The indulgence of Christmas and the start of a new year might make a month’s abstinence from alcohol and most forms of fun seem like the best course of action but going out somewhere special in January for or one or two quality drinks can be a great way to keep the winter blues at bay.
While some hibernate for a month, the world continues, meaning there is still an impressive selection of new bars to visit in January and many of the staff will be even happier to serve you in what is an often worryingly quiet time in hospitality. Wine bar royalty in the form of Michael Sager is opening a cosy little wine bar next to Victoria Park in East London, while sultry elegance is the prevailing theme at two new cocktail venues in New York. Fans of René Magritte may want to put a visit to the luxury Hotel Amigo in Brussels in their plans, as a new bar there is serving carefully considered tributes to the famous surrealist in the form of signature cocktails.
Read on to discover the most exciting new bars to visit this month.
The best new bars to visit in January 2024
Twice Shy
London, UK
The former head mixologist at The Savoy, Elon Soddu, opened cocktail bar Amaro in Kensington in 2021. It won rave reviews and now Soddu and the team are opening a second bar called Twice Shy just around the corner, near Earl’s Court station. The main room on the ground floor is dominated by a long counter and has space for 30 people, and there’s also a ‘private drinking room’ in the basement for 15 with a laboratory and kitchen. The drinks at Twice Shy are focused on showcasing one or two main ingredients, with cocktails including a Lemongrass & Amalfi Lemon (pictured), which is a combination of lemongrass gin and Amalfi lemon distillate, and Vanilla & Sakura, a mix of vanilla soda, Italicus and Mancino Sakura Vermouth.
Open now, twiceshy.co.uk
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Bar Magritte
Brussels, Belgium
Opened, as you may have guessed, in honour of famous Belgian surrealist artist René Magritte, Bar Magritte is a cocktail bar in the five-star Hotel Amigo in the centre of Brussels. The cocktail list was created by leading bartender Salvatore Calabrese, a former president of the UK Bartenders’ Guild, who has split the cocktail list into two categories, one of which features 10 signature drinks inspired by 10 pieces of Magritte’s work. The other features classic cocktails chosen on the basis of the figures and events of the artist’s life. La bonne foi is the inspiration for the Good Faith, a mix of almond-infused bourbon, sherry, simple syrup, bitters and mezcal, while Le retour has resulted in a combination of Tequila, blue curacao, citric solution, Italicus, cacao and white tonic. Small plates are also on offer in a space designed to evoke the 1920s and ‘30s.
Open now, hotel-amigo/bar-magritte/
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Sotto
New York, US
Underneath Lupetto, on a corner overlooking Madison Square Park, there’s a new basement bar well worth dropping into this month. At Sotto, the menu focuses on craft amari, surfing the wave of interest in bitters that shows no signs of subsiding. Of course, there are old-school Vespers and Negronis to ease you in but there’s also a backbar of liqueurs your bartender will more than happily talk you through.
Open now, lupettonyc.com/the-bar
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Bar Bruno
London, UK
Michael Sager, one half of the original duo behind famous London wine bar Sager + Wilde, is opening a small wine bar and shop in his own neighbourhood of Victoria Park Village in Hackney. Called Bar Bruno, after Sager’s father, expect wine choices from off the beaten track and minimal intervention styles, which Sager told us in an interview last year he finds ‘super interesting’.
Opens later in January, instagram.com/_barbruno
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Tigre
New York, US
Cosy, glowy basement bar Tigre celebrates retro cocktail glamour with mid century bar styling and banquettes that edge the entire room. From the same brains as Maison Premiere, a James Beard award-winner in Williamsburg, the menu nods to the disco era with Martinis (served ‘by ratio’) and Cosmopolitans, while serving its own contemporary creations (including four different ‘mists’) alongside. Duck behind a graffiti-covered door to discover it.
Open now, tigrenyc.com
