GQ Names 25 Best Cocktail Bars in US

[haresfur]

Meh.

Aw, half the fun is in complaining about the list. The other half? I'd say 1/4 tweaks to check out someplace you haven't been when you find yourself in the right town, and 1/4 the regeneration of fond memories of places you know.

And isn't it great that there are now more than 25 cocktail bars worth noting? Probably wasn't the case in 1980.

[slkinsey]

I think there are far more than 25 cocktail bars worth noting.

Just off the top of my head, thinking of NYC places where people I know work, there's at least fifteen at a very high level: Angel's Share, Brandy Library, Clover Club, Death & Company, Dram, Dutch Kills, Employees Only, Flatiron Lounge, Little Branch, Mayahuel, Milk & Honey, Painkiller Tiki, PDT, Pegu Club. To these one might conceivably add another six: Apothéke, B Flat, Hotel Delmano, Louis 649, Raines Law Room, Rye House. And then we know Julie Reiner's forthcoming Lani Kai is going to be worthy of note, as will be the places Eben Freeman's working on. Meanwhile there are I'm sure there are some I've inadvertently omitted, and a number of other places to come.

Now, granted, NYC is a kind of cocktail mecca at the moment. But I'd be willing to bet there are at least 100 cocktail bars worth talking about in the US right now, and that's a pretty conservative estimate. Look at how fast these things can go: As recently as five or so years ago it was an acknowledged joke that Tales of the Cocktail was convened in a city where a decent cocktail could not be had. Now there is at least a handful of great places down there. And plenty of cities have gone from virtually nothing to having a great cocktail scene in a similar timeframe.

Edited September 23, 2010 by slkinsey (log)

[Chris Amirault]

Maybe the complainers should put names where their mouths are so we can get to 100 or more. I'll start.

Portland OR should be included for Teardrop Lounge, Clyde Common, and Beaker & Flask.

[kathryn]

I think there are far more than 25 cocktail bars worth noting.

Just off the top of my head, thinking of NYC places where people I know work, there's at least fifteen at a very high level: Angel's Share, Brandy Library, Clover Club, Death & Company, Dram, Dutch Kills, Employees Only, Flatiron Lounge, Little Branch, Mayahuel, Milk & Honey, Painkiller Tiki, PDT, Pegu Club. To these one might conceivably add another six: Apothéke, B Flat, Hotel Delmano, Louis 649, Raines Law Room, Rye House. And then we know Julie Reiner's forthcoming Lani Kai is going to be worthy of note, as will be the places Eben Freeman's working on. Meanwhile there are I'm sure there are some I've inadvertently omitted, and a number of other places to come.

Missing from Sam's NYC list: Counting Room, Summit Bar, White Star. And if you count restaurant bars, it gets even longer: Vandaag, Eleven Madison Park, Yerba Buena, Momofuku Ssam Bar, Peels.

In Austin, I liked Peche and the bar at the restaurant Parkside (didn't make it to East Side Show Room).

On a recent trip to Milwaukee, we loved Bittercube's residency at the restaurant Bacchus, so it's worth keeping an eye on where they land. They were at Bryant's cocktail lounge previous to Bacchus.

Just got back from DC, and would add the Gibson to the Columbia Room which is already on the list.

Edited September 24, 2010 by kathryn (log)

[weinoo]

I don't know the New York cocktail scene, but does that ranking for Pegu Club seem fair? I certainly hear less talk about it these days. Has it been that fully eclipsed by the bars that came after it?

Interestingly enough, I've been "re" enjoying Pegu Club after eschewing it for many of the other NY bars mentioned over the past year or two. But a few recent visits have proven that Pegu has settled so nicely into it's "middle age" that it is certainly worthy of this list, and should probably be much higher due to its influence on many of the others that came later. And the peeps behind the stick really know their stuff. Great staff then and now.

Just got back from DC, and would add the Gibson to the Columbia Room which is already on the list.

The Gibson maybe even more so, due to its more democratic process of entry.

[brinza]

I'll bet no one would guess that Pittsburgh has a craft cocktail bar right in line with these others. It's called Embury (yes, for David Embury, which is how I knew, before I ever went there that they were serious), and is everything you would expect from a bar of this type. But I'm sure the GQ boys would never have thought to even consider visiting Pittsburgh in their survey. So, if any of you find yourself in Pittsburgh, check this place out. You won't be disappointed.

[kathryn]

Went to Boston last weekend and loved Drink so much we went back twice in a single weekend.

[turkoftheplains]

in re: Embury:

Love this place, but don't understand how they let Fred Sarkis slip away and go back to Chicago (where they don't need him nearly as much.) I still like it a lot (and as far as straight-up bars go, there's nothing else like it in the Burgh), but it does bum me out that he's gone.