Editorial
Cape Town hides its best bars across the City Bowl, Kloof Street, and Camps Bay, behind chocolate shops and inside Victorian houses. The nine below are verified open, each one worth the search. We removed Cabrito, which has closed and become an El Burro taqueria.
Cause Effect on Park Road builds its program around South African spirits, with a serious focus on Cape brandy and local botanicals. It reached No. 53 on the World's 50 Best Bars list in 2022 and still pours with that level of intent. Order a brandy flight or a brandy-based signature and ask the bartender for context. Open Tuesday through Saturday; best early evening before the room fills.
The Gin Bar sits behind Honest Chocolate on Wale Street, reached through the cafe and into a candlelit courtyard. The list runs past 140 gins, heavy on small South African distillers, served long with proper tonic and garnish. It is a place to taste your way through a category, not to rush. Open from 5 PM most nights; arrive early for a courtyard table.
Chinchilla is a rooftop perch above Camps Bay beach from the Kove Collection, trading on sea views, fresh seafood, and sundown DJ sets. The cocktails are bright and crowd-friendly rather than technical, which suits the setting. Time a visit for sunset, when the light over the Atlantic does the work. Open Wednesday to Sunday; weekend afternoons fill fast, so book ahead.
The Orphanage Cocktail Emporium has held its Bree Street corner since 2012, a vintage-themed room with a long, theatrical cocktail list. Drinks carry names like "More Tea Vicar?" alongside solid classics, with DJs and small plates later in the night. It runs busier and louder than a true speakeasy. Open Tuesday to Saturday from 5 PM, earlier in summer; go midweek for a calmer room.
The House of Machines on Shortmarket Street mixes a cafe, a custom motorcycle shop, and a cocktail bar under one roof. By night it leans into live music and a short, well-made drinks list rather than a sprawling menu. The crowd is creative and unpretentious. Best later in the evening when a band is on; come earlier if you want to hear your companion.
Twankey Bar occupies the old South African Reserve Bank building at the Taj on Wale Street, a champagne and oyster bar with a long pavement-side counter. It works best as a first stop: a glass of bubbles, a half-dozen oysters, then on to Kloof or Bree. The cocktails are competent rather than experimental. Best in the early evening, before dinner, when the counter is quiet.
Asoka centers on a 150-year-old olive tree growing through a Victorian house on Kloof Street, strung with low lights. Tuesday jazz nights are the draw, the Asian-inspired sharing plates hold up, and the kitchen runs until midnight, which is rare in Cape Town. The cocktails are dependable rather than showy. Best on a Tuesday for the music, or late on a weeknight for a quiet drink.
Truth Coffee Roasting on Buitenkant Street is the steampunk roastery that regularly tops "best coffee in the world" lists, all brass, leather, and exposed machinery. It runs later than most cafes, to 10 PM Tuesday through Saturday, which makes it a rare evening option for a coffee-forward drink. This is the outlier here: a roastery rather than a cocktail den. Best for a late espresso in serious surroundings.
The Power and the Glory holds a corner in Tamboerskloof, a cafe by day that turns into a neighborhood bar after dark. The draw is the local crowd and an unfussy list of beer, wine, and simple cocktails rather than a cocktail program. It pairs with the attached Burrito Blues for food. Best in the early evening, when the after-work crowd spills onto the pavement.
The range here is wide: Cause Effect and The Gin Bar reward a category obsessive, while Chinchilla and Twankey trade on a view and a first-drink moment. Asoka and The House of Machines bring the music, and Truth Coffee is the late, caffeinated outlier.
Most rooms run from late afternoon and peak between 9 and 11 PM. Arrive early for the small City Bowl rooms, and book ahead for Chinchilla on a weekend.
What is Cape Town's best cocktail bar?
Cause Effect on Park Road, which builds its menu around South African spirits and Cape brandy, reached No. 53 on the World's 50 Best Bars list in 2022.
Where is The Gin Bar in Cape Town?
The Gin Bar sits behind Honest Chocolate at 64A Wale Street, reached through the cafe into a candlelit courtyard, with a list of more than 140 gins.
Which Cape Town bar has the best view?
Chinchilla, a Kove Collection rooftop above Camps Bay beach, offers Atlantic sunset views with seafood and DJ sets, open Wednesday to Sunday.
Is Truth Coffee a bar?
Truth Coffee Roasting is primarily a steampunk coffee roastery on Buitenkant Street, but it stays open until 10 PM Tuesday to Saturday, making it a rare late, coffee-forward stop.