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Athens’ Line beats Sips to become Best Bar in Europe

01 July 2026 By Lauren Bowes

The inaugural Europe’s 50 Best Bars list has been revealed, with Athens toppling Barcelona as the region’s top cocktail city.

Athens’ Line beats Sips to become Best Bar in Europe — Line opened in Athens in 2022

Line, in Athens’ Kato Petralona neighbourhood, took the top honour. Co-founders Vasilis Kyritsis and Nikos Bakoulis opened the bar in a former art gallery in February 2022, and it has been a fixture of the World’s 50 Best Bars list ever since.

Although there has not previously been an official list for Europe, for the past three years, Sips in Barcelona has been the region’s highest-ranking bar on the World’s 50 Best Bars list.

In 2023, Sips also topped the overall World list. Prior to that, in 2022, fellow Barcelona bar Paradiso held the top spot for both Europe and the world.

This year, therefore, marks the first time in four years that the top spot in Europe hasn’t been awarded to a bar in Barcelona.

Line wasn’t the only success for Athens, with the list’s second spot also going to a bar in the city: The Bar in Front of the Bar.

Other Athens bars in the list included agave-focused Barro Negro (13th), Baba au Rum (14th) and The Clumsies (30th).

Sips remained the top-ranking bar in Spain, coming in third.

It was followed by Oslo’s Himkok in fourth place and Paris’ Bar Nouveau in fifth.

The full list can be found below.

Faye Huggett, director of community for Europe’s 50 Best Bars, said: “We are immensely proud to name Line as the first-ever winner of the title The Best Bar in Europe, sponsored by Perrier.

“Their remarkable hospitality and stunning creativity have not only earned them this accolade but have truly cemented Athens’ position on the global map.

“We hope that this inaugural list of Europe’s 50 Best Bars will shine a bright spotlight on an even greater number of outstanding bars across this vibrant continent and inspire epicures around the world to explore everything it has to offer – from long‑established cocktail capitals to fresh, emerging scenes that are pushing boundaries in new and exciting ways.”

Europe's 50 Best Bars 2026 — The awards ceremony was held in Amsterdam on 30 June

Awards by city

Although Athens offered the highest-ranking bars, London maintained its title as the cocktail capital of Europe, with seven bars on the list. These were: the Connaught Bar (10th); Satan’s Whiskers (11th); Tayēr + Elementary (12th); Waltz (23rd); Kwānt Mayfair (40th), Three Sheets Soho (41st); and Scarfes Bar (47th).

The only other UK bar to make the list was Edinburgh’s Panda & Sons in 20th spot.

Barcelona continued to have a strong showing, with Sips’ neighbour Paradiso coming in ninth, followed by Aldea (26th), 14 De La Rosa (35th), Boadas (36th) and Foco (48th).

Two Madrid bars rounded out the list for Spain: Angelita (45th) and Salmon Guru (46th).

Paris had four additional bars alongside Bar Nouveau, including The Cambridge Public House (7th), Danico (19th), Harry’s Bar (27th) and De Vie (34th).

Milan proffered four venues: Moebius Milano (6th); Camparino in Galleria (18th); 1930 (22nd); and Rita (49th).

Bratislava’s Mirror Bar came eighth, winning the title of The Best Bar in Slovakia and the Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award.

Nouvelle Vague in Tirana earned the title of Best Bar in Albania, coming in at 16th, while Berlin’s Wax On (17th) won the same prize for Germany and Copenhagen’s Bird (24th) for Denmark.

Other individual country prizes included Alma Prague (25th) for Czechia; Stockholm’s Tjoget (37th) for Sweden; Krakow’s Tag (39th) for Poland; Amsterdam’s Super Lyan (42nd) for the Netherlands; Zurich’s Late Bloomers (44th) for Switzerland; and Innsbruck’s Dunlin (50th) for Austria.

As there had not previously been a dedicated European list, there was no prize for the highest-ranking newcomer. However, London’s Waltz was awarded the Three Cents Best New Opening prize.

Panda & Sons’ cocktail menu, Transcend, was recognised with an individual prize

Special awards

As well as the rankings and individual country prizes, several individual awards were presented during the ceremony.

Panda & Sons in Edinburgh was given the Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu Award for Transcend, the bar’s signature experimental cocktail menu built entirely around sub-zero freezing techniques.

Salvatore Calabrese – known as The Maestro – took home the Roku Industry Icon for his contributions to cocktail culture in London and around the world. He was credited with establishing Duke’s Bar as a global destination for the Martini, as well as creating enduring modern classics such as the Breakfast Martini.

De Vie in Paris was awarded the Ketel One Sustainable Bar Award, recognising its ‘thoughtful’ approach to the environment. The bar sources its ingredients exclusively from France and employs a ‘hyper-seasonal’ ethos.

Hide in Budapest received the SevenRooms Best Bar Design Award for its ‘striking and thoughtfully executed’ interior.

The Campari One to Watch award was awarded to Art Katowice in Poland.

Prior to the ceremony, Giorgio Bargiani of the Connaught was revealed as the winner of Altos Bartenders’ Bartender Award.