Ten cocktail cities for a very grown-up bar crawl

There is a version of a night out that involves less queueing and no shouting: three or four exceptional bars, drinks made by people who treat ice as a discipline, and conversation you can actually hear. Recent editions of The World’s 50 Best Bars help explain several choices below, but this is an unranked editorial selection: each city has its own accent, from London’s hotel grandeur to Tokyo’s precise counters and Athens’ new-wave confidence. Check each venue’s current system before setting out — some release reservations, others keep walk-in seats or run virtual queues. A bar seat and a request for the bartender’s choice can be rewarding where the room allows, but neither is a universal rule.

London’s cocktail scene runs from gilded hotel institutions to inventive rooms farther east. Connaught Bar in Mayfair does not take reservations and closes on Sundays; the Savoy’s American Bar, near Covent Garden, is mainly walk-in with limited reservations and publishes Sunday hours. These central hotel bars and east London are not one walking crawl, so choose a grand central evening or allow for a cross-city transfer before heading east.

The East Village and Lower East Side give New York’s cocktail history a practical neighbourhood spine, with Death & Co and Attaboy among the enduring anchors. Both release limited reservations while retaining seats for walk-ins, so check their current arrangements rather than assuming a queue is inevitable. Attaboy is strictly 21+ and requires physical government-issued identification. Its menu-free approach particularly suits a considered ‘make me something’ brief; wherever you drink, remember to budget for customary US tipping.

Athens combines influential central institutions with a newer ranking leader. Line placed eighth in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025, while Baba Au Rum ranked 27th; Baba Au Rum and The Clumsies remain persuasive anchors for a compact central crawl. The style is generous and unstuffy, with Greek spirits such as mastiha and tsipouro appearing in inventive drinks. Line sits outside that tight central sequence, so treat it as a separate journey rather than another stop around Syntagma and Psyrri.

Lisbon’s nightlife has natural gravity: start high in Bairro Alto’s grid of small bars, then descend towards Cais do Sodré and Pink Street. For a serious cocktail anchor, Red Frog is a small, seated-only speakeasy that requires reservations and currently opens Tuesday to Saturday. Ginjinha from one of the city’s traditional counters makes an optional local interlude, but this is a hilly route and the cocktail stops deserve planning rather than an improvised downhill trawl.

Buenos Aires gives vermouth and Italian-influenced aperitivo culture a distinctly porteño cast. Florería Atlántico, beneath a flower shop in Retiro, remains an atmospheric anchor and publishes contact details for reservations; Palermo is a separate bar district rather than the next stop on foot. There, Tres Monos — ranked tenth in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025 — gives the neighbourhood current weight. Choose one district for a compact evening or plan transport between them.

Tokyo offers contrasting styles rather than one tidy crawl. Ginza specialises in hushed counters and exacting technique, while Bar Benfiddich in Shinjuku — ranked 18th in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025 — provides a current cocktail anchor. Nearby Golden Gai packs more than 280 tiny bars and eateries into six close-set rows. Some doors are members-only and opening times vary, so check displayed cover charges and payment methods before settling into one of the small rooms.

Singapore’s best-known cocktail rooms are spread across the centre rather than gathered into one shophouse crawl. Jigger & Pony is inside Amara Singapore on Tanjong Pagar Road; it is over-18 only and advertises a daily happy hour from 6pm to 7.30pm. ATLAS occupies the Art Deco lobby of Parkview Square near Bugis, accepts reservations, retains some walk-in tables and applies an evening dress code. Raffles’ Long Bar is walk-in only: its Singapore Sling offers historic setting and peanut-shell theatre, though inventive cocktail value lies elsewhere. Plan the journey between these rooms rather than treating them as neighbours.

Mexico City has a particularly strong recent ranking record: Handshake Speakeasy was named number one in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2024 and placed second in the 2025 list. It offers online reservations, so book in advance without relying on a fixed lead time. Roma Norte and Juárez provide the practical neighbourhood spine, with Licorería Limantour among the established names, while agave spirits give the city’s drinks a recognisable accent.

Barcelona’s bar scene has a flair for the theatrical entrance: Paradiso hides behind a pastrami-shop fridge door in El Born, while Sips designs drinks as small production numbers. They ranked fourth and third respectively in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025, but they are not neighbours: Sips is on Carrer de Muntaner. Contact Sips about a reservation; Paradiso takes no advance bookings, so visitors scan the QR code at the door to join its virtual queue. Balance the razzle with the old guard at Boadas, just off La Rambla, and bridge the gaps with vermouth.

Paris rewards a choice between influential rooms and the current ranking leaders. Little Red Door remains a notable Marais institution, while The Cambridge Public House placed 20th and Danico 30th in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2025. Danico is entered through Daroco at Galerie Vivienne and operates on a walk-in-only basis, so a quieter weekday may improve the odds but cannot guarantee a seat. The Marais, Galerie Vivienne and South Pigalle are not one compact crawl; choose a district or allow for a journey between rounds.