Dirty or dry? When it comes to the best martinis in London the capital delivers in spades. There are time-tested classics, like Duke's bucket-list worthy double serve gin martini, poured from frozen bottles into frozen glasses and The Connaught's lavish table-side experience. Then there are the new players, putting avant-garde spins on the classic recipe.
Here's where to head for London's best ice cold martinis.
The best martinis in London
Connaught Bar, Mayfair
Mayfair is undoubtedly the destination for the best martinis in London, and The Connaught is one of its most sacred temples. The Connaught Bar is the inner sanctum (wonderful though the other bars, the Red Room and the Coburg Bar, undoubtedly are), a stylish space with interiors by David Collins Studio, which feels like a luxurious haven away from the busy streets outside. Here an impeccably besuited barman will glide up to your table with a trolley, and make your martini in front of you to your exact specifications. The aromatics in their little dropper bottles are the perfect touch - every cocktail feels entirely bespoke, and there's a marvellous sense of occasion about the whole thing.
Cocktail to order: Connaught martini
Address: The Connaught, 16 Carlos Pl, London W1K 2AL
Website: The-connaught.co.uk
Dukes London, St. James
Tucked away down a quiet street in St James, where gentlemen have retreated to their tailors and clubs since time immemorial, Dukes has a particular claim to fame in the world of martinis as a favourite haunt of Ian Fleming's. Is this where he came up with the line ‘Shaken, not stirred’? We certainly like to think so. However you like your martini mixed, Dukes will provide you with plenty of it–the drinks here are substantial and not for the faint-hearted. The compact bar, presided over by white-jacketed barmen who mix your drinks with aplomb, has a distinctly old-world feel, and it's easy to pretend you've stepped back into the mid-20th century.
Cocktail to order: Dukes gin martini
Address: 35 St James's Pl, St. James's, London SW1A 1NY
Website: Dukeshotel.com/dukes-bar
The Spy Bar at the OWO, Whitehall
For a real touch of James Bond, there's no better place to go than the impressive subterranean speakeasy at the splashy new Raffles London at the OWO – which even has half the car from No Time To Die mounted on the wall. The aptly named Spy Bar is hidden in the former MI5 interrogation rooms in the Grade II listed Edwardian Old War Office and feels like a real step back in time. Come here for whisky drinks prepared in the most creative of ways, led by the experimental bartenders Sotirios Konomi, Davide Sinibaldi and Kyriaki Dachtyloudi who have a lab near the bar to create all sorts of concoctions. We particularly loved the Double O Seven cocktail, a modern twist on the martini made with vodka, rhubarb, coconut, sweet vermouth and… absinthe. As well as the classic Vesper. – Tal Dekel-Daks
Cocktail to order: Double O Seven or Vesper
Address: 57 Whitehall, London SW1A 2BX
Website: theowo.london/the-spy-bar
Tayēr + Elementary, Shoreditch
There are two sides to Old Street bar Tayēr + Elementary, voted the second best bar in the world in 2022. The first space, Tayēr, is the more high-end space, with a large bar in the middle serving up inventive mixology; the second, Elementary, is an informal bar with cocktails served from taps and pre-mixed bottles. It is here where you'll find the award-winning bar's signature serve, the One Sip Martini. The small concoction is batch prepared using the bar's own Tayēr vodka, Martini & Rossi Riserva Speciale ambrato vermouth, Una Palma fino sherry, and one of the drink's most distinguishable factor – a giant olive stuffed with Gorgonzola cheese, which adds a little creaminess to the drink. – Tal Dekel-Daks
Cocktail to order: One Sip Martini
Address: 152 Old St, London EC1V 9BW
Website: tayer-elementary.com
Scarfes Bar at Rosewood London, Holborn
This cosy cocktail and jazz bar inside the five-star Rosewood hotel in Holborn is another contender on the Top 50 best bars in the world. Named after famous cartoonist, illustrator & designer Gerald Scarfe, you can feel Scarfe's work throughout the bar, from the art to the menu and the the same goes for their playful cocktails. What they take very seriously though is the art of mixology. Their Assistant Head Bartender Arturo Burzio was recently crowned the ‘elit Vodka Martini Master 2022’. So their vodka martini is not to be skipped. Find their newest take on a martini, the Pika-tini, on the newest menu featuring stoli elit, fortified honey, olive leaf and chinotto.
Cocktail to order: Pika-tini
Address: Rosewood London, 252 High Holborn, London WC1V 7EN
Website: scarfesbar.com
Claridge's, Mayfair
Is there anything Claridge's doesn't do well? We don't think so, and if you've tried and tested the martini trolley at sister hotel The Connaught, you'd do well to pop up the road to one of this grande dame's famed bars and see what they can do. Our favourite space is the elegant jewel box that is The Fumoir, where the martini is made with the delightfully refreshing Tanqueray No.10, but equally lovely are the Claridge's Bar and the new, Instagram-friendly Painter's Room. This is a place to come for classics, so keep it simple with a classic martini, although if you're in the mood for a modern twist, the Painter's Room is the place to be.
Cocktail to order: The Fumoir martini
Address: Brook Street, Mayfair, London W1K 4HR
Website: claridges.co.uk
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Kwãnt Mayfair
Kwãnt (pronounced ‘quaint’) is a delightfully playful cocktail bar in Mayfair that's very serious about its cocktails. Headed up by Slovakian bartender Erik Lorincz, a Connaught-alumni who headed up The American Bar at The Savoy for eight years (and which he took straight to #1 on the World’s 50 Best Bars list). Kwãnt has followed suit in terms of award-winning reviews, but there's unoriginal about the drinks. When it comes to martinis, that means you'll find ingredients like langoustine heads and sea lettuce in their ‘See the Sea’ martini, or parsnip in the Garden Martini. – Tal Dekel-Daks
Cocktail to order: Sea the Sea or Green Field
Address: 25 Heddon St, Mayfair, London W1B 4BH, UK
Website: kwnt-mayfair.square.site / @kwantmayfair
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Decimo at The Standard, Kings Cross
From the moment the glass lift on the outside of the building starts its ascent, Kings Cross melts away below and the mood changes on your way up to Decimo. Chef Peter Sanchez-Iglesias serves Mexican and Spanish food and those cultures are omnipresent in the interiors. Macramé wall hangings, terracotta glassware, tiled tables and well-curated plants all create a hacienda feeling on the 10th floor of The Standard hotel. The same can be said for its take on classic cocktails. The En Rama Martini includes oak infused vodka, Tio Pepe Fino Sherry and a dash of apple cider vinegar and a pickled apple slice. – Tal Dekel-Daks
Cocktail to order: En Rama Martini
Address: 10 Argyle St, London WC1H 8EG
Website: decimo.london
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Nomad London, Covent Garden
“An appropriate sense of occasion awaits guests arriving at the NoMad in Covent Garden,” our Pamela Goodman said of New York's five-star hotel import. In the beating heart of London's Theatre-land, the renovated Magistrates Court is now one of the city's most sought-after destinations, with three very creative bars to choose from. In the main restaurant's bar, there are two martini-style drinks worthy of mentioning in this line-up: En Pointe (a blend of gin, sherry, kirsch and dill created in honour of the Royal Ballet across the road) and their signature Walter Gibson, an original NoMad martini sharing its namesake with the son of their New York Wine Director. The Walter Gibson is aged in a bees wax bottle creating its silky signature texture and savoury aroma. Downstairs in their moody speakeasy Common Decency, there's a punchy Szechuan Gibson made with vodka, Dolin blanc vermouth, Szechuan oil, onions and white balsamic vinegar.
Cocktail to order: En Pointe or Walter Gibson upstairs, Szechuan Gibson at Common Decency
Address: 28 Bow St, London WC2E 7AW
Website: thenomadhotel.com
69 Colebrooke Row
This tiny bar on an Islington back street has made an outsize mark in the world of cocktails, thanks to its founder Tony Conigliaro's inventive take on classic drinks. Some of the ingredients may look a little gimmicky, but the drinks are absolutely first class, and the twists to traditional recipes are totally justified by the results (unlike in many bars). The menu changes seasonally, but their current house martini features herbal elements from vine and caper leaves, which totally make sense as aromatics. The interiors, though absolutely minuscule, are reminiscent of a retro Italian cafe, with smooth and rather glamorous staff serving drinks with flair. Put yourself in the charming bartenders' hands and settle in for a sophisticated evening.
Cocktail to order: House martini
Address: 69 Colebrooke Row, London, N1 8AA
Website: 69colebrookerow.com
