30 Best Bars of India 2023 announced, Sidecar on top

Delhi's Sidecar walked away with top honors once again at the 4th edition of 30BestBarsIndia, the country’s most prestigious bar ranking and awards platform, at a ceremony held at Taj Cidade de Goa Heritage last night. Besides being ranked India’s #1 Bar for the second year in a row, it also walked away with the Best Independent Bar Award and the Best Cocktail Menu Award - for Arq, a menu inspired by quintessential Indian ingredients.  

Pune’s Cobbler & Crew (#2) took home 4 awards this year – Highest New Entry, Best Bar Team, Best Bartender (Aashi Bhatnagar), and Best Work in Sustainability (along with Pune’s Soy Como Soy). Notably, Pune also captured the People’s Choice Awards – with Elephant & Co. Kalyani Nagar (#47) deemed People’s Choice Best Bar and TOIT awarded People’s Choice Best Microbrewery or Taproom. 

 Bangalore bars stepped into the spotlight as well, with ZLB 23 – The Leela Palace (#6) bagging Best Bar Design. It was also awarded the Best Hotel Bar alongside Copitas – Four Seasons Hotel (#4). The city’s favourite watering hole, TOIT (#29), was the winner of the Best Microbrewery or Taproom Award. 

 PCO New Delhi was this year’s Highest Climber – jumping eight spots to #12. The Best Restaurant Bar went to Gurgaon’s Comorin (#11). The Best Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Menu was awarded to Chennai’s Pandan Club, for its innovative storytelling and presentation of Zero ABV drinks. Additionally, AD Singh, Founder & MD, Olive Group of Restaurants was honoured with the Industry Icon Award while Polo Lounge, Hyatt Regency Delhi took home the Timeless Bar Award.  
 Vikram Achanta, Co-Founder, 30BestBarsIndia says, “The anticipation for the awards increases year-on-year, and this year, we saw noticeable jumps in the list. Eleven new bars made their way into the top 30 list, showcasing the pace at which Indian bars are innovating. As standards continue to increase in the industry and global eyes watch India’s beverage landscape evolve, bars need to continue pushing boundaries across cocktail programs, adopting new techniques, and enhancing bar talent to stay relevant.” 

 Radhakrishna Nair, Co-Founder, 30BestBarsIndia added, “Many rankings this year were closely fought affairs, especially among the top bars in the country, with very few votes separating them. Every year, we re-evaluate our award categories to stay relevant with what’s taking place in the bar landscape, both nationally and internationally. It is in keeping with this strategy that we introduced the Best Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Menu award this year to recognize bars that are making strides with zero-ABV drinks.” 
 Appended is the Top 30 List: 

1. Sidecar - New Delhi 
   
2. Cobbler & Crew - Pune 
   
3. Lair - New Delhi 
   
4. Copitas - Four Seasons Hotel, Bangalore 
   
5. Hideaway - Goa 
   
6. ZLB 23 - The Leela Palace, Bangalore 
   
7. The Bombay Canteen - Mumbai 
   
8. HOME - New Delhi 
   
9. Masque - Mumbai 
   
10. Slink & Bardot - Mumbai 
    
11. Comorin - Gurgaon 
    
12. PCO - New Delhi 
    
13. Hoots’ - New Delhi 
    
14. Americano - Mumbai 
    
15. Cocktails & Dreams, Speakeasy - Gurgaon 
    
16. PCO - Mumbai 
    
17. Slow Tide - Goa 
    
18. The Bar - The Oberoi Grand, Kolkata 
    
19. Whisky Samba - Gurgaon 
    
20. Bob’s Bar - Indiranagar, Bangalore 
    
21. Native Cocktail Room - Jaipur 
    
22. O Pedro - Mumbai 
    
23. Olterra - Kolkata 
    
24. Windmills - Bangalore 
    
25. Pablo’s - Goa 
    
26. Joseph Bar - Goa 
    
27. Ekaa - Mumbai 
    
28. The Library Bar - The Leela Palace, New Delhi 
    
29. TOIT - Bangalore 
    
30. For The Record: Vinyl Bar - Goa 
    

 Jury Vote 

• Best Independent Bar - Sidecar, New Delhi (#1) 
  
• Best Hotel Bar - ZLB 23 - The Leela Palace, Bangalore (#6) AND Copitas – Four Seasons Hotel, Bangalore (#4) 
  
• Best Restaurant Bar – Comorin, Gurgaon (#11) 
  
• Best Microbrewery or Taproom - TOIT, Bangalore (#29)  
  
• Best Cocktail Menu – Sidecar, New Delhi (#1) 
  

 Technical Jury Vote 

• Best Bartender: Aashi Bhatnagar, Cobbler & Crew, Pune (#2) 
  
• Best Bar Team: Cobbler & Crew, Pune (#2) 
  
• Best Bar Design: ZLB 23 - The Leela Palace, Bangalore (#6) 
  

 30BestBarsIndia Decision:

• Timeless Bar - Polo Lounge, Hyatt Regency, Delhi 
  
• Industry Icon - AD Singh, Founder & MD, Olive Group of Restaurants 
  
• Best Work in Sustainability - Cobbler & Crew, Pune (#2) AND Soy Como Soy, Pune 
  
• Best Non-Alcoholic Bar Menu - Pandan Club, Chennai 
  

 People’s Choice Awards  

• People’s Choice Best Bar - Elephant & Co. Kalyani Nagar, Pune (#47) 
  
• People’s Choice Best Microbrewery or Taproom - TOIT, Pune  
  

Other Categories 

• Highest Climber - PCO, New Delhi (#12) 
  
• Highest New Entry - Cobbler & Crew, Pune (#2)