The City's Hottest New 'Old' Club Is in the Basement of Makati Cinema Square

Ahh MCS. Almost every person who ever worked and lived in Makati has a Makati Cinema Square story. We’re not going to enumerate—you know what we’re talking about. But while MCS has certainly seen better days, a group of enterprising individuals have decided that now is the time to get everybody back to this little corner of Makati. 

The brains behind NoKal, that Poblacion hotspot located along Kalayaan Avenue shuttered at the height of the pandemic in 2020, has resurrected the resto-bar-club concept, this time at the basement of MCS. Is the idea or insane or brilliant? We’ll have to wait and see, but for now, we can only wonder and gawk how they managed to pull it off.

Photo by Nokal.

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According to the press release, the “New York-inspired club” is bringing back old favorites like the NoKal Burger and introducing soon-to-be-crowd favorites like a cocktail named Studio 54 with a mini disco ball right on the glass.

The fellas behind the club—and there are a lot of them—put special emphasis on the acoustics, understanding that a huge part of a night out is what you hear. The club invested in top-of-the-line sound system, D&B Audiotechnik, for a full and immersive sonic experience.

“It actually might be the first thing you will notice when you walk in,” says partner Jason Soong about the sound and feel of NoKal. “It just sounds so good without hurting the ears. Look for the sweet spot when you’re there.” 

Photo by Nokal.

The club was also conceptualized to become a venue not just for international artists to come play and hang out but to showcase emerging talents. Already the partners have booked “close to 40 Filipino talents” who will play at NoKal.

The new NoKal is a bit of a walk from its old spot at Poblacion, but time will tell if it will draw in the crowds just like it did back in the day.

Photo by Nokal.

Photo by Nokal.

Photo by Nokal.

“We've always been a safe place to go to,” co-founder and managing director Marco Viray says. “I think the culture that we promote is one that expresses peace, love, and responsibility. ‘In our house we are all equal’, as they say.”

NoKal is open Wednesday to Saturday from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. It’s located at Basement 1 of Makati Cinema Square. For venue rentals, table reservations, and guest list bookings 09171395178.