Editorial
London's bar scene is the deepest in Europe — possibly the deepest in the world. The 10 below are the rooms a London-based editor would send you to first. They span the city: Mayfair to Hoxton, Soho to South Bank. Some are storied institutions (the American Bar opened in 1893); others are recent rooms that already feel definitive. All of them reward serious attention to the drink.
The Ned fills the former Midland Bank hall in the City with multiple bars and the late-night Ned's Club lounge. Tripadvisor reviewers rate the banking-hall setting and the live music. Drinks in the main hall need no membership.
Book ahead for the Connaught and the Savoy — both rooms have queues that you don't want to be in. The Hoxton trio (Nightjar, Happiness Forgets, Discount Suit Company) all reward late nights more than early ones; arrive after 9 PM. Lyaness and Aqua Shard are the South Bank pairing — do them in sequence on a clear evening for the river view-and-cocktail-laboratory contrast.
European Editor — based in London. Twelve years across Soho, Marais and Mitte. Strong opinions about ice.