A great date night bar is built around the room, not the menu. Lighting low enough that everyone looks better in it. Music quiet enough that you can hear each other. Bartenders attentive enough that you never feel forgotten and discreet enough that you never feel watched. The 20 below all qualify. From the Bemelmans murals (painted in 1947 in exchange for a year's lodging) to El Fenn's Atlas-mountain rooftop, these are the rooms that make the night easier.
The 20 best date night bars in the world
01 · New York
Upper East Side
$$$$
Hotel piano bar · Murals
Inside The Carlyle. Ludwig Bemelmans murals from 1947, live piano nightly.
Order: A martini while the pianist plays Gershwin
02 · Paris
Montmartre
$$$
Hidden mansion garden
Hidden mansion garden in Montmartre.
Order: A glass of champagne in the garden
03 · London
Mayfair
$$$$
Hotel bar · Trolley martini
Mayfair hotel bar with the trolley martini service.
Order: Connaught Martini, the trolley pour
04 · Tokyo
Shinjuku
$$$$
52nd floor · Live jazz
On the 52nd floor of the Park Hyatt — the bar from Lost in Translation.
Order: A Suntory whisky during the late jazz
05 · Barcelona
Eixample
$$$
Rooftop · Romantic
Eixample rooftop with romantic setting.
Order: A glass of cava at sunset
06 · Rome
Piazza del Popolo
$$$$
Hotel garden · Hush
Hidden orange-tree courtyard at Hotel de Russie.
Order: Negroni Bianco in the orange-tree courtyard
07 · Madrid
Plaza Santa Ana
$$$
360-degree view
Madrid rooftop with 360-degree views.
Order: Madrid Mule at sunset
08 · Amsterdam
Jordaan
$$$
Hotel bar · Canal-side
Hotel bar overlooking the Prinsengracht canal.
Order: A Genever Old Fashioned
09 · Lisbon
Alfama
$$$
Hotel rooftop · River view
Hotel rooftop with direct river view.
Order: A Caipirinha at the pool's edge
10 · New York
Greenwich Village
$$
All-day café-bar
World's Best Bar 2019. Outdoor seating on MacDougal.
Order: Garibaldi
The classical hotel-bar tradition
11 · Sydney
Bondi
$$$$
Pool view · Ocean front
On top of Bondi Icebergs swimming pool.
Order: A spritz, looking at the Pacific
12 · Buenos Aires
Retiro
$$
Florist front · Speakeasy below
Renato Giovannoni's flower-shop-fronted bar.
Order: Negroni Balestrini
13 · Hong Kong
Central
$$$
Glassy terrace · IFC view
Direct view of the IFC and across the harbour.
Order: A Champagne 75 on the terrace
14 · Singapore
Bugis
$$$$
Art Deco lobby · 1,300 gins
Parkview Square Art Deco lobby bar.
Order: Atlas Martini
15 · Miami
Brickell
$$$
40th floor · Asian garden
Brickell rooftop garden 40 floors up.
Order: A sake-led signature with the city below
16 · San Francisco
Fort Mason
$$
Time-philosophy · Library
Genuinely unique time-philosophy bar.
Order: A drink referencing the Bronze Age
17 · Berlin
Mitte
$$$
12 seats · Counter
Twelve seats, reservations only.
Order: Buck and Breck cocktail
18 · Venice
San Marco
$$$$
1931 · Iconic
Iconic Venice bar — Bellini invented here.
Order: A Bellini, the original
19 · Copenhagen
Indre By
$$$
18th-century townhouse
Inside an 18th-century townhouse on Nybrogade.
Order: Whatever's pouring stirred this season
20 · Marrakech
Medina
$$$
Riad terrace · Atlas view
Boutique riad rooftop with Atlas view.
Order: A spiced gin and tonic at sunset
The full guide, city by city
Each entry below is a deep dive into the best 10 bars in that city — picked by editors who live there.
Browse the full date-night indexDate night bars by city — every featured venue has a profile.
See the full list
What makes a great date night bar
Forget elaborate cocktails. The best date night bar lets you ignore everything except the person across the table. The 20 above all do that. Bemelmans and Connaught Bar represent the formal end. Dante and Florería Atlántico the modern. The hotel rooftops (Memmo Alfama, El Fenn) deliver the view-as-conversation-starter. Pick the room that matches the night you want.
