London’s best bars 2021: Which of the capital’s cocktail venues named in world’s top 100 bars

The best bars on the planet are being announced today, and all of the UK venues listed are located in London.

The World’s 50 Best Bars 2021 awards are being held at a glitzy ceremony at the Camden Roundhouse tonight.

The finest drinking establishment in the globe will be announced, as well as the top 50 - which should include several venues in the capital.

However before the awards, the World’s 50 Best Bars 2021 has revealed those ranked from 100 to 51 - with five bars in London making the cut.

This means the UK had the most bars in this section from Europe.

The annual list is created by a voting panel comprising of more than 600 independent authorities across the globe in the drinks industry.

This includes renowned bartenders, educators, consultants, drinks writers and cocktail specialists.

Read on to find out which London bars are named in the top 100.

55. Lyaness

Sea Containers London, 20 Upper Ground, South Bank, London SE1 9PD

Lyaness, the South Bank hotel bar metres from the Thames run by Ryan Chetiyawardana, was ranked number 29 last year.

The World’s 50 Best Bars 2021 said: “A light blue interior and green marble bar, things can be as simple or complex as you want them to be.

“The drinks are predicated on protagonist ingredients: purple pineapple, ultra raspberry, infinite banana, peach emoji, may sound straightforward, but a whole lot of R&D has gone into extracting the weird from the otherwise ordinary.

“Then there is vegan honey (an in-house reverse process in lieu of the bees), tea-mooth where tea meets vermouth, while golden levain is an exploration of yeast, using a sour dough starter.”

57. Swift

12 Old Compton Street, Soho, London W1D 4TQ

Swift, which serves elegant crafted drinks in a former laboratory, has been named in the top 50 bars in the world.

“Part of the charm is its two distinct experiences,” the awards said.

“At ground floor is the bright and clean early modernist interior – the perfect place for apertivos and light and bright cocktails.

“There’s a new menu, but if you haven’t had the pleasure, the Sgroppino, with lemon sorbet, prosecco and gin, is your first drink.

“Downstairs the colours deepen and the mood is relaxed. It’s here, in the leather booths, you’ll explore the whisky menu – or one of the rich, dark sipping cocktails.

“It is also home to Swift’s Irish Coffee – the best around.”

73. Satan’s Whiskers

343 Cambridge Heath Road, Bethnal Green E2 9RA

Satan’s Whiskers is a neighbourhood cocktail bar that serves Bethnal Green, which opened in late 2013.

This is the first time the bar has been named on the prestigious list.

Satan’s Whiskers says: “We focus on delivering exceptional classic cocktails, using a line up of spirits and ingredients that we are truly proud of, all to our now infamous hip-hop soundtrack.”

77. A Bar with Shapes for a Name

232 Kingsland Rd, Whitmore Estate, Haggerston, E2 8AX

This bar has three Bauhaus-influenced shapes for its name - a yellow triangle, red square, and blue circle.

On social media however, it goes by A Bar with Shapes for a Name.

This is its first entry in the top 100 list, and another east London bar which is making a name for itself.

80. Side Hustle

28 Bow Street Old Police Station Entrance, Covent Garden WC2E 7AW

Side Hustle, the bar inside the NoMad London hotel which opened this year, is designed as a classic British pub.

However this isn’t an ordinary boozer.

It is set in a Grade II-listed former magistrates’ court, where Oscar Wilde and Emmeline Pankhurst stood trial.

So enjoy a cocktail and some food in comfy booths amongst stunning wooden decor by the marble-topped bar.

What did the World’s 50 Best Bars 2021 say about the list?

Mark Sansom, content editor for the World’s 50 Best Bars, said: “The extended 51-100 list of The  World’s 50 Best Bars sees a record number of 28 new entries from 26 countries in 2021, which reflects  how brilliant bar scenes are diversifying and expanding across the world.

“The bars announced today have continued with inspiring resilience to overcome the challenges that they have been faced with in recent months and this extended list will shine a wider spotlight than ever before.

“As over half the  list are new entries, we hope it will continue to be an inspiration to emerging bars around the world.”

The full list of the best bars in the world from 51 to 100

51 Locale FirenzeFlorence, Italy

52 Bar Trigona Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

53 AlquímicoCartagena, Colombia

54 Double Chicken PleaseNew York, USA

55 LyanessLondon, UK

56 Byrdi Melbourne, Australia

57 SwiftLondon, UK

58 Bulgari BarDubai Dubai, UAE

59 PenicillinHong Kong, China

60 Employees OnlyNew York, USA

61 KumikoChicago, USA

62 Tropic CityBangkok, Thailand

63 Sago HouseSingapore

64 The CourtRome, Italy

65 Tesouro by Firefly Goa, India

66 ThunderboltLos Angeles, USA

67 Red FrogLisbon, Portugal

68 Dead End ParadiseBeirut, Lebanon

69 DanicoParis, France

70 Hero BarNairobi, Kenya

71 28 Hong Kong Street Singapore

72 ArgoHong Kong, China

73 Satan’s WhiskersLondon, UK

74 Barro NegroAthens, Greece

75 Cause Effect Cocktail Kitchen Cape Town, South Africa

76 The BellwoodTokyo, Japan

77 A Bar With Shapes for aName London, UK

78 A Bar Called GemmaStockholm, Sweden

79 HimkokOslo, Norway

80 Side Hustle London, UK

81 Barbary CoastSingapore

82 L’Antiquario Naples, Italy

83 Buck & BreckBerlin, Germany

84 1862 Dry BarMadrid, Spain

85 Cera & Bruno Vanzan Milan, Italy

86 Art of DuplicityCape Town, South Africa

87 Tan Tan Noodle BarSão Paulo, Brazil

88 CarnavalLima, Peru

89 Sweet Liberty Miami, USA

90 BKK Social Club Bangkok, Thailand

91 AHA SaloonTaipei, Taiwan

92 The Cambridge Public HouseParis, France

93 Flying Dutchmen CocktailsAmsterdam, Netherlands

94 Hope & SesameGuangzhou, China

95 Hoots’ New Delhi, India

96 FréquenceParis, France

97 Tales & Spirits Amsterdam, Netherlands

98 Savas Bar Madrid, Spain

99 Death & Co Los Angeles, USA

100 LeyendaNew York, USA