The 10 Best Bars in Baku, Azerbaijan

Located on the third floor of the Fairmont Hotel, in one of the iconic Flame Towers, Jazz Club takes credit for being one of the city’s best live stages, paired with seductive cocktails. A one-stop shop for drinks, food and dancing, the Jazz Club mesmerises its clientele with live jazz and blues on most nights of the week. The experienced mixologist, Sergey Sandul, serves signature cocktails based on the finest spirits. Try Santiago de Cuba, made of aged Caribbean and Guatemalan rum, blended with fresh lime juice and topped with fruity foam, which is the signature drink of the Jazz Club. “This is the cocktail that takes all your worries away,” assures Sergey. Enjoy your cocktails with spectacular views of the city and the bay, which are particularly special at night.

Located about five minutes from the Old City, Bavaria Pub & Grill has both local and imported beers on tap. This midsize pub also offers a variety of delicious European food. “We serve high-quality beer at affordable prices,” notes Hamze Babayev, the pub’s manager. Usually crowded during European football matches, Bavaria is a great place to relax while catching a game and enjoying the company of friends. Afterwards, walk toward Istiqlaliyyet Street and follow the sidewalk downhill to view a row of historic mansions and other buildings dating from Baku’s late 19th-century oil boom.

With its elegant design and neon lights, Hard Rock Café is hard to miss from Fountain Square. Along with high quality American food, the café also offers a variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails. Try the signature Hurricane cocktail to experience a vibrant blend of orange, mango, pineapple juice and grenadine, finished with a float of Bacardi Black rum and amaretto. The venue is a little pricier, but if you like a party atmosphere and vibrant environment, it’s undoubtedly worth it. If it’s not too late afterwards, walk five minutes southward on Mammad Amin Rasul-Zadeh Street to find yourself on the Baku Boulevard for an evening stroll along the Caspian Sea.

A great place to socialise and relax, Barfly Social Hub is located within the walls of the 12th-century Old City, meaning you can enjoy an Old City tour and finish off your Baku explorations with great food and live music. Talented mixologist Nizam Ismayilzade creates original cocktails from scratch using natural ingredients. Try his signature cocktail, Crazylove, to experience a unique mixture of rum, citrus tincture, yuzu, Passoã, lemon and pineapple infusion. The venue is usually packed during weekends, so make sure you call ahead to reserve a spot.

If you are in search of an authentic wine bar with a good selection of local wines, look no further than ROOM Fine Art Wine & Dine. Here you can try wines from one of Azerbaijan’s renowned winemaking companies, Savalan. Led by Italian winemaking experts, Savalan has established its winery at the foot of the Greater Caucasus Mountains, in the Gabala region of Azerbaijan. ROOM Fine Art Wine & Dine seeks to be more than just a wine bar or a restaurant; the primary aim is to create an intimate space for clients to feel at home and relax. Its proximity both to Fountain Square and Baku Boulevard also makes it ideal for evening walks.

With a collection of over 80 different local wines, an elegant but warm and intimate interior decor, affordable prices and superb service, Saqi Wine Bar remains a top choice for oenophiles in Baku. “To make your experience unforgettable,” manager Abbasli Ismayil says, “we invite professional musicians to entertain guests with saxophone and piano jazz music.” The proximity of the bar to both the Old City and Fountain Square make it easy to combine with local sightseeing options.

If you’re looking for a good place to have a great tap beer, hang out with friends and play pool or darts, Albion Pub might just be the answer. Weekdays are quieter, but crowds gather on the weekends for beer, live music and dancing. The owner of the pub, Asim Mammadov says, “The most popular tap beer is Xirdalan, the well-known Azerbaijani beer brand, and it’s always fresh here.” Prices are reasonably affordable both for food and beverages. Two blocks away from the Old City, this is an ideal place to land after a day of sightseeing.

If you’re looking for a non-smoking pub to enjoy your beer, then head to Pushkin Pub located near the Landmark building. Here, you will not only enjoy speciality Erdinger draught beer but also delicious European-inspired food. The pub attracts a diverse mix of local and international customers, and the prices are affordable for both food and drinks. Located a couple of blocks away from the eastern end of the Baku Boulevard, Pushkin Pub is an ideal place to stop either before or after your seaside stroll.

The spacious Paulaner Brauhaus Baku is characterised by its large windows, vaulted ceiling and walls featuring rustic German-style woodwork, and is known for its quality beer, food and service. “Inspired by the Bavarian tradition of beer-making, our vision is to create an authentic environment to experience this rich German tradition in Baku,” said the brewery’s general manager, Zaur Huseynov. Reasonably priced, the brewery offers three main beers to try: Paulaner lager, dunkel or weissbier. Enjoy your beer with friends, and then head out to enjoy the eastern end of the Baku Boulevard, framed by newly emerging high-rises.

Many pubs around Baku have NZS beer on tap. For the freshest beer, however, you need to visit NZS Brewery, located near Babak Avenue. This award-winning beer is not too hoppy and very flavourful. Using 100 percent natural (no preservatives) and high-quality ingredients, NZS beer-makers have been delighting their clients since 1997. With premium beer and traditional Azerbaijani snacks, NZS’s on-site pub offers a one-of-a-kind experience in Baku.