Here's a place that truly lives up to its name: When you’re being served by Armin Azadpour and his team in Frankfurt, it’s hard to think of a single thing that isn't just as it should be. Outstanding cocktail artistry, a lovely atmosphere, the kindest hosts you can imagine – the essentials are all here. On the shelves at Hunky Dory, you’ll find a colourful collection of souvenirs and othe...

The legendary Monkey Bar originally opened its doors on the ground floor of the Hotel Elysée in Midtown after Prohibition was repealed in 1933. Since its reopening in 2009, the spirit of long bygone days has continued to permeate the place: Gentlemen once met here to close major deals, the American actress Tallulah Bankhead made the Monkey Bar more or less her living room during her stays in New York, and t...

The kitchen is "the best place in the world" according to 44-year-old Rainer Klutsch, who discovered his passion for cooking as a child. "I picked up a lot just watching my mum or nan all the time when they would cook," he explains. After taking a brief detour through a stint as a law student and an insurance salesman in training, Rainer (then in his late ...

Christophe Rossi, owner of the L’Escamoteur bar in Kyoto (and a good friend of the Monkey), is what you’d call one-of-a-kind. Whether through his appearance, his penchant for magic and sleight-of-hand, or simply his manner of being, he has a knack for casting a spell on just about anyone. This unique blend of traits is exactly what you’ll find at his bar, as well. Christophe describes his pride ...

Zoltan Nagy, a member of the National Mixographic Society, is known not merely for his outstanding negronis, but also for the cocktail artistry he continues to put on display as manager of Budapest's legendary Boutiq’Bar. There, he has stayed true to his credo that a good bar should only offer excellent drinks. We couldn’t agree more. One of his own personal creations, dubbed simply “33”, really caught our interest: It's Mon...

To hear them tell it, when Jack McGarry and Sean Muldoon set out for the land of opportunity – New York, to be exact – they had stardust in their eyes and little more than a rucksack full of dreams. Just six years later, they made their primary aspiration come true in bringing the Dead Rabbit to life. This bar, which has garnered numerous awards and accolades (including as the World's Best Bar ...

Welcome to the wunderbar Arthur Orlans in Brussels! This is actually less an insider tip than it is a heartfelt plea: Get yourself to Belgium and pay this extraordinary locale a visit! We promise you'll be astonished as well. With plenty of attention to detail, Francesco Ravo and his team have turned an old-fashioned house into a one-of-a-kind cocktail bar. It's both traditional and tailor-made (so to speak), and the ...

For us, big, heavy furniture; lots of mahogany; leather-bound books; columns of polished marble; and the soft light of a flickering fireplace bring to mind the unique atmosphere of a dignified home library or a traditional gentleman's club. You too? Then be sure to check out Scarfes Bar, which you'll find at London's Rosewood Hotel. It takes its name (and the decorations on its walls) from the British artist and ...

Strangers in the night have been the subject of songs at least since Frank Sinatra’s famous tribute in 1966. Whether or not the Stranger bar in Gothenburg (Sweden) has played a significant role in this lore is lost to the mists of time, but newcomers to the establishment do often become “lovers at first sight”. Martin Alexandersson and his team have mastered the art of not only treating their guests to exc...

If you are planning a sojourn in Singapore any time soon, we strongly recommend that you visit our good friend Dario Knox, a member of the National Mixographic Society. Just ring the doorbell on the solid, dark door in the Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel and slip into the legendary bar known as The Other Room. In its dark, mysterious atmosphere, which is reminiscent of the Prohibition era, guests are quickly ...