The Best Bars in Soho

Does Soho’s bar scene need an introduction? No. Does it deserve one? Absolutely.

Measuring roughly 2.6 square kilometres, the area is home to some of the city's most storied watering holes. It’s densely packed with decades-old institutions imbued with the personality of times gone by and creative, modern destinations that distil the mood of today.

Whether you’re eking out a long lunch, dropping in after work, or planning to hit the tiles until 5am, there’s a destination for every taste and occasion. From a scruffy, time-worn room where the drinks are designed to be forgettable to an experimental cocktail lab that’ll kick your imagination into sixth gear, these are the best bars in Soho.

For a thoroughly classy culture shock, duck into Bar Termini on Old Compton Street. A tiny, sheltered cove with sage leather banquettes, a marble bar and a worn chequerboard floor, here you’ll find charming, white-coated bar staff serving a taste of Italian bar culture. The calling card? Small icy coupes of Negronis that are filled to the brim tableside, as well as a short list of elegant signatures including the rhubarb-infused Termini Spritz and the Marsala Martini, made with gin, sweet marsala, dry vermouth and almond bitters. If you’re passing by in the morning, it does brilliant coffee and pastries, too.

Officially named the New Evaristo Club, but better known as Trisha’s, this Greek Street basement is one of the dwindling remnants of Old Soho. It’s run by longtime landlady Trisha Bergonzi, and the drinks are cheap, the live jazz is reliable and the walls are scattered with decades’ worth of photographs, handwritten notes and memorabilia. You won’t find pristine toilets or cleverly concocted cocktails here, but what it lacks in polish it makes up for in atmosphere – that and all the new friends you’ll make in cramped smoking area out back. It’s technically a private members’ club – but really, anyone is welcome – so go early, bring ID and be prepared to pay for temporary membership on the door.

Brothers Max and Noel Venning founded the original Three Sheets in Dalston in 2016 and quickly gained acclaim for their complex yet approachable cocktails. Their larger Soho outpost on Manette Street opened in 2024 and is bright, buzzy and sophisticated with cosy booths, a long marble bar and unbeatable service. Drinks are generally seasonal riffs on recognisable cocktails, with standouts including a hyper-refreshing Paloma made with Mexican oregano and coriander, and the house French 75. There are also oysters and a concise food menu that includes a chip butty made with grated Doddington cheese.

Step into Bar Italia’s low-fi, strip-lit glare to experience the best of Soho’s rough-and-ready old-school charm. The Polledri family established the narrow Frith Street cafe in 1949, and these days it’s open from 7am to 5am every day serving coffee, Negronis, Aperol Spritzes, wine and vermouth – as well as a cracking chicken Milanese panino.

Upstairs at The Blue Posts on Rupert Street, this warm, sophisticated snug with saffron-coloured walls and sumptuous ochre-velvet banquettes is a wine-lover’s sanctuary. Delve into a generous, expertly curated list of fine and natural wines from a mix of fan-favourite producers as well as lesser-known upstarts. Wines by the glass change weekly, while a Coravin system allows the team to crack open bottles that would otherwise be too expensive to offer by the pour. Walk-ins are sometimes available, but booking will save disappointment.

Founded by bartenders whose experience spans Milk & Honey, Nightjar and Oriole, it is perhaps no surprise that Swift in Soho – which has spawned follow-ups in Borough and Shoreditch – has multiple personalities split across two floors. Upstairs is bright and bustling, while the sultry bar downstairs promises a more elaborate cocktail experience alongside a collection of more than 300 whiskies. Menus are split into approachable sections – from “bright” to “stiff” – with useful, unpretentious tasting notes to ease the selection process. Plus, there are live jazz sessions on Tuesdays and Sundays, as well as a £7 happy hour on certain drinks before 6pm from Monday to Thursday.

Set in a Grade II-listed former Welsh Presbyterian chapel beside Cambridge Circus, Below Stone Nest is a dramatic, cavernous hideaway by brothers Jackson and Frank Boxer. The pair worked with designer Jermaine Gallacher (Bar Crispin, Vesper, Raleigh Chapel) to retain the peeling, time-worn traces of the building’s past, which serve as a backdrop for the DJs, bands and experimental performers that appear throughout the week. The simple drinks list is made up of refreshing highballs, low-intervention wines and playful cocktails such as the Champagne Colada, which is made with rum, pineapple, coconut and fizz. Meanwhile, a short food menu contains gildas, fluffy flatbreads and skewers. It’s walk-in only, so arrive early on evenings when a particularly good set is scheduled.

Soma is a prime date destination, which means booking is always advisable. Hidden behind an unmarked doorway beside Kricket on Denman Street, the brutalist-meets-retro-futurist underground cocktail bar is intimate and sexy. The menu borrows ingredients, ideas and flavour combinations from across the Indian subcontinent, with bartenders turning ingredients including pandan, curry leaf, jaggery and makrut lime into clarified drinks inspired by familiar classics such as the Gimlet, Old Fashioned and Margarita. Not drinking? The alcohol-free menu is equally as creative.

The original Flamingo Club was once one of Soho’s most raucous music venues, hosting jazz, rhythm and blues artists and rock stars between the 1950s and late ’60s. Its modern namesake in Kingly Court is not quite a faithful recreation of that infamous haunt – but is a hoot nonetheless. It’s compact late-night club draped in red velvet and crowned with a glittering disco ball. Its short, simple drinks menu – think Martinis, Margaritas, highballs and ice-cold bottles of Asahi – ushers focus towards the real highlight: the performers. Over the course of each evening, musicians and DJs playing funk, soul, blues, jazz and disco transform the room into a dancefloor. Burlesque acts have also been known to spin the crowd into a frenzy.

Tucked below Mexican diner El Pastor on Brewer Street – but accessible via its own door – El Siete is a slick neon-lit bar inspired by the colour and modernism of Mexico City’s Roma and Condesa neighbourhoods. It takes its name from the number seven in Spanish, and the menu runs with the theme. There are seven types of Margarita, seven original agave cocktails and seven updated classics, alongside a well-chosen collection of tequilas and mezcals. Inspired by a tradition at San Angel Inn in Mexico City, the 777 Margarita arrives in an ice-cold flask for topping up tableside, while a “traffic light” trio of Margaritas escalates levels of chilli with each cocktail. Tostadas and chilli popcorn are on hand for snacking, while playlists selected by guest chefs and DJs provide the eclectic soundtrack.

Bar Crispin is a quirky slither of a space on Kingly Street by the team behind Crispin, Bistro Freddie and Canal. Designed by Jermaine Gallacher, the compact space has a playful, modernist identity, with vivid green and lilac accents, and angular motifs peppered throughout. The team specialises in low-intervention wines from small, sustainably inclined European producers, with a particular emphasis on regions such as the Loire, Jura and Savoie. The heated terrace out front is great for people watching while snacking on chef seasonal, broadly European fare.