India’s Top 50 Bars for 2021

The second edition of the annual national ranking of the best bars in the country takes one more step towards the finale with the announcement of the shortlist of the 50 top-ranked bars and 20 top-ranked microbreweries. These lists are based on the votes cast by a jury of 200 bar enthusiasts and industry experts spread across 10 cities in the country.
 
Besides the Best Bar, each jury member was asked to vote in the following six categories:  Best Hotel Bar, Best Restaurant Bar, Best Independent Bar, Best Microbrewery or Taproom, Best Cocktail Menu, Best Bar Design. A special technical jury of 25 industry professionals also voted for two additional categories - Best Bar Team and Best Bartender.
 
The 50 top ranking bars and the 20 top ranking microbreweries are now eligible for the People Choice Awards for the Best Bar and Best Microbrewery or Taproom. These awards are based on an online public poll on social media. This poll will open on January 30 and end on February 15, 2022. 
 
The Best Pandemic Response Award, which has been specially introduced for the year 2021 for a bar whose owners and managers used the best of their creativity and innovation to keep their business running during the dark days of the covid-forced shutdown. The top 100 Bars were asked to submit their entries to share the measures they implemented that saved jobs and helped the bar stay connected with the community.
 
The best bar ranking for 2021 will be unveiled at the 30 Best Bars 2021 Awards ceremony. The Gala night which was to be held on January 19, 2022, has now been rescheduled keeping in mind the ongoing pandemic. The new dates will be announced as soon as the government eases restrictions.
 
There are a total of 53 bars on the 30 Best Bars 2021 list, as three sets of bars polled the same number of votes leading to three positions in the ranking being occupied jointly by two bars each. Out of the 53 bars, as many as 32 are new entrants. Only 21 bars survive from 30Best Bars 2019 top 50 list.
 
An interesting mix of cities feature in the 50 best bars list. New Delhi & Bangalore lead the way with 9 and 8 bars respectively. Mumbai & Goa follow with 7 bars each, Kolkata with 6, Chennai & Hyderabad with 4, Gurgaon & Pune with 3. Interestingly Jaipur and Guwahati also feature on the list, with one bar each.
 
A total of 21 microbreweries make it to the top 20 ranking, with two outlets polling the same number of votes. Bangalore, expectedly leads the list of cities with the best microbreweries, with 8 outlets on the list, followed by Mumbai with 4, Pune with 3, and Gurgaon with 2. Goa, Kolkata, New Delhi, and Chandigarh contribute 1 each.
 (Excerpt from a release)