World’s Top 50 Bars 2019

Every year, the William Reed Business Media ranks the top 50 bars in the world (note they’re from the UK, so the list tends to skew UK/Singapore). It’s a great excuse to travel. After digging more into the bars, we can say that all of the bars featured are exceptional – but there’s often a lot of politics (bartenders have told us off-the-record that they will scour the reservations to try to figure out when the reviewers arrive).

We try to review the bars from a layperson’s perspective. Keep in mind that we go in on a random night (and not often) so your mileage may vary quite a lot in regards to the experience at the bar.

Things we tend to like:

1. Good and inventive cocktails
2. Exceptional bartenders
3. Great place to meet new friends

The below are the newly updated 2019 World’s Best 50 Bars. The asterisked ones are the ones we personally recommend of those, with 3 stars being the most recommended:

1. Dante, New York*
2. Connaught Bar, London
3. Florería Atlántico, Buenos Aires
4. The NoMad, New York ** (recommend)
5. American Bar, London
6. The Clumsies, Athens
7. Attaboy, New York
8. Atlas, Singapore
9. The Old Man, Hong Kong
10. Licoreria Limantour, Mexico City***
11. Manhattan, Singapore***
12. Native, Singapore
13. Carnaval, Lima
14. Katana Kitten, New York
15. Guilhotina, São Paulo- Brazil
16. Three Sheets, London
17. Himkok, Oslo
18. High Five, Tokyo**
19. Salmón Gurú, Madrid
20. Paradiso, Barcelona
21. Indulge Experimental Bistro, Taipei
22. The Dead Rabbit, New York*** (highly recommend)
23. Coupette, London
24. The SG Club, Tokyo
25. Dr. Stravinsky, Barcelona
26. Employees Only, New York
27. El Copitas, St Petersburg
28. Scout, London
29. Jigger & Pony, Singapore
30. Operation Dagger, Singapore
31. Baba Au Rum, Athens
32. La Factoría, Old San Juan – Puerto Rico
33. Presidente, Buenos Aires
34. Schumann’s, Munich
35. Speak Low, Shanghai*** (highly recommend)
36. Little Red Door, Paris
37. Linje Tio, Stockholm
38. The Old Man, Singapore
39. Lyaness, London
40. Happiness Forgets, London
41. Swift, London
42. Trick Dog, San Francisco
43. Maybe Sammy, Sydney
44. 1930, Milan
45. Sober Company, Shanghai
46. Electric Bing Sutt, Beirut
47. Kwānt, London
48. Artesian, London
49. Coa, Hong Kong
50. Jerry Thomas Speakeasy, Rome

What we think should have made it: Gibson, London. Hands down.

Top 50 Bar Reviews