Manila's Most Fun Themed & Nostalgia Bars

When the Concept Is the Point

Not every night is about the perfect Negroni. Sometimes you want a bar with a story — one that leans all the way into a decade, a legend or a full-blown gimmick and commits to it. Manila does this brilliantly, and the results are some of the most shareable nights in the city. Here are the ones worth the trip for the concept alone.

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Straight Nostalgia

• Take Me Back on Tomas Morato is peak 90s — you enter through a giant Game Boy door and drink retro-themed cocktails like the Iskrambol and Bazooka. Co-owned by Vhong Navarro, DJs on weekends.

• Filling Station Bar & Cafe in Poblacion is a 24/7 1950s American diner with an Elvis impersonator from 7–10pm, staff who break into ABBA routines, and chicken and waffles at 3am. One of the genuinely unique nights in the city.

• Rewind brings 80s throwbacks to P. Burgos, and My Bro's Mustache Folk Bar has been doing retro '70s folk — live musicians and flaming chicken — since 2001.

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Filipino Folklore & Local Legend

• Agimat at Ugat is the bucket-list one — a foraging cocktail bar that ties theatrical, folklore-inspired drinks to Filipino myth and local ingredients. Each cocktail is a small performance.

For more in this vein, the whisky & cocktail bars guide covers the city's most creative bartenders.

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Full-Commitment Gimmicks

• Buccaneers Rum & Kitchen is the Caribbean pirate bar in Poblacion — creative rum cocktails and free shots at midnight and 3am.

• Cheshire Speakeasy runs an Alice in Wonderland theme with a card-deck menu sorted by spirit and style — part of the city's speakeasy scene.

• Rue Bourbon recreates New Orleans' Bourbon Street in QC, complete with its signature Big Ass Caramel Beers.

• A'Toda Madre Tequila Bar goes all-in on Mexico and agave, and up in Tagaytay, Skypiea Rooftop Bar & Kitchen is a One Piece-themed rooftop for the anime crowd.

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Themed Clubs

If you want the theme with a dance floor, Neon Nights Bar Club in Poblacion runs 90s hits with live shows almost every hour — dancers, DJs and performances on a near-constant loop.

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Making a Night of It

These are best in a small group — the concepts land harder when there's someone to share the "wait, is that a Game Boy?" moment with. Most sit inside the Poblacion bar guide and Tomas Morato nightlife guide strips, so you can string a few together in one night. Start with the first-timer's guide to Manila if you're still finding your feet.