park West Residences, 7th Avenue corner 36th Street, Uptown. ₱₱₱. Sunday to Thursday 6pm to 1am, Friday and Saturday 4pm to 2am. Tip: the room is small, so message them on Instagram before a weekend visit.

Somewhere Quiet sits behind an unmarked brown door beneath The Distillery in The Palace complex, a short walk from The Attic. The room is dressed as a bathhouse, robes included, and cocktails run about ₱450 to ₱550. The Palace, 10th Avenue corner 38th Street, Uptown. ₱₱₱. Tuesday to Sunday, from the early evening until late; closed Monday. Good to know: despite the name it gets loud once the club crowd arrives after 9pm, so go early to talk.

These three are also in our guide to Speakeasy Bars in Manila.

For records, whisky and a quieter room

GotSoul MNL is a hi-fi listening bar in Forbes Town from Filipino-Canadian DJ Jojo Flores, founder of GotSoul Records, with chef Chele Gonzalez in the kitchen. Vintage Altec Lansing horns and a modern quadraphonic system frame a DJ booth and a wall of records, and the food is Spanish tapas with Filipino flavours. As Gonzalez told Tatler, the music is the hero here. Unit FWH-125, Forbeswood Heights, Forbestown Road. ₱₱₱. Open daily from the evening until late. Tip: guest selectors change through the week, so check @gotsoulmnl to see who is playing. For more rooms like it, read The Rise of Manila's Listening Bars.

LIT Manila was the first bar in the Philippines built around Japanese spirits, in a dim room of charred wood on the ground floor of Serendra. Whisky expert Francis Hasegawa guides the flights, and the cocktail list includes a Manila Old Fashioned. It is on the Tatler Best 20 Bars Philippines list for 2026. Ground floor, Serendra, 11th Avenue. ₱₱₱. Sunday to Thursday 6pm to 12am, Friday and Saturday 6pm to 1am. Tip: ask about the monthly Whisk(e)y 101 class, and ask the price of a rare pour before you order it.

For wine

Cork Wine Bar & Shop is a wine shop with a bar inside, on the ground floor of the W Fifth Avenue building. Pick a bottle off the lit shelves and drink it at your table, with Filipino and international small plates, whisky, tequila and cigars on the side. W Fifth Avenue Building, 5th Avenue corner 32nd Street. ₱₱₱₱. Monday to Saturday, until midnight. Tip: book by phone on +63 996 945 8888.

Dr. Wine brings the French bistro from Poblacion to Forbestown Road: a two-level room with a long wine list by the glass and bottle, cheese and charcuterie, and the house chicken liver mousse with maple syrup (₱495). Cocktails are ₱550 on the 2026 menu. Parklane, Forbestown Road, Forbes Town. ₱₱₱. Good to know: a DJ takes over on Friday and Saturday from 10pm, so come earlier for a conversation.

For after work, a late one or the view

Out of Office is the easy after-work bar on the High Street South side, with cocktails named after office life, some on tap, Southeast Asian bar food and zero-proof drinks on the list. It opens at noon, earlier than most. Ground floor, High Street South Corporate Plaza Tower 1, 26th Street corner 11th Avenue. ₱₱₱. Monday to Saturday 12pm to 1am, Sunday 4pm to 1am. Good to know: it gets loud at peak.

Southbank Café + Lounge is a cafe from 7am and a cocktail bar after dark, from the team that also runs Problem Child in Makati, and it is on the Tatler Best 20 Bars Philippines list for 2026. Cocktails are about ₱550, and it stays open until 2am from Thursday to Saturday. World Plaza Building, 5th Avenue. ₱₱₱. Sunday to Wednesday 7am to 12am, Thursday to Saturday 7am to 2am. Good to know: there are sockets but no guest wifi.

The Peak, Grand Hyatt Manila starts on the 60th floor, the highest view in BGC, and puts a grill, a whisky bar, a speakeasy and a music lounge together at the top of the tower. Come at dusk and stay for the DJ. Grand Hyatt Manila, 8th Avenue corner 35th Street. Music lounge Tuesday to Thursday 5pm to 12:30am, Friday and Saturday 5pm to 1:30am. Good to know: smart casual, no slippers, and the bar is 18 and over. Book on TableCheck or call +632 8838 1234. For more high bars, see Rooftop Bars in Manila.

A simple BGC night

Start with the view at The Peak around sunset, which in October is a little before 6pm. Take a short ride to Forbes Town for dinner and a set at Red Manila, or records at GotSoul. Finish with a nightcap at The Back Room, which is open until 2am every night. If you would rather stay in Uptown, The Attic and Somewhere Quiet are a few minutes apart on foot. And if you are crossing to Makati, see our guides to the best bars in Makati and the best bars in Poblacion.

Before you go

• Getting there. BGC has no train station. Take a Grab or a car, and take a short ride between clusters rather than walking from Forbes Town to Uptown. Hotel bars such as The Peak have valet and basement parking.
• Booking. Book for Friday and Saturday at the small rooms (The Attic, No Entry) and at The Peak. Weeknights are usually fine as a walk-in. Methods differ: WhatsApp for No Entry, Instagram messages for The Attic, TableCheck for The Peak, and a phone call for most of the rest.
• When to go. Thursday to Saturday gets busy from about 9pm, especially in Uptown. Sunday to Wednesday is better for the quieter rooms. For music, Friday is No Entry's jazz night, and Red Manila has an act every night.
• Dress. Smart casual works everywhere. The hotel bars are the strictest: no slippers at The Peak, and smart casual at The Back Room.
• Payment. Many bars take cards, and hotel bars usually add a service charge, so check the bill before you tip on top.

Questions people ask

Is there a jazz bar in BGC?

Yes. No Entry Cocktail Club on 3rd Avenue has a regular jazz session on Friday, and Red Manila on the Forbes Town strip has live acts every night, often jazz or soul. For records rather than a band, GotSoul MNL in Forbes Town has guest selectors on a hi-fi system.

Which bars in BGC have a live band?

Red Manila has live performers upstairs every night, from jazz and soul to blues, plus comedy. No Entry has live jazz, with Friday the regular night. Check each bar's Instagram on the day, because line-ups change.

What are the best bars in Uptown BGC?

The Attic, behind a shelf in Soju Express at Park West Residences, and Somewhere Quiet, beneath The Distillery at The Palace, are the two cocktail bars to know. They are a few minutes apart on foot. The Peak at Grand Hyatt Manila, on 8th Avenue, is close by for the view.

What are the best bars near High Street?

LIT Manila at Serendra and Out of Office at High Street South are the closest. Cork and Southbank, both on 5th Avenue, and The Back Room at Shangri-La The Fort are a short walk or ride west.

What bars in BGC are open late?

The Back Room is open until 2am every night. Red Manila runs until 2am daily, and No Entry, The Attic and Southbank stay open until 2am on Friday and Saturday, with Southbank also open to 2am on Thursday. Hours change, so check the bar's own page before you go.

For more ideas, see date ideas and our eat and drink hub.