Boston gets overlooked among American cocktail cities, which is a mistake. Drink opened in 2008. Eastern Standard has been pouring serious cocktails since 2005. The 10 below show why Boston deserves attention. Most are in Cambridge, Back Bay or the South End.
Part of our 50 Best Cocktail Bars in the World listThis article is one chapter in our larger global guide. See the full pillar with every featured city.
Read the world list
The 10 best cocktail bars in Boston
01 · Boston
Fort Point
$$
No menu · Counter
Barbara Lynch's room. No menu — you tell the bartender what you like. Boston's first serious modern cocktail bar.
Order: Bartender's choice
02 · Boston
Kenmore
$$
Hotel bar · Modern
Jackson Cannon's room at the Commonwealth Hotel. Modern American cocktail bar standard.
Order: A French 75 variant
03 · Boston
Kenmore
$$
Brasserie + bar
Boston brasserie with one of America's most respected cocktail programs since 2005.
Order: An East-of-Eden (their signature)
04 · Boston
Somerville
$$
Speakeasy · Reservations
In Somerville's Union Square. Tasting-menu-style cocktail format, theatrical drinks.
Order: The full multi-course tasting
05 · Boston
Inman Square
$
Tiki-leaning lounge
Inman Square cocktail bar with tiki leanings. Casual, neighbourhood feel.
Order: Whatever's the tropical seasonal
Weekly editorial
The bars worth going to, weekly.
One email per week. The bars our editors are recommending right now, across 60 cities worldwide.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
06 · Boston
South End
$$
Speakeasy · Reservations
South End speakeasy. Pop-up kitchen residency program — the food rotates while the bar program stays consistent.
Order: A bartender's-choice spec
07 · Boston
Beacon Hill
$$$
Restaurant bar · Polished
At Barbara Lynch's No. 9 Park restaurant. Polished cocktail program, classics-driven menu.
Order: A perfect Manhattan
08 · Boston
Allston
$
Craft beer + cocktails
Allston neighbourhood bar. Long beer list, casual cocktail program, the ideal walk-in spot.
Order: A craft IPA + a whiskey
09 · Boston
Downtown Crossing
$$
1868 · Restored
Restored 19th-century saloon. Wood paneling, classic-cocktail-driven menu, gas-lamp lighting.
Order: A perfect Manhattan in the historic bar
10 · Boston
South End
$$
Tiki · Modern
Modern South End tiki bar. Rum-deep program, tropical-spec menu, casual atmosphere.
Order: A Mai Tai with their reserve agricole
More Boston cocktail barsThe full Boston cocktail-bar index by neighbourhood.
See the full list
Why Boston cocktailing matters
Boston's no-menu pioneers (Drink, Backbar) and classics-driven hotel bars (The Hawthorne, Eastern Standard) form the city's cocktail backbone. The 10 above are where serious craft lives. Most peak between 9 and 11 PM.
