From the plush seating and stunning views of bars in luxury hotels to a speakeasy-style cocktail den in a restaurant basement, there is a new bar for almost every taste this September.
In London, the influence of India and Taiwan are channelled into two cocktail bars accessed through restaurants, while in Sydney there is an elegant new bar for the Martini-lover and a chance to try the dishes of Michelin-starred chef Clare Smyth over cocktails without breaking the bank.
Read on to discover the most exciting new bars to visit this September.
The best new bars to visit in September 2024
37 Bar
Geneva, Switzerland
The new bar at the five-star hotel The Woodward on Lake Geneva is the sister to design-led New York cocktail spot Bar Bastion. Cocktails at 37 Bar are said to ‘combine the richness of local terroir with international influences’ and include the Martini au Lac, which consists of olive oil-washed vodka, French dry vermouth, fino sherry and olive bitters, and the Alpine Luxe, made from gin, fresh basil, lime, green Chartreuse and black pepper. The chef from the hotel’s two-Michelin star restaurant, Olivier Jean, has created snacks for the bar, so you can expect more than a bag of peanuts to go with drinks: there are langoustines, a mushroom and quinoa soufflé, truffle fries, tuna tartare and caviar amongst a lavish list of options. French architect Pierre-Yves Rochon is responsible for the design of the bar but its position on a veranda facing the lake may mean you spend more time gazing at the landscape beyond than admiring his work.
Open now, oetkercollection.com/the-woodward/bar-37
Soma 2.0
London, UK
There are now several branches of the Indian restaurant Kricket around London but the latest branch to open, this time in Canary Wharf, will be of particular interest to lovers of good cocktails. That’s because adjoining it is the second iteration of Soma, the award-winning cocktail bar that first opened on Denman Street in Soho, serving twists on classic cocktails and their own inventions. The cocktail list includes a Martini comprised of vodka, charred carrot, dill and carraway vermouth, a Margarita made with Tequila, mezcal, chaat masala and gooseberry and the Aam Panna, which is whisky, lacto green mango, Ancho Reyes Verde liquer and honey. To celebrate the opening of the new bar, a new cocktail called Rice has been introduced, a take on a classic vodka Highball that contains rice vodka, spent rice, pomegranate and chai foam. Soma 2.0 will have a speakeasy feel, thanks in part to the discreet entrance at the back of the new restaurant, but the geometric light fixtures glowing yellow and red over the central bar are distinctly more 2020s than 1920s.
Open now, somasoho.com
View this post on Instagram
Bobbies
Sydney, Australia
Chef and restaurateur Neil Parry has made the Double Bay neighbourhood of Sydney the home of numerous ventures after first opening his restaurant Margaret there. After a bakery and a more casual sister restaurant comes Bobbies, a cocktail bar with a focus on the Martini and live music. The cocktail list includes ten different Martinis, followed by a selection of Highballs, aperitifs and shorter drinks on the rocks. There’s an extensive list of food too, including oysters, seafood platters, caviar and more from a raw bar, plus traditional bar snacks like olives, gildas and charcuterie. An array of live music comes from jazz trios, funk bands, acoustic guitarists and DJs most evenings (thankfully, not all playing at once).
Open now, margaret-group.netlify.app/bobbies
Good Measure
London, UK
The team at Daddy Bao, a Taiwanese restaurant in Tooting, south London, is opening a cocktail bar in the basement. What was once a storeroom has been repurposed as a 15-seat space inspired by the developing cocktail scene in Taipei; part of that culture is bars springing up in unexpected spaces (i.e. a restaurant storeroom). The bar will use ingredients for the drinks from and inspired by the food served upstairs, with peanut-infused bourbon, sake, matcha and green tea all featuring in the cocktails available at opening. Taiwanese bar snacks will be on hand too. The bar will initially be open on Friday and Saturday nights, playing hip hop to those looking for an aperitif before dinner upstairs or an inventive cocktail on a bar crawl around the area.
Opens 6 September, daddybao.co.uk/goodmeasure
The Bar at Oncore
Sydney, Australia
Oncore by Clare Smyth is the Aussie counterpart to her three-star Michelin restaurant Core in London. On the 26th floor of Crown Sydney hotel, the restaurant offers breathtaking views of Sydney Harbour to diners enjoying Smyth’s seven-course tasting menus. Now, the opening of a bar with its own menu in the restaurant gives guests a more casual opportunity to try mini-versions of some of the restaurant’s dishes without committing to the full experience. A taster of the renowned Potato and Roe, for example, can be sampled on its own with a glass of wine or cocktail. Bar manager Roean Patawaran is on hand to mix the drinks and guests can still choose from the restaurant’s 3,000-bottle wine cellar regardless of what they decide to eat.
