BARCELONA – It is the first time that a bar outside New York or London has won this prestigious award in The World’s 50 Best Bars 2022 election. The top 50 best bars were unveiled on Tuesday at a ceremony in Barcelona.
At the annual gala of the 50 best bars in the world, Paradiso from Barcelona took first place this year. The event itself also took place in the Catalan capital, on Tuesday, October 4.
3 bars from Barcelona are in the top 10
It was the fourteenth time this gala was hosted by the organisation of The World’s 50 Best Bars. Furthermore, it was the first time it took place outside of London or New York. However, it is no coincidence that Barcelona hosted this year. The worldwide hype of cocktail bars and speakeasies has also taken hold in the Catalan capital. (A speakeasy is a bar that exudes the mysterious atmosphere of the 1920s in the US, where alcohol was prohibited at the time). In addition to Paradiso, two more establishments from Barcelona were in the top ten: Sips at number 3 and Two Schmucks at 7. Madrid was represented in 15th place with Salmon Guru.
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Passion and patience
Paradiso has been around for seven years and is located in the hip Born district in Barcelona. With its beautiful wooden, dimly lit interior and secretive entrance (it’s behind a pastrami shop and you have to go through a fridge to get there), it fits right in with the speakeasy trend – but with a touch of Gaudí.
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In its report, the jury praised, in addition to the design, the quality of the cocktails, which are prepared in Paradiso with an enormous dose of creativity and mathematical precision. Innovation is the magic word here.
They work with a theme every year. This year’s theme is Human Evolution. The absolute star of their menu is therefore the On fire cocktail, which should take you back to the time when prehistoric people sat around a campfire. “Passion and patience” are the secret of their success, according to owner Margarita Sader.
Widening
Paradiso replaced the famous London cocktail bar, The Connaught as the best bar in the world. However, it remained in the top 10 (at number 8) and there was a special Icon Award for their mix master Agostino Perrone.
Furthermore, the presentation this year was mainly in the context of broadening. Cocktail bars have traditionally been a quintessentially American-English affair, and that Anglo-Saxon dominance has traditionally characterised the list of best bars. But in this year’s top fifty, the most striking were the newcomers who come from outside England or the US.
Mexico City
For example, the best bar in North America is not in the United States but Mexico City (Licorería Limantour, at number 4). The top 20 featured no fewer than 5 Latin American bars and 8 European ones (if you don’t include the United Kingdom). The best bar in Asia was Jigger & Pony from Singapore, number 11 in the world.
The fifty best bars are located in no fewer than 26 different cities, spread all over the world.
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