Cocktails, wine bars and dives: drinking in Montpellier for grown-ups.
Cocktail bars, wine bars, dive bars and gastropubs: drinking in Montpellier for grown-ups.
Aperture is Julien Escot's pared-back cocktail room on Rue des Trésoriers de la Bourse in Montpellier, opened in December 2018 with wine alongside.
Signature drink: Rotating creations by Julien Escot
Food: Small plates
Tip: Escot won the 2012 world cocktail championship before opening this room; go early, the counter takes no reservations.
Le Parfum builds cocktails around lychee, jasmine tea and wasabi on Rue de la Cavalerie in Montpellier, with dim sum on the side until 01:00.
Signature drink: Floral and infusion cocktails
Food: Dim sum
Tip: The dim sum plus perfumed-cocktail pairing is the point; treat it as a late dinner-and-drinks stop in Beaux-Arts.
Nectar Cocktail Club shakes drinks with herbs from its hotel's rooftop garden at the Belaroïa by Gare Saint-Roch in Montpellier, plates from 18:00.
Signature drink: House creations with rooftop-garden herbs
Food: Sharing plates from 18:00
Tip: It sits inside the Belaroïa hotel by the station, which makes it the natural first or last drink of a train trip.
Rhum Runner lines up agricultural and aged rums from Martinique to Japan on Rue Jules Latreilhe in Montpellier, house arrangés behind the bar.
Signature drink: Zombie
Food: Snacks
Tip: Ask for the rum arrangé list before defaulting to cocktails; mocktails cover the non-drinkers properly.
Bonsoir Cocktail Bar mixes the Suco di Amor and Divino Spritz on Rue de la Croix d'Or in Montpellier, world-leaning tapas beside the drinks list.
Signature drink: Suco di Amor
Food: World-cuisine tapas
Tip: Come for the aperitivo window at 18:00 when the small room still has seats; the tapas double as dinner.
Les BerThoM pours craft partners such as Piggy Brewing and La Débauche on Rue Boussairolles, a big beer room open every night of the week until 01:00.
Signature drink: Guest craft taps
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Happy hour runs 17:00 to 20:00 Sunday to Thursday; the tap list rotates, so photograph the board before ordering.
Barberousse runs its pirate-themed rum shooter formula on Rue Boussairolles in Montpellier, sixty-plus flavoured rums for a loud student crowd.
Signature drink: Flavoured rum shooters
Tip: This is a shooters-and-noise bar, not a sipping room; come with a group during the 18:00 to 21:00 happy hour.
Le Quatrième Tiers mixes seasonal cocktails in the old Tanins d'Abord room on Rue Roucher in Montpellier, an intimate stone-walled evening bar.
Signature drink: Seasonal house cocktails
Tip: The room seats few, so arrive at opening on weekends; it took over the address of a defunct wine bar, not the concept.
Muchacha turns the roof of the Marché du Lez into a nightly fiesta, pouring pisco and sangria alongside Latin sharing plates and DJ sets after 23:00.
Signature drink: Havana Bonita
Food: Latin sharing plates until 23:30
Tip: It opens seven nights, unusual for the quarter; food orders close at 23:30 while the bar keeps going.
Willie Carter Sharpe mixes a tight list of eco-minded cocktails at the Halles du Lez in Port Marianne, with eggs and small plates beside the shaker.
Signature drink: Five short-supply-chain house cocktails
Food: Eggs and small plates
Tip: Named for a Prohibition rum-runner, it keeps to a handful of precise drinks rather than a long list; trust the bartender.
Le Clandestin doubles as wine bar and cocktail room on Rue de la Valfère in Montpellier, mojitos beside forty Languedoc bottles and shared boards.
Signature drink: Languedoc reds by the glass
Food: Charcuterie and cheese boards
Tip: One of the rare Écusson bars pouring on Sunday night; the piano in the corner is there to be played.
La Part des Anges keeps its kitchen open with the bar until 01:00 on Rue Collot in Montpellier, focaccias and churro waffles beside the glasses.
Signature drink: Gin-tonics and wine by the glass
Food: Focaccias and roasted camembert
Tip: Order the octopus carpaccio before the kitchen's late rush; plates stay between 7 and 17 euros all night.
La Nonna runs the JOST hotel rooftop by Saint-Roch station, pouring spritzes over bruschette with nightly DJ sets or live music above the quarter.
Signature drink: Spritz list
Food: Bruschette and antipasti until 22:45
Tip: Walk-ins only and it closes in bad weather; Wednesday brings the grilled-skewer night to the roof.
La Barbote brews and pours its own beer on Rue des Deux Ponts in the Beaux-Arts quarter, a microbrewery bar open every single evening until 01:00.
Signature drink: House-brewed beers
Tip: It opens seven nights, rare for a brewery bar; go early for a seat, the room is small and local.
Drapeau Rouge brews on the Faubourg Boutonnet and feeds its own taproom with pub plates and slow-cooked meat burgers, a student-quarter fixture.
Signature drink: House craft beers
Food: Pub food and slow-cooked meat burgers
Tip: Weekday lunch in a working brewery is the quiet way in; evenings fill with the Boutonnet student crowd.
Les Canons pours natural wine through the afternoon near Saint-Pierre cathedral in Montpellier, 150 references and 10 euro corkage at the tables.
Signature drink: Natural wines off the shelf
Food: Market lunches
Tip: An afternoon bar as much as an evening one, and Wednesday's late close is the night to settle in for a long session.
ZooBrew opens its Castelnau-le-Lez brewery bar on the eastern edge of Montpellier two evenings a week, pouring fresh house beers where they ferment.
Signature drink: House-brewed beers
Tip: Thursday and Friday only, straight from the tanks; the tram 2 gets you close from the centre.
Le Comptoir des Brasseurs brews and serves at Odysseum in Montpellier, a big brewpub pouring its own beers seven days a week with a full menu.
Signature drink: Beers brewed on site
Food: Brasserie menu
Tip: Useful before cinema or arena nights at Odysseum; the house lineup beats the mall setting.
La Distillerie has been the Écusson's rock bar since 2007, local craft beer and house arranged rums under a permanent rock-photography hang.
Signature drink: House arranged rums
Food: Drinks only
Tip: Happy hour runs 18:00 to 20:00 Tuesday to Saturday; the walls carry Eric Canto's rock portraits year round.