Lifestyle

London bar named best in the world in new ranking

When it comes to spots to stop for a drink, this place really raises the bar.

The UK-based group behind the annual World’s 50 Best Bars list released 2020’s installment on Thursday, naming London’s Connaught Bar as the best.

Located in a hotel in London’s posh Mayfair neighborhood, the bar “evolves from one year to the next, always delivering with poise and studied purpose,” according to the list.

The judges praised Connaught Bar’s décor and its menu, which includes an entire section devoted to caviar. They also wrote highly of its cocktails, calling its dry martini “probably the best in London” and recommending a Scotch and sherry drink called the “magnetum,” which is mixed in a custom-made device.

The US claimed the No. 2 spot on the list via New York City’s Café Dante. The Greenwich Village bar offers “refined but simple Italian food, aperitivos, coffee and cocktails.” The judges called its Garibaldi – made with Campari and fresh orange juice – “the must-order libation.”

A bartender at Caffe Dante bar and restaurant in Manhattan.
A bartender at Caffe Dante bar and restaurant in Manhattan.Getty Images

For anyone hoping their favorite local bar made the list, they may be out of luck – unless they live in New York. The city was home to five bars in the top 50 and it is the only US city on the list until Miami’s Café La Trova at the 70th spot.

The list was concocted by William Reed Business Media, a UK-based company that also publishes the World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. The company said it consulted extensively” with industry pros, taking votes from more than 500 drinks experts from around the world.

“The list represents the ultimate international guide to the world’s top bars and drinking destinations,” according to the company.

Being honored as one of the top bars in the world may seem like a less-than-useful designation in 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic has closed many restaurants temporarily or permanently. The Connaught Bar is closed through Dec. 1 and Dante has been offering outside dining and takeout, according to its website.

The judges said in a press release that they hoped the ranking would “bind the community even closer together and provide positive news as bars enter the next stage of recovery.”

So while traveling to top bars overseas may be out of the question for Americans for some time, here are the list’s top bars located in the US:

  • 2. Dante – New York
  • 12. Attaboy – New York
  • 13. Nomad Bar – New York
  • 16. Katana Kitten – New York
  • 38. Employees Only – New York
  • 70. Café La Trova – Miami
  • 71. The Dead Rabbit – New York
  • 74. Pacific Cocktail Haven – San Francisco
  • 77. Trick Dog – San Francisco
  • 82. Kumiko – Chicago
  • 89. Death & Co – New York
  • 94. Amor y Amargo – New York