23 Best Bars in Rome
The Eternal City comes alive at sunset, and its roster of bars is second to none. A few years’ back Rome’s drinks scene was bordering on predictable (small, cramped, heavy on the Campari), but lately mixologists have been changing things up, making world-class cocktails in spectacular settings. There are modern, sky-high rooftop bars; wine bars serving natural, regional wines, and chic hotel courtyard bars that evoke good old Dolce Vita Italian glamour. Here, our pick of the best bars in Rome.
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Every bar on this list has been selected independently by Condé Nast Traveler editors and reviewed by a local contributor who has visited that restaurant. Our editors consider both high-end and affordable eateries, and weigh stand-out menu items, location, and service—as well as inclusivity and sustainability credentials. We update this list as new restaurants open and existing ones evolve.
Claudia Gianvenuti/Drink KongbarDrink Kong
Rome’s best mixologist, Patrick Pistolesi, runs this very slick 1980s-style cocktail-lounge that regularly makes The World’s 50 Best Bars list. There’s neon art, loud music, and a very cool crowd. Alongside the cocktail menu, there’s also a spirits, wine, and sake list. Menus are a work of art in themselves, with drinks broken down by tastes (acid, sweet, bitter), glass (coupe, high ball, tumbler, wine glass, bowl). Each drink gets its own page with a little description, plus its own special graphic artwork. The Paradox cocktail, for example, is made from gin and amber vermouth, and is described as ‘bitter, bizarre, deep’. We ventured for the ‘Big Trouble in Oaxaca’, drawn by the ‘adventurous, naughty, green’ description—and were not disappointed.
Adriana Forconi/Hotel Locarno BarbarHotel Locarno Bar
Just around the corner from Piazza del Popolo, the courtyard bar of Hotel Locarno has a strong aperitivo game. Actors and media types tend to come here for an evening; come weekends, the Sunday brunch is also popular. They do the Italian classics well—you know the deal: Negronis, Campari spritzes, ice-cold Martinis, that sort of thing. But it’s the location that really draws the crowds—a picture-perfect courtyard, with trickling fountains, shaded by wisteria trees. Come for a pre-dinner drink and sit in the courtyard with small bowls of olives and crisps before going on to dinner elsewhere. It'll be the kind of iconic Roman afternoon you've been dreaming of since you bought your flights.
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Rocco Forte HotelsbarCielo Bar
Rooftop bars are a hot ticket item in Rome right now, but Cielo—on the top of Hotel de La Ville—is one of the best, with its riviera striped decor, candle-lit tables and sweeping views across Rome. Classic cocktails are their jam and the bartenders really know their stuff. On the night we visited, young, beautiful, and international jet set was the vibe. There was a group of Americans dressed up and ready to party; a Swiss couple on a date; two Glaswegians propped up at the bar; and some very chic Romans having an after-work drink. It’s glam but not intimidating—the kind of place where you can pull up a chair and have a drink solo without feeling out of place. There’s nothing fancy or gimmicky about this cocktail list; it’s all about real-deal, classic drinks—with a twist. Try the ‘watergame’, with blanco tequila, mezcal, honey and basil, or our personal 1980s-love child favorite, the ‘gargamel’: a beautifully blue concoction of Tanqueray gin, bergamot, grapefruit bitters and lemon.
Sabrina RossibarCul de Sac
$This wine bar may be small, but the atmosphere’s happy, bustling, and warm—due in part, no doubt, to the wooden booths and the wine bottles that cover every wall. Expect a good mix of locals and tourists—the former because it’s straight-up amazing, the latter because it’s right by Piazza Navona and Campo de' Fiori. True genius shows in summer, when the owners fling the front doors open and set about ten more tables on the terrace—adding people-watching and sun-soaking to your already near-perfect drinking. There's a solid menu of cheeses and cured meats, too.
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barArgot Bar
$$Quite possibly Rome's coolest bar—a moody, late-night speakeasy that's a mash up of bare-brick walls and exposed pipes and your granny's florid armchair beside frilly white doilies covered in old candle wax. The cocktails are even served in what looks like your gran's old crystal wear; but that's where the similarities end. The crowd—so-called beautiful people, with long, glossy hair and tattoos—is half of why you come. The other half, of course, is for the drinks. We love “Le Papillon,” a heady, warming blend of whisky, lime juice, lapsang tea syrup, pepper, and ginger beer.
Rocco Forte HotelsbarStravinskij Bar
There are few places as iconic as Hotel de Russie’s Stravinskij Bar. The inside is undeniably classy, but it’s the outside terrace that really packs a punch. Tables are topped with martinis and framed by peaceful manicured gardens. It’s a slice of Rome’s Dolce Vita at its best. The aperitivo menu offers some excellent pre-dinner cocktails, including a great Sbagliato and a pleasing riff on the Americano. The Stravinskij Champagne is a sweet mix of botanicals with lavender and angostura, topped with Comte de Montaigne Extra Brut. The food menu is delightfully old-school, with club sandwiches and chocolate mousse plus Amatriciana pasta and tiramisu post-10:30 p.m.
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La Salsamenteria
$$This is a proper, old-school wine shop, with bottles stacked high on the walls and only a couple of tables. But if you happen to come when it's empty, and owner Roberto's in a good mood, it can become your own private wine bar, complete with detailed recommendations and even some antipasti. The Champagne selection is one of the best in Rome, and there's plenty of food: platters of Italy's finest cured meats and cheeses, selected to match the wines. Best of all, Roberto knows his stuff; he'll tell you the stories behind the wines as you sample them.
Courtesy The Barber ShopbarThe Barber Shop
$$You've entered proper speakeasy territory: plump chesterfield lounges, exposed brick arches, candles dripping onto antique cherub statues—comforting, but undeniably suave. Settle in and let your eyes graze the scene. Soon enough you’ll spot the original barber shop itself, ancient chairs on black-and-white checkered tiles, insouciantly dressed up by the gaudy chandeliers overhead. The staff are masters of their craft. They're also entertaining and remarkably friendly—it's pretty clear they love what they do.
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barJerry Thomas Speakeasy
$$It's hard to know when, or whether, the gents behind Jerry Thomas Speakeasy veer into self-parody; but it hardly matters. Theatricality's the appeal. The room's small and smoky, the decor's 1920s Prohibition-era chic (floral wallpaper, tasseled lamps, velvet couches). The bartenders (who, according to the posted "rules," are "always right") wear period gear, and as often as not you'll find a '20s-era jazz combo playing. The one thing they're deadly serious about at this Ponte bar is the drinks, which is why it's not surprising to find JTS on the World's 50 Best Bars list. The Grinch was one of our personal favorites: tequila, lime juice, and bitters made from pepper, topped with vanilla foam and dressed with a candy cane.
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Open Baladin
$$Rome’s craft beer headquarters. Purists will be thrilled—there are more brews here than you can count, all lined up on the well-lit bar so you know exactly what you're ordering. The interior feels young, bright, and angular, with ochre walls covered in big, brightly colored drawings. Grab one of the canary-yellow stools that line the marble bar and grok the rambunctious chalkboard to get caught up on the day's best beers. The food—mostly burgers, both meat and vegan—is impressive, varied, and often delightfully wacky.
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Courtesy Sacripante Art GallerybarSacripante Gallery
$$Sacripante is an art gallery, good and proper, the grey stone walls hung with a rotating roster of surrealist pop art. But duck under the oak-beam ceilings and follow the polished cement floors through this former convent in Monti, and you’ll be rewarded with a cocktail bar resembling an old-fashioned apothecary den, replete with potion bottles, medicine cabinets, and crystal-glass measuring cups. Drinks are served in vintage glasses, with a wedge of pomegranate, melon, or pineapple on the side, and aperitivo hour, which kicks in at 6 p.m., heralds the arrival of fancy (and free) snacks like Venetian smoked salmon with your drinks.
Matteo RapisardabarThe Factory
$$This is a beer hall that perfectly toes the line between cool and grungy. The program is unique craft beers from small breweries and there’s always an interesting lineup. They're wide-ranging when it comes to style and flavor profile; check the blackboard for details, or ask for a rec—the staff are real gems. They'll happily give you tastings if you don’t know what to order. When it comes to eats, burgers are their thing. Try one of the mad-scientist-style specials, like the sky-high Double Factory Burger with crispy speck, two beef patties, tomato, mushrooms, eggplant, and melty provolone cheese.
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8 millimetri
$$A great place to take a breather while in Trastevere, 8 millimetri's playful wall art overlooks an eclectic jumble of furniture, including homey armchairs and beer kegs that double as stools. There's a grand piano fervently scrawled with messages from patrons. Daisies in jam jars brighten the tables. Tattooed students and skate punks share tables with dressy young professionals. They’re all here for the cocktails, which are colorful and fun, and for the vegetarian buffet that comes out at aperitivo hour—roasted tomatoes, couscous, and chickpeas, abound.
Sabrina RossibarBar del Fico
$$Bar del Fico is what you might call "approachably hip." The entrance is an unassuming door on a charming cobblestoned passage near Piazza Navona. Head back to the "salotto del fico," where potted trees fill every corner and mismatched chairs crowd bar tables topped by chess boards. It's an ice-cold-martini kind of place; the bartenders are, unsurprisingly, masters of their craft. Come aperitivo time, there’s a generous spread of potato chips, olives, and other small bites. Bring your intellectual chat and your dancing shoes for the DJ set later on.
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Club Derrière
$$This may be the most bohemian speakeasy we've ever been to—dark and moody with unfinished walls and exposed pipes, jazz in the background, candles on the tables, books on the walls and big Brompton armchairs to read them in. When it comes to the cocktails, Club Derrière sidesteps the speakeasy classics in favor of some clever—and very modern-feeling—combinations. The staff's great as long as you follow the rules, which include passwords and a ban on Instagramming.
Sabrina RossirestaurantLa Punta Expendio de Agave
$$Arguably Italy’s biggest tequila and mezcal bar, La Punta Expendio de Agave con Cocina is designed to give you a serious case of wanderlust. You can feel it when you walk into the dimly lit space and toward the bar, which is made from bright, Mexican-style tiles, or when you take a seat on the bar stools, which are stitched with colorful embroidered prints. It’s even truer when you reach for the bar menu, designed as a passport, with drinks in the form of stamps—in Spanish, of course. Owner Cristian lives between Rome and Oaxaca, perfecting his list of Mexican cocktails; for something zingy and frothy, ask for the Maleducation, made with mezcal, grapefruit, rhubarb liqueur, and egg white.
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barMa Che Siete Venuti a Fa
$Don’t let the graffiti-scrawled exterior walls put you off—Ma Che Siete Venuti a Fa is all about that lived-in-look charm. Inside, it’s a classic beer-forward pub with big brass taps, a chalkboard menu, chipped wooden bar stools, and a bubbling crowd. The atmosphere’s always buzzy, and the well-placed colorful armchairs and sofas will soften your landing in the rare event it’s too cold to spill onto the pavement outside. Expect a solid mix of Italian, European, and U.S. beers; try the Salty Kiss in summer, or the Brighella when it's cool.
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Enoteca il Goccetto
$$Imagine if hundreds of the most drinkable bottles of wine moved into your living room and threw a nonstop party. Sometimes the party's loud and fizzy, sometimes it slows to a brooding ooze; but it always feels like home. That's Il Goccetto. Small, warm like an embrace, decorated in a way that suggests it just can't be bothered with time, and above all, loaded floor to ceiling with wine. In winter it'll feel like a refuge; in summer it'll spill onto the sidewalk, over Vespas and between the bumpers of cars. More than 850 wines, plus it's the undisputed king of bar eats; try the beetroot cured salmon, or prosciutto di parma topped with peppery rucola and extra virgin olive oil.
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Courtesy Salotto 42barSalotto 42
$$A rotating scheme of art on the walls; living-room-worthy chairs; racked magazines and vinyl records; best of all, beautiful hand-muddled cocktails—this hole-in-the-wall bar across from Hadrian's Temple checks many boxes. Settle into those plush chairs and let the cool soundtrack own you. Or better still, linger out front on the Piazza di Petra, where the temple's columns loom spectacularly at night. The bartenders are good; trust them to magic up even the most complicated cocktail. Drinks of choice include the Gin Mule, with its lashings of ginger and mint; and the Basil, which is made with vodka, strawberries, chili, and—you guessed it— basil.
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Alto
Alto might be the new kid on the block, but the crowd already feel like regulars. There are locals and non-locals; hip and pretty, all enjoying the cinematic views, glamorous decor, and strong drinks. On the rooftop of The First Musica hotel, it is a sprawling modern space with a classic Italian cocktail list and over 200 wine labels. Guests can prop themselves up on soft velvet bar stools and enjoy their beverages on the green-marble counter. There are the Italian classics, of course—who could pass up a Negroni in Rome?—but it’s worth looking at the more adventurous concoctions, like the signature ‘Hugo’, made with elderflower liquor, soda and prosecco. There’s also a martini menu; their Vodka Martini with a twist is perfection.
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Co.So.
Co.So—which stands for Cocktails and Social—is run by Stravinskij Bar alumni who specialize in custom, tongue-in-cheek cocktails like the Carbonara Sour (pork-infused vodka takes a starring role) and a Bloody Mary made with tomato and chili juice. There’s also a speakeasy-style hidden space accessed through a shower room that can be booked for private groups. Inventive and original is the name of the game here. Drinks are a fusion of Roman, Sicilian, and Japanese flavors and the theme runs all the way to the bento box aperitifs. Drinks come with a separate cooler to keep them ice-cold, so they can be consumed exactly as the mixologists intended.
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Bar San Calisto
Stop by this little corner of Trastevere after lunch and you’ll find grey-haired Romans playing cards, sitting beside university students drinking beer, and young professionals enjoying a Campari spritz on a first date. The house red, served in a carafe and poured into tiny tumblers, is about 3 euros a glass; they also do Campari and Aperol spritzes at aperitivo hour and big, ice-cold jugs of Peroni. Non-drinkers can get coffee or soft drinks. Grab your drink and enjoy it sitting outside, people-watching in the piazza. Bar snacks are limited to potato chips and salted peanuts but if you’re lucky there’ll still be some maritozzi (whipped cream-filled buns), pastries and tramezzini sandwiches left over from the morning breakfast rush.
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Circoletto
Located near the ruins of Circo Massimo, this wine bar and deli has a decent list of craft beers and cocktails, but its natural wine list is where it really stands out from the rest. Many wines are sourced from Rome and the surrounding Lazio region, and on Sundays they do a brunch pairing their organic wines with a small seasonal menu, with live DJs soundtracking the day. Expect soft, buttery mortadella on toast, flash-fried salted cod, paccheri pasta with beef and pork ragu, and an occasional smashburger that's as good as any you'll have in New York.
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