The Grasshopper Bar’s new cocktails I Photo by Star Sabroso
The concept of creating a “sense of place” in a bar is becoming increasingly popular. Bars in Tokyo, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Singapore have long embraced local ingredients to craft drinks that are both enjoyable and educational. Across Asia and beyond, more bars are now focusing on ingredients and narratives that tell the story of the place they’re in. It’s about making your drink a reflection of the city or country, kind of like capturing its character in a glass. They highlight local produce, culinary traditions, and regional flavors, transforming each cocktail into a window into the place you’re visiting, not just a vessel for alcohol.
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In Manila, if you want to learn more about Filipino culinary heritage in a glass, places like The Spirits Library and Bizarre degustation bar in Poblacion, or The Back Room in BGC, offer a window into the Philippines’ culinary traditions and ingredients. One spot that also stands out is The Grasshopper Bar. Led by award-winning bartenders, Kenneth Bandivas, Abby Quilal-lan, and Lester Ligon, who cut their teeth at Manila’s top bars and international competitions. What they’re doing isn’t just about crafting cocktails; it’s about reintroducing Filipino ingredients as something worth celebrating globally.
The bar spotlights hyperlocal ingredients and elevates these natural resources into approachable drinks, making local ingredients part of the bar dialogue.
Located in C. Palanca—just a few steps from the popular Legazpi Village bar, The Curator—the bar has been open since November 2023. Look for the grasshopper insect logo by the door, and you’ll know you’re in the right place. The 65-seater venue is a cozy dim-lit spot, frequented by locals—from office workers winding down for a nightcap to couples on dates and friends sharing some quality drinks. It’s the kind of place you can go alone but end up with a new friend or a fun conversation with the bar staff, including bartender Athan Matienzo, who will entertain you with his magic tricks.
The bar is named after the classic grasshopper cocktail—a minty after-dinner drink known for its vibrant green color, made with equal parts crème de menthe, crème de cacao, and cream. “When we first began conceptualizing the space, we knew we needed a drink that would serve as our muse—and the grasshopper made perfect sense,” explains Lester. “The ‘grasshopper’ is one of the more underrated classic cocktails, we felt the name perfectly captured the spirit we wanted to convey—bringing attention to what’s often ignored or underappreciated,” he adds.
The menu’s concept was inspired by looking at ingredients as icons of culture, much like how Japan brought yuzu and matcha into the global spotlight. When those ingredients hit the scene, they sparked a worldwide movement—bars everywhere adopted and reinterpreted it on their offerings. “For us Filipinos, Ube is our version of matcha, but it’s not quite the same ube you find elsewhere. It’s uniquely Filipino. That got us thinking—why can’t calamansi become the next yuzu? Or gamet seaweed, the next kelp, kombu or wakame?” Lester explains. “We started seeing local ingredients as potential stars, like etag (cured pork from Sagada) as the next guanciale or prosciutto or bayasong as the next kaffir lime. That mindset became the core of Grasshopper’s menu: highlighting every ingredient we have, reimagining it, making each drink about celebrating the richness of Filipino produce,” he adds.
For Filipinos, especially locals who may not be familiar with regional ingredients or have not explored beyond mainstream staples, Grasshopper offers an education with every glass. The bar uses ingredients like gamet, a rare, edible seaweed found on the northern coasts of the Philippines, particularly in Ilocos Norte and Cagayan, as well as spotlighting local vinegars that are regional treasures—ingredients often overlooked but rich in cultural significance. On their menu, you’ll find a vinegar flavor map, showcasing the Philippines’ rich vinegar produce—from sukang Ilocos, paumbong, tuba, and many more.
From June 19, they’re launching a new menu, ‘New Language. Same Message‘. The team takes a classic cocktail, then reinvents it with a Filipino twist, like replacing lime with green mango or using local regional salt and vinegar for flavor, or introducing ingredients like sakurab, a type of allium, similar to scallions or shallots, a key ingredient in the Maranao dish called palapa. But they’re not just throwing ingredients in; they’re explaining their origins and cultural weight.
Their cocktails range from fizzy to spirit-forward, with some rich and creamy. Cocktails on the new menu include Belladona (PHP580), an effervescent floral Bloody Mary twist with white rum, tomato water, peach, lactic acid, jasmine cold brew tea, and sampaguita water served with a chunk of tomato-jasmine jelly.
Those who like agave based drinks can opt for the V for Ventura (PHP600), their take on the spicy Margarita with guava leaf, tequila, carrot juice, lime-agave, pickled jalapeno, served in a glass rimmed with rare Tultul salt from Guimaras Island in Western Visayas.
Salt Spoils the Broth (PHP550) is inspired by chartreuse and chocolate, in this case adding in tsokolate de batirol, a traditional Filipino hot chocolate drink made with tablea (cacao tablets) with Irish whisky and Fontbonne Herbal liqueur, topped with a comforting warm salted egg foam dusted with grated nutmeg.
For a punchy and savory drink, the Sakurab Gibson (PHP550) is a must-try, a reimagined Gibson cocktail using the local sakurab with gin, dill distillate, pickled sakurab brine, Cocchi Americano, garnished with the sakurab. It’s strong, briney, with a long finish.
The food menu also offers Filipino flavors presented in inventive ways, such as Bicol region’s laing—taro leaves simmered in coconut milk—served as a dip for cassava chips (PHP 425), or bar chows like nachos topped with the popular pork dish sisig (PHP 495). There’s also Bicol Express— a spicy Filipino pork dish—reimagined as spring rolls (PHP 425), paired with sukang tuba, a naturally fermented vinegar made from the sap of the coconut tree.
Grasshopper is doing something simple but meaningful: turning ingredients into storytellers, and drinks into lessons. In a city that often relies on familiar international names, this shift toward ingredients with roots calls out for a new kind of Filipino pride and a richer bar culture. It isn’t just about originality; it’s about sustainability. Elevating local produce encourages producers, supports farmers, and can help break the stigma that local equals inferior or “cheap.” Instead, it’s about asserting that Filipino flavors have a premium place in global mixology.
The Grasshopper Bar is located at OPL Building, Don Carlos Palanca, Legazpi Village, Makati and is open daily from 5pm to 2am. Follow them on Instagram @grasshopperph for updates.
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