30BestBars India: Sidecar remains undefeated, Cobbler & Crew win big

After multiple bar crawls and guest shifts across bars in the city over the weekend, more than 350 personalities from the Indian bar industry had gathered at the lawn of Taj Cidade de Goa Heritage, overlooking the gorgeous Arabian Sea, on Monday (January 15). They were attending the celebration of the ever-evolving and emerging alco-bev space in the country, as part of the 30BestBars Awards event.

Ever since 2019, Vikram Achanta, Founder of beverage training and wine education academy Tulleeho, along with Radhakrishnan Nair, Editor and Publisher of Man’s World and Rolling Stone India, have come together to not just recognise the country’s best bars and mixologists but also to spread awareness about the rising standards of the Indian bars and beverages industry.

The evening was magnificent, and the event a star-studded one—with the who’s who of the alco-bev industry in attendance. Some new innovations and launches were also presented across stalls from the country’s finest bartenders and brands. 

Though everyone waited with anticipation for the announcement of the Best Bar award, everyone who had made it to the 30BestBars list were winners in their own right. To compete with 33,499 bars across the country and emerge as one among the top 30 is a victory in itself!

Interestingly, 11 new bars had made it to the top 30 list this time. The 30BestBars team also introduced three new categories this year–Highest Climber (on the list of top 50 bars), Best Non-Alcoholic Cocktail Menu, and Highest New Entry (new bars with the maximum number of nominations) awards.

Three bars made it to the list within a year of starting up, and four hotel bars made it to the top 30. 

“As standards continue to increase in the industry and global eyes watch India’s beverage landscape evolve, bars need to continue pushing boundaries across cocktail programmes, adopting new techniques, and enhancing bar talent to stay relevant,” said Achanta.

Amidst new entries and innovations from existing bars, the clear-cut winners of the fourth edition of the 30BestBars Awards were Delhi’s Sidecar at #1, for the second time in a row, and Pune’s Cobbler & Crew at #2.

Sidecar bagged the Best Independent Bar Award and the Best Cocktail Menu Award for its new menu Arq, which is inspired by quintessential Indian ingredients. Cobbler & Crew swept four awards–Highest New Entry, Best Bar Team, Best Bartender (Aashi Bhatnagar), and Best Work in Sustainability (along with Pune’s Soy Como Soy). 

Notably, Bengaluru had the highest number of bars (10) in the 50 Best list, followed by Goa (9), Mumbai (8), and New Delhi (7). Bengaluru’s favourite brewery Toit bagged the People’s Choice Best Microbrewery or Taproom. 

Chennai’s Pandan Club was the first bar ever to win an award for its non-alcoholic bar menu. It was also the only Chennai bar to make it to the list this time.

Pune bars have been prioritising sustainability over everything else, as reflected in the nominations, with three out of the four bars nominated for the Best Work in Sustainability award being Pune-based. 

Olive Group of Restaurants Founder and MD AD Singh won the Industry Icon award for his work and dedication over the years, while Delhi’s Polo Lounge, Hyatt Regency, won the Timeless Bar Award, 2023.  

Here’s the list of the top 30 bars in India: 

#1 Sidecar - New Delhi 

#2 Cobbler & Crew - Pune 

#3 Lair - New Delhi 

#4 Copitas - Four Seasons Hotel, Bengaluru 

#5 Hideaway - Goa 

#6 ZLB 23 - The Leela Palace, Bengaluru

#7 The Bombay Canteen - Mumbai 

#8 HOME - New Delhi 

#9 Masque - Mumbai 

#10 Slink & Bardot - Mumbai 

#11 Comorin - Gurgaon 

#12 PCO - New Delhi 

#13 Hoots’ - New Delhi 

#14 Americano - Mumbai 

#15 Cocktails & Dreams, Speakeasy - Gurgaon 

#16 PCO - Mumbai 

#17 Slow Tide - Goa 

#18 The Bar - The Oberoi Grand, Kolkata 

#19 Whisky Samba - Gurgaon 

#20 Bob’s Bar - Indiranagar, Bengaluru

#21 Native Cocktail Room - Jaipur 

#22 O Pedro - Mumbai 

#23 Olterra - Kolkata 

#24 Windmills - Bengaluru

#25 Pablo’s - Goa 

#26 Joseph Bar - Goa 

#27 Ekaa - Mumbai 

#28 The Library Bar - The Leela Palace, New Delhi 

#29 Toit - Bengaluru

#30 For The Record: Vinyl Bar - Goa 

Jury Vote Awards

• Best Independent Bar - Sidecar, New Delhi 
• Best Hotel Bar - ZLB 23 - The Leela Palace, Bengaluru, and, Copitas – Four Seasons Hotel, Bengaluru 
• Best Restaurant Bar - Comorin, Gurgaon 
• Best Microbrewery or Taproom - Toit, Bengaluru  
• Best Cocktail Menu - Sidecar, New Delhi 

Technical Jury Vote Awards

• Best Bartender - Aashi Bhatnagar, Cobbler & Crew, Pune 
• Best Bar Team - Cobbler & Crew, Pune 
• Best Bar Design - ZLB 23 - The Leela Palace, Bengaluru 

People’s Choice Awards: 

• People’s Choice Best Bar - Elephant & Co. Kalyani Nagar, Pune
• People’s Choice Best Microbrewery or Taproom - TOIT, Pune 

Other categories 

• Highest Climber - PCO, New Delhi
• Highest New Entry - Cobbler & Crew, Pune

Here's the list from last year.