Ranking Siquijor's restaurants means going and eating in them: several of the island's best tables have no online reviews at all. Bars are the opposite. Every one is rated, and heavily — from 79 to more than 1,500 reviews each. The figures are usable, and this ranking follows them.
1. Mystropical Cocktails Bar — 5.0 / 5
The blue tables at Lala-o Bridge, San Juan. 5.0 out of 5 from around a thousand Google reviews. Two bars on the island hold a 5.0, but this one does it on nearly four times the review count — which is what puts it first.
A street bar, not a lounge: no air conditioning, no entrance fee, locals at the next tables. The complaint most often aimed at the island's cocktails — watered down — never appears here: "not watered down but perfectly balanced," as one guest writes. The mojito is the most ordered, the Island Potion the house creation.
Open daily 4.30pm to 12.30am. The opening time is set by the sun going down: arrive around 5pm for a table facing the sea.
2. El Kabron Siquijor — 5.0 / 5
El Kabron, in Solangon. 5.0 out of 5 from around 270 reviews, and 10th of 50 restaurants in San Juan on TripAdvisor. The island's only pool bar: you drink at the poolside facing the sunset, with no entrance fee.
The cocktails have proper names — Oh Là Là Spice Fusion, Lärz Fizz, Ciao! Bella, Joe Mönster — and there is a challenge drink, the El Kabron Poison. A rare and useful detail: a real mocktail list, which makes it the island's best address if you do not drink alcohol.
Careful, service is split in two: 7am to 11am, then closed until 3pm. After that, 10pm on weekdays, midnight Friday to Sunday. Turn up at midday and you will find it shut.
3. Tipsy Bar — 4.6 / 5
Tipsy Bar, on the circumferential road. 4.6 out of 5 from more than 500 reviews, and almost unknown to passing visitors: it is not on the beach and only opens in the evening.
What reviews single out: it is calmer and friendlier than the crowded famous places. There are board games — Jenga, Uno, beer pong — which makes it the address for a group evening. The amaretto sour is the cocktail guests name, and you can genuinely have dinner: truffle mushroom pizza, tapa, cordon bleu.
Closed Tuesdays. Wednesday to Saturday 6pm to midnight, Sunday and Monday 8pm to midnight only.
4. Republika Beach Bar & Grill — 4.5 / 5
Republika, in Maite. 4.5 out of 5 from nearly 300 reviews, and the address travellers most often call underrated. A small sandy beach, hammocks, rooms upstairs.
What nobody flags: you can see both sunrise and sunset from here. On a coast that faces west almost everywhere, that is a genuine oddity. Breakfast is what comes up most in reviews, including a house-made sausage.
Three caveats, because they recur: service slows at peak hours, guests have reported pests, and the music does not please everyone. The opening hours are not reliably published anywhere — call first.
5. Baha Bar — 4.4 / 5
Baha Bar, in Maite. Between 4.3 and 4.4 depending on the source, across more than a thousand reviews — the largest review base on the island in any category. The score is lower than the four above, but it rests on a far wider sample, which counts.
The only bar on the island with a live band every night, 6.30pm to 9.30pm. Bamboo and driftwood construction open to the sea, wood-fired pizzas, Friday night buffet. It is also one of the eleven addresses accredited by the provincial tourism office.
Open 11am to 11pm. The obvious choice if you want dinner and music in the same place.
6. Get Wrecked Beach & Sports Bar — 4.2 / 5
Get Wrecked, in the middle of San Juan. 4.2 out of 5 from more than 300 reviews. The gathering point for the island's Western expatriates: big screens, rugby league and Australian rules football shown live, pool table.
What justifies the trip: happy hour, 4pm to 6pm, cocktails at 100 ₱, exactly as the sun goes down. The beer is served very cold, which every review notes.
What does not: the food. Fish and chips and sweet and sour fish pass muster; beyond that the consensus is lukewarm, and the mango shake is explicitly criticised. Come at 4pm, and eat dinner elsewhere.
7. Monkey Business — 4.1 / 5
Monkey Business, in Solangon. 4.1 out of 5 from nearly 900 reviews. A beach bar with live music 7pm to 10pm most nights, a menu of burgers and Filipino dishes, vegetarian and vegan options.
Open midday to midnight. One of the few places that covers lunch, sundowners and the end of the evening.
8. RumBar — 4.0 / 5
RumBar, on the beach in San Juan. 4.0 out of 5, across a much smaller review count — between 79 and 204 depending on the source, which makes the figure less reliable than the others. Known for its music selection and for being where the night carries on after the others close.
This is the late bar, not the whole-evening bar.
Two places apart: these are not bars
Runik (entry 350 ₱, consumable) and La Canopée — Lambojon Terraces (entry 200 ₱, consumable) are often filed under bars. They are really paid viewpoints: you buy access to a setting, and the drink comes with it. That is fine if it is what you want — but it is not the same spend, and you should know before you arrive.
And one for backpackers
JJ's Backpackers runs beach parties every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 9pm, with a 20 ₱ entry. It is not in the ranking above because it is not really a bar — it is the island's meeting point for young travellers, and it is the answer if that is what you are looking for.
Which bar for which night
| What you want | Where to go |
| Sunset with a drink | Mystropical, El Kabron, or Get Wrecked for happy hour |
| Best cocktails | Mystropical and El Kabron, then Tipsy |
| A swimming pool | El Kabron, the island's only pool bar |
| A real alcohol-free list | El Kabron |
| Live music | Baha Bar (every night), Monkey Business |
| Sport on screen | Get Wrecked |
| Dinner and drinks in one place | Baha Bar |
| A group evening with games | Tipsy Bar |
| Spending the whole day | Republika, hammocks and a small beach |
| Watching the sunrise | Republika, the only one on this list that also faces east |
| Local atmosphere, not touristy | Mystropical |
| Finishing late | RumBar, Mystropical until 12.30am |
| A spectacular view, entry fee accepted | Runik, La Canopée |
| A beach party | JJ's Backpackers, Fri-Sun from 9pm |
| Air conditioning | No bar on the island has it. The only air-conditioned restaurant is Mr Sumo. |
Three things to know about nights on Siquijor
1. Everything closes early, with a few exceptions. Most bars shut between 10pm and 11pm. Mystropical runs to 12.30am, Monkey Business and Get Wrecked to midnight, El Kabron to midnight Friday to Sunday. After that, RumBar.
2. Bring cash. As everywhere on the island. ATMs are in San Juan and Siquijor town, and they go out of service.
3. The circumferential road has no street lighting. That is the real issue with nights here. If you drink, do not ride back on a scooter — locals do not either. The best bars in this ranking are minutes apart around San Juan, so the evening can be done on foot or by tricycle.
And for food
The island's table ranking is here: the 11 best tables on Siquijor. And if you are wondering why some heavily recommended places are not in it: our criteria, in full.