Dive Bar · Centro · Medellin
El Guanabano
The bar that turned Parque del Periodista from a lonely plaza into Centro's bohemian living room, 25 years and counting.
The Pitch
The Plaza's Beating Heart
El Guanabano opened on the edge of Parque del Periodista in the late 1990s and, per El Colombiano's 25th anniversary profile, shocked the small plaza into life: what had been ancient solitude became the densest bohemian corner in central Medellin. The bar is the reason the park works.
El Colombiano calls it 25 years of creative bohemia; the city's Centro de Medellin project describes it as an emblem of the rock and countercultural mobilization of the city, a meeting place for literature, academia, music, theater, and film.
Who would hate it? Anyone who needs table service, clean lines, or quiet. This is a dive in the honorable sense, and the party spills onto the plaza.
The Room
Small Room, Big Plaza
The bar itself is compact, walls thick with posters and decades of accumulated character; the real seating is Parque del Periodista's steps and curbs, which fill nightly with bottles and conversation. Foursquare reviewers describe pleasant music for conversation and a room that is very busy and full of life, with the crowd flowing freely between inside and out.
The Drinks
Beer, Aguardiente, No Ceremony
Order cold national beer, around 8,000 COP a bottle, or a media of aguardiente to share; that is the entire program and nobody has ever asked for more. Latinoplaces and Foursquare reviewers consistently cite good prices and good service as the draw. The kitchen extends to snacks at most; eat before you come.
The Crowd
Everyone, All at Once
El Colombiano describes the long night here as music, drinks, smoke, conversation, and a flexible diversity of tastes and ways of being. Students, poets, professors, punks, and salseros share the same square meters. Thursday through Saturday nights run latest; the soundtrack rotates rock, salsa, and rock en espanol.
What regulars say:
- El Colombiano marks it as a space of countercultural resistance in the heart of the city.
- Centro de Medellin credits the bar with transforming the plaza into urban dynamism.
- Foursquare reviewers call it economical with very good music and service.
Who it is for:
- Travelers who want Centro's real nightlife, not a Poblado copy
- Long talkers on a short budget
- Avoid if plaza drinking and cigarette smoke put you off; Salon Malaga is the seated alternative
Good to Know
Visit Information
Getting there: Carrera 43 #54-2 on Parque del Periodista, ten minutes on foot from Parque Berrio metro; take a taxi late at night.
Timing: Evenings from Thursday; the plaza peaks between 9pm and midnight.
Cost: Among the cheapest nights out in Medellin; beers around 8,000 COP.
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