You’re in Mayfair.
You have, until this point, been absolutely crushing date night, thanks to your trademark combination of good looks, sparkling wit and encyclopaedic knowledge of The Nudge’s date guides. After a romantic dinner at one of the many candlelit, booth-equipped restaurants in Mayfair – Gymkhana, perhaps, or Noble Rot – you and your date have stepped out into the night, walked and talked a little more… and realised you have absolutely no idea where to go next.
But fear not. Because we’ve compiled a pulse-quickening selection of nightcap spots, each with their own individual allure. We’re talking martini trolleys in art deco snugs; award-winning cocktail dens; and wine bars where the list runs as deep as your pockets will allow.
So behold, the best bars in Mayfair…–
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Finally, the only thing that can cap a meal at Gymkhana – a cocktail at Gymkhana. This illicit cocktail den sits behind an unmarked door right next to the Michelin-starred restaurant, and offers a rare opportunity to enjoy crushed ant cocktails in what feels like the opulent interiors of an aristocratic home. And if ants don’t do it for you, try the Cokagne, which involves Thums Up cola sorbet that’s topped with with cherry liqueur & Champagne.
Details: 42 Albemarle Street, W1S 4JH | Book here
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Dukes Bar
To say that Dukes is famous for its martinis is an understatement. Because these aren’t just good martinis. They’re the ones that inspired the favoured tipple of James Bond himself – author Ian Fleming used to come here regularly and order the very same thing. Order one, and you’ll see it made tableside at Dukes’ very own martini trolley, and they’ve got such clout that you’re only allowed to order two in one sitting…
Details: 35 St James’s Place, SW1A 1NY | No bookings – see more info
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The Connaught Bar
One of the Nudge’s all-time favourite bars in London – though, if you need further proof, it’s been sitting pretty in the top 5 of the World’s 50 Best Bars list for several years now, finally hitting #1 in 2021. Panelled with mirrors and silver leaf, it’s quietly glamorous without feeling stuffy; the bartenders are both cheery and knowledgeable; and the drinks are, without exception, flawless. Wave over the martini trolley for a bespoke edition, made table-side, or order one of their signature concoctions – the recipes for which you’ll be handed at the end of the night.
Details: The Connaught Hotel, Carlos Place, W1K 2AL | No bookings – see more info
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The Red Room
Assuming you’ve tried one of those martinis, there’s a high chance you’ll get lost on your way out of The Connaught Bar. And if you find yourself in the Champagne bar, seek out the velvet curtain at the back, and head on through. This is The Red Room, a beautiful, marble-clad wine bar with a mere thirty thousand vintages in the cellar.
Details: The Connaught Hotel, Carlos Place, W1K 2AL | No bookings – see more info
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Kwānt
To answer both your immediate questions: 1) like “quaint”. And 2) it’s the stylish new location for the bar that used to sit below Momo on Heddon Street, which made it onto the World’s 50 Best Bars list before getting shuttered by the pandemic. Here you can enjoy all that cocktail expertise (in drinks like the avocado-loaded Green Park Margarita) in more spacious surrounds – although the best seats are still up at the bar, where you can watch the tenders do their thing.
Details: 52 Stratton St, W1J 8LN | No bookings
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Rivoli Bar
Yes, it’s not entirely unsurprising that The Ritz hotel, famed for its lavish decor and glamorous history, has a pretty decent-looking bar attached. But what might surprise you is the quality of the drinks – they go way beyond the classics here, with some highly inventive concoctions like the Vigour, combining gin with chocolate distillate, banana water and caramelised yoghurt syrup. Be warned, there is a £23pp minimum spend here – but you’ll hit that after, er, one drink. At least they bring olives.
Details: The Ritz, 150 Piccadilly, W1J 9BR | Book here
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Le Magritte
A glorious hidden gem of a bar tucked inside The Beaumont hotel, just a stone’s throw from Selfridges. A sophisticated, wood-panelled cocoon, it’s styled after the popular American Bars of the 1920s. The drinks are heady – try a Larry Sent Me with pisco, pineapple, pandan syrup and chinotto – and the bar snacks are wonderfully decadent, including caviar with brown butter waffles. If you’re looking for a quiet, grown-up bar in Mayfair, Le Magritte has to be up there.
Details: The Beaumont, 8 Balderton Street, Brown Hart Gardens, London W1K 6TF | More info
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The Glade at Sketch
Decoupage.
Some people just aren’t cut out for it.
Luckily, the people who plastered the walls of The Glade bar at Sketch knew exactly what they were doing, and have crafted a woodland drinking den straight out of a fairytale, with illustrated walls, quirky baroque furnishings and a huge bar overseeing proceedings, from which you can score classic and signature serves.
Details: 9 Conduit Street, W1S 2XG | More info
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HIDE Below
In a textbook case of nominative determinism, HIDE Below is very easy to walk straight past. That’s because it’s the low-lit cocktail bar set in the basement of acclaimed chef Ollie Dabbous’ three tiered restaurant paradise, HIDE. Take a stool at the beautiful natural wood-topped bar and pick out a dram from the amber-hued spirits lining the back wall; snoop around their walk-in wine cellar (stocked with 450+ bottles); or order a martini, stirred with frozen birch sap instead of ice.
Details: 85 Piccadilly, W1J 7NB | More info
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Mr. Fogg’s Residence
Like its namesake, this bar has now made its way right across London, with bars from Covent Garden to Liverpool Street. This, however, is the original, and still hasn’t lost the wow factor thanks to the array of worldly trinkets, taxidermied animals, flags, and penny farthings dangling from the ceiling and crammed onto the walls. The cocktails are just as eccentric, combining classic spirits with not-so-classic infusions, like salted grapefruit cordial and African spice falernum.
Psst… if it’s busy, Mr. Fogg’s Apothecary offers the same great drinks nearby.
Details: 15 Bruton Lane, W1J 6JD | Book here
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Dickie’s Bar
A sleek annexe to Richard Corrigan’s award-winning restaurant, Dickie’s Bar is inspired by the feel of an Irish hunting lodge – but this is Mayfair, so naturally it comes with a lengthy marble bar, velvety booths and a drinks menu that kicks off with caviar and Champagne. It then moves onto house cocktails, classics, and a sizeable array of whiskies from Ireland, Scotland, Japan and the U.S… so you shouldn’t have to hunt around to find something you like.
Details: 28 Upper Grosvenor Street, W1K 7EH | More info
Like exploring the city’s bars? Check out the Best Cocktail Bars in London