Esquire's Best Martinis in America 2025: Complete List

Via Vecchia is the Portland pick for a cocktail-led Old Port night, especially if a martini is the point of the visit. The 2025 Esquire Best Martinis in America recognition gives it a clearer reason to book than a generic drinks stop, while the late Friday and Saturday hours make it useful after dinner.

Apartment 5 is worth booking for a martini-led Lower East Side night, especially as a two-person date or small celebration. Its 2025 Esquire Best Martinis in America recognition gives it a clear reason to choose it over a generic cocktail stop, but treat it as drinks-first rather than a full dinner plan.

La Bastide by Andrea Calstier is a Michelin-starred French tasting-menu restaurant in North Salem, operating just four evenings a week in a deliberately small dining room. At $$$$ pricing with a 640-selection wine list and a kitchen that draws from southern French technique, it is one of the most focused fine-dining options in Westchester — and one of the hardest to get into.

Maple Block Meat Co. is one of Los Angeles's most critically validated barbecue operations, earning back-to-back Opinionated About Dining Cheap Eats recognition and a spot on Esquire's 2025 Best Martinis list. Easy to book, strong on execution, priced accessibly for what you get. Go for a casual celebration or a long weekend lunch on the Westside.

Kimball House is Decatur's clearest fine-dining option: a Michelin Plate recipient in 2024 and 2025 with a nationally recognized martini program (Esquire, 2025) operating out of a converted 19th-century train depot. Book three to four weeks out for dinner, or arrive early for bar seating without a reservation. At $$$$ pricing, it is the strongest special-occasion choice in the Decatur market.

Patterson House is Nashville's most decorated cocktail bar, ranked #168 on OAD's Casual North America list in 2025 and named among Esquire's Best Martinis in America. A fifth-floor Gulch address, an Easy booking rating make it the most reliable choice for a special-occasion drink in the city.

Manny's Steakhouse in downtown Minneapolis runs a full kitchen from 7 am daily, making it one of the few steakhouse-grade options in the city for breakfast and lunch as well as dinner. An OAD Casual North America ranking (#135, 2024) and Esquire's 2025 Best Martinis in America recognition give it more awards depth than most local competitors. Booking is easy; the cocktail program is worth your attention.

Fives Bar on St Ann Street is New Orleans' most decorated cocktail bar right now, picking up both Resy's Best of the Hit List and Esquire's Best Martinis in America in 2025. The martini program is the draw; book it for an evening special occasion or as a pre-dinner stop before a French Quarter dinner. Booking is easy relative to its press momentum.

Creepies is a French-leaning neighborhood bistro on Randolph Street from the team behind Elske, offering technically focused cooking — Parisian gnocchi, steamed halibut, precise desserts — in a warm, checkered-tile room. It landed on Esquire's Best Martinis in America list for 2025. Easy to book by West Loop standards and considerably less expensive than the tasting-menu spots on the same block.

Almanac is the Philadelphia pick for a serious drinks-led night, especially if late hours and national bar recognition matter more than a clearly published dinner format. The booking is hard, so it works better for small groups who care about service, pacing, cocktails than for diners trying to solve a full meal plan.

Junior is worth booking for an evening-first Nashville dinner when the priority is a current, occasion-ready room without a punishing reservation process. The draw is recent national recognition, including Esquire's Best Martinis in America in 2025 and Robb Report's 2026 new-restaurant list, rather than a clearly defined cuisine lane.

Isidore earned a Michelin star in 2025, less than a year after opening, on the strength of a kitchen that forages Texas terroir and transforms it — mesquite bean butter, local-milk yuba, Texas Wagyu — in ways the hotel-lobby room doesn't advertise. It's one of the most serious dinner bookings in San Antonio right now, one of the hardest to get. Book four to six weeks out minimum.

Sunny's is the Miami steakhouse to chase when national recognition and a Little River destination feel matter more than predictable steakhouse polish. It is dinner-only, hard to secure, better for a planned special occasion than a casual fallback. If the location or booking friction is wrong for the night, Edge Steak & Bar or Prime One Twelve will be easier fits.

Crow & Quill is a better call for an evening drink than for brunch or a full dinner plan. Choose it for a date, nightcap, or small celebration when cocktail credibility matters; pick a restaurant first if the group needs a complete meal.

SHIA is a tasting menu-only modern Korean fine dining restaurant in Washington D.C.'s NoMa neighborhood, recognized by Esquire for its cocktail program in 2025. Built around active sustainability research and a serious approach to Korean cuisine, it suits explorers who want a structured, course-driven evening with real culinary intent. Booking is relatively accessible for a restaurant of this ambition.

Ranked the #1 steakhouse in North America by Robb Report in 2025, Asador Bastian brings Basque-inspired open-fire cooking to Chicago's River North at a $$ price point that's hard to argue. The txuletón — bone-in ribeye from Galician old dairy cows, dry-aged and grilled over live embers — is the reason to book. A strong Spanish-focused wine list and service that doesn't oversell seal the case for a special occasion dinner.

Lucia landed on Resy's Best of the Hit List and took Esquire's Best Martinis in America, both in 2025 — strong dual recognition for a North Fairfax venue that's easier to book than those credentials suggest. The martini program is the confirmed anchor. Come prepared for a full-service spend, but don't overthink the reservation.

A West Village Spanish room with real atmosphere and a kitchen that earns its following. Bartolo delivers hearty, sharing-plate cooking — Iberian pork, oxtail, suckling pig — alongside a cocktail program Esquire ranked among America's best martinis in 2025. It's an easy booking, a warm room, a strong choice when you want quality without ceremony.

Snackbar is Oxford, Mississippi's highest-credentialed dining option, holding a 2025 Michelin Plate and an Esquire Best Martinis in America recognition for the same year. At $$$ pricing, it is the right call for a special occasion or a serious dinner out. Booking is easy, which makes it accessible even for last-minute celebrations.

House of Prime Rib has served 21-day aged prime rib carved tableside since 1949, it remains one of San Francisco's most reliable special-occasion bookings at the $$$ price tier. Pearl Recommended in 2025,, the set-format dinner covers salad, potato, Yorkshire pudding — no decisions required. Easy to book, consistent on execution.

Musso & Frank has operated on Hollywood Boulevard since 1919 and holds an Opinionated About Dining ranking and a World of Fine Wine 2-Star Accreditation — this is not a nostalgia stop. The $$ pricing, easy booking, a wine list of 350 selections with serious California depth make it one of Los Angeles's most practical quality dinners. The martini was named among America's best by Esquire in 2025.

Firstborn is the Chinatown pick when the night is more about a serious martini than a mapped-out dinner. Go for a smaller group, especially later in the week, cross-shop Angry Egret Dinette or Pearl River Deli if food is the main priority.

Via Aurelia is the Tuscan restaurant from the Che Fico team anchoring Mission Rock's new development near Oracle Park, it earned both an SF Chronicle Best New Restaurants nod and Esquire's Best Martinis in America recognition in 2025. Booking is currently easy by San Francisco standards. Eat at the bar if you can — the cocktail program is the clearest signal of the kitchen's ambition.

Carbone Riviera is worth booking for a polished Bellagio dinner where martinis, wine, a grown-up Strip atmosphere matter more than spectacle. It is a stronger fit for date nights, client dinners, celebratory meals than casual drop-ins, especially for diners choosing among Bellagio's steakhouse, Italian, French-leaning, supper-club options.

A practical River North pick when the night is built around martinis, not a long tasting-menu-style dinner. The clearest reason to go is its Esquire Best Martinis in America recognition from 2025; use it for dates, small groups, or a drinks-led evening Tuesday through Saturday.

Commander's Palace is the reference point for serious Creole dining in New Orleans: seven James Beard Awards, a 2,800-selection wine list, kitchen sourcing that is genuinely place-specific. At the $$ cuisine price tier, it delivers more ambition per dollar than almost any comparable address in the city. Book well in advance — this is not a walk-in restaurant.

LenLen is the better call for an evening martini plan than for lunch, brunch, or a full dinner built around known menu detail. The clearest trust signal is Esquire's Best Martinis in America recognition in 2025, making it useful for dates, small celebrations, after-work drinks in the Flatiron and Union Square orbit.

Le Calamar is worth considering for an easy dinner on South First when the draw is a drink-led night rather than a cuisine-specific destination. Its strongest signal is Esquire recognition for martinis, so book it for the dining-room experience and cross-shop Fresa's - South First for convenience or Lenoir for a clearer splurge dinner.

Gramercy Tavern remains one of New York City's most reliable meals at the $$$ tier, with seasonal American cooking by chef Michael Anthony and USHG service that sets the bar for warmth. The Tavern side is the city's best walk-in option at this price; the Dining Room prix fixe suits a proper occasion. Easier to book than Le Bernardin or Eleven Madison Park, worth it.