Woka Lounge: An Experience for All 5 Senses

Woka Lounge is one of Medellín’s best-kept secrets. A restaurant you wouldn’t think to enter unless it was by recommendation. I’ve walked past Woka multiple times, and if it weren’t for Dave I never would have entered.

Woka is a very nice restaurant that is relatively secluded from the rest of Parque Lleras. The owner thought of the concept eight years ago and opened his dream restaurant a year later. Every aspect of the restaurant was designed to create a memorable experience.

Part of this experience is exclusivity. Woka Lounge is on a third floor (above La Triada restaurant, and Carito, a vallenato club) so you will appreciate not having people ask for money or trying to sell you pirated movies from the sidewalk.

The restaurant’s sole focus is to stimulate your five senses using the four elements of nature: earth, water, air, and fire.

The night starts from the moment you walk up the stairs, and you hear jungle noises; it looks like you are walking through a rainforest.

The restaurant is decorated with trees and moss that give you the sense of being surrounded by nature, a waterfall by the kitchen, “fires” on the walls that flicker the entire night and a pleasant breeze that you would expect from any open air restaurant in Medellín.

Woka Lounge features an international menu with dishes like Peruvian ceviche, sushi, and filet mignon.

My family and I ordered six different dishes from the menu to get a taste of the variety they offer.

I love seafood, so I ordered the Ceviche Mixto with octopus, tilapia and shrimp for 26,900 pesos ($11). They serve the freshest seafood I’ve had in Medellín so far, (they import their seafood three times a week to guarantee the quality).

We also ordered Pad Thai, a big plate for 25,900 pesos ($10). Everything they serve is fresh, quick and delicious. The noodles were cooked perfectly, and it was drizzled in a savory, light tamarind fruit dressing.

The Woka Chicken was a pleasant surprise for 29,900 pesos ($12). The creamy teriyaki sauce blended very well with the chicken. It was sprinkled with slices of bacon and mushrooms and was served with a side of mashed potatoes.

My favorite dish out of all of them was the salmon salad. It was mouth-watering; flaky and rich. We expected salmon chopped up into pieces over the salad but were pleasantly surprised when they served us a full fillet with the salad on the side.

Woka has an open roof, perfect for stargazing, that slides closed in case of rain. I can imagine eating dinner or enjoying their wide variety of cocktails under the glow of a full moon.

The restaurant has two floors, the main floor that is perfect for friends to enjoy some delicious cocktails and talk and a second floor balcony which is much more private, and thus, better-suited for a date.

As you’d expect, Woka Lounge is at its busiest during the weekends and they have fire shows at the bar at night.

They offer a huge menu of drinks, cocktails, and liquors as well as imported wines, but their specialty are the four unique tiki drinks that they serve all in different tiki-inspired cups.

My mouth is watering just thinking about the large menu, and I can’t wait to go back to try the rest of it.

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Dinner was provided compliments of Woka Lounge; all opinions are my own.