Bungalow 6 sits at Calama and Diego de Almagro in the middle of La Mariscal, the nightlife grid around Plaza Foch. It opened in 2006 and Tripadvisor reviewers keep calling it the best party in the Mariscal, which after years of competition is a position it has held.
Who would love it: people who want to dance to live bands and DJs across more than one floor. Who would hate it: anyone after a quiet cocktail or an early night, since the room is built for volume.
The layout splits the night in two. The ground floor holds a large dance floor with a stage for live music, while a quieter upstairs gives a place to sit at the bar and hear yourself think. The mix of bands and DJs runs through pop, reggae and Latin sounds, so the floor rarely settles on one genre.
Order beers and spirits rather than a long cocktail build, since this is a dancing bar and the bar staff move fast. Drink prices stay reasonable for the area, which Tripadvisor reviewers note alongside the music. The kitchen is not the point here, so eat before you arrive.
Best time to go is Thursday through Saturday after 10pm, when the live sets and the floor are at full tilt. Saturdays add free salsa classes earlier in the night, and Thursday runs a ladies night with free entry for women. The bar opens Wednesday to Saturday and runs to 3am, so it is a late stop rather than an opener.
It anchors the Mariscal end of the city's best live music bars and the wider best bars in Quito. Warm up over the road at Finn McCool's, carry the night to Cafe Libro for a band, or slow it down with the city's best cocktail bars.
