Mumbai named the best city in India for bars

New Delhi bar Sidecar pipped the competition to be named the best bar in the 4th edition of 30BestBarsIndia, but the city of Mumbai came away with the most venues in the top 30.

Vikram Achanta, co-founder of 30BestBarsIndia, said he saw “noticeable jumps in the list” for the 4th edition of the competition.

Eleven new bars featured on the 2023 top 30 list, “showcasing the pace at which Indian bars are innovating“, Achanta said.

“As standards continue to increase in the industry and global eyes watch India’s beverage landscape evolve, bars need to continue pushing boundaries across cocktail programmes, adopting new techniques, and enhancing bar talent to stay relevant.”

A total of seven bars which appeared in the top 30 list are located in Mumbai, while six New Delhi bars were also named in the ranking. Bangalore and Goa each achieved five entries.

Cobbler & Crew, in the western Indian city Pune, bagged four awards – the venue itself was recognised as having the best bar team, best work in sustainability, and highest new entry. Aashi Bhatnagar, of Cobbler & Crew, also took home the award for best bartender.

In its fourth edition, the 30BestBarsIndia competition also opened a category on zero-ABV, aiming to shine a light on India’s evolving beverage culture. The Best Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Menu was awarded to Chennai’s Pandan Club, for its innovative storytelling and presentation of Zero ABV drinks.

Radhakrishna Nair, co-founder of 30BestBarsIndia, added: “Many rankings this year were closely fought affairs, especially among the top bars in the country, with very few votes separating them. Every year, we re-evaluate our award categories to stay relevant with what’s taking place in the bar landscape, both nationally and internationally. It is in keeping with this strategy that we introduced the Best Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Menu award this year to recognise bars that are making strides with zero-ABV drinks.”

The awards ceremony was held on 15 January at Taj Cidade de Goa Heritage. Sidecar ranked top of the 30 best bars list for the second year running. It also walked away with the Best Independent Bar Award and the Best Cocktail Menu Award – for Arq, a menu inspired by quintessential Indian ingredients.

See a full list of all the awards below:

1. Sidecar – New Delhi
2. Cobbler & Crew – Pune
3. Lair – New Delhi
4. Copitas – Four Seasons Hotel, Bangalore
5. Hideaway – Goa
6. ZLB 23 – The Leela Palace, Bangalore
7. The Bombay Canteen – Mumbai
8. HOME – New Delhi
9. Masque – Mumbai
10. Slink & Bardot – Mumbai
11. Comorin – Gurgaon
12. PCO – New Delhi
13. Hoots’ – New Delhi
14. Americano – Mumbai
15. Cocktails & Dreams, Speakeasy – Gurgaon
16. PCO – Mumbai
17. Slow Tide – Goa
18. The Bar – The Oberoi Grand, Kolkata
19. Whisky Samba – Gurgaon
20. Bob’s Bar – Indiranagar, Bangalore
21. Native Cocktail Room – Jaipur
22. O Pedro – Mumbai
23. Olterra – Kolkata
24. Windmills – Bangalore
25. Pablo’s – Goa
26. Joseph Bar – Goa
27. Ekaa – Mumbai
28. The Library Bar – The Leela Palace, New Delhi
29. TOIT – Bangalore
30. For The Record: Vinyl Bar – Goa

• Best Independent Bar – Sidecar, New Delhi (#1)
• Best Hotel Bar – ZLB 23 – The Leela Palace, Bangalore (#6) AND Copitas – Four Seasons Hotel, Bangalore (#4)
• Best Restaurant Bar – Comorin, Gurgaon (#11)
• Best Microbrewery or Taproom – TOIT, Bangalore (#29)
• Best Cocktail Menu – Sidecar, New Delhi (#1)

• Best Bartender: Aashi Bhatnagar, Cobbler & Crew, Pune (#2)
• Best Bar Team: Cobbler & Crew, Pune (#2)
• Best Bar Design: ZLB 23 – The Leela Palace, Bangalore (#6)

• Timeless Bar – Polo Lounge, Hyatt Regency, Delhi
• Industry Icon – AD Singh, Founder & MD, Olive Group of Restaurants
• Best Work in Sustainability – Cobbler & Crew, Pune (#2) AND Soy Como Soy, Pune
• Best Non-Alcoholic Bar Menu – Pandan Club, Chennai

• People’s Choice Best Bar – Elephant & Co. Kalyani Nagar, Pune (#47)
• People’s Choice Best Microbrewery or Taproom – TOIT, Pune

• Highest Climber – PCO, New Delhi (#12)
• Highest New Entry – Cobbler & Crew, Pune (#2)