PHLGuide
The Best Cocktail Bars In Philly
photo credit: NEAL SANTOS
Drinks at a cocktail bar can be as expensive as parking at the Wells Fargo Center. But in exchange, you (hopefully) get bottle acrobatics, ornate chilled glasses, monogrammed ice cubes, and, most importantly, drinks good enough to make you forget that workdays and breakups exist. We have everything from sultry, dimly lit date spots and Japanese-inspired vinyl listening bars to vibrating, neon-lit spaces where the constant chatter and clinking of glasses are as loud as the music. These are the spots that make our favorite classic cocktails, plus those with impressive, unexpected twists that we just can’t get enough of.
The Spots
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Fishtown’s R&D cocktail bar is a great place to pass the time while you’re waiting to get into Beddia and Kalaya, or if you just want to unload your story about your crazy ex over a crème brûlée and black cherry vodka drink. Outside of the rotating specialty cocktails, we’ve seen bartenders make up ramp-infused gin concoctions on the spot when a guest said they wanted something savory. They also have a small beer list with drafts from local breweries and bar snacks like silky hummus from Suraya. It’s a dark, mid-century modern space filled with two-tops, candles, and a lot of velvet—making it one of the better places to find the next special person in your life, who will hopefully be closer to sane.
photo credit: CANDIS R. MCLEAN
This Fishtown spot makes good cocktails without taking itself too seriously (no pyrotechnics, no speakeasy rules). Come with a date or a few friends and drink a banana daiquiri or a penicillin good enough to chug like water. They're open late, so you can stop by after dinner in the neighborhood or make Next Of Kin your new 1am destination. They have velvet skull designs and a disco ball in the bathroom, but don't think about it too hard.
Sassafras looks like the living room of an old, expensive, and definitely haunted house, but in a romantic way (ghosts need love, too). Expect dim lighting, candles on all six tables, and a large selection of cocktails that range from fruity and light to spirit-forward with flaming sugar cubes. You’ll see work friends or sugar daddies at the bar dangling keys to a Benz in one hand and cupping a well-made Old Fashioned in another. On the weekends, it can get as packed as an office elevator. But for a bar where the most expensive drink is $13, it’s worth sharing elbow space with a stranger. And if you're looking for a bit more of a scene, go upstairs to their fun vinyl listening bar, 48 Record Bar.
photo credit: Ed Newton
It’s fitting that this bar has a name that sounds like an old rock band with a massive hairspray budget, because it’s the best place to get a drink after a show in Spring Garden. It feels like an '80s pop-punk band got a hold of a dark room and filled it with glowing neon lights, rum cocktails, and free herbs de provence-spiced popcorn. Fluorescent setup aside, it’s a fun place to grab creative blends—like a sweet coffee negroni milk punch—that you never knew existed, but are grateful that they do.
Trying to get into Charlie Was A Sinner in Midtown Village on a Saturday night is as difficult as finding motivation to work out the morning after. That's because a) it’s one of the most popular vegan spots in the city, b) the interior looks trendy enough to film one of those group hang scenes in a rom-com, and c) the cocktails are great. The small dining room has a long bar, velvety booths, and is dimly lit by a wine bottle chandelier. The drinks are made with fresh fruit juice and organic liquor–try one of the cocktails with barrel-aged or sundew tea gin. Small plates, like caramelized eggplant bao buns and artichoke sliders, are light enough that you could fill up on them and not feel the need to work anything off the next morning.
photo credit: Neal Santos
This semi-hidden speakeasy is known for being kind of hard to find, and while they serve food, too, that’s not really why you go here. The dark Rittenhouse spot is a place where you can drink a daiquiri or mojito (fancy versions, of course) and see where the night goes. It’s less prohibition-era looking and more secret room at Hugh Hefner’s mansion—nude paintings and red lighting included. Order whatever your favorite classic cocktail is, or go for the bartender’s choice. Either way, it’ll take a few minutes to make and be one of the best drinks you’ve had in a long time.
photo credit: CANDIS R. MCLEAN
Fishtown’s Four Humors has super friendly bartenders who you end up telling your top five embarrassing moments to. It’s not particularly hidden—there’s just no real signage out front of the black building. But once inside, the space is bright and wood-heavy, and filled with friends giving their full attention to a gin and tonic with peach balsamic and cucumber. There are over 20 cocktails on the menu—some named after Joel Embiid’s limbs—and they’re mostly upgraded takes on classics, like an addictive spring negroni with persimmon liquor. Seats are limited, so none stay empty for long. Plan ahead or pounce when you see an opening.
photo credit: Eddy Marenco
Philly has its share of flashy cocktail bars. And then there’s Grace and Proper in Bella Vista, a Portuguese-ish corner bar with paint-chipped ceilings, chalkboard menus, and a space so narrow it feels like everyone inside is sharing one mega conversation. You're bound to share a quarter of a wooden table with a stranger or someone you haven’t seen in years. The layout, plus the cava and piles of potato chips with salami draped on top, makes Grace and Proper rowdy and fun. The cocktails range from $12 to $18, and the wine and spirits list may be one of the longest in town. But it’s their incredible signature drinks, like the Good Giving & Game with saffron-infused gin, honey, and 24-karat gold leaf that sets this place apart.
Hop Sing in Chinatown is one of the coolest bars in Philly, and it makes its own rules—no phone usage, and don’t be an asshole. The walls are covered in velvety red wallpaper and there are old candelabras on every table that look like they’re about to come to life, a la Beauty And The Beast. It’s not a place to head to with a large group—it’s more of a pick-your-date’s-brain kind of bar where you can have beautifully mixed drinks with Vietnamese coffee and flower-infused gin. The cash-only spot gets busy late at night, so stopping by around 5pm is probably your best bet if you want a seat at a table.
photo credit: The Rittenhouse Hotel
This bar’s setup reminds us of a library in some made-up, vaguely European-sounding country in a Lifetime movie. There are large fireplaces and a bunch of books on shelves that nobody's ever read, plus a candlelit, romantic atmosphere. But it’s the strong drinks that’s the draw here (though the fact that it’s rarely crowded helps). Most of their craft cocktails have five or more ingredients in them—like The Pink Sash, with Suntory Toki whiskey, strawberry, cinnamon, chai, allspice dram, and egg white Egg White—so you’ll question how it all comes together. But after your first sip, you won't really care. This definitely isn’t a party spot, but if you want to have a great drink and pretend you’re the main character in a rom com set in Adalasia, this is the place for you.
photo credit: Jason Varney
This Swedish-style bar a few blocks from Rittenhouse is super sexy—it has turquoise walls and leather booths, and you’ll hear everything from Earth, Wind & Fire to N.E.R.D. while sipping on a cocktail of Söderblandning-infused whiskey, Swedish punsch, fresh beet juice, and fig. If you’re hungry, go for a cheese board with pear butter and pistachio-cherry praline, sunflower sprouts salad, and a crispy potato pancake. No matter which cocktail you order (the Jack Rose is our favorite), you’ll have a drink that’s blended beautifully while sitting in a place that makes you forget you’re in Center City.
photo credit: High Street Hospitality Group
a.bar nails the great cocktail bar trifecta: it’s dark, it’s not a dive nor is it fancy, and the bar takes up the entire room. You’ll always find the Rittenhouse spot packed with people drowning out their weekly deadlines in mezcal and Japanese whiskey blended drinks. There are 15 signature options on the menu, but they do the classics just as well. Stop in before date night at a.kitchen or anywhere else nearby. Or meet up with a small group, pass around some bamboo cocktails, and toast to the weekend—or hitting that deadline on time.
You know you’re in a good cocktail bar when it’s full of people asking the bartender for another. And that’s exactly what you’ll hear at Rittenhouse’s One Tippling Place. All of the cocktails are full of straightforward ingredients like bitters, honey, and vodka, so you won’t have to pretend to know the name of a 100-year-old rare campari on a date. There’s a long bar and a few candle-lit round tables just big enough for two. But there are a few couches if you come with friends for $15 ivy gimlets, or just need a place to stretch out after having one too many.
