30 editor picks across United States.
30 speakeasies worth the night across United States, editor-ranked. All United States guides.
Bar Leather Apron in Downtown Honolulu is the intimate mezzanine cocktail bar inside the TOPA Financial Center, the 2023 James Beard winner for Outstanding.
TipWednesday to Saturday 17:00 to midnight. Reservations highly recommended; walk-ins by availability only.
The Office in Chicago is the 21-seat speakeasy beneath The Aviary, hidden behind an unmarked door with vintage spirits, Persian rugs and one bartender per night.
TipReservations through Tock only. The vintage spirits list goes deep; tell the bartender what era or distillery you want and they pull the bottle.
Williams & Graham on Tejon Street fronts as a corner bookstore in LoHi. Pull Harry Craddock's Savoy Cocktail Book from the shelf and the bookcase slides open onto a 60-seat speakeasy.
TipOpen 17:00-01:00 daily, no reservations. Walk in early on weeknights; weekend waits stretch to 90 minutes from 19:00.
Standby in The Belt alley off Gratiot serves modern craft cocktails in downtown Detroit since 2015. James Beard Outstanding Bar Program semifinalist in 2017.
TipEntry from The Belt alley; reservations recommended weekend evenings via OpenTable.
Bandista hides behind a bookcase inside the Four Seasons Houston, off Toro Toro. Twenty seats, a 1920s Latin lounge concept, and a spot on North America's 50.
TipReservations through OpenTable in 90-minute slots; the staff opens with bespoke flights tailored to your spirit preference. No standing-only entry.
Bryant's Cocktail Lounge on South 9th Street in Lincoln Village has poured no-menu cocktails since 1938 with dealer's-choice service in a speakeasy-style.
Jewel of the South, by Chris Hannah and partner John Stubbs, runs the renovated 1830s Creole cottage as a World's 50 Best cocktail room with a stocked back.
TipReserve via Resy; the garden tables sit two and four. The Brandy Crusta is the order, served at the front bar.
Canon on 12th Avenue is Jamie Boudreau's Capitol Hill cocktail room with the largest spirits library in the country at 4,000 plus labels and a strict four guest cap per party.
TipOpen Wednesday through Sunday from 17:00-00:00. Walk in friendly, limited reservations; the bar caps parties at four to keep service tight.
Kimball House inside the 1891 Decatur train depot pours one of the country's deepest absinthe lists and Atlanta's defining cocktail program, with a raw bar of Georgia and East Coast oysters.
TipClosed Mondays. Resy for tables, walk-in at the bar; the absinthe service and the oyster happy hour are the orders.
Midnight Cowboy on East 6th in Austin is the reservation-only speakeasy in a former massage parlor, tableside cocktails and parties of eight maximum.
TipBook on Tock; push the Harry Craddock button at the unmarked door. Walk-ins only when the red light above the door shows green.
Farmacia on North Square is the 9-seat cocktail bar inside the All Day Hospitality space, run by Phillip Rolfe. A built multi-cocktail experience.
TipTickets drop on the 60-day mark and sell within minutes. Sunday and Tuesday are private events; Wednesday through Saturday is public.
The Aviary in Chicago opened 2011 as Grant Achatz's Alinea Group cocktail lab, applying fine-dining technique to a five-course tasting of cocktails paired with small plates.
TipTock reservations only, no walk-ins. The seasonal 5-course tasting is $145; sit at the bar to watch the kitchen build the drinks.
The Violet Hour in Chicago hides behind a rotating mural on Damen Avenue. The James Beard winning pre-Prohibition room opened 2007 with curtained salons and a marble bar.
TipNo reservations, walk in. The line out front moves; once you are inside the rule is no cell phones and conversations stay below the music.
Kumiko is Julia Momosé's Japanese dining bar in the West Loop, ranked No. 11 on North America's 50 Best Bars 2026 and named Best Bar in the Midwest. The list runs from highballs of Japanese whisky to signature cocktails with shochu and sake, with a separate whisky bar menu.
TipOpen Wednesday to Sunday evenings with last call at 23:30; book through the Kumiko site and ask for the whisky bar menu.
Death & Co Denver runs the lobby bar of The Ramble Hotel in RiNo, the second outpost of the NYC cocktail standard with a coffee bar, mezzanine Suite 6A lounge and rooftop Garden.
TipWalk-in for parties of eight or fewer, with limited SevenRooms reservations. Kitchen runs until 22:00 most nights, 23:00 Friday and Saturday.
An 11-seat speakeasy inside Cheeni, Bar Beej is a 2025 James Beard Best New Bar semifinalist. Reservations required; the programme rotates monthly around a themed cocktail menu. The most intimate and concept-driven drinking experience in Durham.
Refuge is Bobby Heugel's reservation-only cocktail bar above Anvil on Westheimer, opened May 2022 with around twenty seats, 200 spirits and tasting flights.
TipResy reservations open weekly. Entrance is via the back staircase off the Anvil side door; hot towels and a multi-course tasting flight are house standards.
The Underground sits in the basement of The Mob Museum in the former Prohibition-era courthouse with a working distillery, speakeasy bar and live jazz most evenings.
TipEnter through the side door with the password if you only want the speakeasy. Museum ticket-holders get an easier walk-in route from upstairs.
The Vault at Bellagio is the unmarked-door speakeasy behind the live gaming tables with 10 tables, an onyx bar, vintage spirits including 1930s Remy and Studio Munge's lighting build.
TipReservations highly recommended; cocktails average around $55. Look for the unmarked door near the high-limit tables on the casino floor.
The Laundry Room is the 22-seat speakeasy tucked behind a bookshelf inside Commonwealth on Fremont East. Reservations open two weeks ahead by text and fill within minutes.
TipText 702-701-1466 two weeks ahead; reservations cap at four guests for 90 minutes. No photos, no standing at the bar, no loud talk.
Death & Co in the LA Arts District opened in 2019 under Alex Day, Dave Kaplan and Devon Tarby, the West Coast outpost of the East Village room.
TipTock reservations open weekly. Walk-ins try the standing rail or the adjacent lobby bar at the Hoxton.
Sweet Liberty on 20th Street in Collins Park is the John Lermayer cocktail icon, a sprawling room of Spec's Mixology Bar of the Year drinks, creative American food and a kitchen that runs past 04:00 most nights.
TipHappy hour daily 16:00-20:00 is the easy entry. The room is big enough that walk-ins land seats outside weekend prime time.
French 75 at Arnaud's has poured the city's defining gin-and-champagne cocktail since 1918, a wood-panelled side room behind the dining hall with a small bar.
TipWalk in for the bar; reservations for the dining room only. Order the French 75 with a side of soufflé potatoes.
Cure on Freret Street, opened by Neal Bodenheimer in 2009, took the James Beard Outstanding Bar award in 2018. The room sits inside a restored 1905 firehouse.
TipWalk in for the bar, Resy for a back-room seat. The seasonal menu changes quarterly; the bartenders will riff if you give them a flavour to chase.
Death & Co on East 6th opened New Year's Eve 2006 and has run the modern New York cocktail template since: dark room, single seat at the bar, no standing.
TipLimited Tock reservations, otherwise first-come for groups up to eight. Wait list opens at the door from 18:00.
Dante on MacDougal has poured Negronis since 1915, now under owners Linden Pride and Naren Young, who took the room from neighborhood cafe to World's Best.
TipWalk in for the bar, Resy for a table. The Garibaldi, made with hand-fluffed orange juice, is the order.
Hop Sing Laundromat on Race Street in Chinatown is the unmarked Philadelphia cocktail room behind a gray door, run on cash with strict house rules.
TipOpen Thursday through Saturday from 17:00. Cash only; no shorts, sneakers, hats, phones or photos. Reservations via Instagram DM.
The Multnomah Whiskey Library is the second-floor gentlemen's-club-style room on SW Alder where the back wall holds more than 1,500 spirits, with whiskey carts rolled to the table.
TipWalk-in waits can run two hours on weekends; the membership line and the public line move separately, so book a member's reservation slot if you can.
The Eddy on Eddy Street is downtown Providence's reference craft cocktail bar: dimly lit, no TV, classic and creative drinks plus charcuterie and oysters.
False Idol hides through a walk-in cooler door inside Craft and Commerce on Beech Street, the Little Italy tiki speakeasy with an indoor waterfall.
TipReservations through Resy preferred; the inside dining room is the waitlist. Bartender's Choice or the Navigator's Niche tiki classics.
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