Also: Bars in Sao Paulo
Cocktails, wine bars and dives: drinking in São Paulo for grown-ups.
Cocktail bars, wine bars, dive bars and gastropubs: drinking in São Paulo for grown-ups.
Tan Tan is Thiago Banares' small Pinheiros cocktail bar in Sao Paulo, ranked No. 24 on The World's 50 Best Bars 2025, the only Brazilian bar in that top 50.
DrinkDirty Collins: white cachaca, tequila, olive and Tahiti lime
FoodAsian-leaning bar snacks
TipBook ahead for weekends; the room is small and splits between the bar counter and the open kitchen.
Exímia Bar reopened in Itaim Bibi, Sao Paulo, in 2026 with cocktails built on Brazilian ingredients like pau-brasil, amburana and jabuticaba.
DrinkAmerindio: rum, bourbon, Golden Massala liqueur, pau-brasil, amburana
FoodNone, drinks-only bar
TipSome cocktails need 48 to 60 hours of prep and the menu is updated often with the seasons, so ask staff which drinks are new.
Guilhotina Bar is an informal Pinheiros cocktail room in Sao Paulo that reopened in 2026 after a four-month refit with a new drinks and food menu.
DrinkChá do Naza: Johnnie Walker Black Label, Irish whiskey, spiced mate tea, lime and mango
FoodBar plates such as octopus carpaccio, tuna ponzu and glazed ox tongue
TipSit at the counter: the bar is built around service that puts drinkers face to face with the bartenders making their drinks.
Caledonia Whisky & Co. in Pinheiros holds over 250 whisky labels in Sao Paulo, pouring curated three-whisky flights alongside spirit-led cocktails.
DrinkCurated flights of three whiskies from a shelf of 260-plus labels
FoodBar plates to share
TipAsk for a flight instead of a single pour: the house builds three-whisky tastings around a style you want to explore.
SubAstor hides behind velvet curtains below Bar Astor in Vila Madalena, Sao Paulo, pouring a cocktail menu built around the six biomes of Brazil.
DrinkCocktails from the Biomas do Brasil menu, one section per Brazilian biome
FoodNone, drinks-only bar
TipCome on a weeknight if you want a seat without a wait: Friday and Saturday fill the small room fast.
Picco pairs Neapolitan pizza with classic-leaning cocktails in a graffiti-lined Pinheiros backyard, Sao Paulo, with live jazz and Brazilian sets nightly.
DrinkLa Maga in Manhattan: bourbon, rye, peanut butter, sweet vermouth
FoodNeapolitan pizza and paninis
TipThe backyard fills first: arrive by 19:00 on a weekend if you want a table under the graffiti wall.
Bar dos Arcos occupies a century-old brick vault under the Theatro Municipal in central Sao Paulo, pouring craft cocktails past 01:00 most nights.
DrinkCraft cocktails from Argentine bartender Chula
FoodShareable plates by chef Rodrigo Augusto
TipThe room sits directly below the theatre's stage, in vaults that once held its natural ventilation ducts and were restored in 1980.
Bar Brahma has run since 1948 on the corner of Ipiranga and Sao Joao in downtown Sao Paulo, pouring draft chope under nightly live samba and MPB.
DrinkDraft Brahma chope
FoodFeijoada and Brazilian boteco plates
TipAn artistic cover charge applies once the band starts: it varies by performer, so ask at the door.
Bar Balcão has poured drinks along its 25 metre zigzag counter in Cerqueira Cesar, Sao Paulo, since 1994, with jazz on the stereo and sandwiches at the bar.
DrinkDraft beer and the caju-amigo cocktail
FoodSandwiches, including bresaola with mango chutney
TipSeating runs along the shared zigzag counter, so expect to talk to strangers; there are a few small tables on the mezzanine.
Veloso Bar has run its fourteen-table Vila Mariana boteco since 2005, known across Sao Paulo for a coxinha stuffed with catupiry and a caipirinha menu.
DrinkCaipirinha do Souza, made by the bar's veteran bartender
FoodCoxinha de frango com catupiry
TipExpect a wait for a table on the sidewalk: the coxinha is the reason regulars queue on weekends.
Frango Bar has run since 1987 in a 19th century house in Freguesia do O, Sao Paulo, pairing 400-plus beer labels with grilled chicken and coxinha.
DrinkMore than 400 beer labels, six on draft
FoodCoxinha with catupiry and grilled chicken with fried polenta
TipThe grilled chicken comes with fried polenta, farofa and salad: add a coxinha with catupiry from the petiscos list.
Bar da Dona Onça has poured drinks at the foot of Oscar Niemeyer's Copan building in central Sao Paulo since 2008, run by chef Janaina Torres.
DrinkCaipirinhas alongside a full bar
FoodPressure-cooker cozidos from across Brazil
TipGo for the stew of the day rather than the printed menu: the cozidos rotate by region and season.
Bar do Léo has run its Republica boteco on Rua Aurora in Sao Paulo since 1940, pouring draft chope beside made-to-order sandwiches at the counter.
DrinkDraft chope
FoodMade-to-order sandwiches and quick plates
TipIt closes early by boteco standards: go for a late lunch chope rather than a nightcap.
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