28 editor picks in Ghent.
Ghent's drinking scene blends inventive cocktail bars with the city's deep jenever and beer traditions. Jigger's Coolers and Cocktails on Oudburg in Patershol is the standout for mixed drinks, while 't Dreupelkot on the Groentenmarkt pours the local jenever and the neighbouring Het Waterhuis aan de Bierkant holds the line for Belgian beer. Hotsy Totsy on Hoogstraat adds an old-Ghent literary-bar character to the mix.
28 cocktail bar places in Ghent we have eaten in, sorted by editor score. All cuisines in Ghent · Cocktail Bar across every city.
Order The house seasonal cocktail: the team rotates the signature list every few months based on what is growing.
Jigger's is a subterranean cocktail bar in the Patershol, listed on the World's 50 Best Discovery list.
Order Max beer (Delirium Tremens in the 1-litre glass): one shoe goes in the basket, one stays on your foot.
De Dulle Griet has over 500 Belgian beers and one famous ritual: surrender a shoe to the bar when ordering the Max, a 1-litre glass of Delirium Tremens.
Order A flight of three house-made jenevers: ask Pol to choose them. The homemade range is the reason to come.
Pol's tiny jenever bar on the Groentenmarkt serves more than 200 jenevers, including around 50 made in-house.
Order Gruut Amber on draught: the city herb-beer is always on the tap list here.
Waterhuis aan de Bierkant is a canal-side brown pub on the Groentenmarkt with 170 Belgian beers, 14 on draught and a packed waterside terrace.
Order A cold Belgian beer and a seat near the stage on a live jazz night: the room holds fewer than 50 people.
Hotsy Totsy has been injecting Ghent with blues and jazz since the 1970s.
Order A local craft beer at the bar before the live set starts: the sound quality in this room is unusually good.
Missy Sippy opened in 2015 as a contemporary juke joint next to Sint-Niklaaskerk, with vintage New Orleans decor and live blues and roots music nightly.
Order Whatever is on draught: the focus here is atmosphere, not the beer list.
Rococo is Betty's candlelit bar on the Patershol cobblestones.
Order Dok house pale ale on draught: the cleanest expression of the house brewing style, always fresh.
Dok Brewing Company occupies a converted metal workshop at Dok Noord with 30 taps: their own house brews plus guest taps from Belgian craft breweries.
Order Gruut Inferno: the strongest and most complex of the five house beers, amber with a herbal bitterness.
Gruut is Ghent's city brewery using a medieval herb recipe with no hops: five beers (white, blonde, amber, brown and Inferno) brewed and served on site.
Order A by-the-glass flight from the chalkboard list paired with a cheese-and-charcuterie board.
Wijnbar ONA on the corner of Bagattenstraat and Nederkouter is Ona Van Reybrouck and Arne De Wilde's intimate natural-wine spot, opened in 2015.
Order Ghent gin and tonic on the terrace on a Friday afternoon while the market winds down.
Vrijdagsgevoel commands the most prominent corner of the Friday market square, with a large terrace watching over the historic market and local life below.
Order A wild saison from the Belgium tap list alongside a glass of natural white: the pairing is the Edelrot house.
Edelrot functions as both a natural wine bar and a wild beer bar: the list includes wild-fermented saisons, spontaneous lambics and Belgian farmhouse ales.
Order The by-the-glass rotation: the team changes the pours weekly and always has something unexpected open.
Chubby Cheeks is a convivial bar-restaurant where a young team serves unusual natural wines by the glass alongside inventive small plates in a relaxed space.
Order Glass of Loire chenin blanc with a slice of aged Herve cheese: the bar's most classic pairing.
Bar Terroir is a small grower-wine bar on the vegetable market square with cheese platters made from traditionally-produced artisan milk.
Order Georgian amber wine flight: three pours from different qvevri producers that show how dramatically the style.
Vinogradoff specialises in natural and biodynamic wines from Eastern Europe, with by-the-glass pours from its bar-shop on the Ajuinlei near the Korenlei.
Order Belgian natural wine by the glass at the window seat: the light through the giant corner windows is the best.
By day a specialty coffee bar, Cafe Labath transitions to wine and Belgian beer by early evening at its corner near Sint-Michielsbrug in the centre.
Order The cheapest glass on the natural wine list: Hey Frankie's entry-level pours are genuinely good.
Hey Frankie operates as a natural wine bar three evenings a week near Vrijdagmarkt, with sensibly-priced natural pours and a loyally following local crowd.
Order Aged Westvleteren 12: when it is in stock, buy one and drink it at the bar in the correct glass.
De Hopduvel is one of Belgium's most respected beer bottle shops, now relocated to Dok Noord with around 900 Belgian beers in stock.
Order Belgian draft beer with a free Monday concert.
Trefpunt is a music and theatre cafe run by the non-profit that launched the modern Ghent Festivities in 1970, hosting concerts almost every evening.
Order Ghent draft beer on the back terrace overlooking the Leie at dusk.
Het Spijker is a local pub set in a former granary, with a lounge on the second floor and two terraces: one facing the city centre, the other on the Leie.
Order Jigger's seasonal cocktail: specials change monthly with locally foraged ingredients.
Jigger's medieval cellar bar in the Patershol stays open until 03:00 at weekends, serving seasonal cocktails and 500+ spirits in a candlelit setting.
Order Belgian gin-and-tonic with local Ghent gin: the most popular late-night drink here.
Rococo on the cobbles of the Patershol draws an arty, late crowd with the kind of playlist you only find in bars that care deeply about music and atmosphere.
Order Belgian beer from the rotating tap selection: priced for the format, the most social late bar.
Wasbar on the Korenmarkt is Ghent's laundry-and-bar concept: leave your washing in the machines, order a Belgian beer at the bar and stay until closing.
Order Belgian draft beer over a Wednesday or Thursday jazz set: the small room makes the band feel inches away.
Cafe Damberd is an 18th-century pub on the Korenmarkt that has run as a jazz and world-music cafe for over thirty years, with live sets from jazz to funk.
Order Old Ghent jenever in a bolleke glass: the darkest style in the house range at the most authentic bar.
't Dreupelkot on the Groentenmarkt is Ghent's legendary jenever bar: 100+ varieties in a dark wood-panelled room, open until 01:00 on weekends.
Jigger's operates in a medieval Patershol cellar, serving seasonal cocktails and over 500 spirits in a candlelit setting few tourists ever find.
Hotsy Totsy has injected Ghent with blues and jazz since the 1970s: the Claus brothers bar hosts live music most evenings from September to June.
Hot Club de Gand is a 50-seat jazz bar tucked into a narrow side alley off the Groentenmarkt, programming more than 200 free live performances a year.
