Global Bar Report 2025: Europe
Bars have had to adapt to the changing nature of consumers, with tasting serves and luxury leading the way.
*This feature was originally published in the November 2025 issue of The Spirits Business magazine.
One glance at the news is all it takes to grasp the uphill battle the bar industry has faced in 2025. In mature markets such as Europe, stubbornly high inflation rates continue to pressurise consumer purchasing power. But what’s more is that, while many consumers initially reduced alcohol intake due to economic constraints, a 2025 global trends report by IWSR notes a portion of this cohort has permanently adopted lower-consumption habits, such as ‘zebra striping’, or switching between full-strength and zero-ABV drinks on a night out.
A growing factor influencing this enduring behaviour, according to Anna Sebastian, founder of Anna Sebastian Hospitality and Celebrate Her, is the prevalence of GLP-1 ‘weight-loss’ drugs, such as Ozempic and Mounjaro. She has seen restaurants and bars adjusting their portion sizes due to wastage and people not being able to drink as much alcohol, ushering in a wave of lighter consumption, with small drinks becoming increasingly prevalent on cocktail menus.
The rise of smaller, meticulously crafted cocktails is a trend Sotiris Konomi, bar manager at The Spy Bar at Raffles London at The OWO, also notes. “These tiny cocktails allow guests to taste a broader range of offerings, showcasing its concept, philosophy, and craftsmanship in a shorter time.”
Konomi also believes guests are becoming far more intentional about where and why they go out. “Economic realities have made people more selective,” he says. “They’re seeking venues that offer meaning, atmosphere, and genuine storytelling rather than just a place to have a drink.”
This is a sentiment echoed by Alex Francis, co-founder of Paris’s De Vie, who sees an increase in experimental alternatives to cocktail bars poised for future success, as traditional cocktail-led spaces struggle to capture an audience spending less on straight alcohol and more on memorable, shareable experiences. It’s why, at the multi-concept De Vie – which comprises Bar De Vie, Comptoir De Vie (a hyper-seasonal restaurant), and Cave De Vie (retail) – guests can opt for the Drinks Experience, a tasting-menu format featuring a selection of seasonal, provenance-minded cocktails and drinks in smaller serves.
Sebastian also believes consumers are choosing where to go out based on vibe and aesthetics rather than the product a venue serves. “Pinterest has seen a huge rise in creation of boards based on the type of night out people want,” she says. “The bars that are successful are tapping into the crowd, and focusing on the guest experience: from lighting that makes people feel good, to the music, soft touches, and the journey they go on.” For bars that are strictly relying on tasty drinks to do the heavy lifting at the expense of a more immersive hospitality experience, 2026 may bring more problems than profits.
Making waves
Despite consumers spending less overall on going out, five-star hotel bars are still making waves in Europe. According to Mordor Intelligence, in 2025, the European luxury hotel market size reached US$30.36 billion and is forecast to climb to US$46.36bn by 2030 – a solid 8.84% compound annual growth rate. But what’s particularly noteworthy about this influx of luxury hotel openings is that we’re seeing five-star hotel bars debuting with star-studded talent to attract affluent travellers who plan their trips around eating and drinking.
At the award-winning Four Seasons Astir Palace Hotel Athens, Avra Bar has recently recruited pedigreed bartender Nikos Tachmazis (former bar manager at the Artesian at The Langham London, London’s Bar Termini and, most recently, Four Seasons Milan) to raise the bar’s profile. Eagle Bar, the crown jewel at London’s opulent Chancery Rosewood, has built a powerhouse bar team led by Liana Oster, former bar director at NoMad London and former bar manager at Dante NYC.
In Amsterdam, the newly launched Rosewood is home to Advocatuur, a bar that sees Yann Bouvignies (former head of mixology at Scarfes Bar at Rosewood London) taking the reins as director of bars and beverage in a city that’s quietly becoming one of the ones to watch in Europe. And in the SLS Hotel in Barcelona, the masterminds behind London’s Tayer + Elementary, Monica Berg and Alex Kratena, have opened a perfumery-inspired, high-concept venue named Kyara.
With a flurry of other new openings on the horizon, and existing five-star hotels reconsidering their existing bar venues, expect to see more bartenders being whisked away into the worlds of finely tailored suits and detail-oriented service.
Bars to watch in 2026
Bar de Vie, Paris, France
No ice, no problem. At Bar de Vie – co-founded by Alex Francis and Barney O’Kane, both of whom rose to bartending stardom during their tenure at Paris’ Little Red Door – waste minimisation and preservation are the names of the sustainability-minded game. Guests can say au revoir to ice, a primary culprit of water wastage in bars, and instead expect quaffable, minimalist cocktails served straight up.
Using the team’s network of French farms, growers, and producers, Bar de Vie boasts unparalleled access to seasonal produce and unique French ingredients, making its tasting menu of tiny cocktails even more enticing for flavour hunters.
Advocatuur at Rosewood Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Amsterdam’s bar scene has been quietly clawing its way back to relevance in what seems to be a post-pandemic revival. But the city’s biggest splash came in May 2025 with the debut of Advocatuur, an audacious hotel bar concept that’s part micro distillery, part cocktail lounge.
Cocktails like the Order + Disorder, a blend of Bacardi Carta Blanca, matcha orgeat, aloe vera, and clarified guanabana, exhibit director of bars and beverage Yann Bouvignies’ deep understanding of flavour building and cocktails. The team members also distil their own contemporary iteration of jenever called PrØvo, which guests can taste on its own or as a koptootje (paired with a beer).
The Spy Bar at Raffles London at The OWO, London, UK
It may not be the new kid on the block anymore, but the Bond-influenced Spy Bar is primed for a breakthrough year in 2026 after firmly establishing itself as one of London’s best new bars. The bar operates with a no-camera policy, and there’s no dedicated social media account for The Spy Bar. But
its slow-and-steady approach, strategically planned by bar manager Sotiris Konomi, has been refreshing in a bar world so obsessed with instant gratification. The team has had time to nail the details and, if anything, it’s made The Spy Bar even more revered, especially as more guests seek technological deprivation when going out.
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