Have Glass Will Travel

Where to Drink in Los Angeles Right Now

December 3, 2024 No Comments

Just like L.A. itself, the top drinks are widely spread out across the city. Here are a few hotspots in diverse ’hoods, for epic coastal bar-crawling.

Bar Next Door’s Olive Drive is a must-drink martini: Sweet Gwendoline French gin, infused lime leaves and Thai chili, Wheatley vodka, olive brine, Dolin Dry, lemon essence, Castelvetrano olives. Instagram.com/barnextdoor photo

Hollywood and West Hollywood

A retro, neon-signed cocktail hideaway on the Sunset Strip that used to be a talent agency office representing Marilyn Monroe and other legends is now Bar Next Door. Vintage décor (including a reel-to-reel projector) and carefully crafted classic cocktails create laid-back sipping vibes that are a welcome respite from the Hollywood hustle. Order a thick, gooey slice of cup-and-burn pepperoni from Prince Street Pizza next door and a majestic Olive Drive cocktail, which Esquire called one of the best Martinis in America.

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Where to Drink in Hong Kong Right Now

September 7, 2024 No Comments

The Aubrey, named number 10 in Asia’s Best Bars 2024, has expansive 25th-floor views of the harbour. Photo courtesy of Hong Kong Tourist Board

Asia is one of the world’s hottest bar scenes, and Hong Kong is one of its hotspots — and home to the recently named number 1 in Asia’s Best Bars 2024. If you’re lucky enough to be staying at a hotel in the waterside Central ’hood, here’s what an epic cocktail crawl up the city’s escalators, stairs and levels might look like.

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Where to drink right now in Las Vegas

July 15, 2024 No Comments

Old school glam reigns supreme at Collins at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas. Photo courtesy of Collins at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas

The bar scene is smoking hot (especially in the summer months!) in Las Vegas. These days on the Strip, it seems that every casino resort has not just opulent lobby and restaurant bars but also hidden cocktail dens (from high-class, vintage-spirits focused The Vault behind the Bellagio cashier’s cage to no less than four speaks at the Cosmopolitan!). In a city where you can drink 24-7, here are some stellar spots, focusing on the current hot zone to the north of the Strip to the local-favourite neighbourhoods beyond. With all the concerts and entertainment coming up in the desert, there are plenty of reasons to beat the heat inside a cool bar this summer.

Guides, Have Glass Will Travel

Where to Drink in Barcelona

October 14, 2022 No Comments

Even before The World’s 50 Best Bars 2022 were announced, places like Paradiso (#1), Sips (#3) and Two Schmucks (#7) were heaving with visitors, and not the easiest places to land a seat at the bar. Here’s our insider guide to some of the other many fine bars of Barcelona—and one unusually cocktail-rich dining experience, for good measure.

The Tres Monos pop up at Monk featured monkey-masked bartenders. Charlene Rooke photo

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Where to drink right now in Mexico City

June 14, 2022 No Comments

Nine must-visit bars in one of the world’s greatest cocktail cities

Handshake is a tiny bar packed with cocktail innovation. Photo courtesy of Handshake

Have Glass Will Travel, The Alchemist

Drinks in the Desert: Coachella Edition

April 20, 2022 No Comments

Whether you’re catching Coachella this weekend or heading to the Palm Springs area for some spring sun, here’s where to taste the hot drinks scene.

The vintage inspired bar at Bar Cecil is one of the most coveted seats in town. Photo courtesy of Bar Cecil.

Modern Cocktails

For proper cocktails, head uptown the small, dark and sexy new Tailor Shop (look for the vintage sewing machine in the green hedge). If they’re wheeling the cart, have an Old Fashioned mixed at the table, or declare your Canadian cred with a Spifflicated Butterfly starring Empress 1908 Gin. Japanese whisky and mixology fans should head straight to Sandfish (same owners), a sushi restaurant with inventive cocktails and a killer whisky list topped with Yamazaki. On the LGBTQ-friendly strip of bars on Arenas Road, choose Blackbook for a seriously comprehensive, bourbon-heavy whisky list.

The toughest reservation in town is Bar Cecil, where you want to be sitting at the pretty vintage-inspired bar ordering a French 75 Regal, topped with Moët & Chandon. Truss & Twine‘s big, horseshoe bar is a late-night industry hang, and serves an excellent Hanky Panky. In the same uptown ‘hood, the poolside Colony Club bar at the Colony Palms hotel and the house Negroni on Birba‘s patio are also worthy stops. In a town with few rooftop bars, the High Bar at the Rowan Hotel is a mountain-view, poolside spot to grab a drink..

Guides, Have Glass Will Travel

Spirit of Victoria

December 14, 2018 No Comments

12 great places to get a drink in the Vancouver Island city

The B.C. Parliament Buildings are the centrepiece of Victoria’s vibrant Inner Harbour. Tourism Victoria photo

You could say that Matt Cooke has distilled the spirit of Victoria into his cocktails. The general manager at OLO Restaurant transforms Vancouver Island spirits and local produce into the kind of creatively food-friendly sippers that complement chef-owner Brad Holmes’ fresh comfort food so well. There’s often whisky or gin—Victorians love the smoky and botanical flavours of the British Isles—and a subtle nod to the classics. At the same time, Cooke conjures flavours that are completely new, and often made from scratch.

And he’s not alone. Despite its relatively small size, with a population about an eighth of Vancouver’s, Victoria has a vibrant cocktail scene that makes it truly a great place to get a drink, especially at these 12 watering holes.