The Best Cocktail Bars in New Orleans

New Orleans is blessed with an internationally know bar scene that offers everything from first-class classic cocktail to exciting Tiki place and modern bars that unify up spirits in innovative , new ways . Multiple cocktail have been make up here – the Sazerac , Ramos Gin Fizz , the Vieux Carre , the Hurricane , the Brandy Crusta – and the city ’s Caribbean cultivation celebrate a variety of other cocktail cultures .

One raw trend is a centering on a specific spirit , and lionize local barkeep / barkeep continue to have serious name recognition . The cocktail taproom on this listing ( although there is some crossover with theBest Bars list ) reflect the diversity and joie de vivre of this embrasure city that welcome everyone .

Belle Epoque

This absinthe sitting room projects a speakeasy vibe with a sultry tribute to the “ Green Fairy . ” A diverseness of lad’s love ( seek a flight if you ’re concerned ) and absinthe - based cocktails make up most of the menu , but there are drinking boast other flavour , as well . Old schooling marble lad’s love fountains adorn the cypress bar , and patrons can enjoy sexy bar bite like Gallic onion soup dumplings while seated on plush vintage pieces in the intimate space .

Manolito

A little piece of Havana in the French Quarter – this informal , two - story bar serves up frozen rum drink with a Caribbean flair . Manolito specializes in deal - shaken classical daiquiris and Cuban twirl on well - known cocktails like the martini and Sazerac . It ’s a enceinte place to determine in and people ascertain , peculiarly if seated outside watching Quarter lifespan go by .

Elysian Bar

Housed in a renovated parsonage attached to a former parish school and Catholic church , the Elysian Bar is locate in the vintage yet decadentHotel Peter and Paul . The streak follow suit , with rich colour , baroque architectural flourishes , eclectic pattern , and article of furniture throughout the sitting elbow room areas and court . The cocktail are as imaginative and luscious as the surroundings , and the bar has a substantial and tasty grim - proof amaro / aperitif drink carte .

Bar Marilou

The designers of Bar Marilou hail from Paris , and the interior decoration excogitate a European boldness and sophistication . The drinkable are also daring , with cocktails like What We Do In the dark , made with bourbon , Amaro Sfumato , verjus , absinthe , chai syrup , and black lager beer . Or there ’s the after dinner quaff The Lover Speaks with 100 - agave tequila reposado , Frangelico , Martini Ambrato , and sesame oil . It ’s the unadulterated station for a Nox of adventure .

Jewel of the South

A tavern tucked in a tiny nineteenth - one C Creole cottage , Jewel of the South offers a romantic experience with the highest grade of cocktails – including a return to an oftentimes - overtop New Orleans deglutition creation , the Brandy Crusta . Owners and local cocktail legend Chris Hannah and Nick Dietrich have teamed up to furnish a one - of - a - kind experience , tipping its hat to Joseph Santini who created the Brandy Crusta in his own bar , call Jewel of the South , in the 1850s . There are other fondly resurrected throwbacks on the drink leaning from cobblers to puncher to Manhattan variant .

Espíritu Mezcaleria

New Orleans ’ only “ mezcaleria ” , Espíritu center on showcasing the depth of flavor and the range of diligence that this agave look leave . Mezcal has been gaining popularity with cocktail enthusiasts chop-chop , and its complex smoky fragrance pairs magnificently with other element ( as well as Latin American food ) . Try the Jaguar ’s Paw , made with avocado pear , mezcal , and calcium hydroxide , or come out your mean solar day with the burnt umber cocktail Ososito , which combines mezcal with coconut milk , coffee liqueur , and sugared Musa paradisiaca .

Seven Three Distilling

The expectant bar attached to this still on North Claiborne Avenue is filled with Seven Three ’s disembodied spirit , which includes St. Roch Vodka , Irish Channel Whiskey , Gentilly Gin , and Black Pearl Rum ( all named after the city ’s 73 neighborhoods ) . Since they get to render a consumer - favorable experience , the distillers have create a diverse fare of classic and original cocktail to showcase their look . Seven Three also makes all its own bitter and amaro in - house , so it ’s a real trade experience .

Henry’s Gin Bar

Named for Henry Ramos , the Godhead of the wildly pop ( back in the daytime ) Ramos Gin Fizz , the lobby legal profession at theNOPSI Hotelprimarily focuses on gin - based drinking . But be certain to try original concoctions , too , like the Blueberry Hill with rosé , blueberry bush , and an exotic bitterness called El Guapo Love Potion # 9 . If you ’re a gin and tonic fan , this is the place to be , with over a half - 12 variations ( using unlike flavor profiles , various tonics , and adjunct factor ) . Enjoy the build - your - own - martini option as well .

Maypop

As its food menu does with exotic Southeast Asian flavors immix with Southern Louisiana flair , the cocktail menu at Maypop delivers challenging and well - executed drinks that make you rethink whatever you know about spirit combinations and your own palate . Try the Bangkok Mule , a take on the classic vodka potable that adds lemongrass and lime to house - made peppiness beer , or the Pikapika with thai chili - impregnate tequila , peppiness liqueur , turmeric , Citrus aurantifolia , and korean chili salt . Passiflora incarnata is in a nifty location , too – tight to theaters , the Superdome , Poydras Street , and the artistic production galleries of Julia Street .

Gris-Gris

While the chef - centric dining dominates downstairs ( literally – the seats all surround the opened kitchen ) , the upstairs at Gris - Gris features a gorgeous bar with a sophisticated cocktail menu created by local pro Ferrel Dugas . It ’s a beautiful spot to slack , and the building ’s rejuvenate Creole townhouse vibration admit floor - to - ceiling windows and a vintage hearth . The cocktail themselves are originative , flavoursome , and fun .

Latitude 29

Tiki fan troop to this bar , owned by mention expert Jeff " Beachbum " Berry . The decor is like a Polynesian feverishness dream , and the potable menu includes Riffian on traditional tiki classic ( cogitate Mai Tais and Zombies and the historical , long lose Lapu Lapu ) , as well as modern cocktail . Share a Beachbum Bowl , which unite three Caribbean rum and ten Asian spicery .

Cure

This is the granddaddy of the modern New Orleans cocktail cake . When Cure opened in 2008 , it was a game - auto-changer on Freret Street , both in starting the neighborhood resurgence as well as bringing a tonic take on cocktail culture to a city that can sometimes get beat in its own past . The space is gorgeous , the cocktail list esoteric ( although there are always a few conversant name ) , and the faculty is extremely paying attention to the cunning .

The Sazerac Bar

place inThe Roosevelt , a favorite hotel of former Louisiana regulator Huey P. Long , The Sazerac Bar ’s faint ignition and leather upholstery create the legerdemain that The Kingfish and his brother are still around , pretend backroom hand , drinking bourbon , and smoke cigar . Have one of the eponymous drinkable , or ramify off into creative riffs on the classics that vary with the season .

Victory

possessor and head bartender Daniel Victory is serious about his cocktails . But do n’t worry , he wants you to have play while pledge them . Two things of tone : Every night there ’s a featured cocktail , and the bartender will give you a sample distribution of it to render before you order . And Victory is so dedicated to the artistic creation of the cocktail craft there ’s a place next door call the New Orleans Drink Lab , which offer classes on the history and preparation of classical cocktail . See ? Serious stuff and nonsense .

Compère Lapin

Although a restaurant first and foremost , Compère Lapin has assembled a baller cocktail team from the start . The Crow ’s Nest is a fun drinking , combining brandy and vermouth with roast banana and thyme . In the New Orleans heat , go directly for one of the measure ’s trademark flash-frozen drinks , like the Ramos Gin Freeze . If you rate the Copper Bunny , a mule version that total pineapple plant - jalapeño tequila and guggle to the vodka / gingery beer classic , do n’t even remember about trying to boost the actual fuzz bunny it ’s served in . They will hunt you down and regain you .

Arnaud’s French 75

It may really be illegal to have a lean of the best cocktail bars in New Orleans without including this service - focussed squad of white - tuxedoed bartender attached to Arnaud ’s eatery , one of the grand dames of New Orleans creole fine dining . The execution of classics like the Old Fashioned , Sidecar , and – of path – the French 75 is flawless , but you could always ask for something a bit out of the scope of the cocktail custom , which are evenly as telling .

Twelve Mile Limit

If a neighborhood streak and a cocktail sofa had a baby , the result would be this pretending - free , affordable , creative blot with scrumptiously executed drinks . Even more than not bad cocktails , Twelve Mile Limit provides trivia , pool , a badass jukebox , live dating games , dance parties , and Cuban - Italian nuclear fusion reaction solid food . Try the Mr. Big Shot , a tropical riff on the classic Old Fashioned . The cocktail bill of fare changes seasonally , so be ready for anything .

Cane & Table

This island - vibration hideaway is so low - key , it does n’t even have a signboard out front . ( count for the line at Coop ’s on Decatur , and it ’s right on next door . ) The cocktail recipes celebrated here influenced the mid - century American tiki craze , started in 1934 with Don the Beachcomber . Sometimes you might even get your delicious cocktail inside a pineapple or coconut , just for spare joy .

Carousel Bar at the Hotel Monteleone

The Carousel Bar is named quite accurately . The entire bar rotate constantly , a sense that can be untune at first , but you really do find yourself getting into it . Historically , this is a position to have a smooth , self-respecting cocktail , but this spot is a lot more raucous these mean solar day , since its expansion and subsequent surge of popularity . Still , go get that Vieux Carre you ’ve been think about , which is made here with Bulleit Rye and Hennessey . It ’ll cure whatever ails ya .

Barrel Proof

This is a broken - key fruit fleck where citizenry who like to wassail whisky can do on the button that . Barrel Proof does n’t have a cocktail list per se , but its bartenders will expertly make any cocktail you ask , so it ’s a great meter to try that Bourbon dynasty - base cocktail you ’ve been concerned in . Plus , there are dozens of sipping whisky to savour , as well as beer and non - whiskey spirit , should you experience so disposed .

Bar Tonique

If you require to know what set a cocktail , as opposed to a punch , sour , or sling , you ’ll find out when you belly out up to the bar at Bar Tonique and look at its cocktail menu . This topographic point divides all boozy beverages into proper family , then lean all the drinks of each character you’re able to govern underneath the definition . Or you could eschew all that and just go for an amazing Frenchmen ’s Dark & Stormy . Plus , the made - from - scratching Bacon Bloody Mary is useable only on Saturdays ( for $ 5 ! ) and it usually sells out quickly , so hustle on over to taste one .

Tiki Tolteca

Located on the 2nd floor above Felipe ’s Taqueria , Tiki Tolteca is decorate like a nostalgic , Polynesian aspiration . The drink computer menu , however , draws from both tiki and Latin American flavor profiles and traditions .

Revel Cafe & Bar

Local cocktail legend Chris McMillian has at long last hang out his own shingle with Revel , a small craft cocktail bar with a great wine leaning and food fare as well . Order a classic like the mint julep , mojito , or a Ramos Gin Fizz , and watch the master at oeuvre as he groom your drinkable .

Belle Époque