Four Indian Bars Just Made It To Asia's 50 Best
Banana-infused rums, curry leaf sodas, and outdoing the cliches — India's best bars are carving their own path
Every year, the Asia’s 50 Best Bars list drops and every year, the spotlight usually stays locked on Tokyo’s quiet precision or Singapore’s high-design showmanship. But this time, and for a first win for India, we’re done staying behind the scenes.
Once relegated to playing catch-up with Singapore’s high-concept lounges or Tokyo’s spiritual mixology temples, India’s bar scene is no longer the quiet underdog—it’s loud and proud, and right up there with Seoul’s aesthetic inventions.
This year’s Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025 extended list (ranks 51–100) features four standout Indian entries, each representing a unique chapter in the country’s ever-expanding cocktail story. From heritage rum lounges on Goan coastlines to New Delhi’s speakeasy-meets-library mixology den, there’s a welcome irreverence and a growing confidence in the way Indian bars are telling their stories—and being recognised for it.
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This isn’t the India of chai cocktails and token turmeric infusions. It’s the India of fat-washed tequila with curry leaf soda, of banana rum and black rice tinctures, of speakeasies that double as bookstores and rum lounges built on old Goan shipping lore. It’s layered, locally fluent, and way past trying to impress the West. These bars aren’t borrowing aesthetics or chasing global templates—they have a tasteful language of their own.
And maybe that’s what makes this year’s representation hit different. Sure, Sidecar’s back (no surprise there), but it’s Goa’s two entries that signal a deeper shift. Meanwhile, Bombay Canteen continues to do what it does best—serve nostalgia in highball form, with enough edge to keep you coming back.
Here’s a closer look at the four Indian bars that made the cut this year.
Bar Outrigger, Goa (No. 55)
If Goa had a cocktail altar, Bar Outrigger would be it. Making a bold debut at No. 55, this Dona Paula haunt channels India’s coastal history into a deeply romantic, rum-forward drinking experience. Think Caribbean swagger meets Konkan nostalgia. Founders Arijit Bose and Francis Coelho have crafted more than just a bar—they’ve curated a space that leans into warm wood, teal accents, and stories that float in with the tide. The Kingston Negroni gives your classic gin fix a tropical detour, the Outrigger cocktail is a love letter to lime-laced house rum, and the Coffee Painkiller—laced with coconut cream and nutmeg—feels like a lazy afternoon reimagined in a glass. It’s thoughtful, it’s place-driven, and it’s proof that Goa isn’t just a vibe anymore.
Sidecar, New Delhi (No. 62)
Sidecar is a benchmark in India at this point. Sitting pretty at No. 62 this year, Yangdup Lama and Minakshi Singh’s GK outpost is less about the hype and more about the homework. A two-storey affair with a daytime café-meets-bookstore vibe downstairs and a full-blown cocktail theatre upstairs, it’s a masterclass in consistency. The bar’s latest menu doubles up as a travelogue, turning cities like Colombo and Bangkok into sippable stories—for instance, the ‘Ceylon’ with truffle, miso coconut, and cold brew.
The Bombay Canteen, Mumbai (No. 69)
Everything about The Bombay Canteen feels like a beautifully designed paradox: old-school yet modern, local yet global, nostalgic yet surprising. Ranked 69 this year, the bar continues to stay relevant by simply being true to itself—deeply Indian, seasonal, and proudly inventive. Housed in the always-buzzing Lower Parel district, it’s a restaurant that has never sidelined its drinks programme. Take the ‘Waiting List’, a tequila and curry leaf highball that’s as cheeky as it is sophisticated, or the ‘Stolen Kiss’, which uses pickled starfruit like a bartender would use vermouth. Add to that the warmth of Hunger Inc’s hospitality, and you’ve got a bar that tastes like Bombay, in all its beautiful chaos.
Hideaway, Goa (No. 94)
Tucked into the boho backstreets of Vagator, Hideaway is exactly what the name promises: an escape. A slow, heady retreat from Goa’s tourist noise, this part-bar, part-music venue has quietly built a loyal community of creatives, musicians, and cocktail lovers since opening in 2019. Now at No. 94 on the extended list, it finally gets the regional recognition it’s long deserved. The drinks don’t try too hard—they just reflect the bar’s soul. The ‘Babylon’, with passionfruit and lemongrass oil, is pure tropical flirtation. The ‘End of Day’, blending banana-infused rum with coffee and black rice tincture, is layered, bold, and gently experimental. Throw in live jazz nights, a laidback crowd, and a soundtrack that swings from modern soul to bossa nova, and you get one of the few bars that feels like a feeling—not a formula.
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The Full Extended List: Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025 (Ranks 51–100)
Here’s who made the cut this year, from sleek Tokyo haunts to Phnom Penh’s rising stars.
51. Obsidian Bar, Shenzhen
52. Pine & Co, Seoul
53. Side Door, Singapore
54. Soko, Seoul
55. Bar Outrigger, Goa
56. Sago House, Singapore
57. Lab, Taipei
58. Craftroom, Osaka
59. The Han-Jia, Tainan
60. Origin Bar, Singapore
61. Stir, Ho Chi Minh City
62. Sidecar, New Delhi
63. Gong Gan, Seoul
64. Backdoor Bodega, Penang
65. Sora, Phnom Penh
66. Wu (Nothingness), Taipei
67. Gold Bar, Tokyo
68. Pantja, Jakarta
69. The Bombay Canteen, Mumbai
70. Tokyo Confidential, Tokyo
71. Mahaniyom Cocktail Bar, Bangkok
72. Bar Mood, Taipei
73. Under Lab, Taipei
74. Epic, Shanghai
75. Maltail, Kaohsiung
76. Bee’s Knees, Kyoto
77. Night Hawk, Singapore
78. The Curator, Manila
79. The Bellwood, Tokyo
80. The Opposites, Hong Kong
81. Sober Company, Shanghai
82. Firefly, Bangkok
83. Workshop14, Hanoi
84. Raa, Hiriketiya
85. Coa (Shanghai), Shanghai
86. The Hudson Rooms, Hanoi
87. The Haflington, Hanoi
88. Mostly Harmless, Hong Kong
89. Employees Only, Singapore
90. Messenger Service, Bangkok
91. Quinary, Hong Kong
92. Coley, Kuala Lumpur
93. The Enigma Mansion, Ho Chi Minh City
94. Hideaway, Goa
95. Fura, Singapore
96. Charles H, Seoul
97. Pony Up, Shanghai
98. The Golden Tooth, Jakarta
99. The SG Club, Tokyo
100. Bar Nayuta, Osaka