Buddy Bar is Santa Maria’s live-music hotspot: bands from around 10 pm, packed nights and plenty of dancing. It works if you come for the rhythm and accept waiting times. Watch out for confusing charges and the surrounding atmosphere at certain hours.
When Santa Maria switches into stage mode
On Rua 1 de Junho, the main street has that endless strolling rhythm: people going up, people going down, and music leaking out of places competing for your attention. Buddy Bar doesn’t compete. It simply plays. And when it does, the street behaves as if someone quietly switched on “night mode”.
You walk in out of curiosity, stay because there’s a band, and suddenly you’re checking the time thinking, “is it really that late already?”. Classic.
What it really is, without postcard poetry
For many people, Buddy Bar is Santa Maria’s informal live-music venue. It’s not a club with festival lights, nor a silent cocktail lounge. It’s a bar with live music — very often — outdoor tables to watch life go by, and an interior that, depending on the night, can feel like a sauna with a soundtrack.
It works very well if you’re looking for Cape Verdean atmosphere, familiar songs, easy rhythms and that social mix where locals and travellers blend without formal introductions. If you’re after calm conversation or perfectly polished service… better choose somewhere else, or head up to the rooftop and hope there’s space.
What usually happens when the night gets serious
The most repeated pattern is quite clear: live music from around 10 pm, the place fills up (a lot), and Buddy becomes the spot where you end up even if you hadn’t planned to. Some describe it as “the only place open all night”, and while that depends on the season and the day, the idea of “there’s always something happening here” comes up again and again.
When the band is good, the energy spreads. People sing, dance, move between tables, and you get that feeling that the bar is small but the night is big. You don’t need a perfect dance floor: if there’s music and room to move your shoulders, Sal manages just fine.
Buddy isn’t a bar to “be in”. It’s a bar where the night happens to you.
Service, heat and the art of waiting without losing your humour
This is where things get less romantic: service is an issue. Many reviews repeat the same thing insistently: slow, very slow when it’s busy, and sometimes with odd decisions (like bringing the bill without being asked, or giving the feeling that it’s time for you to leave).
Add the interior heat — directly described as “impossible to stay inside” on some nights — and you get the Buddy equation: outside is more comfortable, inside sounds better, and between the two you negotiate your patience level.
Drinks, to be fair, tend to score well: mojitos come up often, along with caipirinhas and piña coladas, and a broad menu. Prices, though, are very much in the eye of the beholder: some find it cheap for a strong front bar, others call them “European prices”.
When it doesn’t work, it’s not just “a bad day”
This needs to be said clearly, especially if nightlife is your goal.
Several reviews point to serious billing issues: menu prices that don’t match the receipt, confusing change, extra charges when paying in euros or by card, and even tips added without asking. There are also a couple of very negative experiences involving staff on the terrace/rooftop, described as rude and intimidating, including following customers outside the venue.
Then there’s the elephant in the room: one review mentions an uncomfortable atmosphere of predatory tourism (Europeans hunting for “easy targets” among locals), while another paints the place as “shady” due to harassment in the area (persistent prostitution, pickpockets, aggressive begging). This doesn’t mean it happens every night, but it does mean this isn’t a place to run on autopilot.
Things worth knowing before you show up
If you’re going to Buddy for the music — which makes sense — it helps to keep a few things in mind:
– Arrive before 11 pm if you want a seat outside. After that, it gets serious.
– If you pay by card or in euros, watch the terminal and the receipt like a contract. No drama, just attention.
– If you want to talk, the rooftop can save you… when there’s no trouble up there.
– If you’re there to dance, keep it simple: band, drink, patience with timing.
– And if someone makes you uncomfortable (inside or outside), shift position, regroup and move on. Santa Maria is small; changing spots is easy.
The ending, without a moral but with reality
Buddy Bar has one clear strength: the music holds the night together. For many, it’s literally “where the party is”. But that same popularity makes its flaws more visible: slow service, heat, questionable charges and an environment that, depending on the hour and the crowd, can turn unpleasant.
If the band is good and you’re in the right mindset, Buddy gives you exactly what you came for: a lively, simple night with rhythm. If you expect full control, it may feel like a social experiment with a mojito.
In Sal, there are pretty bars. Buddy is one of the noisy ones. And sometimes, that’s exactly what you need.
