by Bath has an ever growing selection of quite sophisticated bars. The ones recommended below are all professional outfits in captivating settings, with staff who know how to mix a cocktail. Some are lively, others quiet little dens.
For more Bath inspiration, check out our guide to the city and its best hotels, restaurants, pubs, things to do and places for afternoon tea.
Center
Sub 13
One of Bath’s oldest, best known and most vibrant cocktail bars occupies a prime location in a Georgian building on George Street, the city’s nightlife focal point. Although there is an indoor cocktail bar, most of the drinking and socializing usually takes place outside on the large enclosed garden terrace, which is decked out with outdoor sofas, picnic tables and other seating and enlivened by lights. The terrace has a tent effect under the awning and is heated in winter; every night you may find DJs playing sets. There’s also the Sub Club on Friday and Saturday nights, an underground club area in Georgian vaults. The mixologists know their stuff and all night long every night the same cocktails are priced two for one.
Contact: sub13.net
Price: ££
Fidel Rum Bar
This cute and cozy little bar is tucked away down a side street called Trim Bridge, off the Upper Borough Walls, where a section of the medieval city walls once stood. As you can imagine, rum is the thing here: some 140 types are offered: white, dark, spiced and flavoured, most of them non-Cuban. In addition to classic Cuban cocktails such as mojitos, the bar has its own creations such as HMS Somerset: white rum, elderflower, lime, mango and apple juice. You can sit on the street, in the bar area or upstairs in a lounge on hot pink banquettes surrounded by atmospheric photos of Cuban scenes.
Contact: 01225 426735; facebook.com/fidelbath
Price: ££
Hall & Woodhouse bar and restaurant
The Dorset brewery’s eye-catching conversion of what used to be the auction rooms of Bonhams is a lively place for a drink. The spectacular open-plan interior includes long wooden tables for drinking (and eating, but there are better places to dine in Bath) and a club-like area with Chesterfield sofas, beat-up leather armchairs, shelves of board games and an indie soundtrack. Upstairs there is a roof terrace which is open until 9pm most nights in the summer. In addition to the brewery’s Badger beers, there’s a good selection of cocktails such as the French Revolution, a refreshing and highly drinkable blend of vodka, black raspberry liqueur, pineapple juice and fresh raspberries.
Contact: hall-woodhousebath.co.uk
Price: £
Bread & Jam
This unique waiter-service cocktail bar is part of Walcot House, a multi-purpose venue in a former bakery that also includes a trendy café and restaurant. Bread & Jam is set up in the vaulted basement, with plush leather loveseats, sofas, and chairs under industrial piping. House cocktails include a Baby Sherb: gin, Babycham and lime sorbet. It is only open on Fridays and Saturdays. You can also have a drink at Walcot House’s Dilly Bar in the stylish upstairs restaurant area. There’s also a members-only club, Lomah, with dancing and live music in an adjacent underground space.
Contact: walcothousebath.com/bread-jam
Price: ££
Club Cup – The Townhouse Bathroom
The Coppa Club is a small chain of multi-purpose venues, open all day and all evening, promoted as a “club house” without the exclusivity of the members’ clubs. The Bath Townhouse outlet, formerly a Gap clothing store, is located on an upmarket shopping thoroughfare, with picture windows overlooking the street. Inside, swirling chandeliers, prints and murals imbue the place with a glam Art Deco vibe. Downstairs at the front is a comfortable area for having coffee, drinks and snacks. Behind it is the restaurant – the menus cover all the bases, but there are better places to eat in Bath. Climb the sinuous staircase to a boldly pink cocktail bar, which is a tranquil retreat during the day but often bustling on weekend nights.
Contact: coppaclub.co.uk/the-bath-townhouse
Price: ££
Comptoir+Kitchen
Located in the basement of this enigmatic shop-bistro-deli is a champagne bar, in a refined den of velvet sofas, 1970s coffee tables, multicolored lampshades and vintage posters. Alongside a list of Champagne-based cocktails, which includes a Bath Sunrise with creme de cassis, several Champagnes are particularly recommended to accompany a range of cheese platters, fondues and baked Camembert. Classic cocktails are also available.
Contact: www.comptoirpluscuisine.com
Price: ££
The Bath Distillery Gin Bar
Midway down cobbled Queen Street is one of the city’s best-loved bars. There are around 230 gins on offer, covering fruity, floral, vegetal and dry varieties. They include the company’s Bath Gin, produced at a distillery in the city (tours and tastings on offer) and with a winking Jane Austen on the bottle. The stylish bartenders really know their stuff, so ask for recommendations. The place is often full on weekends. The second bar upstairs can be less crowded. Gin-making classes are also offered.
Contact: thebathgincompany.co.uk
Price: ££
Black Horse
This red-light underground bar draws you down from Kingsmead Square, offering seasonal and classic cocktails in sultry surroundings. Velvet curtains, candlelit tables, and vaulted corners add drama, but cheerful, knowledgeable bar staff and transatlantic rock ‘n’ roll tunes lighten the mood. The intimate venue is a good option for couples or friends who want to avoid the rowdy crowds.
You are encouraged to book in advance, although walk-ins can be accommodated. There’s also an outdoor terrace on Kingsmead Square in the summer, which doesn’t take bookings. The bar takes locally sourced ingredients seriously, with all beers sourced from the South West of England and fruit side dishes from the Bath Hills. It also serves, for example, not one but two Somerset cider brandy cocktails. Eden is like biting into a slightly sour apple.
Contact: darkhorsebar.co.uk
Price: ££
The botanist
Yes, The Botanist is a chain, but the company has done a good job of landscaping Bath’s Grade II* listed Octagon, a glorious building tucked away behind Milsom Street, which originally served as a private chapel when it was built in 1766 The astronomer William Herschel, who discovered Uranus while living in Bath, was the organist. The bar is located in the center of the octagonal shaped building under a stuccoed vaulted ceiling. The Botanist’s drinks cover the full range of options and there’s an extensive food menu too. Set among the rock arches of a crypt it lies below. Part of The Botanist, the underground bar is medieval apothecary-style and its unusual cocktail list favors botanicals.
Contact: thebotanist.uk.com/locations/bath
Price: ££
The hideout
Without its stone-paved courtyard terrace spilling out below a side street near Bath Abbey, you’d be hard pressed to notice The Hideout was there. A small but jovial den inside, the bar has more than 200 different types of whiskey on the shelves of its old stone and paneled walls. The staff may suggest you try a shot of Crab Smasher, which was invented here. It’s an invigorating explosion of peaty 10 year old Ardbeg, Scapegrace Gold gin, Green Chartreuse and bitters. The terrace is used all year round, with the heaters switched off in the colder months.
Contact: hideoutbath.co.uk
Price: ££
East of Pulteney Bridge
Opium bar
An underground night hangout, where the rooms are decorated in a shabby-chic style: a chaise longue here, a wind-up gramophone there, replica Renaissance murals on the vaulted ceilings, that sort of thing. If you’re feeling decadent (and in this environment you should be), drink a glass of absinthe, poured over a sugar cube on a slotted spoon. The playlist is eclectic yet upbeat. Opium is in a central but hidden position: from the city centre, cross Pulteney Bridge, first turn left, then left again.
Contact: opiumbars.com
Price: ££
