The world’s hottest bar openings from winter
The wind blew in a number of exciting openings over winter, with new additions to the bar scenes in London, New York and more.
Over winter, London and New York reminded everyone why they are considered to be two of the biggest cocktail capitals of the world, stamping their bar authority with multiple new venues, while Mexico City and Singapore followed in pursuit with fresh offerings of their own.
Elsewhere during the season, a wild agave bar in a ski resort appeared, as did listening bars, hotel drinkeries and much more.
Read on for the globe’s hottest new places to drink that arrived over winter.
For previous bar roundups, see the openings that caught our eye from last autumn and summer.
Sally’s, Stockholm
The Sheraton Stockholm got a makeover last year, signalling one very key thing: a new cocktail bar was on the way.
Swift co-founder Bobby Hiddleston and Swedish bar professional Niklas Forslin took on the task of making the newly renovated hotel the ‘coolest place in town’ with Sally’s. The pair is aiming to take the hotel back to its heady days of 1970s and 80s, when Axl Rose was trashing hotel rooms and Stevie Wonder was playing the piano in the lobby.
Drinks include Freezer Martinis and White Russians served with a toasted marshmallow, as well as a signature Disco Sally made with Tequila, apricot, and Cocchi Americano. The drink and bar’s name nods to Sally Lipman, a Studio 54 regular who also had a nightclub in New York named after her in 1969.
Where: Tegelbacken 6, Box 195 Stockholm, Sweden 10123
Peach Crease Club, Denver
Husband-and-wife duo Alex Jump and Stuart Jensen added a major highlight to their already stacked bar CVs when they introduced Denver to Peach Crease Club over winter.
The couple’s first joint project together is named after their home bar during the pandemic and features a menu where many of the cocktails are inspired by food items, such as borscht and carrot cake. Many also take after the pair’s favourite flavoured memories of the past, such as those “savoured in Copenhagen on our wedding anniversary”, Jump said.
Being adjacent to the world-famous Mission Ballroom, music also has a massive part in the offering. “We want people to feel like they’re walking into our home for a dinner party,” Jensen added.
Where: 180 Wynkoop St, Denver, CO 80216, USA
Tepache, Niseko
Filling the agave bar void in the ski resort of Niseko was Tepache from the team at Tokyo Confidential.
Founder Holly Graham is also behind Niseko Confidential, so she has form in the area, but this time she wanted to veer away from the cosy cabin vibes. “A bar is a form of escapism,” she told us when Tepache opened back in November, adding that some guests want something different. “Give us a fun agave bar with great Mexican food.”
The bar is believed to hold Hokkaido’s ‘largest’ agave collection, and cocktails include a signature Margarita and a Tequila-based Highball made with house-made umeshu and fermented tepache soda.
Where: 〒044-0089 Hokkaido, Abuta District, Kutchan, Nisekohirafu 2 Jo, 1-chome−3−21 2F, Japan
Bar Bambi, Chicago
After an 11th-hour delay, there was a small concern (for us) that Bar Bambi might miss this roundup, but it got there in the nick of time when it successfully opened its doors at the end of February.
The hype stems from the fact that it’s the debut bar from Katie Renshaw, the 2019 US World Class Bartender of the Year. Beyond that title, she’s spent the past 10 years on the frontline of Chicago’s cocktail scene – including stints at Moneygun, Etta, GreenRiver, The Aviary, Beef & Liberty Bar, and many more – so a place of her own has been a long time coming.
Bar Bambi’s drinks are designed around ‘intentional cocktails with personality’, while the colourful 50-seater space features a mirrored back bar with a neon glow and expansive floor-to-ceiling windows. “I want it to feel comfortable but a bit surreal, like you’ve stepped into a dream that still somehow feels at home in the big city of Chicago,” Renshaw said.
Where: 1703 W Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL 60622, USA
Oddball New York
Expect surprises aplenty and unconventional pairings at Alphabet City’s Oddball, unless of course, a Daiquiri put together with blueberry, ricotta whey and horseradish distillation sounds totally normal to you.
The new bar thrives in the weird and wonderful, with beverage director Logan Rodriguez explaining some of his thought process behind the menu as “uncovering the hidden connections between ingredients”. “Two things that seem unlikely can suddenly make perfect sense when they hit the right balance,” he said. Opposites attract and all that.
Alongside the unique cocktail mentioned above (named The Lightspeed Drifter), other ‘odd’ drinks include The Rubik, a clarified Gimlet made with strawberries and mushrooms, and the Space Cadet, described as a ‘buttery rhubarb galette in gin and tonic form’. The space itself envisions a 1970s cosmic nostalgic look, or ‘retro-futurism’ as its aesthetic, and would probably make a very quirky date night.
Where: 188 Avenue B, New York, NY 10009, USA
Saikindō, Abu Dhabi
Situated within the swanky Four Seasons Abu Dhabi, Saikindō is inspired by the listening bars of Japan, a style that has really caught on in recent times.
Its interior is fitted with high-fidelity sound systems and is built to immerse guests in deep listening (while fancy-drink sipping), as a two-sided drinks menu is matched with different genres of music to create cocktails that ‘mirror sound’ and ‘transform tempo and tone into taste’.
Driven by synesthesia, the team have used AI to ensure every drink/track in the 12-strong list nails the sound to flavour pairing. Cocktails like the Masterpiece (made with Farmer’s gin, caraway, mandarin, umeshu and citrus gels) are played to soul and R&B as the menu smoothly takes you through the evening, just as a vinyl would from one record to the next.
Where: Abu Dhabi Global Market, Second St, Al Maryah Island, MI1, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Nueve Uno Cinco, El Paso
Giddy up, El Paso. There’s a hot new cocktail lounge in town.
Inspired by the local stories and flavours that have shaped the Texan city’s history, Nueve Uno Cinco opened in January and comprises two storeys with a different menu on each. Downstairs acquaints guests with culinary cocktails like the Birria, made with charred tomato, guajillo, ancho and rooibos Wheatley vodka, while upstairs is less about the food, with drinks like the El Paso at Sunset, which mimics the city’s transition from sunlight to dusk through a butterfly pea tea that shifts colour.
“For years, we’ve watched cities around the country embrace sophisticated cocktail culture, and we’re so proud that Nueve Uno Cino is filling a space that’s been missing here, said owner Luciano Aguayo. Here’s a birria-inspired cocktail to that.
Where: 218 W Franklin Ave, El Paso, TX 79901, USA
Room 207, New York
Room 207 checked in to New York over the winter as the city’s latest speakeasy-inspired cocktail bar.
The bar’s theme wades deep into the ‘hidden’ speakeasy territory, propelling guests back to 1920s during Prohibition, with white jacket service, low lights and velvet drapes all within an intimate space that seats just 26.
Its cocktail list is divided into three parts: Forgotten Cocktails, Reimagined Classics, and a secret preset menu called Enigma, priced at US$69. Of particular interest is the bar’s Bee’s Knees, which uses three different local honeys from urban beekeeper Andrew Coté’s rooftop apiaries in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.
Where: 207 2nd Ave Back Room, New York, NY 10003, USA
Chin Up, New York
Chin up, New York, and in particular, gin fans. A new bar arrived over winter with the aim of giving the spirit ‘its own stage’ in the city, incidentally named Chin Up.
From industry veterans Brian Grummert and Blake Walker, the bar spotlights New York’s own distillers and some of the standout gin makers from around the world, all within a smart design modelled on some of the Big Apple’s most iconic architectural and public spaces (like Grand Central’s vaulted ceilings).
Some standouts from the gin-dedicated menu include a Gibson that combines Neversink New York gin with leek vermouth, Sherry vinegar, and pickles, as well as The Rendezvous in Chennai, which puts the shine on New York Distilling Company’s Dorothy Parker gin.
Where: 171 Chrystie St, New York, NY 10002, USA
Cato, London
Cato in Covent Garden looks to pay homage to the legacy of Cato Alexander, who is often regarded as the ‘world’s first’ celebrity bartender.
Its ground-floor space is built around the Julep cocktail he made famous in the 1800s (with eight Juleps and Smashes on the list here), while the design is in the mould of a New York tavern. Downstairs, meanwhile, lies the more ‘experiential’ basement bar and its menu Colour Has Flavour, which features mint and other herbs grown in house to fulfil the bar’s ambition of becoming the first fully self-sufficient bar for herbs and fruit.
The bar is a partnership with Angelos Bafas, therefore expect cocktails like the Sweet Woodruff + Cream, which infuses the flowering perennial into gin and pairs it with a koji-based cream, and a cocktail that pairs vacuum-distilled Dorset wasabi with wild and foraged mustard greens.
Where: 17 Mercer St, London WC2H 9QJ, UK
Despacho Margarita, Mexico City
You’re never too far from a Margarita in Mexico City, where it can be Marg time all the time, but newcomer Despacho Margarita makes the bold claim that it shakes up the city’s best.
The claim is given some credence as the bar is from the team behind Licorería Limantour. Despacho serves the classic agave-based cocktail in all formats: frozen, spicy Tommy’s and classic, as well as offering monthly flavoured specials, such as the Strawberry Rhubarb in February in honour of Valentine’s Day.
“We like to think that if you respect the ingredients, the cocktail is gonna respect you back. That’s our philosophy at Despacho,” co-founder Oscar Valle told us of the approach. Additionally, the space also operates as a Mexican spirits shop and stocks around 120 different bottles of Tequila, covering blanco, reposado, añejo and extra añejo, plus more than a few mezcals.
Where: Córdoba 115, Roma Nte., Cuauhtémoc, 06700 CDMX, Mexico
Shakerato, Amsterdam
Christmas had a fight on its hands for December’s biggest occasion in Amsterdam with Shakerato’s long-awaited opening.
That might sound like hyperbole, but the bar is the sister of Handshake Speakeasy, ranked as the second best bar in the world last year, the best in North America and a top four finalist for Best International Cocktail bar at the Spirited Awards 2025.
Famed signatures from Handshake such as the Salt N Pepper are accompanied by a number of new cocktails, such as the namesake Shakerato, which features Campari and yuzu sake, shaken until frothy. Miniature creations to wet your whistle include a tiny Espresso Martini described as ‘little fluffy banger’, made with Tequila, cold brew, coconut water and coffee liqueur.
Where: Stadhouderskade 7, 1054 ES Amsterdam, Netherlands
The Prince, London
This prince deserves its title after adding another name to our never-ending London Martini trail.
Owners Will Hawes and Aaron Wall had large shoes to fill in taking over the space on Old Street that was once The Gibson, establishing an atmosphere nicely poised between a smart 1920s-era cocktail bar and a warm local pub.
The drinks are sharp and strong – just how we like them – with a particular emphasis on Martinis tailored to your liking, and for which the team offers to change glasses to keep them ice-cold. Elsewhere, a house punch features three different rums, Cognac, lemon sherbet, Guinness and nutmeg, and is served from a large Dickens-esque punch bowl at the bar.
Where: The Prince, 14 Lillie Rd, West Brompton, Crossing SW6 1TT, UK
Sipping Tiger, Phuket
Sipping Tiger, hidden bar? Maybe not… but either way, this bar in Phuket was one to watch, located within the InterContinental Phuket Resort.
Rooted in Thai wilderness and techniques, Sipping Tiger’s philosophy is centred on local botanicals, sustainable practices and an ‘instinctive’ approach to craft. Boasting windows that open onto lush greenery, warm woods, woven textures and tactile finishes throughout, the space has been designed to make you feel as though you’re nestled within a forest.
Recommended to start the night – perched at the bar counter, framed by a rattan backdrop and dimmed woven pendant lights – is the Calamansi Riposato, an aperitivo-style cocktail that shakes cinnamon and peach sherbet, bianco vermouth, and vodka into a spiced and fruity serve.
Where: 333,333/3, Kamala, Kathu District, Phuket 83150, Thailand
BOP, Singapore
The winner of the Altos Bartenders’ Bartender Award 2025, Uno Jang, has gone solo with his first bar: B.O.P.
Located in Tanjong Pagar and dubbed ‘Singapore’s unofficial Korean enclave’, the bar draws from Jang’s home country of South Korea, and its drinking traditions and culture. Its concept is backed by a menu of 12 cocktails, each inspired by Korean pop culture and drinking rituals (think drinks like a Dalgona Iced Coffee, Buldak Penicillin and Banana Makolada), while also spotlighting traditional spirits in soju, makgeolli, and cheongju alongside flavours like rice, perilla and seaweed.
Jang has been with the Jigger & Pony Group since 2017 and developed B.O.P. with the group’s support (the name stands for ‘bartenders of Pony’). “I feel like Jennie from Blackpink,” he said. “I’m still part of the group, but this is like my debut solo album.”
Where: 76 Tras St, Singapore 079015
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