Hidden Speakeasies and Underground Bars in Medellín
A speakeasy needs a hidden entrance and, usually, a password. Medellín has fewer genuine ones than most lists suggest — but it also has underground bars worth going to that are not speakeasies, and it is more useful to say which is which.
The two genuine speakeasies
| Bar | Where | The entrance |
|---|---|---|
| La Casa de Ruby | Calle 10 #33-21, El Poblado | Through a Japanese ice cream shop; password required |
| Z Bar Jazz Club | Basement of the Marquee, El Poblado | Down to “floor Z” |
La Casa de Ruby
Billed as Medellín’s first speakeasy. The entrance is genuinely hidden — you go through a Japanese ice cream shop on Calle 10 #33-21, and you need a password, given when you book (La Casa de Ruby; Tripadvisor).
Inside: 1920s styling, dim light, vintage décor, live jazz on some nights, and signature cocktails named after gemstones.
Book ahead. The password is the reservation, so turning up without one is how people end up eating ice cream.
Z Bar Jazz Club
In the basement of the Marquee hotel — literally “floor Z” — a low-lit room that bills itself as Medellín’s first live jazz club. Open Thursday to Saturday, with live music most nights it opens (Marquee Medellín; Tripadvisor).
The same building has a rooftop bar on the 12th floor, so you can start at the top and end in the basement.
Underground, but not speakeasies
These three are worth your evening and are routinely miscategorised:
- Tibiri — a legendary underground salsa bar in the Centro, packed, loud and gritty. No password, no hidden door, and no resemblance to a cocktail lounge. Go to dance (Salsa Me).
- Siete Pulgadas — a listening bar near Parque El Poblado, where music is played exclusively on vinyl through a hi-fi record player. Whisky and rum selection, intimate room. Open Monday–Wednesday from 6 PM, Thursday–Saturday from 7 PM (Siete Pulgadas; Tripadvisor).
- 20Mission Cerveza — a Colombian craft brewery, making Blonde, Witbier, Pale Ale, Porter, IPA and Saison, plus ginger beer and tonic. A brewery taproom, not a hidden bar (20Mission).
Going out
- Book where booking is the entry mechanism. At La Casa de Ruby the reservation is how you get the password.
- Check the day. Z Bar runs Thursday to Saturday; Siete Pulgadas opens in the evening only.
- Cocktails are priced well above a neighbourhood bar. Check the menu on arrival rather than trusting a figure from a guide.
- Most of these sit in or near Provenza and Parque Lleras. Since April 2024, municipal decrees restrict solicitation in public space across Parque Lleras, Provenza, Calle 10 and Parque El Poblado, with a pilot capping alcohol venues there at 1:00 AM (Alcaldía de Medellín).
A note on this guide
Rechecked in September 2026. The previous version listed nine speakeasies; five could not be verified to exist and were removed — Insólito, Victoria Regia, Black Sheep, La Oculta, and a second Siete Pulgadas entry placed in Laureles. Of the four that are real, two are not speakeasies: Tibiri is a salsa bar and 20Mission is a brewery, and both are now described as what they are. Siete Pulgadas was relocated from Laureles to El Poblado, and addresses and opening days were added throughout. The year was removed from the title; the URL is unchanged.