The Best Bars For Classic Cocktails in Tel Aviv

This classy European-inspired restaurant and bar is perfectly set on Rothschild Boulevard, which is one of the reasons it has maintained its status as one of the city’s trendiest spots. With its charming outdoor terrace bar, this is one of the places to be and be seen in Tel Aviv, offering a graceful combination of elegance and grunge in addition to its wonderful food, wine and cocktails. From their ginger daiquiri to their red fruit margarita, you will not leave thirsty.

Neither a cafe nor a bar, this is one of Tel Aviv’s finest restaurants situated incongruously in an industrial area in the south-east of the city. Its gourmet menu, with highlights including liver pâté, duck confit and a hamburger in red wine, is complemented by its small but classy bar, where you can drink classic cocktails such as its Bloody Mary and The Nino, consisting of Chartreuse liqueur, Hendrick’s Gin and cucumber. Reserve a table in advance or lose out to repeat-visiting locals.

As far as sophisticated and elegant goes, you won’t find much better than this establishment. Situated on the ground floor of the stunning Norman Hotel, their 1940s style decor and diverse cocktail and spirits menu makes this an ideal spot for an evening drink. From a daiquiri made with Havana club 3 rum, fresh pressed lime and sugar to a Cosmopolitan made with Citron vodka, Cointreau, lime and cranberry juice (60 and 62 shekels, respectively), you can expect delicious, classic cocktails and an atmosphere to match at this Tel Aviv institution.

You won’t find fluorescent coloured cocktails served in a fishbowl with some cumbersome accessory sticking out of it at Hotel Montefiore. This elegant, boutique hotel has never succumbed to those trends: they serve a tight, curated menu made up of classic, hand-crafted cocktails that are executed to perfection. Their cocktails feature top-shelf liquor and locally distilled bitters, which are shaken up nightly. Complementing their top quality alcohol is the great bar food and the set up of the place itself: a drink at the bar means a first-row seat to some of the best people-watching in town.

At the new incarnation of Rothschild 12, one of Tel Aviv‘s trendiest and most loved cafe-bars that recently closed its doors, it is very much a case of more of the same. Located in a charming courtyard within a historical building where the city’s first elevator was built, Tel Aviv’s latest hangout spot personifies cool and classy. With delicious food, from breakfast through to dinner, combined with a well-stocked bar and live DJ performances, it is no wonder this spot has already become a favourite among locals. Their new spring cocktail, the Ginger Margarita, made with fresh ginger, Don Julio Blanco, orange Curaçao & lemon, is enough reason to visit on its own.