Editorial
Athens has, in the past decade, become Europe's surprise cocktail capital. The Clumsies sits on every World 50 list. Baba au Rum is the longest-running serious cocktail bar in the country. The 10 below show why Athens deserves the airfare. Most are within walking distance of Syntagma Square.
The Clumsies has held Praxitelous Street since 2014, a three-storey room that runs as a specialty coffee house by day and one of the world's best cocktail bars by night. Founders Nikos Bakoulis and Vasilis Kyritsis have kept it on the World's 50 Best list since 2015, peaking at No. 3 in 2020. Book The Room upstairs for a private bartender, library and vinyl. Go on a weeknight to beat the crowd.
Baba au Rum works a rum obsession on Klitiou Street, with more than 400 bottles behind the bar and a tiki streak run through fresh ingredients. It opened in 2009 and reached No. 27 on the World's 50 Best list in 2025. The alley seating is the move in warm months. Order a classic rum cocktail or a daiquiri and let the night stretch; it runs to 3am, later on Saturdays.
42 Bar is an Athens institution for classic cocktails, and in late 2025 it moved from Stoa Bolani to a new Kolonaki home on Karneadou Street. The focus is martinis and well-made standards over a jazz hum, with signatures like the 42 Shades of Grey, a Negroni reworked with bergamot, dill and aged sherry vinegar. Cocktails start around 10 euros. Go for a precise, grown-up drink rather than a party.
Noel keeps Christmas alive year-round on Kolokotroni Street, a festive, packed cocktail bar and restaurant that trades on its own buzz. The list runs about 21 seasonal, Mediterranean-ingredient drinks, with an Italian-leaning kitchen sending out pasta and pizza. Outdoor seating helps on warm nights. Go late, especially Friday or Saturday when it runs to 3am, and expect a loud, social room. Order a seasonal cocktail and settle into the scene.
Line opened in 2023 in a converted Kato Petralona gallery, all exposed concrete and circular-economy thinking. The team, tied to The Clumsies, ferments its own fruit wines, beers and sourdough on site and folds the production waste back into classics-inspired cocktails. It took Best New International Cocktail Bar in 2023 and ranked No. 8 on the World's 50 Best list in 2025. Go for a sustainability-minded drink and stay for the room.
Drupes runs as a spritzeria in Koukaki, opposite Takis Bakery, a morning coffee shop that turns into an aperitivo bar from 1pm. The order is spritz, from a straight Aperol to more unusual takes, paired with Veneto wines and Italian cold cuts and cheeses. Last call lands around 10pm, so this is an early-evening session rather than a late one. Go for sunset on the street tables with a plate to share.
By The Glass is a wine-led bar and bistro near Syntagma, on the Ralli Arcade, with more than 500 labels and 200-plus wines poured by the glass through the Coravin system. A Mediterranean menu and a courtyard make it a romantic, slower stop. It opens from early afternoon to 2am, with most visits landing around 26 to 43 euros a head. Go for a glass you would never buy by the bottle, then a plate to match.
21 is the all-day bar and restaurant of The Twentyone, a design hotel up in the northern suburb of Kifissia on Kolokotroni Street. It leans fine dining and a celebrated breakfast, with craft and classic cocktails for a polished, low-key crowd. This is a destination rather than a central-Athens walk-in, so plan the trip out. Go for an unhurried evening drink in a quiet, design-forward room away from the downtown rush.
Greek herbs, fruits, and local spirits (mastiha, ouzo, tsipouro) are essential to understanding Athens cocktailing. The Clumsies and Baba au Rum lead on this front. The 10 above are the rooms doing serious work. Most peak after midnight; locals don't dine before 10 PM.
Which Athens cocktail bar ranks highest in the world? The Clumsies has sat on the World's 50 Best list since 2015 and reached No. 3 in 2020. Line debuted at No. 8 in 2025 and Baba au Rum at No. 27.
Did Galaxy Bar at the Hilton close? Yes. The Hilton Athens shut in 2022 and reopened in 2026 as Conrad Athens The Ilisian. A new rooftop is announced but not yet open, so Galaxy is off this list.
Where is the best warm-weather seat in Athens? Baba au Rum's alley tables and Drupes' street terrace in Koukaki both shine in warm months, as does Noel's outdoor seating on Kolokotroni Street.
Did 42 Bar move? Yes. In late 2025 the long-running classic-cocktail bar relocated from Stoa Bolani to Karneadou Street in Kolonaki.