The Best Bars In Soho To Drink The Cocktails, Eat The Nibbles And Let Your Hair Down

On a corner of Soho that hums with character, Nessa is a vibrant blend of charming British interiors, creative cocktails and bar snacks, and buzzing late-night energy. Set between Brewer, Warwick, and Glasshouse Street, it’s where Aperol meets architecture and DJs follow spritzes. The interiors (by Fettle) nod to Soho’s eclectic spirit - think Edwardian baroque meets mid-century modern, with a generous horseshoe bar at its heart. This summer, the star of the show is Nessa’s playful Spritz menu: four bright takes on the classic, from bittersweet Beesou to rosemary-topped Melonade. Pair with chef Tom Cenci’s nostalgic snacks, and you’ve got a new go-to for sun-soaked evenings in Soho.

Find Nessa at 86 Brewer Street, London, W1F 9UB

The elegant yet friendly bar we’re all searching for more of. Wind down in a home away from home to the sounds of live piano. With two floors that offer different menus and vibes, you can visit two venues in one night without stepping outside. Want to absorb London’s bustling energy over an aperitivo or a pint? Grab a seat upstairs. Looking to unwind at a languid pace sipping cocktails? Downstairs is for you. Over the years, Swift has won a host of awards, including making it to number 18 of the best bars in the world by Top 500 Bars in 2022. We can see why.

Find Swift at 12 Old Compton St, London W1D 4TQ

Let the late-night jazz and blues melt your troubles away in this intimate, low-lit venue with a speakeasy theme. You’ll leave Nightjar feeling a warm glow – even if you’re on virgin cocktails all night. The menu is divided into three eras: pre-prohibition, prohibition and post-war, with fresh takes on cocktails classic to that time. We can guarantee that you’ve never tasted drinks like these. Our favourite is Pearl, concocted with gin, salty vodka, vermouth, toasted popcorn rice infusion, pickled oyster pearl and seafoam.

Find Nightjar Carnaby at Kingly Court, 49-51 Carnaby St, London W1F 9PY

With an authentic 1930s interior covered in wood, leather, gold and paintings of dancer and civil-rights activist Josephine Baker, walking into Bar Américain feels like entering a time warp. The bar operates on a walk-in basis – so no need to worry about booking ahead. There’s also a range of yummy nibbles to go with your drinks, including fried king prawns and crispy pork belly – don’t mind if we do.

Find Bar Américain at 20 Sherwood St, London W1F 7ED

Fancy being transported to a hidden speakeasy? This former site of the legendary Marquee club, graced by performances from icons like The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, David Bowie and Fleetwood Mac, has been newly renovated with a nod to its roots. Expect live music from Thursdays through to Saturdays, rock-star inspired cocktails displayed on vinyl record menus and light bites like fried squid and chicken taquitos.

Find The Den at 100 Wardour St, London W1F 0TN

This Shanghai-themed cocktail bar and dim sum parlour is a Soho staple, rooted in the heart of Chinatown. Three bars are spread over two floors; Peony Bar, an intimate setting hidden behind red curtains; Apothecary Bar, fit with more traditional oriental décor and a ‘tea parlour’ area perfect for dining; Academy Bar, a relaxed lounge area with sofas and coffee tables. Whatever you're looking for, Opium will provide.

Find Opium at 15-16 Gerrard St, London W1D 6JE

If you like your summers to be a rosé-all-day situation, with nice views and sunny outdoor dining opportunities to boot, then look no further than Château Miraval's takeover of Cavo London's roof terrace. Sequestered in the open air fourth floor terrace of the Outernet building on Tottenham Court Road, the iconic Provence winery has created an exclusive pop-up serving Miraval Studio Rosé and Miraval Rosé, or if you like your rosé with bubbles, Fleur de Miraval NV ER2 and ER, which are designed to complement Cavo's excellent Mediterranean dishes.

The Cavo x Chateau Miraval Terrace will be open Mondays - Saturdays from 1st - 31st August, 2023

Cavo London, Outernet Denmark St London WC2H 0LA

This cocktail bar is barely open to the public, that's how new it is, so you'll be one of the first to know about this Soho gem. Located beneath Sucre, a grand restaurant that play's host to chef Fernando Trocca's love letter to Argentina, the downstairs bar is a cosy little den, with occasional live music.

Led by Tony Pescatori of The Nightjar fame, the cocktails at Alma are bold and experimental with some intriguing ingredients - like seasoned pine cones, sea buckthorn and arronia berries - served in an array of beautiful and varied glasses.

If you're peckish, the nibbles serve way more than the classic bar snack. Think mini stone bass tostadas or tortilla with nduja and aoli.

Find Alma underneath Sucre at 47b Great Marlborough Street,London, W1F 7JP

Home to over 100 carefully selected gins, this friendly space is open every day of the week serving the best gin and tonic you’ll ever have, as well as a number of gin-based cocktails and gin tasting flights. For the true gin fanatics, be sure to sign up to their masterclasses in the secret Gin Vault, guided by experts every Thursday at 6pm, and every Saturday and Sunday at 3pm.

Find The London Gin Club at 22 Great Chapel St, London W1F 8FR

If Carrie Bradshaw and James Bond were ever to go on a date, it would be here. Sophisticated and minimalistic with an extensive list of reimagined classics, this bar will soon become your favourite place to escape everyday life. Margaritas are enhanced with chaat masala, gooseberry and kumquat; cosmopolitans are remixed with pomegranate vinegar and coconut milk; martinis are upgraded with pickled purple carrot, coriander vermouth and citrus pepper – the only downside is that you’ll never be able to go back to regular cocktails again after tasting these. It’s no surprise that SOMA was voted British GQ’s Best Bar 2022.

Find SOMA at 14 Denman St, London W1D 7HJ

Full of retro arcade games and fun game-themed drinks, at this drinking den you can boogie the night away on Dance Dance Revolution, rock out to Guitar Hero or challenge your friends to a video game. Perfect for that first date you’re nervous about, or to let loose with your friends – if you’re looking for something a bit different, NQ64 is definitely that.

Find NQ64 Soho at 53 Berwick St, London W1F 8SP

Sussex is one of the best bars and restaurants to have hit Soho in recent years, thanks to Chef Director, Oliver Gladwin’s love of local and wild British ingredients and the Gladwin brothers’ country origins. Whether you’re in the mood for a dry martini, gin and tonic, British negroni or glass of sparkling Nutty Vintage straight from Sussex, you're in luck. We suggest you accompany your tipple with a plate of the roast shallot dip and caraway crisp bread, mushroom marmite éclair (yes, really), and the smoked mackerel cornetto, served with a dollop of caviar on top. Sussex is cool, unpretentious and serving up some seriously delicious bar snacks and drinks. It’s a must visit.

Find Sussex Snack Bar at 63-64 Frith Street, London, W1D 3JW

Opened on D'Arblay Street in December 2020, just before the second lockdown, Golden Gai is an Italian-Japanese fusion restaurant (from the same team as Dalston's Angelina) with delicious Japanese twists on cocktails, and Italian flatbreads featuring ingredients like chicken katsu, this is one venue to head to asap.

On Wednesday evenings, Golden Gai hosts a 'drag and wine' evening where a drag queen performs and hosts a wine-tasting session of a sparkling, white and red Italian wine.

Find Golden Gai at 16A D'Arblay Street, Soho.

Hidden underground in Carnaby Street's Kingly Court (it is a disused train station, after all) is Cahoots. The drinking den, it literally does feel like a den or bunker, is 1940s post-war themed and mapped out like a train carriage. Food is labelled as 'rations' on the menu and served in metal tin trays. For the history loving drinkers, the venue was actually used as an emergency air raid shelter during World War Two.

The cocktail offering is extensive and there's even a curated list inspired by wartime and post-war icons including the Winston Churchill (featuring Scotch whiskey), Ginger Rogers (a gin and orange combination) and the Judy Garland (a gin-based drink topped with a classier offering of Moët & Chandon).

Find Cahoots at 13 Kingly Court, Soho.

Located under Soho's bustling Broadwick Street via a red door – with a sign that specifies it is not, in fact, a brothel – is late night bar Basement Sate.

Open from 6pm, you can find an extensive cocktail menu and dedicated gin and tonic list with gins, mixers and garnishes paired by the experts.

As well as the bar snacks menu featuring mushroom arancini and baked camembert, Basement Sate are also known for their desserts like smores, cheesecake and more. Our tip is to head there after an evening meal at a great London restaurant - where you've specifically saved just enough room - for a post-dinner cocktail and dessert.

Find Basement Sate at 8 Broadwick Street, London.

Interiors lovers will be drawn to Aegean-inspired bar and restaurant Hovarda as soon as they catch a glimpse of its mosaic tables, plush green velvet sofas and metal side tables. (Side note: The toilets are also some of the most intriguing we've seen in London).

Food is Greek and Turkish (the Saganaki is a must) and the cocktails are one-of-a-kind, concocted with unique liqueurs. For party people, Hovarda also hosts house music nights at the weekend.

Find Hovarda at 36-40 Rupert Street.

This venue has pretty much got what it says on the tin: six floors in a space by Soho Square. However, each floor is marvellously different with the first floor mainly used for after-work drinks. The second can be for drinks and small plates like black truffle, bacon and cheese fries, or crispy fried aubergine with a madras dip combination (plus a brilliant weekend bottomless brunch). Many of the other floors, which we'll point out are all elegantly decorated, are available for hire.

Find Six Storeys at 11 Soho Square, London.

On a narrow side-street, and down some vertiginous stairs, hides the windowless Disrepute bar. The member's club features Art Deco decor with velvet seating and near-mirrored tables begging for one of the bar's original cocktails – each with their own unique glass – to be perched on it.

The drinks themselves each come with an intriguing back-story, and you are encouraged to chose your poison: be it the Feline Fugitive or The Adversary based on its written blurb and not its ingredients. Though, if the choice is too much for you, the attentive bar tenders have no problem serving up the classics off-menu.

Find Disrepute at 4 Kingly Court, London.

Standing outside the Aqua restaurant group (home to Kyoto and Neuvo), there's definitely no indication that the venue has a bustling rooftop bar complete with a terrace smack bang in the centre of Soho.

Unsurprisingly, the outside part of Aqua Spirit is perfect for summer evenings and weekend daytime drinks. Booking is advised.

Find Aqua Spirit at 30 Argyll Street, London.

If live music is your vibe then The Piano Works' West End venue is a must-visit.

Book a table and on that table you'll find song request forms, so that what the live band sings is in the crowd's control. The musicians are brilliant: they'll play everything from Stevie Wonder to Dua Lipa, the cocktails are fun and the snacks are pretty good too.

Find The Piano Works at 47 Whitcomb Street, London.