Attention bar flies, there’s a new horse in town. For the first time since the World’s 50 Best Bars list was created in 2009, a bar outside of New York or London earned the No. 1 spot on the list. So, without further adieu for 2022, please lift a glass to:
Paradiso, Barcelona.
Announced on Oct. 4 at a live awards ceremony in the Spanish city (banner photo), Paradiso was notably one of a trio of Barcelona bars to make the top 10 this year, including Sips and Two Schmucks, ensuring that the Catalonian capital is one of the top cities in the world to enjoy a libation.
Being The World’s Best Bar, it follows that Paradiso was also named Best Bar in Europe.
Shockingly (if one can be shocked by such things), reigning repeat winner (2021 and 2020), the Connaught Bar in London, not only dropped to eighth place, but was also second in the British capital behind Tayēr + Elementary, which held its second-place ranking from last year.
Sponsored by Perrier, the 14th annual awards is designed to “unite the global bar community in recognition of the bartenders, bar owners and brands at the forefront of the international cocktail scene.”
This year’s list features bars from 26 cities with 14 new entries spread across Athens, Bangkok, Buenos Aires, Chicago, Dubai, Florence, Hong Kong, Lisbon, London, Naples, and New York. And for the first time, bars from Florence, Lisbon and Naples feature in the 50 Best list. (There were no Canadian entries on the list, but read on for Maple Leaf moments).
The top 10 (with additional designations):
1. Paradiso, Barcelona (Winner: Best Bar in Europe)
2. Tayēr + Elementary, London
3. Sips, Barcelona (Winner: Highest Climber)
4. Licorería Limantour, Mexico City (Winner: Best Bar in North America, Legend of the List)
5. Little Red Door, Paris (Winner: Sustainable Bar Award)
6. Double Chicken Please, New York (Winner: Highest New Entry)
7. Two Schmucks, Barcelona
8. The Connaught Bar, London
9. Katana Kitten, New York
10. Alquímico, Cartegena (Winner: Best Bar in South America)
Paradiso
Of the overall winner – last year’s No. 3 – awards organizers stated:
“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, added, “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 program, sustainable ethos, work in the global bar community and brilliant sense of fun.”
Other fun facts
• New York led the list with a whopping six bars, 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 Café La Trova has risen 7 places to No.21.
• Licorería 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 Rémy 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)
• While no Canadian bars made the Best 50 list (or were subsequently listed in the 51-100 addendum), a dedicated North America list in the summer ranked Toronto’s Civil Liberties 10th and The Keefer Bar in Vancouver, 25th; other Canadian entries included Toronto’s Mother at 38, Bar Ravel 41st, Bar Mordecai, 48th; and Montreal’s Cloakroom Bar 45th and Bar Kismet in Halifax 49th.
• London regained its position as the cocktail capital of Europe with a total of five bars on the list. After Tayēr + Elementary (2) and Connaught Bar (8), and a re-entry from Swift at No. 30, the city also saw new entries from Satan’s Whiskers at No. 23 and A Bar with Shapes for a Name at No. 37.
Voting
The list was 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. Each voter casts seven votes based on their best bar experiences of the previous 18 months (although if they were unable to travel, they could provide five votes from their home country). Voters are required to remain anonymous and voting is confidential, secure, and independently adjudicated by Deloitte.
The full list –can be viewed HERE.
With glass purposefully in hand, we at Travel Industry Today continue our series on some of the planet’s best bars, patios and rooftop venues. For more articles in the series, click here:
PREVIOUS ARTICLES: https://travelindustrytoday.com/pub-patio/