Editorial
The South Bank is one of London's most walked stretches of riverfront, which makes it one of the city's most competitive bar strips. The best bars on the South Bank have survived because they offer something the river walk alone cannot — a proper reason to stop, sit down, and spend time. Our editors have walked this stretch repeatedly and kept only the bars that earn a second visit.
The Thames views from the South Bank are genuinely world-class — St Paul's across the water, the bridges, the City skyline at dusk. These are the bars that make the most of the position without charging purely for the view.
The South Bank's after-work drinking happens in the hour after the galleries close and before the theatre crowds arrive — roughly 6pm to 8pm. These are the bars that handle that window well.
Away from the main riverside drag, the streets behind the South Bank contain some genuinely excellent local bars that the tourist trail has not entirely absorbed.
The best bars on the South Bank reward those who plan around the view. Skylon at dusk, the Tate Modern terrace on a Friday evening, and the Aqua Shard at last light are three of the most visually extraordinary bar experiences in London. For an unplanned evening, the South Bank's density means you will always find somewhere good if you walk a hundred metres off the main riverside path. The Understudy and The Mulberry Bush are both within that radius and both reliably excellent.
Sofia has been writing about European bars for over a decade. She has walked the South Bank in every season and considers the Tate Modern bar at dusk one of London's best-kept secrets.