Barcelona’s Sips named World’s Best Bar, Maybe Sammy Australia’s best

Sips in Barcelona has been crowned the Best Bar in Europe and The World’s Best Bar at The World’s 50 Best Bars ceremony, which was held in Singapore yesterday.

Maybe Sammy was once again named the best bar in Australia, and the 15^th best bar in the world, with Caretaker’s Cottage in Melbourne also making the list, with a new entry at number 23.

The recognition as Australia’s best bar adds to the many awards Maybe Sammy has collected since it opened in January 2019, including being twice named Bar of the Year at the Australian Liquor Industry Awards.

Co-Founder Stefano Catino said: “Vince and I continue to be humbled by the support, respect and love the industry and our guests have for Maybe Sammy. We have the best collection of people working alongside us at Maybe Sammy, a passionate group of talented individuals who continue to push themselves to excel and make the bar even better than we could have dreamed.

“We are so honoured The World’s 50 Best Bars continue to recognise the hard efforts of the team and are so happy that they consider us to be the best bar in Australia for the fifth year in a row.”

Matt Stirling, Co-Founder of Caretaker’s Cottage, told Bars and Clubs: “Any platform where we can celebrate each other as an industry should be celebrated and to be recognised among people who we love and respect, is just incredible feedback. We feel seen. It’s a great opportunity to look to our peers to learn about how we look after our communities and nurture our teams.”

The World’s Best Bar, Sips was founded by Simon Caporale and Marc Álvarez and World’s 50 Best Bars said it “combines elegant design with cutting-edge technique to create an unfussy and playful ‘drinkery house’”.

Adding: “The bar’s atmospheric interior encompasses muted pastel and gold-accented seating orbiting a futuristic workstation in place of the traditional bar. This design removes any barrier between guest and bartender, with the aim of centring the human aspect of service to create a multi-sensory, immersive drinking experience.”

William Drew, Director of Content, 50 Best, said: “As the brainchild of cocktail-world icons Marc Álvarez and Simone Caporale, Sips was destined for greatness even before it rocketed into the list at No.37 just a few short months after opening in 2021. The bar seamlessly translates contemporary innovation and technical precision into a playful cocktail programme, accompanied by the warmest hospitality, making it a worthy winner of The World’s Best Bar 2023 title.

“At 50 Best, we take great pride in highlighting the unparalleled diversity of the global bar industry and we extend our sincere congratulations to each bar that has earned a place on this illustrious ranking. We have once again seen the number of cocktail cities represented here increase, and hope this list continues to ignite the spark of wanderlust for cocktail lovers around the world.”

Elisa Gregori, Perrier Global Business Unit Director, added: “On behalf of Perrier, we are honoured to be the ongoing leading sponsor for The World’s 50 Best Bars. We are extremely proud to spotlight the bartenders and other professionals who push boundaries to create unforgettable experiences for anyone who walks through their doors.”

While Barcelona tops the list, London remains one of the cocktail capitals of the world with five bars on the list, more than any other city, with two in the top 10 Connaught Bar, rising three places to five, and Tayēr + Elementary at eight. They are joined by East London neighbours Satan’s Whiskers at 28 and A Bar with Shapes for a Name at 35, with Scarfes Bar coming in at number 41.

Across Asia, Bangkok’s BKK Social Club taking the top spot as The Best Bar in Asia at number 13, closely followed by Singapore’s Jigger & Pony at number 14 overall.

Seoul newcomer Zest is the winner of this year’s Disaronno Highest New Entry Award, at number 18, while Bangkok scored another top 20 bar with Mahaniyom Cocktail Bar, entering at No.19.

Singapore’s also has Sago House ranked 32 and re-entry Atlas at number 48, while Tokyo stalwart Bar Benfiddich (37) is joined by The SG Club, which re-enters the list at 36 and Hong Kong is represented by Coa at 20 and Argo at number 34.

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