Last week, the 50 best organizations released a list of North American top bars. In its fourth year (but worldwide, the group has awarded restaurants since 2002 and bars since 2009), the annual rankings have many eyes and some critics.
when I checked in last yearindustry participants at the awards ceremony had mixed feelings. Some found that the list is important and validated, while others felt that a certain type of bar is prioritized. That is, using the PR team, one anonymous attendee said the awards “inclined to be a bit of a circle jerk.” In the past, the best of 50 people have also received related criticism Gender Discrimination (This is one of the reasons why voting agencies are currently made up of “50/50 gender divisions”) Priority treatment.
Those who made the list say they feel a meaningful and significant impact from being awarded. “We always believed we were in the caliber, but external awareness has not always been our main goal,” says Nicholas Torres, owner of San Francisco’s true Laurel on this year’s list. “These systems tend to drive good pedestrians. That’s important. At the end of the day, there are people who take care of our team and our guests. This has agreed to participate in some way. In the case of Max Reis, the beverage director at Mírate (No. 12), the benefits arising from awareness allow the bar to continue to support others. “We support Mexican families and producers as directly as possible in my field,” he says.
This year, nominees consisted of a third of bartenders and bar owners, a third of drink writers and educators, and a third of “well-traveled cocktail experts.” There aren’t many standards. Each voter (over 300) is asked to name up to seven bars that have had a “best experience” in the last 18 months, with five of these bars located in the voter’s home country (non-US people) or homeland (for US people). It is attached to the list Individual awardsNot all bars that received any of these have made it into the top 50.
But what do you need to be the best bar of 50? We run the numbers and look at all entries on the list taking into account various factors, such as location, drink prices, social media followers, years or more. Number of bars to reserve, centrifuge, or RotovapHow many new ones were on the list compared to the number of veterans? We put all the data together to see what we really need to be awarded one of the coveted spots.
Half of the bars awarded (54%) are in the US, followed by 28% in Mexico, 16% in Canada and 2% in the Cayman Islands. The most popular cities on the list are New York City, followed by Mexico City, Chicago and Toronto.
Only eight bars on the list will be new to 50. Last year, Bar Milate in Los Angeles came in 46th place. This year he was No. 12th and jumped to No. 34 on the list (the biggest shift from 2024 to the present). Asked how the bar has changed over the past year, Max Reis said the team “finished and developed our voice as a bar.
Also make big moves: New York’s Catana Kitten and Dante fell at 30 and 26 spots, respectively, with Cafe de Nadie in Mexico City (-30) and best intentions in Chicago (+23). On average, most bars moved to nine locations.
Sother Teague at Amor Y Amargo, which opened last year in 2011 I told the punch“I’m on the ride [the list] About the same as number 23 [in 2022] And since then I have not been on the list at all… I cried out from the gate, with money behind them and money behind them, not so much sizzle and steak. “This year’s list shows that six bars (12 percent) opened in the 2020s in 2024. Mauro opened at No. 14. very Recently, in November 2024.
The top bar on the list tends to have a greater social media following, but it could be a bit of a chicken or egg situation. For example, this year’s No. 1 bar, handshake has around 159,000 followers on Instagram, but it’s fair to assume that many of those followers came from toppings on last year’s list. Still, the average number of followers in the top 10 (54,100) on the list is higher than the average on the full list of 50 (38,920).
Also, 52% of the bars on the list are covered by punches.
As Eater reported A few years ago, “sporiency is officially dying” at the hottest bar. This was to some extent, of the 50% largest, 52% had taken reservations, and on the recent Friday when the team tried to reserve a seat for a party of two that night, there was only 8% (about 31%) of those available. Regarding the booking platform you choose, 13 bars will use Resy, 9 Use Opentable, 2 Use CoverManager, 1 Use Seven Room, and 1 Make a reservation over the phone.
Please at least one bar on the list, double chicken (No. 19), I’ve reported it The problem is that bots are snatching reservations. At the reservation brokerage (sounds like a dystopian), owner Gn Chan saw the seats for sale for $340.
I saw a menu of 43 bars in total. We contacted a digital copy for those who have not yet published the menu. Five bars did not respond, and two bars (Civil Liberties in Toronto, No. 21, Cloakroom in Montreal, No. 31) do not have a menu.
One of the most expensive drinks can be obtained at the best bars of 50. Three Musketeers It is explained as It is a mixture of 19th and 20th centuries brandy, bourbon, rum, amari and liqueurs, running 690 Caymandres, or about $829 US. The most affordable drinks (including mini or N/A cocktails) cost around $8 at some bars.
We also contacted the top bar on our list to learn more about our bestselling drinks. In Super Bueno, number 2 on the list, Vodka Y Soda Still the best reign. tlecanNo. 3 says Pulque Colada (a coconut-washed version of a drink made with fermented agave sap) is the most popular, with southern gems (No. 4) selling jewels, sazerak. Sip & Guzzle (No. 5) reports that Yuzu Mugirita (a take of a margarita based on Shochu), Miami Vice Negroni and Tomato Tree (Flower Gin Cocktail) are tied together as bestsellers.
Also trending: from the aforementioned Pulcu Coladas to the Maison Premier Absinnia Coladas (No. 33), Clementevar Negroni Piña Coladas (11), and at least 26% of the bars on this list are center or center or high technology cocktails (No. 11), all sorts of coladas, from the Negroni Piña Coladas in the center or center or A. Rotovap.
Disclosure: Some punch contributors are part of the voting institutions for the 50 Best Bar Awards.
