Baguio restaurant and bar guide
Cafe by the Ruins has great food and ambience
The ‘city of flowers’ has all the usual fast food joints you would expect from a major Philippines university town, but there are plenty of decent quality Baguio restaurants as well so you will not be totally reliant on Jollibee for sustenance.
The verdant hills around town are perfect for growing all sorts of fruit and vegetables, so many restaurants in Baguio pride themselves on only using top quality local organic produce. Sweet jams and conserves are also very popular around town with City Market the place to head for peanut and strawberry brittle plus sweet local wine and honey.
Dining in Baguio is a mixed bag with lots of traditional Filipino eateries which serve a variety of meat and vegetable stews from clay pots or warming trays. But there are also some shabby-yet-chic bohemian cafes which offer herbal teas and tasty pastries and cakes.
Chinese food is popular in the city and great for large portions after exhausting sightseeing trips or treks through the surrounding countryside. As a university town with thousands of students there are also plenty of cheap Baguio restaurants will offer hearty and warming fare for bargain prices.
Recommended Baguio restaurants
Forest House Bistro & Café
This Baguio restaurant and bar has great food including pastas and stews plus a section of great music as well. Very popular with older students in the town for large portions but small prices. (16 Loakan Road, near Nevada Square, (074) 447 -04 - 59, inquiry@foresthousebaguio.com) $
Flying Gecko Restaurant and Café
This is probably the most popular of all Baguio restaurants with Japanese students, and offers tapas (Php65) or mains (Php200-300) which are delicious and filling. (103 Session Road, half a block uphill from Calderon Road, Tel: +63 (0)7 444-4937) $
Star Café & Restaurant
This Baguio stalwart right in the centre of town on Session Road has been serving delicious Chinese food to the city for decades and is well worth its great reputation. (39 Session Road, Baguio City, Tel: +63 (0)74 442 3142) $
Café by the Ruins
This must-try Baguio restaurant is built into the crumbling facade of the old city walls. With trees intergrowing with the dilapidated stonework it is the most atmospheric eatery in town, and the hearty salads, soups and pastas just cannot be beaten. (23 Chuntug Street, Baguio City, Tel +63 (0)74 442 4010) $$
Price guide
$ – dishes under $3; quart of beer $1; whiskey shot $1.50;cocktails $2
$$ – dishes $3-10; quart of beer $1.50; whiskey shot $2; cocktails $2.50
$$$ – dishes $10-20; quart of beer $2; whiskey shot $2.50; cocktails $3
$$$$ – dishes over $20; quart of beer $3; whiskey shot $4; cocktails $5
Recommended Baguio bars and nightlife
As a huge university town boasting 250,000 student you would expect Baguio nightlife to be some of the best north of Manila, but sadly this is hardly the case. Padi’s Point (Rizal Park, entry Php50) is the best of the city centre bars in Baguio and stays open reasonably late. Otherwise the Nevada Square area just south of centre is the main Baguio nightlife hub with a cluster of artsy bars.
