iStockphoto / DuarteMendes
I make no attempts around here to hide my love affair with alcohol. I love Bourbon, lately I’ve been particularly I loving Rye. I’m into all types of Single Malt Scotch, Tequila, Mezcal, Rum, and Gin. When it comes to cocktails I’m a Campari junkie (the Negroni is it for me) and I’m always down to taste pretty much everything other alcohol underneath the sun.
I also love to travel. Travel, booze, and food pretty much eat up like 80% of my budget in life but I won’t bore you with the details of where I go and what I eat. But, when I see a list of the best bars in the world it piques my interest
The ‘World’s 50 Best’ first caught my attention years back when they became one of, if not the, definitive ranking on the world’s best restaurants. Flash forward to present day and in addition to restaurants they’re also compiling a list of the best bars in the world and I’m proud to say that I’ve sipped cocktails at #’s 1, 4, 5, 22, and 26. But all that means is I’ve got a SHIT TON of work to do in order to drink at all 50.
The World’s 50 Best Bars have just released their 2019 list and if you’re a libation connoisseur like yours truly then you’ll want to commit these bars to memory and start stockpiling airline miles for a badass trip in the very near future. Here they are, the 50 best bars in the world of 2019, with an NYC bar taking the top spot and the UK leading the charge with 10 bars (USA has 7 with 6 in NYC).
1 Dante, NYC
2 Connaught Bar, London
3 Florería Atlántico,Buenos Aires
4 The NoMad, NYC
5 American Bar, London (my personal favorite on this list)
6 The Clumsies, Lond
7 Attaboy, Athens
8 Atlas, NYC
9 The Old Man, Hong Kong
10 Licorería Limantour, Mexico City
If you ever have the chance to go to American Bar in London, do it. It’s one of those places I always recommend to friends visiting London and they’re like “why the fuck would I go to ‘American Bar’ when I’m in London?!” and then it blows them away to the point I’ve received hand-written thank you letters for the suggestion. It’s that good.
11 Manhattan, Singapore
12 Native, Singapore
13 Carnaval, Lima
14 Katana Kitten, NYC
15 Guilhotina, Sao Paolo
16 Three Sheets, London
17 Himkok, Oslo
18 High Five, Tokyo
19 Salmón Gurú, Madrid
20 Paradiso, Barcelona
I need to go to Singapore.
21 Indulge Experimental Bistro, Taipei
22 The Dead Rabbit, NYC (didn’t you burn down?)
23 Coupette, London
24 The SG Club, Tokyo
25 Dr. Stravinsky, Barcelona
26 Employees Only, NYC
27 El Copitas, St. Petersburg
28 Scout, London
29 Jigger & Pony, Singapore
30 Operation Dagger, Singapore
Solid middle group here. I missed out on #25 when I was in Barcelona a few months ago and I’ve been regretting it.
31 Baba Au Rum, Singapore
32 La Factoría, Old San Juan Pr
33 Presidente, Buenos Aires
34 Schumann’s, Munich
35 Speak Low, Shanghai
36 Little Red Door, Paris
37 Linje Tio, Stockholm
38 The Old Man, Singapore
39 Lyaness, London
40 Happiness Forgets, London
Australia finally makes the list below followed by a non-NYC American bar not named ‘American Bar’.
41 Swift, London
42 Trick Dog, San Francisco (only non-NYC US bar)
43 Maybe Sammy, Sydney
44 1930, Milan
45 Sober Company, Shanghai
46 Electric Bing Sutt, Beirut
47 Kwant, London
48 Artesian, London
49 Coa, Hong Kong
50 Jerry Thomas Speakeasy, Rome
If that list was too much to digest, here are some highlights:
— Dante claims The World’s Best Bar award, sponsored by Perrier
— The 2019 list features a record 17 new entries; 15 making their debut, two returning to the list
— The UK leads the list, featuring 10 bars, while the USA has seven
— New York City boasts six bars on the 2019 list, including The NoMad (No.4), Attaboy (No.7) and Katana Kitten (No.14)
— Katana Kitten out of New York is the Best New Opening, sponsored by Thomas Henry
— Monica Berg, co-owner of Tayēr + Elementary (No.52), is named the Altos Bartenders’ Bartender
— Peru’s Carnaval enters at No.13, winning the Highest New Entry award, sponsored by iichiko Saiten, after being tipped as the Campari One To Watch last year
— Salmón Gurú from Madrid is the Highest Climber, sponsored by Tanqueray
— Charles Schumann – owner of Schumann’s Bar – is awarded with the Industry Icon award, sponsored by Nikka Whisky
— London’s American Bar wins the Legend of The List, sponsored by Asahi
— Native, in Singapore (No.12), is the winner of the Ketel One Sustainable Bar Award
— Rome’s Drink Kong (No.82) is named the Campari One To Watch
If I’m being honest here, the fact that the Brandy Library in TriBeCa doesn’t make EVERY list of the world’s best bars every single year infuriates me. I’ve traveled plenty. In college, it took 4 days for me and some friends to drink an ENTIRE Caribbean island out of their alcohol. I’ve drank everywhere from South America to above the Arctic Circle but I’ve still yet to find a bar with as great of a selection AND as good of service as the Brandy Library.
And as for London, I’ve only been twice but drank at 2 of the listed bars above and Mr. Fogg’s Residence should be on this list as far as I’m concerned. It was one of the coolest, most well-thought out and constructed bars I’ve been at anywhere in the world.
As for the list overall, it seems like I need to take a trip to Singapore ASAP. And France/Italy are slacking hard these days, as is my favorite (non US) country Portugal who failed to make the list.
You can click here for a link to the World’s 50 Best Bars rundown with detailed descriptions of each bar that made this year’s list.