Dining/Drinking

The World’s 50 Best Bars 2023, sponsored by Perrier, annual list has been unveiled as part of a live awards ceremony in Singapore on 17 October. Held in Asia for the first time in its history, the ceremony once again celebrated the excellence of the international drinks sector, paying tribute to the visionary bartenders, enterprising bar owners and trailblazing brands that lead the charge in shaping cocktail culture around the world.

The World’s 50 Best Bars 2023 features establishments from 28 cities, including multiple Asia bars, where BKK Social Club at Four Seasons Bangkok hotel is ranked 13, followed by Jigger & Pony in Singapore (14). A second Bangkok bar is ranked 19: Mahaniyom Cocktail Bar. Renowned Atlas in Singapore is also on the list, ranked 48. From Hong Kong, Coa and Argo takes position 20 and 34 respectively. From Happy Hour Asia’s coverage are two bars in Dubai are also listed: Mimi Kakushi placed 40, and Galaxy Bar, 50.

Bars from Sydney, Seoul and Tokyo made it onto the list. And the winner of the inaugural Bareksten Best Bar Design Award is Night Hawk in Singapore. Founded by renowned Singapore bartender Peter Chua in May 2022, the speakeasy’s enigmatic interiors have been meticulously designed to offer an intimate, immersive experience that combines retro and futuristic elements. Judged by an esteemed panel of hospitality design experts, bars from anywhere in the world were invited to submit their venues for consideration.

Barcelona’s Sips was crowned The Best Bar in Europe and The World’s Best Bar. This is the second time a bar from Barcelona has taken the top spot in as many years, following Paradiso’s triumph in 2022.

Located in the heart of Barcelona’s L’Antiga Esquerra de l’Eixample district, Sips combines elegant design with cutting-edge technique to create an unfussy and playful ‘drinkery house’ from two titans of the industry, Simone Caporale and Marc Álvarez. Drawing on the lessons of their already illustrious careers – Caporale was one half of the creative duo that led London’s Artesian to The World’s Best Bar title a record four times, whilst Álvarez spent almost a decade at Ferran and Albert Adrià’s revolutionary elBarri restaurant group – the duo’s disruptive approach to creative mixology shines through in innovative haute couture serves at pret-a-porter prices.

The bar’s atmospheric interior encompasses muted pastel and gold-accented seating orbiting a futuristic workstation in place of the traditional bar. This design removes any barrier between guest and bartender, with the aim of centring the human aspect of service to create a multi-sensory, immersive drinking experience.

William Drew, Director of Content, 50 Best, says: “As the brainchild of cocktail-world icons Marc Álvarez and Simone Caporale, Sips was destined for greatness even before it rocketed into the list at No.37 just a few short months after opening in 2021. The bar seamlessly translates contemporary innovation and technical precision into a playful cocktail programme, accompanied by the warmest hospitality, making it a worthy winner of The World’s Best Bar 2023 title.”

Drew continues: “At 50 Best, we take great pride in highlighting the unparalleled diversity of the global bar industry and we extend our sincere congratulations to each bar that has earned a place on this illustrious ranking. We have once again seen the number of cocktail cities represented here increase, and hope this list continues to ignite the spark of wanderlust for cocktail lovers around the world.”

Elisa Gregori, Perrier Global Business Unit Director, says: “On behalf of Perrier, we are honoured to be the ongoing leading sponsor for The World’s 50 Best Bars. We are extremely proud to spotlight the bartenders and other professionals who push boundaries to create unforgettable experiences for anyone who walks through their doors. From its ancient source in Vergèze, in the Gard region of France, Perrier exploded forth from the French café culture and, for more than 160 years, has proudly been the ultimate companion to the global bar community, who create, innovate and delight in their never-ending quest to create the perfect drink.”

About The World’s 50 Best Bars

The World’s 50 Best Bars provides a definitive list of the world’s best drinking venues, cvoted for by an Academy of 680 experts worldwide. The World’s 50 Best Bars list has been published annually since 2009 and has become the most anticipated ranking for drinks professionals and cocktail aficionados across the world, with the awards the highlight of the bar industry calendar. The list of Asia’s 50 Best Bars has been published since 2016, while the list of North America’s 50 Best Bars was launched in 2022. William Reed, which owns the 50 Best brand, is entirely responsible for the organisation of the awards, the voting system and the respective lists.