The 2016 World’s 50 Best Bars

Purple and red beams of light illuminate the façade of deconsecrated Christ Church, Spitalfields, just behind London’s Liverpool street, while many people wait to get in: tonight, the bar celebrates the World’s 50 best bars. Being invited to such a prestigious ceremony, along with 476 selected voters from all over the world, is a unique experience. Bartenders and bar-managers, brand ambassadors and journalists from each

The World’s 50 best bars ceremony

corner of the globe collect here to be part of the countdown. The ceremony is fast, moderate, way less solemn than the location and setting suggest. Sipping cocktails and beers by the event’s sponsor makes the wait for the ranking very short; after a few minutes of conversation and P.R., we see David Wondrich stepping on the stage to announce the best cocktail bars of 2016.

Even before analyzing the ranking, it is clear that Great Britain and the United States still represent the core of the top-50, since as many as 24 venues come from the two countries. With respectively 9 and 8 bars, London and New York are the capitals of the cocktail world. Overall, Europe is the continent that holds more cocktail bars from the 2016 World’s 50 best bars, with 22 selected venues; Asia is another expected player with 7 venues, 3 of which surprisingly in Singapore.

The 2016 World’s 50 Best Bars

Just like David Wondrich did, we start climbing the 2016 World’s 50 Best Bars from the back end, the last

Il Buck & Breck di Berlino

spot of the bar élite, the fiftieth place that this year is held by Berlin’s Buck & Breck speakeasy, still in the ranking after moving down by several places. At the 49^th place, the comeback of Floreria Atlantico, the Buenos Aires venue, hosted in a flower shop, that we personally appreciated for its quality and heterogeneous clientele. In 45^th place is the legendary Please Don’t Tell, New York, which launched the contemporary “speakeasy style” and still represents a must place for those looking for a tasty cocktail in the Big Apple. The 43^rd spot takes us thousand kilometers away from the US: it’s held by Lost + Found – a Cyprus Island hidden pearl, ranked behind the very first Norwegian bar in the whole

Floreria Atlantico

2016 World’s 50 Best Bars history, Oslo’s Himkok: not a big surprise to us, since we found the city’s new life thrilling, not just in terms of wine and food. Between the 40^th and the 30^th places, two Italian icons make their appearance: the veteran Milan’s Nottingham Forest (ranked for 10 years in a row), going up by some positions to the 38^th, and Rome’s Jerry Thomas Speakeasy, both proving the value of Italian leadership despite changes over time. Inspired to Italy and

Jerry Thomas Project

Italians aperitifs is Dante (ranked 34^th), a new arrival from New York by Naren Young. Just two positions up the ranking, we have one of the most important brand new venues of this year: London’s Oriole (32^nd). Almost “hidden” inside Smithfield urban Market, the new cocktail bar by Luca Cinalli flaunts a majestic interior, caught in between an American diner and a European hall, as well as a magnificent bar counter. London is also the home of the venue ranked 30^th: Bar Termini by Tony Conigliaro (together with Marco Arrigo), a tiny Italian quality place at the edge of chaotic Soho. Nico de Soto (whose new Parisian venue really arouses our curiosity) holds the 28^th place with his Mace, just one position behind Hong Kong’s lavish colorful Lobster bar (27^th), the second bar from China’s Special Administrative Region after the Quinary (ranked 41^st). In

Nico de Soto at The Mace

26^th place is the only bar, therefore the best one, from Africa and Middle East: Beirut’s wonderful Central Station by Jad Ballot, whose deserved success is also owed to the collaboration with many important cocktail bars. Halfway in the ranking, we find the lovely Little Red Door, Paris, where Remy Savage & Co. create their potions: despite not being very warm and cozy, this unique cocktail bar managed to enter the league of the world’s best bars with its characteristic identity and blends. The 23^rd position is held by the old stand-by High Five by Hidetsugu Ueno, Tokyo, which launched an out-and-out bar philosophy from one of

L’High Five’s Hidetsugu Ueno

the most intriguing districts in the world. The team from Singapore makes its first appearance at the 21^st place with Operation Dagger, a must-see for those traveling to the island. Due to recent changes, one of the cornerstones of contemporary blending falls down by many positions to the 19^th place: London’s Nightjar, ranked just behind the very characteristic Tales & Spirits (18^th), Amsterdam, whose building, located a few steps from Dam square, is totally worth a visit. From the Netherlands to France with Paris’ Candelaria, ranked 17^th, literally located two minutes away from the Little Red Door, yet completely different in terms

Candelaria

of style and atmosphere, as it stands out for its warm convivial feel. Two eastern bars mark the beginning of the hottest part of the ranking: the Speak Low (15^th) by Shingo Gokan, Shanghai, and the 28 Hong Kong Street  (14^th) by Logan Demmy, Singapore. Three award-winning locations hold the following three positions: the Licoreria Limantour (13^th) in Mexico City, winner of the best Latin-American cocktail bar; the The Baxter Inn (12^th), Sydney, best Australia’s cocktail bar, and Singapore’s Manhattan (11^th), best Asia’s bar. The top 10 of the ranking is a very close call. In 10^th place is the Happiness Forgets, London, probably not as renowned as other venues in the city. Ranked 9^th is

The Clumsies

Athens’ wonderful The Clumsies, whose team – composed of Vasilis Kyritsis, Nikos Bakoulis, Lelos Georgopoulos, Thanos Tsounakas and Giorgos Kaissaris – contributed to transforming the Greek capital into one of the most interesting blending meccas. The eighth spot is held by Nomad bar, located in the namesaked New York hotel, ranked just behind what we consider one of the most interesting fun bars of New York and the whole world, the Employees Only (7^th), where the party never stops. Ranked sixth is the best new arrival of 2016, whose enormous reputation is probably due to the presence of the contemporary blending guru Marian Beke rather than the

The Gibson

actual venue’s caliber: that’s The Gibson, London, this year’s “Highest New Entry”. The fifth spot is held by New York’s Attaboy, preceded by one of the leading cocktail institutions, London’s Connaught Bar. Currently run by Ago Perrone, the venue from the namesaked hotel hosted some of the most important bartenders of all times: since most of the people expected the bar to win first place, many hisses followed the announcement of its fourth position. The Connaught Bar basically embodies London’s style and elegance: everything, from service to clientele, from the atmosphere to the drink list, perfectly represents what people search for in a high end cocktail bar of the city. The first bar to hit the podium is London’s Dandelyan, the ’“Highest climber” of the 2016 World’s 50 Best Bars, as it went up by as many as 47 positions in just one year, from 50^th to 3^rd. After winning the

Dandelyan

best menu award at the Tales of Cocktails in New Orleans, the cocktail bar of the Mondrian Hotel makes another splash in this ranking. The elegant refined venue overlooks the Thames, serving a characteristic polished cocktail list in a friendly yet classy atmosphere: everything is about innovation and research, from the reinterpretation of classic drinks to a fascinating presentation. The central step of the podium is no surprise, as it’s held by the history of bars, the tiny little place that changed the world forever: the American Bar at London’s Savoy Hotel. Renovating an institution is never easy, especially if you’re located on the Strand and your name is Savoy, however the work started by Eric Lorincz back in 2010, when the bar reopened, has finally paid off: ranked second in the top 50, it’s listed as Europe’s best bar. Finally, the first place belongs to the United States: after ranking second for two times, Sean Muldoon and Jack McGarry from the Dead Rabbit of New York reach the top of the 2016 World’s 50 Best Bars. Located a few steps away from Battery

Jack McGarry e Sean Muldoon

Park and Staten Island Ferry, this very characteristic Irish pub is actually pretty controversial, yet it made an extremely good impression on us. The graphically extraordinary menu reveals a thorough research; the service is friendly, accurate and “light”, creating a warm, fun, convivial atmosphere that we fully enjoyed on our visit. Placing first among the best players is always hard, as the final verdict is never unanimous. This time, however, we agree with those, among over 700 voters, who voted this way.