Emma See if your favourite made the list
East-London bar, Satan’s Whiskers, was voted number one in this year’s Top 50 Cocktail Bars sponsored by Franklin & Sons. Coming in at number two is last year’s winner, Lab-22, based in Cardiff. Also situated in Cardiff is Penny Royal, number 36 on this year’s list, which has a 300-bottle strong list of spirits and an extensive cocktail menu.
Number three on this year’s list is Tayēr + Elementary, based in East-London. Established in 2019, Tayēr + Elementary is the lovechild of bartending elite, Alex Kratena and Monica Berg. This cocktail bar is set in two-parts, with Elementary serving up classic cocktails from a draught system and Tayēr is where the theatre of bartending takes form, with an ever-changing menu of drinks that focus on seasonality.
The highest new entrant this year is Soma, based in Soho in London. This modern and minimalist cocktail bar serves up Indian influenced cocktails. The bar is set around a magnificent sleek stainless-steel island where bartenders shake up drinks all evening.
Project Halcyon in Manchester was named One to Watch whilst the Newcomer of the Year was given to Manolo in Liverpool. The team at Hey Palu in Edinburgh were awarded Bar Team of the Year, and for the second consecutive year Little Mercies in Crouch End won the Sustainability award.
London dominates this year’s list with 23 bars in the Top 50 spots, followed by Yorkshire, which claimed five of the Top 50 spots including Public in Sheffield, a tiny cocktail bar which occupies the former men’s toilet below the Victorian town hall.
Scotland also secured five spots on the 2023 list, with Panda & Sons, coming in at number six on the list. Also on the list for Scotland is Bramble, Absent Ear, Hey Palu and Lunar.
Chris Lowe, publisher of Top 50 Cocktail Bars, said “Whilst London continues to dominate this year’s list, it is very exciting to see other major cities across the UK make their mark on the list. The ever-growing interest in cocktails and bartending within the UK means we are spoilt for choice on where to go, and this list allows for the best of the UK bar scene to have a spotlight placed on them – and for consumers to find these hidden gems.”
The Top 50 Cocktail Bars 2023 list is as follows:
| 1 | Satan’s Whiskers, Bethnal Green, London |
| 2 | Lab 22, Cardiff |
| 3 | Tayēr + Elementary, Shoreditch, London |
| 4 | SCHOFIELD’S BAR, Manchester |
| 5 | Swift, Soho, London |
| 6 | Panda & Sons, Edinburgh |
| 7 | Three Sheets, Dalston, London |
| 8 | Speak in Code, Manchester |
| 9 | Bar with Shapes for a Name, Hackney, London |
| 10 | The Connaught, Mayfair, London |
| 11 | Little Mercies, Crouch End, London |
| 12 | Couch, Birmingham |
| 13 | Bramble, Edinburgh |
| 14 | The Pineapple Club, Birmingham |
| 15 | Ojo Rojo, Bournemouth |
| 16 | Disrepute, Soho, London |
| 17 | Artesian, Oxford Circus, London |
| 18 | Hideout, Bath |
| 19 | Nightjar, Shoreditch, London |
| 20 | Present Company, Liverpool |
| 21 | Publiq, South Kensington, London |
| 22 | Scarfes Bar, Holborn, London |
| 23 | Lyaness, South Bank, London |
| 24 | Opium Cocktail & Dim Sum, Chinatown, London |
| 25 | The Absent Ear, Glasgow |
| 26 | Happiness Forgets, Hoxton, London |
| 27 | Hey Palu, Edinburgh |
| 28 | Filthy XIII, Bristol |
| 29 | Homeboy, Islington, London |
| 30 | Soma, Soho, London |
| 31 | Coupette, Bethnal Green |
| 32 | Passing Fancies, Birmingham |
| 33 | Bar Termini, Soho, London |
| 34 | Seed Library, Shoreditch, London |
| 35 | Murder Inc, Soho, London |
| 36 | Penny Royal, Cardiff |
| 37 | Callooh Callay, Shoreditch, London |
| 38 | Silverleaf, Liverpool St, London |
| 39 | Public, Sheffield |
| 40 | Fox & Chance, Birmingham |
| 41 | Blinker, Manchester |
| 42 | Below Stairs, Leeds |
| 43 | Milk Thistle, Bristol |
| 44 | Gungho!, Brighton |
| 45 | Hedonist, Leeds |
| 46 | Amaro, Kensington, London |
| 47 | Cottonmouth, Nottingham |
| 48 | Tabula Rasa, Leeds |
| 49 | Lunar, Glasgow |
| 50 | Bench, Sheffield |
More details can be found at www.top50cocktailbars.com
