These clubs are located in the Mango Avenue (aka General Maxilom Avenue) area.All these venues are generally considered very "foreigner-friendly."
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1.)
BG's
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
Date of visit: July 31, 2005
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: P50
•Soft drink: P60
•Ladies Drink: P150
•Barfine: P1700 (P700 to bar, P1000 to girl)
Dancer / GRO / staff comments: Both mamasan and GRO's approach customers to offer accompaniment.
Music: Not as loud as downtown clubs.
Layout / condition of club: Street-level, about four steps or ramp to enter (wheelchair-accessible.) Clean, with comfortable couches and good lighting (some may prefer a darker club.)
Sleaze & fun factor: Some dancers dance naked. You can joke/dance/sing or whatever.
Summary: Popular foreigner-friendly club.
October 2005 review: "I rate this the top bar in Cebu."
April 2006 review: "Best go-go show. Large selection (30ish) of very friendly girls, several really beautiful (8's or 9's); mamasan is pushy about buying (rotgut) tequila for the girls, but at least it's legitimate booze, rather than watered down drink. Tried to barfine mamasan, but she wouldn't go, even at 10K peso offer. Buddy barfined two, and reported an excellent time."
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2.)
Black Hole
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
July 2005 review:
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: P60
•Soft drink: P60
•Ladies Drink: P160
•Barfine: P1600-1650 (600-650 to bar, 1000 to girl.)
Dancer / GRO / staff comments: 30-50 Dancers / few GRO / good staff.
Music: OK.
Layout / condition of club: Street-level, no steps (wheelchair-accessible.) Largest club in the area, bar is very open & fairly bright but has booths for a little more privacy
Sleaze & fun factor: OK.
Summary: One reviewer: "In the top five bars in Cebu."
April 2006 review: "Decent floor show, but this place just seems a bit creepy and a bit dirty compared to the others along Mango. Limited (<20)>May 2006 review: "I pay as I go so at the end of the night, there is no embarresment because I can just go home when I only have enough left for a taxi. Went to Blackhole in May, no change ever came back from the first drink. They treated me like an idiot when I complained. It is not the first time this has happened to me at Blackhole. So, I won't be back!"
July 2006 review: "A bit gloomy and the dancers are not energetic but definitely some lookers there. The GROs were especially nice and friendly. In general, not much change to the present review and I didn't stay longer than one beer."
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3.)
Club Stars Bar & Grill (formerly Exotica)
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
July 2005 review:
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: P60
•Soft drink: P60
•Ladies Drink: P200
•Barfine: P700P to bar, additional P1000 +/- to girl.
Dancer / GRO / staff comments: Very friendly, girls "tried real hard."
Music: Loud.
Layout / condition of club: Street-level, no steps (wheelchair-accessible.) Feels like a warehouse.
Sleaze & fun factor: Girls fairly aggressive, but not very fun unless you're plowed.
Summary:
•Reviewer #1: "GRO friendliness can't fully counterbalance strange atmosphere of the space."
•Reviewer #2: "Too expensive; LD 200 / girl gets 70."
April 2006 review: "Played pool here for a couple of hours, with no pressure from the girls or to buy them drinks. Very few girls (<10),>June 2006 review:"I stopped in to ask what the 'Grill' part of the 'Bar and Grill' in the name means. The owner said they make burgers, calamari, pizza, fries and onion rings; and there are several diner-style booths to eat your snacks in.
Barfine is presently P2000: P500 to the bar and P1500 to the girl."
October 2006: I noticed name has changed to Club Stars Bar & Grill (formerly Exotica Bar & Grill.)
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4.)
Dimples
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
July 2005 review:
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: P70
•Soft drink: P60
•Ladies Drink: P200
•Barfine: P2000 (girl gets half?)
Dancer / GRO / staff comments: Friendly, not overly aggressive.
Music: Loud.
Layout / condition of club: Street-level, no steps (wheelchair-accessible.)
Sleaze & fun factor: OK.
Summary: Fun bar, but nothing special.
April 2006 review: "A few decent looking girls, with nice constumes. Didn't stay or drink, but looked to be worth at least a beer on the next visit."
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5.)
Erik The Red bar
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
(Next door to Black Hole).
December 19, 2006 review:
New bar, same ownership as BGs / Viking. Prices the same as BGs / Viking.
Nice layout, friendly staff, not pushy.
About to be expanded to over twice the size it is now, IMHO will be in the top 4 bars in Cebu.
Others in my top 4 are Temptation, Viking & BG all within a 40 metre radius...
August 2007 review: "Although there are a number of larger bars on this street, Erik the Red has some very friendly girls and staff, as well as cheaper drinks. It also offers parking in front."
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Lone Star
Location: Queen's Road, Cebu City
July 2005 review:
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: P65
•Soft drink: P60
•Ladies Drink: P170
•Barfine: P650 to bar, additional P1000 +/- to girl.
Dancer / GRO / staff comments: Friendly. 30-50 Dancers / few GROs / good staff.
Music: Excellent
Layout / condition of club: Just above street-level, about four steps or ramp to enter (wheelchair-accessible.) Clean, offers both hard seating and couches. Very large central stage.
Sleaze & fun factor: Friendly & fun.
Summary: Very popular, value-for-money foreigner-friendly bar.
October 2005 review: "In the top five bars in Cebu. "
April 2006 review: " Large selection (30ish) of friendly girls; not as many stunners as BG's, but still some excellent choices. Barfined the same lady I had two months ago; she remembered and put on a worthy show of appreciation. Not pushy on drinks for the girls, and the beer is cheap. Lone Star always seems consistent, still one of the best 2-3 places I've found in Cebu."
July 2006 review: "This place has jumped right to the top of my list. I ended up there each one of my 5 nights and I went straight there and no where else on the last 3 nights. It is much better now than when I was there in late 2005. Lots of really friendly bubbly and attractive girls who are keen to have FUN, if not with you then with each other. The big dance floor with 4 or 5 dancers at a time is great - they really dance too and dont just hang around on stage. The dancing group changes rapidly too - around every 10 minutes. Drinks are very reasonable in comparison to other bars - 65 for San Miguel; 170 LDs, and the girls are not pushy and certainly don't harrass customers for drinks. The bar food is also good quality - hot and freshly cooked. It is now clearly No 1 bar on my list. Not to be missed."
July 2006 review: "One of the friendliest places around. Good prices. Understanding, Australian owner. Good music or other interesting shows on large screen TV's. 10 out of 10."
September 2007 review: "Prices a little higher now. I will email you an updated list for you to add to your site. Still one of the top bars in Cebu to visit."
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Love City Bar & KTV
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
April 2006 review: "Yuck....floor show with a bunch of doofuses sitting around the stage in a circle. Looked like a voyeur convention with no one enjoying themselves." Sept 2007 review: "Love City hasn't changed, since I last visited in July 2006. Not worth it to me."
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8.)
Papillon
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
July 2005 review:
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: P70
•Soft drink: P60
•Ladies Drink: P200
•Barfine: P2000 (or P2500?) (all-inclusive)
Dancer / GRO / staff comments: no stunners
Music: Louder than nearby clubs.
Layout / condition of club: Street-level (wheelchair-accessible.) Well-lit, "flashy" lighting.
Sleaze & fun factor: Mildly uptight.
Summary: OK; not the favorite of this crew.
January 4, 2006: Club was raided by NBI (National Bureau of Investigation.) Per the Cebu Sunstar, "A bar manager and her 26 'entertainers' were arrested by the Cebu City Police Office in a raid last Wednesday night along Gen. Maxilom Ave."
( Bar re-opened shortly thereafter.)
July 2006 review: "Lots of good lookers here but it is too expensive. The girls are hustlers for drinks too, and usually in groups of 2 - 4. mamasan also hustles too much too for my tastes. I am well-known here but this trip Ididn't stay long - too much pressure to buy drinks exerted by everyone there.
July 2007 review: "Not worth your time, or money. Hustled too much inside bar."
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Sisters Bar
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
June 2006 review:
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: P60
•Soft drink: P50
•Ladies Drink: P160
•Barfine: When this reviewer asked the manager of this new club about barfines, she nervously replied "We don't have barfine." Cebu bikini bar managers/owners are currently defensive about this topic because of recent police harassment. It seems safe to assume this club DOES have barfines, just pick out your girl first before you ask about it.
Dancer / GRO / staff comments: friendly and attractive dancers.
Music: Not so loud (easy to have a conversation!)
Layout / condition of club: Street-level (wheelchair-accessible.) This compact, friendly and nicely outfitted club has soft lighting, a small stage and four small tables for sitting.
Sleaze & fun factor: Brief visit at 8pm did not afford opportunity to assess.
Summary: This newish place seems like a nice little club.
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10.)
Temptation Bar
Location: Mango Avenue at Jakosalem, Cebu City.
Website: www.clubtemptationcebu.com
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: P50
•Mixed drinks: P50 (rum and coke)
•Ladies Drink: P150
•Barfine: P1700 (all-inclusive)
February 2006 review: "I was there last night (Fri) and it is very nicely decorated (red mostly.) Mamasan not too pushy,waitresses were the same. Now for the girls. If i barfined girls,I didn't see one in there that I would. Just your average filipino dancing girls."
Feb 2006 review: "Decor description: High quality sofa type. "L" shaped bar, many small tables and plenty open space to stand and drink. Predominate colour scheme Red.
Staff description. Two experienced floor managers (mamasans) Gina and Arlene. Both fluent in English and Japanese. Many attractive friendly (not pushy) girls. Numerous waitresses taking orders and being customer friendly when they have time. Could do with more bar staff to dispense the drinks faster.
Music. Varied and muted, unlike some other bars you don't need to keep shouting and saying "what?" all the time.
Overall impression: Will swiftly become a top leading 'girlie' bar in Cebu."
March 2006 review: "We had a great time at Temptation everytime we go there, the girls were very young and pretty and friendly, a few GRO's there, there was this GRO half Pinay and half Americana about 22 y.o I forgot her name, she speaks good English, loves American chocolates, bring some chocolate for her and she will entertain you all night......The Temptation set up kind of like Vikings with comfortable couches, one nice pool table set up in the back. If you are visiting Cebu, this club must be on top of your list and then the Lonestar, Vikings...."
April 2006 review: "Very nice, but few customers. Prettiest girl I saw was one of the waitresses. She would not discuss being barfined. Two very nice pool table set-ups. It actually the nicest place along Mango, but somehow hasn't caught on. I'll check it out again on my next trip."
July 2006 review: "Again, too much space between customers and the girls. Comments as for Viking."
July 2006 review: "Something for everyone:
-If you want to play pool, they have tables upstairs and the ladies will hang around, if you want.
-Like to be comfortably seated? They have a lounge area with comfortable sofas where you can sit with the girls while you watch the show on stage, if you are not otherwise distracted.
-Want to sit at the bar, watch the girls on stage and flirt with the waitresses? There is an area for that too."
February 2007 review: "Temptation asked for 1700 bar and girl."
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11.)
Viking / Midnight Sun Bar
Location: Mango Avenue, Cebu City
July 2007 review:
Prices:
•Cover charge: none
•San Miguel: Pilsen P50, Light P60
•Soft drink: P60
•Ladies Drink: P150
•Barfine: P700 to bar, P1000 +/- to girl
Dancer / GRO / staff comments: Attractive & friendly
Music: Mellow
Layout / condition of club: Basement location beneath BG's, one flight stairs down. Clean, offers both seats at bar and comfortable couches.
Sleaze & fun factor: Friendly and fun but no nekid girls.
Summary: Popular and comfortable foreigner-friendly club.
July 2006 review: "I don't like the big spaces in these clubs, nor the lounge chairs. Much prefer a bar stool or at least a more interactive seating arrangement where you can move around a bit. Didn't stay even for a beer after I took a look."
October 2005 review: "In the top five bars in Cebu."
