Drinking in London: Four of the Top 50 Bars in the World

One day, while spacing out on Facebook, I was intrigued by a congratulatory post about Denver’s own Williams & Graham making the list of the Top 50 Bars in the World. I clicked on the link, read through the bars, and found I had been to two of the 50, having visited Three Dots and a Dash in Chicago as well. This list came back to mind when planning our London excursions, and I couldn’t believe London was home to so many top 50. As we had barely two days in town, we chose four: Nightjar, Artesian, Connaught, and Callooh Callay, in that order- two on our first night and two on our second.

We really had no idea what to expect. Williams & Graham is a very classy speakeasy, and Three Dots and a Dash is a tiki bar that feels like you’ve stepped into the set of a movie and become transformed into one of the tiki bar “characters” in a film. It’s pretty on point. I was expecting some very nice places and creative drinks, and that’s exactly what we got.

Our first night in London started out with a couple rounds of cocktails at Nightjar. I don’t know if it was just because it was our first night in town, but the entrance was very hard to find. We Google-mapped the address and apparently just kept walking past the wooden door with the very small “Nightjar” carved into it. You likely need a reservation to get into this place, and we had made one a few weeks in advance. A doorman in close contact with the hostess via an earpiece checked the reservation list for my name and we were welcomingly greeted, seated, and served fruit-infused water to start.

Of the four cocktails we consumed, I only got good photos of mine- Punch a la Burroughs: Herradura Reposado Tequila, Inca Berry Infusion, Fresh Squeezed Lime, Orange Blossom Liqueur, Candied Pineapple and Baobab Syrup, Bergamot Bitters, Green Roibos Matcha, and Mercier Brut Champagne served in a Cacao pod. Wow. It was pretty ridiculous in the very cool and fantastic flavor sense of the word.

My second cocktail was equally unique, served in a Turkish coffee vessel, topped with a banana leaf and a candied banana and toasted seeds for snacking. This was the Rosehip Julab: Reyka Vodka, Rosehip Infusion, Kewra Water, Green Tea Kombucha, Botanical Syrup, and Rosé Champagne.

Presentation, style, taste, variety, knowledgeable servers, ambiance… Nightjar had it all and it was fun to go to the number 2 bar in the world first, and then hit up the number one bar in the world, Artesian, second.

Artesian, located in The Langham Hotel, changes it’s cocktail menu theme each year. We got to order off of their “Unfolding and Exploring” menu, and it was pretty over the top. Our first round of cocktails needed “finishing” at the table: his had a plastic “pillow” filled with smoke that our server poked a whole into and deflated in his face while he took his first sip. Mine had to be whisked table-side to create the most decadent hot chocolate I’d ever tasted. Our second round arrived with an equally intriguing pomp and circumstance- his cocktail was in a double glass with the bottom glass filled with smoke, a straw sticking out of the smoke, and instructions to “inhale as if smoking a cigar” before taking a sip. Mine was served in a large golden pineapple with cedarwood smoking on the inside.

Nightjar had a sort of speakeasy feel to it as it was dimly lit, not well advertised from the street, and is even a night club with live music later in the evenings. The Artesian, in contrast, is a very fancy place located in the very exclusive Langham Hotel. Our third bar the following night was also in a hotel, and probably the most expensive I’d ever been in, The Connaught. We enjoyed exceptional service from a knowledgeable staff, complimentary olives and crackers, and four fantastic unique cocktails. They also gave us recipe cards for the cocktails we drank that were printed on nice card stock.

We ran out of there to get to a show and then ran out of there to get on the metro to the other side of town and Callooh Callay, our last stop on our last night in London. Callooh Callay gets it’s name from Alice in Wonderland’s The Jabberwocky. This place was kind of unreal. The dimly lit room is glistening with mirror tiles and the menu comes in a cassette tape case that you have to open and remove from the case as if it were the 80’s and we wanted to read about our favorite band. The bathrooms are through the looking glass, literally. You have to go through a mirror to find a completely different style bar, and restrooms that are floor to ceiling cassette tape walls. The atmosphere was really laid back and definitely a party-feel with good music and of course, good cocktails.

It was fun to explore four completely different bars all ranked so highly as the best bars in the world. The one thing I took away from this was seeing the attention to detail paid by all six of the top 50 bars I’ve had the pleasure of visiting. Detail in decor, dress, music, lights, service, style, and overall experience. My husband and I have enjoyed great conversations in these bars, and are looking forward to exploring some more.