Picture perfect venues for Yuletide get-togethers

It’s no secret that a large part of the holidays is about food and fellowship. Finding new places where families and friends can meet up has thus become an inherent part of everyone’s yearend plans.

The perfect venue is not simply about a place to meet and converse, though, since we’re a photo-taking, social-media-posting nation. Everything about it also needs to be photogenic. Listicles and recommendations already abound on TikTok and other platforms. If you’re still looking, here are some leads.

BUTTERBOY
@butterboyph

Looking for an alternative experience? Book a visit to Butterboy in 81 Basa Street in Paltok, Quezon City—just minutes away from West Avenue. The brand began as an online store for budget-friendly but tasty croissants, a proposition that boomed over the pandemic.

In 2021, though, the owners decided to take an unassuming bungalow and turn it into a kitchen and store. They tore down walls to turn the place into a homey hangout. Sought-after nowadays are “drag brunches” and “meriendrags,” where drag queens offer entertainment—in broad daylight. You might also want to attend the concertos, which feature great musicians. Food and drinks are an inclusion!

LA LUNA
@la_lunacafe

Lovers of conservation will delight in La Luna Café at 103 M. L. Quezon Avenue in Taguig. If you want to wax nostalgic and revel in Filipino heritage, this is the perfect spot for you. Two ancestral homes and their lawns were turned into a beautiful restaurant and café, with indoor and outdoor spaces ready for salu-salo, whether intimate or bigger.

The place in Hagonoy, just a short drive away from the busy Bonifacio Global City, will remind you of a simpler childhood with bahay-na-bato homes embracing the traditional materials and methods, including the capiz windows and wooden balustrades. The food includes Filipino and Western delights, Taguig’s own fare, panaderia favorites and great drinks. A bonus is the collection of proudly Filipino art displayed for guests to enjoy.

SELTSAM
@seltsamph

You’d feel like you’re in on a secret when you visit this place. It’s like a greenhouse on the rooftop of Gervacia Center in Legazpi Village, Makati City. It calls itself “a strange place for strange people,” and achieves the vibe with a hodgepodge of art, furniture and décor. You do get used to that and in-house cat Boba.

The place, overlooking Makati Cinema Square, has anything from rice meals including the Pinoy silogs to nachos, pulutan and pizza! It also has vegan and vegetarian options. Enjoy the beers and cocktails, if you want some alcohol in your system. If you’re cutting back on those drinks for any reason (you might need to attend the dawn Mass later), it also has mocktails and non-alcoholic beverages.

CAFÉ ROO
@caferooph

If someone from your circle is a K-pop fan, give them a reason to smile. Arrange a get-together at Café Roo, a Korean rooftop café at 465 Remedios St., Malate, Manila. There, you can treat yourselves to food, coffee and a variety of drinks (soju included) while overlooking the district and feeling the breeze from Manila Bay.

Taking the Korean aesthetic, it has a quaint counter and so many corners worthy of an Instagram story. Your event can also happen rain or shine with VIP rooms ready to take up guests. If you suddenly decide, after food and drinks, that you want a singalong, get a karaoke room, will you? Make the memories last longer by trying out the photobooth.