The world's best bars for 2020 have been revealed

The World's 50 Best Bars list is an annual ranking that celebrates the best of the international drinks industry. Finalists for 2020 were revealed at a virtual ceremony last week and the top spot was claimed by the Connaught Bar in London

Now in its 12th edition, the bars are voted for by more than 500 drinks experts from around the world, and the rankings and awards are organised by William Reed Business Media. Last year's ceremony was held at the Roundhouse in London but celebrations this year were limited to a virtual awards ceremony. For 2020, the world's 50 best bars represented2 6 cities across 21 countries, and according to the organisers, they represent the ultimate international guide to the world’s top bars and drinking destinations.

The Connaught Bar in London, which was last year's runner up in second place, is this year's best bar. The 50 Best award organizers said the Mayfair bar, which is renowned for its bespoke Dry Martinis, is "always delivering with poise and studied purpose" and likened its "gleaming cubist interior to "a piece of fine art." The bar can be found in the five-star Connaught Hotel, which has been a glitzy West End institution since 1815.

The Connaught swapped places with last year's winner, the Dante in New York, which came in second place. A 105-year-old bar in Greenwich Village, Dante is an all-day restaurant-bar that serves refined, but wholesome, Italian food, aperitivos and cocktails. There is a whole list of Negronis to make your way through, and according to the competition organisers, it has the fundamentals of hospitality, drinks and food down to a fine art. The Dante was praised for its "buzzing, all-day atmosphere" and was described as an "ode to New York hospitality past."

Rounding out the top 10 were 3. The Clumsies (Athens), 4. Atlas, (Singapore) 5.Tayēr + Elementary (London) 6. Kwānt (London) 7. Florería Atlántico (Buenos Aires) 8. Coa (Hong Kong) 9 Jigger & Pony, Singapore 10. The SG Club (Tokyo).

For the complete top 50 list of the World's 50 Best Bars, please see here.

This article was first published on October 7, 2019 and updated on November 11, 2020.

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