Five Intoxicating Cocktail Bars in Five Minutes
This is your five minute guide to five great cocktail bars in the world’s best cities.
If you’re the kind of person who hops around on a plane with little time to research the local hotspots, this is the guide for you. If you’re heading for a stopover or stay in France, Mexico, Italy, Lebanon or Rio, you need a quick sundowner and tasty treat, we’ve got your back.
1. Paris
Find the red door in the delightful, central Paris district of Marais to enter into the cosy yet cosmopolitan Little Red Door. Little Red Door pushes the cocktail menu envelope, reinventing communication, design, style and taste. Their latest menu, Flourish, builds on the bar's overarching concept of 'playfully pushing boundaries.' It is all about farm-to-glass using sustainable, eco-friendly flavour wizardry to create new cocktails. They don't take reservations, simply go and give the Little Red Door a knock.
Must Try Cocktail: Hops
Refreshing and drinkable, their house-made soda features the elegant and delicate bitterness of hops. It’s then combined with Floc de Gascogne and Roger Groult cider brandy for those looking for floral, fresh, and green notes in a sparkling and subtly sour cocktail.
2. Mexico City
Licorería Limantour is a Mexico City institution. Named The Best Bar in North America for the second consecutive year and Rémy Martin Legend of The List in 2022 (50 Best Bars), it is both a hyper-local and international superstar. It's busy every day of the week, the staff are friendly, efficient and well trained, their drinks are to-die-for, and the atmosphere is nothing short of intoxicating. It's the kind of place that gets everything right.
Must Try Cocktail: Margarita al Pastor
A Margarita made from tequila blanco, orange liqueur, house-made taco mix (mint, basil, chilli, agave and pineapple juice), lime juice, and coriander salt. The Margarita al Pastor is a take on tacos al pastor, traditionally served with roast pineapple and fresh coriander/cilantro that is now a modern classic in its own right.
3. Rome
Not your average Via Veneto Dolce Vita Rome hotspot, Drink Kong is a 70s futurism, King Kong and Japanese-influenced nightclub-dark, neon-lit bar set between the Stazione Termini and the Colosseum. This hopelessly hip cocktail bar has some serious cocktail chops, though. Their new menu, Perimetro, launched in 2022, uses mood and instinct to create taste profiles and their Japanese bar has visiting cocktail royalty for intimate tastings.
Must Try Cocktail: Ryuzo
The Ryuzo is an exotic whiskey drink inspired by the excellent Godfather cocktail. It's a beautiful blend of Aberfeldy 12 yo Scotch and Disaronno Amaretto with house-made pineapple and date cordial.
4. Rio
Expect high-quality food as well as a quintessential cocktail list at this Parisian Brasserie-style restaurant in the centre of Rio. Order oysters on the half shell with the house smoked chilli sauce, and choose from any of the exquisite cocktails twisted from 1920's style European classics, American Tiki cocktails and the all-important national drink, the Caipirinha.
Must Try Cocktail: Between the Tropics
A blend of golden rum and local cachaça with pineapple, lime and the retro Tiki cocktail syrup Fassionola.
5. Beirut
You'll have tried Italian sambuca, Greek ouzo, Turkish raki, Swiss absinthe or French pastis, but how about Lebanon's national drink, the aniseed-based arak? Arak precedes them all. Those who know their distilling history will know it is from Arabic that we get the word 'alembic' from 'al ambic' and 'alcohol' from ‘al cohol’ and that arak evolved from the Arab invention of alembic distillation in the 12th century.
If you're in the market to learn more about Lebanon's national drink, Anise is the place to go. There are also classic cocktails available if you decide that anise is not for you, and the music is worth a trip in itself. It's warm, friendly, and authentic; "a mash-up between a speakeasy and your grandmother's living room" - The New York Post.
Must Try Cocktail: Anise Bar's House Arak
Served traditionally, with 1/3 Arak and 2/3s water, with fresh ice. And if anise is not your gig, order a Vieux Carré instead.
If you know you want a Flavour Blaster cocktail then head to our 'Find a Bar’ map and get searching!
