Here at Secret London, we’re a team that’s rather well-versed in the city’s bars and boozers. But with each of us having a firm favourite (and an opinion as strong as the drinks that are served up inside it), it’s hard for us to agree on which of them is the best of the bunch. So it’s pretty darn handy when the experts step in and clear things up for us – and the European Bar Guide have done exactly that.
Each and every year, the beer-buffs and cocktail-connoisseurs scour the length and breadth of the continent – leaving no bar stool or martini glass unturned – to uncover the 100 best bars Europe. I mean, someone’s gotta do it, hey? Having been annually collating this coveted list since 2017, they certainly know a thing or two about what makes for a wonderful watering hole.
Being the only guide that includes ‘bars of any styles’, the European Bar Guide rate venues, quite simply, based on how well each spot does the thing that they’ve set out to do. Factors including atmosphere, social scene, culture, spectacle, and quality and variety of drinks all play a part in the ranking – and each spot is awarded an overall score out of 10. Only one London locale managed to earn itself a sought-after spot on the list, thus technically making it the best bar in London. And that, my friends, is Gordon’s.
Gordon’s Wine Bar
Scoring a rather impressive 8.9 out of 10, the glass-clinkingly gorgeous Gordon’s Wine Bar landed itself at number 47 on the list. The cosy, candlelit cavern is considered the oldest wine bar in London, having been quenching the capital city’s thirst since 1890 – and it’s certainly got some stories to tell. Gordon’s is thought to have been the former home of both Samuel Pepys and Rudyard Kipling, and the walls of the bar are adorned with old newspaper cuttings that document its lengthy backstory.
The European Bar Guide hailed Gordon’s ‘one of London’s finest’, and it certainly not hard to see why this historic hotspot landed is officially one of the top 100 bars in Europe. It’s rustic, romantic, and it’s really bloody lovely. Oh, and it’s absolutely filled to the brim with pretty much every type of wine you can think of. What more could you want from a wine bar, really?
You can peruse the full 2026 edition of the European Bar Guide here.
