A gathering place for vacationers and locals alike, a very good lodge bar affords a quiet reprieve in what is often a slightly luxurious surroundings for patrons to calm down after a protracted day. And whereas some lodge bars would possibly merely supply simply that, others, like these on properties which have been round for some time, would possibly supply a little bit of historical past too.
A few of these lodge bars have repeatedly pushed the envelope of cocktail creation, whether or not by creating now world-famous cocktails or perfecting jaw-dropping strategies. Others, whereas nonetheless providing nice drinks, are maybe higher recognized for his or her high-profile clientele and popular culture cache.
From bars which have undeniably formed cocktail tradition to people who have served because the backdrop for monumental movies and tv exhibits, listed here are 9 of the world’s most iconic lodge bars.
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American Bar, The Savoy
London, United Kingdom
Take a step into the American Bar at The Savoy Resort and also you’ll be getting into the longest surviving cocktail bar in London. Famend for its affect on cocktail tradition, the American Bar first opened in 1893 and has employed a few of the most well-known bartenders of all time, together with Ada Coleman and Harry Craddock, who went on to pen “The Savoy Cocktail E-book” in 1930, some of the influential texts within the drinks world.
Whereas the bar’s identify would possibly recommend U.S. affect, “American” merely refers back to the American-style drinks on supply, which, at the moment, merely meant cocktails. Of these, the preferred by far is the Dry Martini, which is claimed to have been perfected and popularized by Craddock whereas working at The Savoy. The drink’s function in “The Savoy” and its presence on menu on the American Bar catapulted the Martini to fame, and it’s virtually been on a continuous tear ever since.
The Bamboo Bar, Mandarin Oriental Bangkok
Bangkok, Thailand
When The Bamboo Bar opened in 1953, it was the very first jazz membership to open its doorways in Bangkok. Right now, the membership stays a must-visit for jazz lovers the world over, who go to the bar particularly to benefit from the bar’s nightly stay music. Along with providing world-class leisure, the bar additionally has a top-notch beverage program that features a choice of “Prime Shelf Cocktails” made with tremendous premium spirits.
The environment inside The Bamboo Bar delivers on its identify. The bar itself, together with the chairs, partitions, and ceiling furnishings are all constructed, partly, from bamboo, which grows in abundance all through Southeast Asia. Along with the crops, portraits of former patrons additionally adorn the partitions, together with Audrey Hepburn, Louis Armstrong, and Mick Jagger. Not too long ago, The Bamboo Bar obtained fairly a bit of additional consideration after it served because the setting for a slightly memorable monologue delivered by Sam Rockwell in season three of “The White Lotus.”
Bar Hemingway, Ritz Paris Resort
Paris, France
Established in 1898, the Ritz Paris is in a league of its personal in terms of luxurious. By no means related to the Ritz-Carlton lodge group — the Ritz Paris is privately owned — the constructing, and the bars inside it, breathe an air of luxurious that has attracted trend designers, actors, politicians, and royalty for over a century. It’s what made the property such a pretty goal for the Nazis in the course of the German occupation of France. From 1940 to 1944, the Ritz was used as a Nazi headquarters for the Luftwaffe, with Hermann Göring residing within the Imperial Suite. Although the lodge was nearly solely sequestered by the German forces, some French residents had been permitted to proceed residing on the property, probably the most well-known of which was Coco Chanel.
Tucked away in a shadowy nook of the lodge is Bar Hemingway, which received its identify from a miraculous occasion in 1944 that will have by no means really occurred. Throughout World Battle II, Ernest Hemingway was working as a warfare correspondent and famously got down to “liberate” the lodge bar — then often known as Le Petit Bar — from the Germans. Solely, when he arrived on the lodge, it wasn’t Nazis he discovered, it was British troopers as a substitute. The Germans, they instructed Hemingway, had already retreated. However, that didn’t cease the author from bellying as much as the bar, ordering 51 Martinis to rejoice, and persevering with on with the story that he freed the bar. Following renovations within the ‘80s, the tiny bar reopened with the identify Bar Hemingway in an homage to its literary “liberator.”
Bemelmans Bar, The Carlyle, A Rosewood Resort
NYC, United States
When visiting Bemelmans Bar, it’s exhausting to overlook that you simply’re consuming in one in every of New York Metropolis’s most well-known cocktail lounges. The environment screams New York magnificence, with all 4 partitions of the piano bar adorned with murals depicting Central Park in all 4 seasons. Every of the murals was painted by Ludwig Bemelmans, the creator of the well-known “Madeline” youngsters’s sequence and the bar’s namesake. In trade for his labor, Bemelmans and his household moved into the luxurious Carlyle lodge for the yr and a half it took to finish.
The Higher East Facet bar is a beacon for celebrities and politicians, the likes of which have included Harry Truman and John F. Kennedy, and in addition Liza Minnelli and Miley Cyrus, who lately placed on a shock present on the jazz bar. Even when Minnelli isn’t on the microphone crooning, you’re more likely to take pleasure in some jazz at Bemelmans on any given evening. You’ll want to order Madeline’s Vesper whilst you’re there — the mixture of Bombay Sapphire Gin, Gray Goose Vodka, and Cocchi Americano comes with a sidecar and a choice of bar snacks, and pairs completely with the stay music.
The Carousel Bar & Lounge, Resort Monteleone
New Orleans, United States
Revolving eating places could have hit the mainstream within the Sixties and ‘70s, however by that time, the bar on the Resort Monteleone had been spinning for over a decade. Previous to 1949, the lodge bar was often known as the Swan Room, however an enormous renovation noticed its identify modified for good. That yr, a 25-seat rotating bar was put in and the house was renamed the Carousel Bar & Lounge. To at the present time, Carousel Bar stays the primary and solely rotating bar in New Orleans. The bar itself, because the identify suggests, is adorned like a merry-go-round, with 25 coveted stools serving as “horses.” As they drink, friends slowly rotate round their bartenders, with every revolution taking roughly quarter-hour.
Positioned within the metropolis’s French Quarter — which has lengthy been a haven for writers and different creatives — Carousel Bar was a hotspot for a few of the world’s most well-known authors, together with William Faulkner, Ernest Hemingway, and Truman Capote. The “In Chilly Blood” writer was even well-known for falsely telling the media that he was born in one of many rooms on the Resort Monteleone. Whereas soaking within the literary historical past and circling the bar, don’t overlook to order a Vieux Carré. The traditional New Orleans cocktail was created on the lodge bar in 1938 and stays one in every of its hottest serves to at the present time.
The Connaught Bar, The Connaught
London, United Kingdom
First opened in 2008, The Connaught Bar at The Connaught in London is greater than only a bar — it’s a cornerstone of the hospitality business. If you happen to’ve ever sat down at a bar and watched in awe as a bartender stretches their shaker additional away from a cocktail glass whereas pouring, you possibly can thank the crew at The Connaught Bar for the theatrics. This model of elongated excessive pour, now well-known around the globe, was created (or on the very least popularized by) the bar’s employees, resulting in its present names: the Connaught Type or the Connaught Pour.
The attention-grabbing excessive pour originated in the course of the bar’s signature Martini service, which is completed tableside so friends can have a entrance row seat for the motion. After the shiny black cart arrives, friends select one in every of 5 bitters choices, every of which is dropped right into a contemporary Martini glass for patrons to look at earlier than they make their resolution. As soon as the bitters are chosen, the Martini is prepped individually with vermouth and the friends’s alternative of gin or vodka earlier than it’s stirred and poured. As The Connaught Bar’s director of mixology Agostino Perrone instructed VinePair, the approach was merely a pure evolution of this flashy Martini service.
Earlier than any employees members can do the Connaught Pour on the bar’s flooring, they have to be correctly skilled so it may be executed flawlessly in entrance of friends. So whilst you would possibly be capable of see the excessive pour at bars around the globe, a visit to London’s Mayfair neighborhood is value it to see it accomplished on the eponymous bar.
DUKES Bar at DUKES London
London, United Kingdom
First opened in 1908, the DUKES Bar on the bottom flooring of London’s DUKES lodge is known for its affect on cocktail tradition and literature alike. As the popular watering gap for “James Bond” writer Ian Fleming, the DUKES Bar is commonly cited as influencing the writer’s resolution to painting 007 as an avid Martini lover. It’s additionally allegedly the place the place the enduring line “shaken, not stirred” was delivered for the primary time — years earlier than it was ever repeated on the large display screen.
Probably the most well-known cocktail on supply is definitely the Dukes Martini, which is served with the visitor’s alternative of gin or vodka poured from a large frozen bottle. It’s so well-known that when the Foyer Bar at The Resort Chelsea opened in 2022, the DUKES Martini was listed entrance and heart underneath the “Tributes” part. The Martini, served with a vermouth sidecar, lemon peel, and three olives, is understood for each its aptitude and its booze, therefore its strictly-enforced two drink most. Even though the lodge is presently closed as a consequence of an ongoing refurbishment venture, the DUKES Bar stays open for these hankering for a large 5 ounce Martini.
The King Cole Bar, The St. Regis New York
NYC, United States
On the nook of fifty fifth Avenue and fifth Avenue is The St. Regis. Contained in the lodge you’ll discover King Cole Bar, some of the lavish bars in Midtown Manhattan. Opened in 1932, the bar will get its identify from the 25-foot mural of King Cole painted by Maxfield Parrish that sits behind the bar. Whereas well-known for its movie star patronage — which has included John Lennon, Marilyn Monroe, and Salvador Dalí — the lodge bar is arguably finest recognized for creating the Bloody Mary.
Because the story goes, the Bloody Mary was initially created by Fernand Petiot at Harry’s New York Bar in Paris within the early Twenties. In 1925, Petiot immigrated to the US, bringing his creation together with him. When King Cole Bar opened in 1932, Petiot joined the crew, later turning into head bartender in 1934. As head bartender, he made the choice so as to add his savory cocktail to the menu, although deemed “Bloody Mary” too inappropriate a reputation for the rich clientele on the lodge. So the drink was dubbed the Purple Snapper as a substitute, and from there, it took on a lifetime of its personal. The bar nonetheless serves the Purple Snapper to at the present time, which is made with Stoli vodka, tomato juice, lemon juice, and a mix of spices. If you happen to’re hankering for a special variation of the traditional, there are 4 different Bloody Mary riffs on supply, along with a dozen specialty cocktails.
Lengthy Bar, Raffles Singapore
Singapore
Nicknamed the Grande Dame of Singapore, the Raffles Resort is likely one of the most lavish properties in all of Singapore. First opened in 1887, the posh lodge was frequented by many European diplomats and writers all through British colonial rule, together with Rudyard Kipling, Charlie Chaplin, and Joseph Conrad. On the property is the legendary Lengthy Bar, a most well-liked consuming spot for a lot of of those people and the alleged birthplace of the Singapore Sling, which is claimed to have been created by bartender Ngiam Tong Boon in 1915. Whereas the cocktail famously varies from place to position, the Lengthy Bar nonetheless makes its “unique” Singapore Sling with gin, Bénédictine, cherry liqueur, curaçao, grenadine, pineapple and lime juices, and bitters. To at the present time, Lengthy Bar stays a preferred vacationer vacation spot for vacationers seeking to attempt Singapore’s nationwide drink on the very first bar it was allegedly served at.
The New York Bar on the Park Hyatt Tokyo
Tokyo, Japan
Whereas well-known for its knock-out cocktails and stellar view, The New York Bar on the Park Hyatt in Tokyo is perhaps finest recognized for its function in Sofia Coppola’s “Misplaced in Translation.” Within the movie, Invoice Murray and Scarlett Johansson play Bob Harris and Charlotte, who meet for the primary time on the lodge’s penthouse bar whereas touring in Tokyo. For the reason that movie’s debut in 2003, numerous patrons have visited the bar (together with Anthony Bourdain in an episode of “Components Unknown”), particularly due to its cameo.
The Park Hyatt and The New York Bar are briefly closed as a consequence of ongoing renovations, although each are anticipated to reopen in October 2025.
*Picture retrieved from Iacob through inventory.adobe.com
