Editorial
The best underground bars worldwide share a quality that no rooftop can replicate: the feeling that you have found something not everyone knows about, in a place that has earned its atmosphere rather than designed it. We spent six months tracking down the 10 best underground bars across 9 cities, and we can tell you that the descent into a great basement bar is one of the more satisfying moments in a night out.
The obvious answer is low ceilings and dim lighting. The real answer is something more specific: a bar programme that understands it is operating in a room where the atmosphere does half the work, which means the drinks do not need to be theatrical — they need to be precise. The underground bars on this list range from converted railway arches to former cold storage rooms, but all 10 share a seriousness about what ends up in your glass.
European cities have a natural advantage in underground bars: centuries of cellars, vaults, and tunnels that were built for purposes other than cocktails and have been repurposed with varying degrees of success. The three bars below represent the best of what happens when the architecture and the programme are equally well considered.
American underground bars divide into two categories: the speakeasy-inspired bars that lean hard into the Prohibition aesthetic, and the ones that simply happen to be below street level and choose to focus on the drinking rather than the theme. We prefer the second type, and most of this section reflects that preference.
The best underground bars worldwide are not underground because the space was available. They are underground because the owners understood that the right room changes how you drink, and that a bar below street level has an atmosphere that no amount of interior design can manufacture for a room above it. Descending a staircase creates a small but real sense of arrival — and every bar on this list rewards that moment with something worth arriving for.
We recommend visiting underground bars earlier in the evening on your first visit: 6pm to 8pm in most cities gives you the room at its best, the staff at their most engaged, and the best chance of a seat. The late-night crowd in a small underground bar changes the dynamic significantly, and not always for the better.
James has been drinking his way through underground bars since 2009, with a particular focus on New York and Tokyo. He has a strong opinion about the maximum acceptable ceiling height for a serious cocktail bar.