Sip & Guzzle in New York grabbed Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar. San Francisco’s Trick Dog nailed Best U.S. Cocktail Bar, proving its quality after winning Best Cocktail Menu back in 2017.
Washington D.C.’s Allegory is still on a roll. After last year’s win for Best Hotel Bar and Bartender of the Year (Kapri Johnson), Allegory took home Best U.S. Bar Team—clearly, they know what they’re doing.
Bartender of the Year stayed in D.C. with Christine Kim from Service Bar. After an emotional speech assuring the crowd they’d find their way, she summed up her advice: “Don’t be a dick.”
Allegory in Washington, D.C., was named Best U.S. Bar Team.
Among international honorees, Hong Kong’s Bar Leone, last year’s Best New International Cocktail Bar, avoided the sophomore jinx and was named Best International Bar. The Bar Leone team could likely offer some advice to Devil’s Cut in Madrid, which was honored as the Best New International Cocktail Bar. London’s Side Hustle was named Best International Hotel Bar this year and Milan’s Moebius Milano won Best International Restaurant Bar.
Side Hustle at the NoMad London was named Best International Hotel Bar.
Mentorship has long been a vital part of the hospitality industry and the Spirited Awards honors two mentors each year. Iain McPherson, who founded Panda & Sons in Edinburgh, Scotland 12 years ago was named Best International Bar Mentor. Proof of McPherson’s mentorship was recognized earlier in the evening when Panda & Sons won for Best International Bar Team. The bar also took home an award for World’s Best Cocktail Menu.
The Best U.S. Bar Mentor was awarded to Colin Asare-Appiah, last year’s Tales Visionary Award winner and a 2016 Spirited Award winner for Best American Brand Ambassador. The author of Black Mixcellence: A Comprehensive Guide to Black Mixology, Asare-Appiah has spent more than three decades in the industry and has helped train the next generation of bartenders in the United States and throughout Africa as part of the AJABU Cocktail and Spirits Festival.
Hong Kong’s Bar Leone won for Best International Bar.
This year’s Helen Davidson Lifetime Achievement Award went to Ian Burrell, who began his career as a London bartender in the 1990s and reinvented himself as a “global rum ambassador” some 20 years ago. The highly charismatic Burrell has represented many different rum brands over the years—including Equiano, which he cofounded in 2020—and is renowned in the industry for his self-described “edutainment” presentation style. In accepting his award, the 50-year-old Burrell, reminded the audience that he still has a lot of years left: “I hope to be the first person to win two lifetime achievement awards.”
The most inspiring moment of the ceremony came from Tales Visionary Award-winner Lynnette Marrero, a veteran New York bartender who was named Best Bar Mentor at the 2019 Spirited Awards. In addition to cofounding Speed Rack, an international bartending competition for women, Marrero is the mixologist behind Delola, Jennifer Lopez’ line of bottled cocktails. “The thing that gives me the most joy n my life is the opportunity to serve people,” she said. “It’s time for all of us to be teachers and leaders, to remember that if you’re some place, there’s always someone who needs to come with you—so grab their hand and walk them along.”
Finally, the Spirited Awards always raise a glass to some legendary watering holes. Madrid’s Bar Cock was presented with the Timeless International Award. Founded in 1921, Bar Cock may resemble an English club—founder Emilio Saracho and head bartender Perico Chicote traveled from Spain to London to locate authentic furniture—but it has become Madrid institution, catering to local artists, writers, politicians, and of course the city’s revelers.
And The Bar at Keens Steakhouse in midtown Manhattan was honored with the Timeless U.S. Award. Keens, which dates back to 1885, began its long life as a theater hangout, given its location in New York’s Herald Square. In addition to serving traditional English mutton chops, Keens is renowned for its extraordinary clay pipe collection. The 90,000 pipes once belonged to Keens regulars—from Babe Ruth and Teddy Roosevelt to J.P. Morgan and Albert Einstein. Like all great restaurant bars, Keens is worth arriving early for dinner to have a drink under the watchful eye of “Miss Keens,” the nude portrait hanging over the bar for many decades. In 2019, billionaire Tilman Fertita added Keens to his Landry’s hospitality empire, after purchasing the iconic steakhouse for $30 million.
See the full list of winners from the 2025 Spirited Awards.
Tales Of The Cocktail Spirited Awards 2025
INTERNATIONAL
Devil’s Cut in Madrid was named Best New International Cocktail Bar.
UNITED STATES
Christine Kim of Service Bar in Washington, D.C. was named U.S. Bartender of the Year.
WRITING & MEDIA
GLOBAL
The Bar at Keens Steakhouse in New York was honored with the Timeless U.S. Award. ForbesWorld’s Best Bars: The Nominees For The 2025 Spirited AwardsForbesColombia’s Alquímico Named World’s Best Bar At The 2024 Spirited Awards