Cocktails, wine bars and dives: drinking in Bucharest for grown-ups.
Cocktail bars, wine bars, dive bars and gastropubs: drinking in Bucharest for grown-ups.
Energiea lives in a former print shop on Brezoianu, a contemporary Bucharest pub-bistro with one of the city's best cocktail programs and a courtyard.
Signature drink: Gin and rosemary signature
Food: Small plates and brunch
Tip: The cocktail menu rotates seasonally; brunch runs Sat-Sun Standing room when busy.
NOMAD Skybar on Smârdan in Old Town runs a rooftop garden under a retractable glass roof, the year-round Old Town cocktail anchor for the post-2018 wave.
Signature drink: Signature seasonal cocktails
Food: Global fusion small plates
Tip: Bookings open daily 12:00-22:00 by phone; smart-casual dress code at night.
Linea's open-roof terrace atop the Victoria Department Store delivers the widest Old Town view in Bucharest, focused cocktails and warm-weather drinks.
Signature drink: Lipscani spritz
Food: Snacks and small plates
Tip: Igloo seating in winter; sundown bookings book a week out in summer.
SIP Bucharest occupies a former-bank vault on Covaci, the Old Town speakeasy with original steel safe doors as room dividers and a custom mixology bar.
Signature drink: Custom mixology, vault-aged spirits
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Entry through an unmarked door at Covaci 12; phone reservations are the polite way in for first-time visitors.
Pura Vida Sky Bar on Smârdan 7 in Old Town is the rooftop terrace of the Bucharest Pura Vida hostel, a summer open deck with backpacker-and-local crowd.
Signature drink: Aperol spritz, sundowner long drinks
Food: Backpacker small plates
Tip: Open until late through summer; access via the hostel elevator.
Garden of Eden's courtyard in the Universul building on Brezoianu is one of the quietest nightlife rooms in Bucharest, a leafy enclosed garden bar.
Signature drink: Citrus and rosemary spritz
Food: Tapas plates
Tip: Heated through winter; turnover is slow, so plan to stay Standing room when busy.
Hop Hooligans Taproom on Jean Louis Calderon, a 10 minute walk from Bucharest's Piața Universității, pours the brewery's latest IPAs and guest taps.
Signature drink: Crowd Control IPA
Food: Bar snacks
Tip: Latest brewery releases on rotation; small heated terrace at the front.