BARCELONA, Spain – The World’s 50 Best Bars 2022, sponsored by Perrier, were unveiled at a live awards ceremony in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain on Tuesday 4th October. Marking the 14th year of the illustrious list, and the first time it has been revealed outside of London, the awards unite the global bar community in recognition of the bartenders, bar owners and brands at the forefront of the international cocktail scene.
The World’s 50 Best Bars 2022 features bars from 26 cities and sees Barcelona’s Paradiso take the No.1 spot to be named The Best Bar in Europe and The World’s Best Bar, sponsored by Perrier. This is the first time this honour has been bestowed on a bar outside of the historic cocktail capitals of New York and London.
Hidden behind an antique refrigerator in the back of an unassuming pastrami shop in Barcelona’s trendy El Born district, Paradiso offers a truly masterful take on the speakeasy, combining technique, precision and creativity with an unwavering sense of fun. In stark contrast to the understated exterior, the majestic front bar welcomes guests into a strikingly playful space, complete with dramatic glass light fittings and Gaudi-inspired curved-wood ceiling. At the bar, myriad meticulously crafted cocktails served in outlandish vessels take centre stage. Paradiso signatures, such as the Supercool Martini, uses ‘supercooled’ gin to build an iceberg in the glass before tailoring the final product tableside for a uniquely personal guest experience. From creating coasters and bar tools from single-use waste to hosting the first Paradiso Sustainability Summit, owners Giacomo Giannotti and Margarita Sader and their outstanding team showcase their unwavering commitment to ongoing sustainability, both within Paradiso and the wider industry.
Mark Sansom, Content Director of The World’s 50 Best Bars, says: “The fact that this is the first time we have crowned a bar outside New York or London as The World’s Best Bar is a testament to the huge achievements of Giacomo, Margarita and their team. Since being named One To Watch in 2017 a year after opening, Paradiso has been a firm fixture of the 50 Best list, enhancing its ranking year after year. It is an honour to name it as The World’s Best Bar and the win is credit to Paradiso’s outlandishly inventive cocktail programme, sustainable ethos, work in the global bar community and brilliant sense of fun. Our heartfelt congratulations go out to each and every bar on the list and we are delighted to once again be able to showcase the incredible diversity of the global bar sector, from grand hotel bars and dive bars to neighbourhood speakeasies and stunning rooftop spaces. The consumer appetite for quality cocktail bars just keeps on growing and to be able to introduce 14 new entries to help sate this and encourage travel plans couldn’t make us happier.”
Elisa Gregori, Perrier Global Business Unit Director, says: “We are very honoured in 2022 to be able to support 50 Best in organising the largest ceremony to date in Barcelona, and thereby mark the kickstart of international travel for The World’s 50 Best Bars event, sponsored by Perrier. A big congratulations to the team at Paradiso for being voted The World’s Best Bar, sponsored by Perrier, as well as all the bars that made The World’s 50 Best Bars 2022 list! At Perrier we believe that human progress relies on the endless creativity of people that dare to see the world differently. So, we’re extremely proud to shine a spotlight on the 2022 community of professionals, friends and family that do exactly that, pushing the envelope of creativity and hospitality.”
London enjoys another strong showing, but Spain dominates the top 10
London regains its position as the cocktail capital of Europe with a total of five bars in the list. TayÄ“r + Elementary maintains its place at No.2, with Connaught Bar at No.8 and a re-entry from Swift at No.30. The city also sees new entries from Satan’s Whiskers at No.23 and A Bar with Shapes for a Name at No.37.
In host city Barcelona, not only has Paradiso risen two places to No.1 to be named The Best Bar in Europe, sponsored by Perrier, but it is joined in the top 10 by Sips at No.3, which is this year’s Nikka Highest Climber, and Two Schmucks at No.7, which has risen 4 places. Elsewhere in Spain, Madrid’s Salmon Guru is at No.15.
Italy also has four bars on the list across four different cities – Rome’s Drink Kong at No.16 and Milan’s 1930 at No.35, alongside new entries Locale Firenze in Florence at No.39 and L’Antiquario in Naples at No.46. Athens favourites The Clumsies (No.19) and Baba Au Rum (No.20) are joined by newcomer Line at No.31.
Paris, Lisbon, Oslo and Stockholm each have one bar on the list, with Little Red Door at No.5, which is this year’s Ketel One Sustainable Bar, Red Frog at No.40, Himkok at No.43 and Lucy’s Flower Shop at No.49.
New York leads the world and reclaims the North American crown
New York leads with a whopping six bars in the list, more than any other city in the world, including two in the top 10: Double Chicken Please at No.6, which is also awarded the Disaronno Highest New Entry Award, and Katana Kitten rising one place to No.9. The city also has Attaboy at No.22, Overstory at No. 34, Dante at No.36 and Employees Only at No.47. Chicago returns to the list for the first time since 2018 with Kumiko at No.25 and Miami’s CafĂ© La Trova has risen 7 places to No.21.
LicorerĂa Limantour continues to spearhead the meteoric rise of Mexico City’s emerging cocktail scene at No.4, claiming the title of The Best Bar in North America for the second year in a row as well as being named RĂ©my Martin Legend of the List. It is joined by neighbours Handshake Speakeasy (No.11), Baltra Bar (No.32) and this year’s Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award winner Hanky Panky (No.13).
The Best Bar in South America at No.10 is Cartagena’s AlquĂmico. Buenos Aires has three entries, with FlorerĂa Atlántico at No.18, Tres Monos at No.27 and CoChinChina at No.42. Lima’s Carnaval has re-entered the list at No.44.
Singapore takes the top spot in Asia
Singapore, Bangkok and Hong Kong each have two bars in the list, with Singapore’s Jigger & Pony (No.12) named The Best Bar in Asia. It is joined by Manhattan at No.33. Bangkok boasts new entries BKK Social Club, winner of London Essence Best New Opening at No.14, as well as new entry Tropic City at No.24. Hong Kong’s Coa comes in at No.17 alongside new entry Argo at No.28.
Elsewhere, New Delhi’s Sidecar, which last year was the first Indian entry since 2010, has risen an impressive 21 places to No.26. Bar Benfiddich in Tokyo is No.48.
Dubai rules the Middle East while Sydney shines in Australasia
Dubai has three bars on the list, including Zuma at No.38, named The Best Bar in the Middle East and Africa for the third year in a row. The city also sees Galaxy Bar remain at No.45 and a new entry in the form of Bulgari Bar at No.50.
The Best Bar in Australasia is Maybe Sammy at No.29, one of two Sydney bars in this year’s ranking alongside Cantina OK! at No.41.
Special Awards
The ceremony began with a bang for Röda Huset in Stockholm, which was named the Campari One To Watch, an honour bestowed on a bar outside of the 1-50 ranking that the 50 Best team believes has what it takes to make future editions of the list.
The winner of Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu is Juliana of Guayaquil, which takes the accolade for its outstanding Diverso cocktail list. The menu is not simply a drinks list, but a reflection of the bar’s ethos and mission to champion the produce and people of its country. Navigating the document takes guests on a journey, where each page operates as a shrine to a single cocktail. Marked simply by a title and minimalist drawing, description of ingredients and taste profile, every drink is also paired by a contextualisation of its formulation, from short histories of its indigenous ingredients to their wider cultural impact. Running for the second year in a row, the Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu award is open to any bar, anywhere in the world and is judged by the esteemed panel of 28 Academy Chairs.
Italian-born, London-based Agostino Perrone is named Roku Industry Icon. For this award, all 650 members of the voting Academy are asked to name the person who has done more for the progress of the bar industry than any other individual. Director of Mixology at London’s iconic Connaught Bar, Perrone’s masterful leadership has led to his bar to appearing on every list since 2010, including twice topping the ranking in 2020 and 2021. His exceptional hospitality is world-renowned, as is his creativity, mentorship and innovation behind the bar.
Coming into the list for the first time at No.6, New York’s Double Chicken Please is awarded the Disaronno Highest New Entry. Co-founders GN Chang and Faye Chen along with their outstanding team have created an exceptional dual-concept space on New York’s Lower East Side that draws inspiration from the worlds of food, drink and design.
BKK Social Club in Bangkok is named London Essence Best New Opening as the bar which enters the list in the highest position of any that have opened during the voting period. Under the stewardship of industry veteran Philip Bischoff, BKK Social Club draws in the dual inspiration of Buenos Aires and Bangkok, against the glamorous garden-inspired backdrop of the Four Seasons at Chao Phraya River.
Sips in Barcelona secures the Nikka Highest Climber Award, having moved up 34 places within the 1-50 list to No.3. Founders Simone Caporale and Marc Alvarez have created an immersive space within which to serve showstopping cocktails in elaborate glassware that are creating waves around the world.
LicorerĂa Limantour in Mexico City at No.4 claims the title of RĂ©my Martin Legend of the List, an award which is given to a bar that has performed most consistently in the list since its inception and can only be won once. With more than a decade as an institution in Mexico City’s bubbling nightlife scene, co-founder Benjamin PadrĂłn and his team are renowned for their electric atmosphere and refined cocktails. It also takes the honour of being The Best Bar in North America.
Paris’ acclaimed Little Red Door has won the Ketel One Sustainable Bar Award. Long known as the masters of reinvention, Little Red Door have revolutionised urban bar sustainability under the stewardship of Alex Francis, with their innovative farm-to-glass approach, firmly centring the guest experience in French producers. The award is independently adjudicated by the Sustainable Restaurant Association.
Other special award winners, announced in the run-up to the event on 4th October, include Hanky Panky, Mexico City, named the winner of the Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award, and Jean Trinh, winner of the Altos Bartenders’ Bartender Award.
The inaugural 50 Best The Blend Scholar has been announced as Drew Fleming of Kiki Lounge, Isle of Man – a small self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea. Created to recognise emerging future-gazing talent and professionalise the craft of bartending, the scholar will now complete two bar stages (internships) at London’s Connaught Bar and New York’s Katana Kitten.
The Voting Process
The list is compiled by votes from The World’s 50 Best Bars Academy, which comprises more than 650 drinks experts with 50/50 gender parity, including renowned bartenders and consultants, drinks writers and cocktail specialists from around the world. The Academy of voters is spread across 28 global geographic regions, each headed by an Academy Chair who selects their region’s voters, with the distribution of voters designed to reflect the relative development and sophistication of the drinks sector, and the concentration of quality bars, in each region. Each voter casts seven votes based on their best bar experiences of the previous 18 months, although if they have been unable to travel, they are welcome to provide five votes from their home country or SAR. Voters are required to remain anonymous and voting is confidential, secure and independently adjudicated by Deloitte.
