Pearl Recommended Bars: 179 Venues Across 8 Countries

A Pearl Recommended bar on Broadway in Oakland's Uptown district, Viridian has built a following on the strength of its 4.6 Google rating from over 400 reviews. The bar occupies a deliberate position in the East Bay's maturing cocktail scene, where ingredient-led programming and consistent execution have earned recognition beyond the neighborhood. An increasingly relevant address for anyone tracking serious drinking on the Oakland side of the Bay.

NoMad Bar transforms a restored 19th-century Manhattan building into New York City's most theatrical cocktail destination, where Chris Moore's innovative mixology program and towering copper bar create an atmosphere of Gilded Age grandeur beneath soaring ceilings and antique mirrors.

Teardrop Lounge has held a place in Portland's serious cocktail conversation since well before the city's bar scene drew national attention. Ranked 48th on North America's Best Bars 2022 and carrying a 2025 Pearl District recommendation, it operates Monday through Saturday from 4pm in the NW Everett corridor. A 4.6 Google rating across more than 1,100 reviews reflects consistent execution over time.

Scorpios sits on Paraga beach on Mykonos's south coast, operating as a beach club, bar, and gathering point with a cocktail programme that earned Pearl Recommended Bar recognition in 2025. The venue draws a crowd that stays from late afternoon through sunset and into the night, with high-end service and carefully crafted food underpinning a format that goes well beyond standard beach-club territory.

The Old Seelbach Bar occupies one of Louisville's most historically charged addresses, inside the Seelbach Hilton on South 4th Street. Carrying a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction and a 4.4 Google rating across 368 reviews, it holds a clear position in the city's bourbon-anchored bar scene — formal enough for a deliberate evening, rooted enough to reward curiosity about Kentucky's drinking traditions.

Mayday Club on Via Dante Alighieri holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar award and a 4.7 Google rating across 568 reviews, placing it among Florence's most consistently praised cocktail addresses. Positioned a short walk from the Duomo, it draws a loyal local crowd alongside visitors who know to look beyond the obvious tourist circuits for a considered drink.

A 2025 EP Club Pearl Recommended Bar on Via Sant'Antonino, Sabor Cubano brings a Caribbean counterpoint to Florence's aperitivo-dominated drinking scene. With a 4.5 Google rating across 634 reviews, it has built a loyal local following that returns for the rum-forward program and the atmosphere that sets it apart from the city's Negroni-centric bars.

Allegory has placed inside the World's 50 Best North America's Best Bars list three consecutive years, reaching as high as #24 in 2024. Located in the lobby of a K Street hotel, it operates as one of Washington D.C.'s most recognised cocktail programs, with a format built around narrative-driven technique and a level of conceptual ambition that separates it from the city's more straightforward bar scene.

Blind Pig Speakeasy Lounge on Suffolk Street operates within Dublin's tradition of theatrically named drinking rooms, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction and a 4.4 Google rating from over 1,200 reviews. The format leans into the prohibition-era aesthetic that persists in premium cocktail bars across European city centres, with the address placing it squarely in the cultural and commercial heart of Dublin 2.

San Francisco's tiki tradition has a fixed point on Nob Hill: Tonga Room & Hurricane Bar, operating inside the Fairmont since 1945, holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a Google rating of 4.2 across more than 2,200 reviews. The indoor lagoon, the floating band stage, and the tropical storm effects make it one of the few bars in the country where the theatrical premise has outlasted the trend that inspired it.

Gen Yamamoto in Azabujuban operates at a tier where the cocktail itself carries all the argument. Recognised by Asia's 50 Best Bars and holding a Pearl Recommended status, this intimate Tokyo bar has built a reputation around ingredient-forward drinks and deliberate pacing. It sits in a different competitive set from Ginza's hotel bars, closer in spirit to a tasting-menu counter than a conventional cocktail lounge.

Scotch Lodge occupies a compact corner of Portland's inner Southeast, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.8 Google rating across more than 700 reviews. The bar operates as one of the city's more focused whisky destinations, positioned within a Portland drinking scene that has grown increasingly serious about spirits. It sits at 215 SE 9th Ave, Suite 102, in the Central Eastside.

Set inside the 13th-century Concini Palace on Via delle Seggiole, Locale Firenze operates across two distinct registers: an award-winning restaurant above ground and a cocktail programme that ranked 15th on the Top 500 Bars list in 2025 and 36th at the World's 50 Best Bars in 2024. The basement Labo-ttega space adds a kitchen-bar pairing format that few venues in Italy attempt at this level.

Shinji's on West 20th Street has built a quiet but measurable reputation inside New York's competitive craft cocktail circuit, earning placement in the 2025 World's 50 Best North America's Best Bars at #90 and a Pearl Recommended designation in the same year. The Flatiron address puts it among a concentration of serious drinking destinations, and three concurrent award citations in a single year signal consistent industry regard.

Eduardo Suarez and Gaston Gonzalez's Casa Florida Miami captures 1950s tropical nostalgia along the Miami River, where signature cocktails like the Pink Flamingo and Guava Mojito are served amid pastel-hued vintage décor and lush botanical surroundings that transport guests to Miami's golden age.

Katana Kitten on Hudson Street in the West Village has spent six consecutive years inside the World's 50 Best Bars global list, peaking at #10 in 2021 and earning a #3 North America ranking in 2023. The bar operates within a Japanese-American cocktail tradition that has reshaped how New York approaches spirits-forward drinking. A Google rating of 4.5 across more than 1,100 reviews signals consistent execution at high volume.

Ranked #12 in North America and #93 globally by the World's 50 Best Bars in 2025, Mirate has established itself as one of Los Angeles's most decorated drinking destinations. Located on North Vermont Avenue in Los Feliz, the bar pairs serious cocktail credentials with a food programme that holds its own alongside the drinks list. Open from late afternoon through midnight on weekdays, with extended Saturday hours.

True Laurel occupies a particular tier in San Francisco's bar scene: ranked 64th globally by World's 50 Best Bars in 2025 and 17th across North America, it operates out of the Mission District at 753 Alabama Street with a program that integrates serious drinks alongside a food menu designed to work in concert with the glass. A 4.5 Google rating across nearly 800 reviews confirms consistent execution at scale.

Bar Trench in Tokyo's Ebisu district has held a place on Asia's 50 Best Bars list every year since 2016, reaching as high as #16 in 2018. The bar earned a spot on the global World's 50 Best Bars ranking in 2025 alongside a Pearl Recommended designation. With a 4.7 Google rating across 780 reviews, it sits among Tokyo's most consistently recognised cocktail destinations.

Ranked #15 in North America and #75 globally by the World's 50 Best Bars in 2025, Martiny's on East 17th Street sits in the upper tier of Manhattan's serious cocktail program circuit. The bar has held consistent recognition across multiple consecutive years, placing it alongside a small cohort of New York venues where craft discipline and hospitality depth keep pace with international benchmarks.

Navy Strength sits in Seattle's Belltown neighbourhood, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction that places it among the city's most closely watched cocktail programs. The bar takes its name from a historic spirit classification, and that commitment to provenance runs through the program. With a Google rating of 4.4 across 679 reviews, it holds steady in a competitive tier of Seattle craft bars.

On the 64th floor of 70 Pine Street, Overstory has built a serious case for high-rise drinking in New York. Ranked #6 in North America and #15 globally by World's 50 Best Bars in 2024, it pairs a wrap-around open-air terrace with a technically disciplined cocktail program built around agave spirits, whiskey, and locally foraged ingredients — including salt harvested directly from the Rockaway Peninsula by the bar team itself.

Scientific theatricality defines The Tipsy Alchemist Austin, where cocktails arrive via pneumatic tubes and light bulbs on Rainey Street's mezzanine-level lounge. Christian Rodriguez's team crafts premium cocktails using liquid nitrogen, smoke infusions, and gravity-defying presentations that transform each drink into an interactive performance.

A Pearl-recommended bar on Smith Street in Carroll Gardens, Barely Disfigured holds a 4.7 Google rating across more than 650 reviews, placing it among Brooklyn's more consistently praised neighbourhood drinking rooms. The name signals intent: this is a bar that takes itself seriously without taking itself too literally, sitting in a corner of Brooklyn where that balance tends to matter.

On Melrose Avenue's stretch between West Hollywood and Fairfax, The Melrose Station holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.4 Google rating from 82 reviews. It occupies a section of the corridor where neighborhood bars compete less on theatrics and more on execution. A reliable address for those working through the West Hollywood drinking circuit.

Earning a Pearl Recommended Bar distinction in 2025, The Portland Hunt & Alpine Club is one of Maine's most consistently praised cocktail bars, drawing a loyal crowd to its Market Street address in Portland's Old Port. The bar's reputation rests on technical precision and a sense of place that keeps regulars returning across seasons. It holds a 4.6 Google rating across nearly 800 reviews.

Evil Eye is a Pearl Recommended bar on Mission Street in San Francisco's Mission District, open evenings from Tuesday through Sunday. With a 4.5-star rating across more than 700 Google reviews, it holds its own in a corridor where serious drinking culture has deep roots. The hours run late on weekends, making it a natural late-night anchor for the neighbourhood.

Eden Cocktail Room sits behind purple doors in a downtown Austin alley, operating as one of the city's more deliberately curated cocktail destinations. A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar, it draws a crowd that values craft over volume and atmosphere over spectacle. Find it at 214 E 6th Street, accessed through the alley between E 6th and E 7th Streets, with a Google rating of 4.6 across 248 reviews.

Dave Arnold, Don Lee, and Greg Boehm's Existing Conditions redefined New York City mixology through scientific precision and warm hospitality. This Greenwich Village landmark showcased laboratory-grade techniques in drinks like the Carbonated Margarita and Clarified Milk Punch, proving that innovation and accessibility could create cocktail magic together.

Bar Goto on Eldridge Street brings a Japanese-American sensibility to the Lower East Side cocktail scene, pairing precisely built drinks with bar snacks that hold their own as a food programme rather than an afterthought. Ranked #279 in the 2025 Top 500 Bars and carrying a Pearl Recommended designation, it draws a Google rating of 4.6 from 669 reviews — consistent signals of a bar that performs at a high level across a substantial volume of visits.

Licoreria Limantour on Avenida Álvaro Obregón has appeared in the World's 50 Best Bars ranking every year since 2014, reaching as high as number six globally in 2021. Positioned in Roma Norte, one of Mexico City's most active neighbourhoods for serious drinking, it sits at the top of the city's cocktail scene and holds a 4.4 rating across more than 3,600 Google reviews.

Rumba sits on Pike Street in Seattle's Capitol Hill corridor, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation with a 4.5-star rating across more than 1,300 Google reviews. The bar's reputation rests on its rum-forward programme and food pairings that give the drinks list a broader context. It occupies a specific niche in Seattle's craft cocktail scene, where spirits-led bars now run a full spectrum from bourbon-heavy to agave-first to Caribbean-influenced.

Graft Wine Shop & Wine Bar on King Street brings a retail-meets-bar format that has become one of Charleston's more distinctive wine destinations. Holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.9 Google rating across 192 reviews, it sits in a tier of specialist wine venues that rewards curious drinkers over casual drop-ins. The dual shop-and-bar structure means you can drink here tonight and take a bottle home for tomorrow.

The Miranda transforms San Francisco cocktail culture through traveler-inspired sophistication, where expert mixologists craft signature drinks like the "Harbor Sunset" and "Foghorn" in an elegantly appointed setting that seamlessly blends modern luxury with wanderlust-driven storytelling.

On the corner of Parque Santa Ana in central Mérida, La Negrita Cantina holds a 4.4 rating across more than 8,500 Google reviews — a volume that signals genuine local traction rather than tourist-circuit novelty. The bar earned a 2025 Pearl Recommended designation, placing it in a select tier of Yucatecan drinking spots worth seeking out. It is one of the more consistently mentioned addresses on the Centro bar circuit.

Vena's Fizz House in Westbrook brings a dedicated low- and no-alcohol program to the Portland bar scene, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar nod with a 4.8 Google rating across 521 reviews. The space makes a case for alcohol-free drinking as a category of its own, not an afterthought tacked onto a standard cocktail list.

On Eldridge Street in the Lower East Side, Attaboy has built one of the most sustained award records in North American bartending — ranked as high as #4 globally by World's 50 Best Bars and #1 in North America as recently as 2022. The format is spare and the room is small, but the cocktail program operates with a precision that places it in a different category from most bars in the city.

Nocturno, located at 1017 S 1st St in Las Vegas's Arts District, holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation — placing it among a curated tier of serious drinking destinations in the city. The bar operates away from the Strip's spectacle, in a neighbourhood that has developed one of Las Vegas's more coherent independent bar scenes. Expect deliberate curation over volume.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar set within the Azulik resort complex on Tulum's Zona Hotelera strip, Uh May operates at the intersection of ceremonial spirits programming and open-air jungle architecture. The bar sits inside one of the Caribbean coast's most discussed resort ecosystems, where the drinks list leans heavily on mezcal, rare agave spirits, and indigenous botanical ingredients. Reservations and access are typically tied to the broader Azulik property.

Cana Rum Bar on W Olympic Blvd brings one of Los Angeles's most focused rum collections to the South Park corridor, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.5-star rating across 733 Google reviews. The bar positions itself in the specialist spirits tier, where depth of back bar and curation discipline matter more than breadth of cocktail categories.

Bible Club PDX sits on SE 16th Ave in Portland's Sellwood-Moreland neighbourhood, holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.7 Google rating across more than 1,000 reviews. The bar runs Wednesday through Sunday with late hours on weekends, drawing a crowd that treats the space as a serious cocktail destination rather than a casual stop. It occupies a distinct tier in Portland's bar scene.

Ranked #320 on the 2025 Top 500 Bars list and Pearl Recommended, Here Nor There on Brazos Street is one of Austin's more deliberately crafted cocktail programs. The bar sits in the technically focused tier of the city's drink scene, where the work behind the counter reads in the glass rather than on a chalkboard. A 4.7 Google rating across nearly 700 reviews confirms a consistency that serious bars rarely maintain at volume.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Tulum's beach road, Casa Jaguar is one of the strip's more atmospheric drinking destinations, drawing a crowd that arrives after dark and stays late. The bar earns its recognition through a combination of setting, drink quality, and a 4.1 Google rating across more than 800 reviews — enough signal to place it among the consistently performing venues on the coast.

Fifty Mils occupies a prominent position on Paseo de la Reforma, earning a place on the World's 50 Best Bars list in 2018 and maintaining recognition through 2025's Top 500 Bars ranking at #114. The bar operates from midday into the early hours most nights, making it one of the few Reforma-adjacent programs that functions equally as an afternoon and late-night destination. A 4.5 Google rating across nearly 1,000 reviews points to consistent execution across a wide audience.

The Polo Bar at 1 East 55th Street is Ralph Lauren's Midtown Manhattan dining institution, occupying a place in New York's premium bar and restaurant circuit that trades on heritage aesthetics and a particular brand of American hospitality. Holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.4 Google rating across more than a thousand reviews, it draws a consistent crowd seeking both the room and the drink program.

Cold Drinks Bar on Broadway holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction and a 4.4 Google rating from over 230 reviews, placing it among the more consistently regarded spots in San Francisco's North Beach drinking circuit. The name does exactly what it promises: cold drinks, delivered without pretension, in a neighbourhood with a long history of bars that outlast their hype.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Gallatin Pike in East Nashville, The Fox Bar & Cocktail Club earns a 4.8 Google rating across nearly 500 reviews by functioning as the kind of neighbourhood cocktail anchor that East Nashville's bar scene has historically done well. Tucked into a strip along one of the area's main arteries, it draws regulars as reliably as it does first-timers.

A Pearl Recommended bar on Mission Street in SoMa, Novela draws on San Francisco's literary district roots to frame an evening around thoughtful cocktails and a deliberately paced drinking experience. With 1,626 Google reviews averaging 4.4 stars, it holds a reliable position in the city's mid-tier cocktail circuit, appealing to those who want craft-bar quality without the appointment-only formality of the top-tier programs.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Jones Street in the Tenderloin, The Zombie Village operates Wednesday through Saturday evenings and earns a 4.6 Google rating across 573 reviews. The bar occupies San Francisco's tiki-and-tropical-spirits tier, where back-bar depth and rum curation matter more than cocktail novelty. Book or arrive early on weekend nights.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Patton Avenue in downtown Asheville, Top of the Monk occupies a distinct position in the city's craft cocktail scene. With a Google rating of 4.3 across 461 reviews, it draws a consistent local following without leaning on spectacle. For visitors mapping Asheville's bar circuit, it belongs on the shortlist alongside the city's more technically driven programs.

Florence's pioneering speakeasy Rasputin hides behind an unmarked door near Piazza Santo Spirito, where Victorian parlor aesthetics meet Russian salon mystique in a candlelit basement sanctuary. This award-winning cocktail bar features story-driven mixology, over 150 whiskies, and strict no-photography rules that preserve its clandestine atmosphere.

Michelin-starred excellence defines Manzke Bar Los Angeles, where James Beard Award-winning Chefs Walter and Margarita Manzke's culinary vision extends to globally inspired cocktails. Located in Pico-Robertson, this sophisticated cocktail sanctuary offers hyper-seasonal drinks like the bourbon-forward "Urbanite" and aromatic "Velvet Rosemary," crafted with the same precision that earned the restaurant its coveted star.

On Pontocho's narrow lantern-lit corridor, Hello Dolly Bar occupies a distinct position in Kyoto's bar scene — holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar award and a 4.3 Google rating across 359 reviews. The address places it at the heart of one of Japan's most concentrated dining and drinking alleys, where the city's appetite for precision hospitality runs deep.

Ranked #82 in the Top 500 Bars for 2025 and carrying a Pearl Recommended designation, Atrium Bar on Borgo Pinti operates at a register above Florence's tourist-circuit drinking spots. The cocktail programme earns serious regional attention, placing this address in a peer set closer to Italy's leading bar culture than to the aperitivo strip.

Blank Slate on NE Glisan holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.7 Google rating across 196 reviews, placing it among Portland's better-regarded neighborhood bars on the city's northeast corridor. The address puts it outside the dense inner-eastside cocktail cluster, which filters the crowd toward regulars who seek the program out rather than stumble in.

At the edge of the Sangre de Cristo foothills, Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado Santa Fe holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation that places its cocktail program among a select tier of American resort bars. With a Google rating of 4.6 across 576 reviews, it draws guests who treat the bar as a destination in itself, not merely a prelude to dinner.

Lone Palm is a low-key Mission District bar at 3394 22nd Street, San Francisco, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation with a Google rating of 4.4 across 299 reviews. The room trades on the kind of unhurried neighbourhood atmosphere that has largely disappeared from the city's busier corridors, making it a reliable anchor for the 22nd Street block.

Double Chicken Please revolutionizes New York City's cocktail scene through GN Chan's innovative "liquid dishes" concept, transforming beloved foods into extraordinary cocktails across two distinct spaces. This award-winning East Village destination earned Best Bar in North America 2023, offering both experimental cocktails on tap and intimate culinary-inspired mixology experiences.

Bar Iris on Polk Street holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar recognition and a 4.6 Google rating across more than 200 reviews, placing it among the more consistently regarded neighbourhood bars on San Francisco's increasingly competitive lower Russian Hill corridor. The format reads as a serious drink-first room that earns its place in conversations about the city's craft bar scene without the volume or spectacle of the destination flagships.

Citrus Club holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.5-star Google rating from over 500 reviews, placing it in the upper tier of Orlando's bar scene. Located on South Orange Avenue in downtown Orlando, the venue runs a weekday schedule built around the office-hour crowd, then shifts to open all hours on weekends — a format that suits both the after-work professional and the late-night drinker.

Lost Boy occupies a corner of Downtown Miami's East Flagler Street that the city's louder nightlife tends to bypass. Holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.5-star average across more than 730 Google reviews, it functions as a genuine neighbourhood anchor rather than a destination exercise. For those moving through the core of Miami without a cocktail-circuit itinerary, it earns its place on the list.

Doar Bros has earned a Pearl Recommended Bar designation for 2025 and holds a 4.9 Google rating across 441 reviews — a strong signal of consistent execution in a Charleston bar scene that rewards the technically precise. Located on Meeting Street in the heart of the historic district, it sits among the city's more focused cocktail addresses, where programme depth matters more than footprint.

Old Lightning is a Pearl-recommended bar on Washington Boulevard in Marina del Rey, drawing a loyal local crowd with a 4.7 Google rating across 53 reviews. Positioned at the quieter, less performative end of the LA bar spectrum, it occupies a stretch of the Westside where serious drinking and neighbourhood regulars coexist without the theatrics of downtown cocktail destinations.

On East Bay Street in Charleston's historic Lower Peninsula, The Gin Joint holds a 4.3 Google rating across more than a thousand reviews and a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation. It occupies a particular place in the city's cocktail scene: a bar that locals return to on a Tuesday as readily as visitors seek it out on a Saturday. The address puts it within easy reach of the French Quarter's foot traffic while keeping a neighborhood-bar quality that larger venues on the strip have mostly abandoned.

The Aviary has held a place on the World's 50 Best Bars list multiple times since 2014, peaking at #13 in its category before transitioning to Pearl Recommended status in 2025. Located in Chicago's Fulton Market district, it applies a kitchen-level discipline to cocktail construction — think multi-component, technically complex drinks that treat the bar as a laboratory rather than a service counter.

Broken Shaker has held a position inside the World's 50 Best Bars rankings continuously since 2014, peaking at #14 in 2015 and earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation. Operating from Miami Beach's Indian Creek Drive, the bar built its reputation on a back bar with genuine depth and a cocktail program that has outlasted most of its South Florida contemporaries. Google reviewers rate it 4.5 across nearly 2,400 reviews.

A Shimogyo Ward fixture that earned a spot in the 2025 Top 500 Bars at #408 and a Pearl Recommended Bar designation, Bar Rocking Chair is the kind of address Kyoto's serious drinkers return to without much deliberation. The 4.5-star Google rating across nearly 800 reviews points to a bar that holds its ground through consistency, not spectacle. Located at 434-2 Tachibanachō, it sits in the older, less tourist-saturated southern reaches of the city.

Facing Parque Santa Lucía in Mérida's historic centro, Dzalbay holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a Google rating of 4.5 across nearly 2,000 reviews — signals that place it among the more credible cocktail addresses in the Yucatán capital. The bar's address on Calle 64 puts it in a stretch of the centro where colonial architecture and a growing drinks culture converge.

Gusto Pinsa Romana brings the ancient Roman flatbread tradition to the corner of Bush and Taylor in San Francisco's Nob Hill, earning a Pearl Recommended Bar distinction in 2025 alongside a Google rating of 4.7 across 735 reviews. The pinsa format, lighter and more digestible than conventional pizza, sits at the centre of a focused menu that rewards regulars who return to work through the card. A neighbourhood address with a clear editorial identity.

Swan Upstairs is a Pearl Recommended Bar occupying the upper floor of the Swan complex on NE 39th Street in Miami's Design District. With a Google rating of 3.9 across nearly 1,900 reviews, it draws a consistent crowd for cocktails above the Midtown Miami scene. The bar sits within a broader hospitality venue that has become a reference point for the neighborhood's after-dark rhythm.

Among Chicago's most decorated bars, Kumiko has earned a 2025 James Beard Award for Outstanding Bar alongside a World's 50 Best global ranking of #97 — credentials that place it in a narrow peer set of American bars operating at the highest level of craft and intention. Open Wednesday through Sunday from 6pm on West Lake Street, it represents Chicago's case for holding its own against any drinking city on the continent.

The Times Bar & Coffee Shop, located at 56 Patton Ave in downtown Asheville, holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction and a 4.8 Google rating across 540 reviews. The dual bar-and-coffee format positions it at an interesting crossroads in a city known for craft culture, drawing a consistent crowd across daytime and evening hours.

Wilder sits on NE 30th Ave in Portland's Concordia neighbourhood, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar nod that places it among the city's more considered drinking destinations. The bar draws a neighbourhood crowd and out-of-area visitors alike, with a 4.6 Google rating across more than 350 reviews suggesting consistent execution rather than flash-in-the-pan appeal.

Clemente Bar occupies the ground floor of 11 Madison Ave, operating in the upper tier of Manhattan's cocktail scene with back-to-back recognition from World's 50 Best North America's Best Bars (#11, 2025) and a #1 Esquire Martini of the Year award in 2024. The program skews toward precision and restraint, placing it in a peer set defined by technical depth rather than volume or theatrical presentation. A 4.7 Google rating across 134 reviews holds steady above the Madison Square Park corridor average.

Land Bar Artisan sits on the fourth floor of the New Shimbashi Building in Minato City, operating within Tokyo's quieter, craft-focused bar tier. A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar with a Google rating of 4.7 across 67 reviews, it holds its own against more prominent Ginza and Shimbashi counters. For visitors seeking a considered drink in a neighbourhood built on after-work culture, it offers a credible alternative to the area's louder options.

Rum Club on SE Sandy Boulevard has earned a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.6 Google rating across more than 700 reviews, placing it among Portland's most consistently regarded cocktail destinations. Operating into the early hours, it draws a late-night crowd with a rum-forward program that reflects the spirit category's growing depth in American cocktail culture.

On Tulum's hotel zone strip at Km 10.5, Nomande operates as the kind of bar that earns a regular crowd through consistency rather than spectacle. Recognised with a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar award and holding a 4.1 Google rating across more than 1,300 reviews, it functions as a genuine gathering point along a stretch of coastline better known for theatrical nightlife than neighbourhood drinking.

The Lido champagne bar at The Surf Club in Surfside sits inside a Four Seasons property with genuine historical weight — the original club hosted Sinatra, Churchill, and the Rat Pack across its mid-century run. Today it holds a 2025 World's 50 Best North America's Best Bars ranking (#61) and a Star Wine List award for Florida's best long list, placing it among the most seriously programmed bars on the Atlantic coast.

Blyth & Burrows occupies a narrow brick-lined space on Exchange Street in Portland's Old Port, operating as one of the neighborhood's more atmospheric cocktail destinations. Recipient of a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction, it carries a 4.8 Google rating across more than 1,500 reviews. For Portland's craft cocktail scene, it sits in the considered, low-key tier that defines the city's drinking culture.

Among Tokyo's most decorated cocktail bars, Bar High Five has appeared in the World's 50 Best Bars rankings every year since 2011, peaking at number three globally in 2013. Situated in a basement space on Ginza's Chuo-dori, it represents a specific strain of Japanese bartending — classical technique, guest-led service, and an absence of theatrical gimmickry — that has given Ginza its international standing in bar culture.

A literary-themed bar on Sullivan's Island's main drag, Poe's Tavern earns its Pearl Recommended Bar status through a drinks program that leans into beach-town character without sacrificing craft. With a 4.5 Google rating across more than 4,100 reviews, it sits among the most consistently regarded bars on the South Carolina barrier island coast. Find it at 2210 Middle St, steps from the Atlantic.

Nashville's dedicated absinthe bar occupies a suite-style space at 1201 5th Ave N, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction and a 4.7 Google rating across 173 reviews. Green Hour Cocktail & Absinthe Lounge sits in a city better known for whiskey and honky-tonk, which makes its focused spirits program — built around the ritual and range of absinthe — a deliberate counterpoint to the Broadway corridor.

Holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.8 Google rating from verified reviewers, Monterrey Bar on Miami Beach's Island Avenue occupies the quieter, more considered end of the city's bar spectrum. Positioned on the causeway corridor between Biscayne Bay and South Beach's more insistent nightlife, it draws visitors who want craft drinking without the performance that dominates much of the neighbourhood.

Bar Benfiddich occupies the ninth floor of a Nishishinjuku building, where Hiroyasu Kayama works a 17-seat walnut counter stocked with antique bottles, farm-grown botanicals, and homemade spirits including his own distilled absinthe. Ranked in the World's 50 Best Bars continuously since 2016 and placed ninth in Asia's Best Bars 2025, it operates nightly from 18:00 to 02:00.

Bar Cordon Noir occupies the third floor of a Nakagyo Ward building in central Kyoto, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.4 Google rating across 157 reviews. The bar's position in Kyoto's serious drinking circuit points to a back bar assembled with intention, where curation and depth matter more than volume or novelty.

Undercote occupies a below-street-level address on West 22nd Street in Flatiron, operating within New York's quieter tier of craft-forward bars that earn recognition without high-volume spectacle. The bar holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended designation and a 4.5 Google rating across 158 reviews, signalling consistent quality. For visitors working through the city's more considered cocktail rooms, it belongs on the short list.

E11EVEN occupies a specific and contested position in Miami's late-night bar circuit: a 24-hour venue at 29 NE 11th St in the Arts District that earned a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation. Where much of the city's nightlife tilts toward bottle-service spectacle, E11EVEN operates at the intersection of high-production entertainment and serious cocktail programming, pulling a crowd that treats the night as a long, deliberately paced event rather than a sprint to last call.

On Ludlow Street in the Lower East Side, Dirty French occupies a physical space that matches the neighbourhood's appetite for bars that take their craft seriously without performing solemnity. A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar, it draws a crowd that arrives without a reservation and stays longer than planned. The address at 180 Ludlow puts it within the corridor of LES drinking culture that rewards those who walk rather than plan.

Barmini holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction and a 4.8 Google rating across more than 600 reviews, placing it firmly in Washington D.C.'s upper tier of cocktail programming. Located at 501 9th St NW in Penn Quarter, the bar operates as a laboratory-style counterpoint to the capital's more conventional drinking culture, with a depth of spirits curation that rewards returning visitors.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Tulum's beach road, Gitano sits at the intersection of open-air jungle atmosphere and considered cocktail craft. With a 4.6 Google rating across more than 5,700 reviews, it holds consistent standing among Tulum's bar scene — a program where the drink in your hand earns as much attention as the setting around you.

Half Step occupies a covered outdoor bar on Rainey Street, Austin's most concentrated strip of late-night drinking. Holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.6 Google rating across more than 900 reviews, it represents the creek-side, patio-forward format that defines how Austin actually drinks — outdoors, unhurried, and with a cocktail program that earns repeat visits.

Trick Dog has held a place in the World's 50 Best Bars rankings every year since 2014, yet it operates out of a Mission District corner like a neighbourhood institution rather than a destination trophy bar. Open from 4pm daily at 3010 20th St, it draws a crowd that ranges from local regulars to out-of-town drinkers who've tracked it for years, sustained by a program that takes cocktails seriously without making the room feel like a seminar.

Canon on Capitol Hill holds a 2025 World's 50 Best North America ranking and a Pearl Recommended Bar citation, with a back bar spanning some of the deepest spirits collections in the Pacific Northwest. Open until 2:00 a.m., the bar operates at a different register than Seattle's cocktail-forward newcomers — a reference point for rare bottles and sustained global recognition over more than a decade.

Suyo has earned a Pearl Recommended Bar distinction for 2025, placing it among a small tier of Bronx bars drawing serious attention from beyond the borough. With a 4.5-star rating across more than 1,100 Google reviews, it holds the kind of local loyalty that Manhattan-centric bar guides tend to overlook. The address on Plaza Dr puts it squarely in the South Bronx, a neighbourhood whose bar scene is finding its footing on the national radar.

One of San Francisco's most historically grounded bars, The House of Shields has occupied its New Montgomery Street address since 1908, operating as a saloon through Prohibition and beyond. Recognized as a Pearl Recommended Bar in 2025, it holds a 4.5-star Google rating across more than 500 reviews. The bar opens from mid-afternoon into the early hours, Tuesday through Sunday, making it a reliable stop in the SoMa corridor.

A Pearl Recommended bar on 19th Street in San Francisco's Mission District, Wildhawk draws a loyal local crowd with a program that earns 4.4 stars across more than 440 Google reviews. The bar occupies a tier of Mission drinking that prizes craft and consistency over spectacle — a reliable marker in one of the city's most competitive cocktail neighbourhoods.

Kona's Street Market on San Francisco's 3rd Street holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction and a 4.6 Google rating across 157 reviews — a combination that places it firmly within the city's recognized drinking circuit. The address puts it in SoMa, where the bar scene has grown more deliberate and less trend-dependent over the past decade. Worth tracking for anyone building a serious San Francisco bar itinerary.

Multnomah Whiskey Library on SW Alder Street holds one of the most serious spirits collections in Portland, with a library format that rewards slow, deliberate drinking. Awarded Pearl Recommended Bar status in 2025 and rated 4.7 across nearly 2,000 Google reviews, it operates Tuesday through Sunday from 4pm and sits firmly at the deliberate, collection-first end of Portland's bar scene.

Sweet Liberty Drinks & Supply Company on Miami Beach has held a position inside the World's 50 Best Bars global rankings, reaching #21 in 2018 before transitioning into the North America tier. Sitting at 237 20th Street in Miami Beach, it draws a 4.6 Google rating across more than 2,500 reviews and holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended designation. For Miami's cocktail scene, it remains a consistent reference point.

A Pearl Recommended Bar on Ginza's ninth floor, Tender Bar operates on a deliberately compressed schedule — Wednesday through Sunday, two hours only from 6pm. The short window sharpens the experience: a quiet, focused counter service in one of Tokyo's most concentrated bar districts, where the craft of the drink takes precedence over spectacle. Google reviewers rate it 4.2 across 173 responses.

Members Only San Francisco revolutionizes the cocktail club concept with its "everyone's a member" philosophy, where Candice Jae's inventive mixology program and curiosity-filled design create an inclusive luxury experience in Lower Nob Hill, complete with a secret underground lounge.

Few addresses in Florence carry the historical weight of Caffè Gilli, a storied bar on Piazza della Repubblica that has served the city's intellectual and social life since 1733. Recognised with a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar award, it represents the older tier of the Florentine café tradition — part bar, part pastry counter, part living room for the city's centre. Its 4.1 rating across more than 8,400 Google reviews confirms its enduring draw.

On a NoHo block where the line between bar and neighbourhood living room blurs, Jac's on Bond holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a Google rating of 4.0 across 138 reviews. The address at 26 Bond Street places it among a tier of craft-focused downtown bars that reward regulars over tourists. Daytime and evening service shift the mood considerably, making the timing of your visit a decision worth making deliberately.

META at 425 W Chestnut St has held a position in Louisville's cocktail conversation since earning a World's 50 Best Bars ranking in 2012 and continues to draw recognition through a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar award. With a 4.5 Google rating across more than 400 reviews, it represents the more technically serious end of Louisville's bar scene — a city whose drinking culture extends well beyond its bourbon reputation.

Daniele Dalla Pola's award-winning "nu Tiki" concept defines Esotico Miami, where theatrical mixology meets tropical luxury in downtown Miami. This immersive destination features rum-centric cocktails with fire presentations, collectible tiki mugs, and the exclusive hidden speakeasy The Kaona Room for Miami's most sophisticated cocktail experiences.

Storybook-inspired luxury defines Fable Lounge + Nashville, where co-owners Ben Powell and John Dibble have created a multi-level speakeasy featuring theatrical cocktails like "The Illusionist" and "Enchanted Rose," live piano entertainment, and whimsical design elements that transform Nashville's cocktail scene into an immersive fantasy experience.

Bar Shiru sits at 1611 Telegraph Avenue in Oakland's Uptown district, operating as one of the East Bay's more closely watched neighborhood bars. Holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a Google rating of 4.7 across 377 reviews, it represents the kind of community-anchored spot that earns its standing through consistency rather than spectacle.

Death & Co's Los Angeles outpost, at 818 E 3rd St in the Arts District, carries the technical credibility of the original New York bar into Southern California. Ranked among North America's 50 Best Bars in both 2022 and 2023, and Pearl Recommended in 2025, it operates in the upper tier of the city's serious cocktail scene — deliberate, precise, and worth the planning.

Harper & Rye occupies a corner of Polk Street in San Francisco's Russian Hill corridor, operating as a neighbourhood bar with enough program depth to draw drinkers from well outside the immediate blocks. Recognised with a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and carrying a 4.3 Google rating across more than 600 reviews, it sits in a tier of San Francisco bars where consistency and setting do most of the work.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village, The Up & Up holds a 4.5-star Google rating across more than 1,000 reviews, placing it among the more consistently rated cocktail bars in a neighbourhood already dense with options. The format leans toward a full-evening programme rather than a quick stop, with a cellar-level setting that shifts noticeably in character between early and late service.

Service Bar on U Street NW has ranked among North America's top bars every year since 2022, reaching as high as #18 on the World's 50 Best North America's Best Bars list. It holds a Pearl Recommended designation and a 4.6 Google rating across more than 800 reviews, placing it at the serious end of Washington D.C.'s cocktail scene alongside a neighbourhood defined by music history and independent energy.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar in Los Angeles's Koreatown, The Normandie Club operates in the city's serious cocktail tier — the kind of room where the drink program carries the room's reputation rather than the other way around. With a 4.6 Google rating across more than 600 reviews, it holds consistent standing among LA's most respected bars. Find it at 3612 W 6th St in the heart of K-Town.

The bar arm of the celebrated Kato restaurant occupies the same Arts District address at 777 S Alameda, functioning as a neighbourhood gathering point where the drinks program earns its own standing apart from the dining room's reputation. A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation confirms what regulars already know: this is a space worth seeking out on its own terms, not merely as a waiting room for a table.

The Royal Cuckoo is a Mission District organ lounge on Mission Street that earns its 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar status through an atmosphere unlike most of San Francisco's cocktail circuit. Open from mid-afternoon into the early hours, it draws a crowd looking for something closer to a jazz-era parlour than a modern bar program — a living room that happens to serve drinks and fill the room with live organ music.

Death & Co on East 6th Street helped define the modern American cocktail bar format when it opened in the East Village in 2006, and its award history — four consecutive years inside the World's 50 Best Bars top ten between 2009 and 2012 — marks it as one of the most consequential bars of its era. The 4.5-star Google rating across more than 2,000 reviews reflects a reputation that has outlasted the hype cycle.

Murciegalo sits on Calle 57 facing Parque Santa Lucía, one of Centro Histórico's most animated squares. A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar with a 4.5 Google rating across more than 400 reviews, it functions as a genuine neighbourhood anchor rather than a tourist-facing venue. For an evening drink in the heart of Mérida, it earns its place in any considered itinerary.

A Pearl Recommended bar on Mission Street with a 4.7 Google rating across 372 reviews, Casements Bar occupies a specific tier in San Francisco's Mission District drinking scene — where the neighbourhood's density of serious bars rewards those willing to settle in rather than bar-hop. The food and drink pairing format here anchors the experience beyond a standard cocktail stop.

Bitter Bar on Via di Mezzo sits inside Florence's more considered cocktail tier, earning a spot on the 2025 Top 500 Bars list at #322 alongside a Pearl Recommended Bar designation. With 438 Google reviews averaging 4.4 stars, it draws a regular crowd beyond the tourist circuit. For those tracking where Florence's bar culture is quietly sharpening, this is a useful address.

Everson Royce Bar sits on East 7th Street in Los Angeles's Arts District, holding Pearl Recommended Bar recognition and a 4.5-star Google rating across more than 1,000 reviews. It occupies the quieter, craft-focused end of LA's bar scene — a neighbourhood anchor with enough critical standing to draw drinkers from well outside the district.

The Patterson House occupies the fifth floor of a Midtown building on 8th Avenue South, operating as one of Nashville's most recognised cocktail bars. Holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.7 Google rating across more than 1,400 reviews, it sits in the upper tier of the city's serious drinking establishments, where programme depth and food pairing carry more weight than spectacle.

Mezcalito on Polk Street is one of San Francisco's Pearl Recommended bars for 2025, drawing a loyal neighborhood following with a mezcal-forward program that sits within the Russian Hill drinking corridor. With a 4.3 Google rating across nearly 600 reviews, it occupies a consistent mid-tier bar position on a street that rewards repeat visitors over one-time tourists.

On Congress Street in Portland, Maine, Crown Jewel holds a Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.6 Google rating across 281 reviews — positioning it among the city's more serious cocktail addresses. The bar operates in a downtown stretch that has quietly built one of New England's more considered drinking cultures, where craft and hospitality carry more weight than spectacle.

Redbird Bar occupies a converted Gothic cathedral space in downtown Los Angeles, earning a Star Wine List White Star recognition and a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation. Open evenings daily from 5pm, it sits among a small tier of downtown LA bars where the setting and the drinks program carry equal weight. Google reviewers rate it 4.6 across more than 1,700 submissions.

David Ruiz's innovative "design language" for cocktails defined Padrecito San Francisco, where adaptive mixology and pictorial menus transformed Cole Valley's neighborhood bar scene into a sophisticated craft cocktail destination celebrated for its community spirit and uncompromising standards.

Angel's Share on Grove Street in the West Village is one of New York City's most decorated cocktail bars, holding a 2025 World's 50 Best North America ranking and a spot in the Top 500 Bars globally. Recognised for curation depth and considered service, it occupies a distinct tier among Manhattan's serious cocktail programs. A 4.5 Google rating across more than 1,700 reviews confirms its sustained draw.

The Hot Corner defines luxury cocktail culture in Mérida, where masterful mixologists craft signature drinks like the "Yucatan Sunrise" and "Mayan Mule" using premium spirits and regional ingredients. This sophisticated sanctuary blends colonial elegance with contemporary design, creating Yucatán's premier destination for discerning drinkers seeking authentic luxury experiences.

Portland's tiki institution on NE Broadway delivers volcanic cocktails, carved wood, and the kind of neighbourhood loyalty that takes years to earn. A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar with a 4.7 Google rating across more than 1,700 reviews, Hale Pele holds its place as one of the city's most committed single-theme bars, where the craft is serious even when the presentation is theatrical.

Few bars in Tokyo carry a ranking history as consistent as Star Bar Ginza, which appeared on the World's 50 Best Bars list across multiple years between 2010 and 2014, and on Asia's Best Bars through 2021. Set in a basement in Ginza's 1-chome, it operates as a reference point for the classic Japanese bar tradition — serious, unhurried, and built around technique rather than spectacle.

Skull's Rainbow Room sits on Printers Alley, one of Nashville's oldest entertainment corridors, carrying decades of late-night history into a format that earned a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation. With 4.6 stars across nearly 3,000 Google reviews, it occupies a different register than Broadway's bachelorette circuit — a room where the craft behind the bar is taken seriously and the atmosphere does the work.

Handshake Speakeasy claimed the World's Best Bar title at the 2024 World's 50 Best Bars awards and has held the North America number-one position for three consecutive years. Spread across two floors inside a Colonia Juárez hotel, the bar runs a culinary cocktail program across a Gatsby-era ground floor and a hip-hop basement, with every team member rotating through all roles weekly.

A Pearl-recommended bar at 227 SE 6th Ave in Portland's inner eastside, sousòl earns its 2025 recognition within a city that takes its cocktail culture seriously. With a 4.2 Google rating across 179 reviews, it occupies the tier of Portland bars where program depth and atmosphere carry more weight than novelty gimmicks. Plan accordingly: the space rewards unhurried visits.

Kyle Linden Webster and James Beard Award-winner Naomi Pomeroy's Expatriate transforms Portland cocktail culture through globally-inspired mixology in an intimate, candlelit space. This 30-seat sanctuary features curated cocktails like the Burma Sour and Thai Basil Daiquiri, served beneath a dramatic red-and-gold arch in an atmosphere that channels vintage glamour with worldly sophistication.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Valencia Street, The Beehive sits inside the Mission District's dense bar corridor, where craft-focused neighborhood spots compete on program depth rather than spectacle. With a 4.5 Google rating across nearly 580 reviews, it holds consistent standing among the street's most frequented bars and offers a more grounded alternative to the destination-bar circuit elsewhere in the city.

Positioned at the serious end of New York's cocktail hierarchy, The Dead Rabbit Grocery and Grog at 30 Water St has held a place in the World's 50 Best Bars rankings every year since 2013, including the #1 spot in 2016. The Financial District address shapes the experience as much as the program itself: a two-floor Irish-American bar where the drinking is taken seriously and the historical framing runs deep.

Ranked #58 on World's 50 Best North America's Best Bars 2025 and Pearl Recommended, Proof is Calgary's most seriously stocked cocktail bar — a ceiling-height backbar with library ladder, a spirit-organized menu that rewards exploration, and a secret Full Moon menu for those who know to ask. The vibe is relaxed; the depth behind the bar is anything but.

Once the most-awarded bar on the planet, PDT operates out of a phone booth inside a St. Marks Place hot dog shop, and that physical fact still defines the experience. Its run of consecutive World's 50 Best placements through 2016, including the number-one position in 2011, established the East Village phone-booth format as a reference point for the global cocktail bar conversation. A 4.3 Google rating across 2,313 reviews confirms that the concept continues to land.

Employees Only has held a place in the World's 50 Best Bars rankings every year since 2009, peaking at #4 globally in 2015. The West Village address on Hudson Street operates as one of New York's most consistently recognised cocktail programs, drawing on a European apéritif and spirits tradition that sits apart from the speakeasy-revival bars that followed in its wake. In 2025, it holds #18 in North America and #95 globally.

A Pearl Recommended cocktail bar and restaurant on North Miami Avenue, Spanglish sits at the edge of Wynwood where Latin-inflected drinking culture meets the neighbourhood's evolving creative identity. With a 4.6 Google rating across more than 900 reviews, it holds its own in a city that takes its cocktail bars seriously. The Wynwood address places it squarely within Miami's most concentrated stretch of independent hospitality.

On a tucked-away Lower East Side alley, Banzarbar earned a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and holds a 4.7 Google rating across 184 reviews. The address — 2 Freeman Alley — places it among New York's more address-specific bar destinations, where the approach to craft and hospitality registers clearly with the people who find it.

A Times Square-adjacent rum bar with more depth than its address might suggest, The Rum House holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar recognition and a 4.4 Google rating across over 2,000 reviews. The room draws a mix of pre-theatre drinkers and serious cocktail seekers, with rum and Caribbean-leaning serves anchoring the program. For Midtown, it punches well above its tourist-corridor weight.

Gin 47 is a Pearl Recommended Bar located on Calle 47 in Mérida's Centro, earning a 4.6 Google rating across nearly 900 reviews. The bar's name signals its premise: a focused spirits program built around gin, positioned within a city whose cocktail scene has matured considerably over the past decade. Find it between Calles 52 and 54, at the address that doubles as its identity.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Portland's working waterfront, The Independent Ice Co operates out of 52 Wharf Street in the Old Port. With a Google rating of 4.6 across 468 reviews, it holds a consistent position among the bars that define Portland's serious cocktail tier. Plan ahead: the waterfront draws crowds, and this address rewards the deliberate visitor.

South Congress Hotel's bar program earned a 2025 Pearl Recommended designation, placing it among Austin's more considered drinking destinations on one of the city's most culturally loaded corridors. The property sits at 1603 S Congress Ave, where the SoCo strip's mix of independent retail, live music, and neighbourhood identity gives hotel bar visits a different texture than downtown alternatives. Rated 4.7 on Google from early reviews.

Tokyo Record Bar on MacDougal Street occupies a specific niche in downtown Manhattan's bar scene: a listening bar format borrowed from Japan, where vinyl selection and sound quality carry as much weight as what's in the glass. Recognized as a Pearl Recommended Bar in 2025, it holds a 4.1 Google rating across 410 reviews and draws a crowd that comes as much to hear as to drink.

The Bar at Hotel Kabuki sits in the heart of San Francisco's Japantown, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.4 Google rating across nearly 300 reviews. Open around the clock, it occupies a distinct position among the city's hotel bars — measured, neighbourhood-rooted, and worth the detour from the downtown cocktail corridor.

Ranked #305 on the 2025 Top 500 Bars list and recognised by Pearl, The Roosevelt Room occupies a deliberate place in Austin's cocktail scene: a program-first bar on West 5th Street where the drink, its construction, and the ritual around it take precedence. Open from 4pm daily, with late hours Thursday through Saturday, it draws a crowd that arrives knowing what it wants.

Bar Miriam sits on West McGraw Street in Queen Anne, operating as a neighbourhood bar with enough craft credibility to earn a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation. The room runs quietly serious about its drinks program while staying accessible enough for a Tuesday evening. Open from 4pm daily, it holds a 4.7 Google rating across 157 reviews.

Pacific Cocktail Haven (PCH) has climbed from #38 to #16 in North America's Best Bars rankings between 2024 and 2025, placing it in the upper tier of San Francisco's cocktail scene. Positioned on Sutter Street in Union Square, it draws on Pacific Rim ingredients and techniques to produce a program that sits well outside the city's standard European-influence playbook. With a 4.6 Google rating across nearly 930 reviews, it holds that standing with consistency.

A Pearl Recommended rooftop bar on Mission Street, El Techo brings Latin-inflected drinking culture to one of San Francisco's most culturally layered corridors. With 3,065 Google reviews averaging 4.4 stars, it holds a consistent position among the Mission's most-visited outdoor venues. The combination of open-air format, neighborhood character, and cocktail programming makes it a reference point for the district's bar scene.

Robert's Western World sits at 416 Broadway in the heart of Nashville's honky-tonk strip, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.7 Google rating across more than 5,000 reviews. It occupies a different register from the city's craft cocktail scene, anchoring itself in live country music, cold beer, and the kind of no-frills atmosphere that made Lower Broadway what it is.

Takibi holds a Pearl District address and a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation, placing it in the neighbourhood's smaller, more deliberate drinking tier. Open daily from noon to 9 PM, it draws a crowd that prefers considered craft over volume. With a Google rating of 4.2 across nearly 300 reviews, it reads as a reliable anchor for the NW Flanders corridor.

On the northern edge of Belltown, Roquette has earned its place in Seattle's serious cocktail conversation, pulling a 4.6 Google rating from over 250 reviews and landing on both the 2025 World's 50 Best North America's Best Bars list (#72) and the Pearl Recommended Bar roster. The bar operates as a neighbourhood anchor as much as a destination, drawing locals and visitors alike to 2232 1st Ave for drinks that warrant the recognition.

Smuggler's Cove at 650 Gough St has held a position in the World's 50 Best Bars every year from 2011 through 2016, reaching as high as #16 globally, and earned a Pearl Recommended designation in 2025. Open seven nights a week from 5pm to 1:45am, it remains one of the most decorated rum-focused bars in the United States, drawing from a deep catalogue of spirits and tiki-adjacent tradition.

Zoetrope is a whisky-specialist bar on the third floor of a Nishi-Shinjuku building, holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a Google rating of 4.3 across 360 reviews. The bar draws serious drinkers to its curated selection in a neighbourhood more associated with transit than contemplation, offering an alternative to Ginza's louder, more theatrical bar scene.

A former tobacco factory in Florence's Oltrarno fringe, Manifattura Tabacchi has become one of the city's more closely watched bar addresses — ranked #234 in the 2025 Top 500 Bars and carrying a Pearl Recommended designation. The industrial bones of the complex lend a texture that the historic centre's cocktail bars rarely offer, placing it in a distinct tier within Florence's evolving drinks scene.

Attaboy Nashville brings the no-menu, guest-directed cocktail format to East Nashville's McFerrin Avenue, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.6 Google rating across nearly a thousand reviews. The approach prioritises the bartender-guest exchange over printed lists, placing it in a small peer set of technique-driven bars in a city better known for honky-tonks and country radio.

Positioned along Parque Santa Lucía in Mérida's historic centro, Mezcaleria La Fundacion is a Pearl Recommended Bar with a 4.3 Google rating across nearly 4,000 reviews — a signal of sustained local and visitor trust. The bar anchors itself in mezcal's craft culture, offering a reference point for agave spirits in a city where the category is growing fast.

Mister Jiu's occupies a historic Chinatown banquet hall on Waverly Place, blending the architectural bones of old San Francisco with a bar program recognized by the 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar award. The room itself tells a story about the neighborhood's layered past, while the drinks signal where the city's cocktail culture is heading. Rated 4.3 across more than 1,100 Google reviews, it earns consistent attention from both locals and visitors.

Chez Zou is a Pearl-recommended bar on the fourth floor of a Hudson Yards-adjacent address in Chelsea, sitting inside a corner of Midtown Manhattan that has quietly developed its own after-work drinking culture. With a 4.5 Google rating across 150 reviews, it occupies a tier of New York bars where neighborhood specificity and consistent execution matter more than spectacle or celebrity.

ABV on 16th Street in the Mission has earned back-to-back placements on the World's 50 Best Bars list and a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar nod, making it one of San Francisco's most consistently recognised cocktail programs. Open daily from 4pm until 2am, it sits at the serious end of the Mission's bar scene without sacrificing neighbourhood accessibility. Google reviewers rate it 4.5 across more than 1,000 responses.

A Pearl-recommended bar on West 4th Street, DuMont's Down Low occupies Austin's downtown drinking scene with a 4.6 Google rating across 346 reviews. The subterranean format and focused cocktail program position it within the city's more serious bar tier, where technique and atmosphere carry more weight than square footage.

On King Street in Charleston's Upper Peninsula bar corridor, Prohibition holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar award and a 4.4 Google rating across more than 2,600 reviews. The bar draws on the era its name invokes, setting a mood of dim lighting and period detail that places it firmly in Charleston's serious cocktail tier alongside peers like The Gin Joint and The Cocktail Club.

Rob Roy on 2nd Avenue in Seattle's Belltown has held a place at the serious end of the city's cocktail bar conversation for years, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar distinction and a 4.4 Google rating across more than 760 reviews. The bar opens at 4pm daily, running through the late-night hours when Seattle's drinking culture tends to sharpen its focus. It sits in the same peer tier as Canon and Roquette, oriented toward craft and precision rather than spectacle.

Veronique Lafont's Santé Bar redefines Portland's cocktail scene as a Black-owned, LGBTQ+ inclusive destination where house-made shrubs and premium spirits create signature drinks like the Cat's Meow. This community-focused craft cocktail bar combines exceptional mixology with live performances and drag shows, establishing itself as Portland's premier inclusive luxury lounge.

The Green Room on SW Alder holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.6 Google rating from over a hundred reviews, placing it among Portland's recognized cocktail addresses. The bar runs evening hours from 4pm through midnight on weekdays, with service extending into the early hours on weekends. For a full picture of Portland's bar scene, see EP Club's Portland bars guide.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Austin's East Seventh Street corridor, Small Victory holds a 4.7 Google rating across nearly 470 reviews, placing it among the more consistently rated bars in a city that takes cocktails seriously. The address puts it close to the dense concentration of late-night programming east of Congress, which means it draws both deliberate visitors and foot traffic from the broader downtown circuit.

Bar Orchard Ginza has held a consistent position in Asia's 50 Best Bars rankings every year from 2016 through 2020, peaking at number 25 in 2017. Located on the seventh floor of a Ginza building, the bar operates in the upper tier of Tokyo's fruit-forward cocktail scene. The 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar award confirms its continued standing among the city's serious drinking establishments.

On East 6th Street, Mezcalería Tobalá operates as one of Austin's more focused agave bars, earning a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar nod and a 4.3 Google rating from a community of regulars who treat it as a neighbourhood anchor. The address puts it inside the dense bar corridor that defines Austin's most active drinking district, and the mezcal-forward format gives it a distinct identity within that stretch.

A 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar on Holbox's car-free shoreline, Maruva Beach Club operates where the Yucatán's cocktail culture meets the island's slow, sand-between-your-toes rhythm. With a 4.7 Google rating from over 300 reviews, it holds a clear position among the island's most consistent drinking destinations — the kind of place that earns repeat visits from guests who came for one afternoon and stayed for three.

Ranked #78 on World's 50 Best North America's Best Bars for 2025 and awarded Pearl Recommended Bar status, Swizzle Rum Bar & Drinkery on Collins Avenue is one of Miami Beach's most decorated rum-focused programs. Holding a near-perfect 4.9 Google rating across more than 1,300 reviews, it occupies a specific and serious position in Miami's cocktail scene — spirit-forward, Caribbean-leaning, and built around rum in a way few bars on the strip attempt.

Antidote at Chemist Spirits occupies a specific place in Asheville's bar scene: a spirits-forward room built on the house distillery's production, earning Pearl Recommended Bar recognition in 2025. With a 4.6 Google rating across more than 800 reviews, it draws regulars who track the cocktail programme as closely as the pours. Located at 151 Coxe Ave, it anchors the southern edge of downtown's drinking circuit.

Ranked #12 on World's 50 Best Asia's Best Bars in 2024 and listed among the global Top 500 Bars, The Cocktail Club on King Street brings a program of serious bartending craft to Charleston's increasingly competitive drinks scene. With a 4.5-star Google rating across 766 reviews, it occupies a tier of its own on the peninsula — ambitious enough for international recognition, grounded enough to keep locals returning.

Tucked inside the Chicago Athletic Association hotel on Michigan Avenue, The Milk Room is one of Chicago's most respected intimate cocktail bars, ranking #38 on North America's Best Bars 2023 and holding a 2025 Pearl Recommended designation. The eight-seat format and archive-driven spirits program place it in a different competitive tier than the city's larger cocktail venues.

The Garrison on North Lombard Street holds a 2025 Pearl Recommended Bar designation and a 4.7 Google rating across 136 reviews — a signal that Portland's St. Johns neighbourhood has its own bar identity worth tracking. The room draws a consistent crowd to what reads as a serious neighbourhood drinking destination, positioned well outside the downtown cocktail circuit.

On a quiet block of East 6th Street in the East Village, Amor y Amargo has spent years making the case that bitters are a serious category, not a garnish. Ranked #23 on North America's Best Bars in both 2022 and 2024, and Pearl Recommended in 2025, it operates as a specialist bar in the fullest sense: narrow focus, deep execution, and a drinks list that rewards the curious.

Few bars in New York City carry the kind of documented critical record that Dante NYC has accumulated since 2016. Situated on MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village, it holds multiple World's 50 Best Bars placements, including a #1 ranking in 2019, and a 4.5 Google rating across more than 2,500 reviews. The combination of neighbourhood longevity and sustained award recognition places it in a very small peer set.

Ranked among North America's top cocktail bars in 2025 by World's 50 Best, Silver Lyan at 900 F St NW brings a technically precise, craft-led program to Penn Quarter. It holds a place in the Top 500 Bars globally (#203) and carries a Pearl Recommended designation, positioning it among D.C.'s most credentialed drinking destinations.