The Best 8 Bars in Boston Right Now

Boston’s drinking roots stretch all the way back to before the Revolutionary War, back to when the first bar in the country opened in Boston almost 400 years ago. This is to say that Bostonians have known how to have a good time since at least 1634, the year Boston’s first recorded licensed drinking establishment Samuel Cole’s Inn opened.

But the city’s drinking culture has come a long way since the 1600s. Sophisticated cocktail bars, Champagne bars bubbling high above the city, award-worthy Irish pubs, and a prodigious number of historic bars mean there are myriad ways to secure a good drink.

Boston’s cocktail scene in particular has grown spectacularly over the past decade, buoyed by creative and inspired mixology informed the melange of cultures that call the city home, as well as vibey decor and attentive, informed service. These drinking dens sit side by side with decades-old pubs that welcome locals and visitors with open arms (but maybe not a smile, especially in the winter). To visit Boston is to visit American history, and many of our best drinking establishments represent that and more.

Here you’ll find a collection of eight bars that constitute the best and most representative places to imbibe the city of Boston has to offer.

Hecate

48 Gloucester St, Boston, MA 02115
@hecatebar

Just off Gloucester street, right down Public Alley 442, a dark door beckons thirsty travelers into an alluring subterranean hideout. You’ll hear the quiet beat of music as your eyes adjust to the darkness. If you have trouble reading the leather-bound menu (or “book of spells,” as it reads) of meticulously crafted cocktails, sidle up to the gleaming marble bar and grab the light mercifully offered by the bartender. Inspired by Greek mythology and other schools of mysticism, Hecate is a candlelit space meant to savor high-concept, theatrical cocktails that arrive in eccentric goblets and bowls. The dark room, with touches of gold, and excellent snacks on order, is one of the best date night spots in the Back Bay.

Don’t miss: The Palo Caldero is a tempting blend of two different rums, hibiscus tea, earthy ugu leaf, woodsy palo santo, black peppercorn, almond, and burnt cinnamon. The name hints at its potion-like quality; caldero translates to “cauldron” in English.

The Dubliner Irish Pub

2 Center Plz, Boston, MA 02108
@thedublinerboston

One of America’s best pubs for soccer, and the site of a surprise Ed Sheeran concert in 2025, the Dubliner is a guaranteed good time whether you’re popping in for a post-work pint or ending a night out. The expansive wood-paneled space has two full bars, ample seating, a snug for quieter moments, and an outdoor patio ideal for a sunny day drink. You may find your Guinness being poured by someone with a heavy brogue, and the Dubliner sharing plate—featuring pigs in a blanket, cheesy bites, fried chicken, fries, and a Scotch egg—takes you on a tour of beer snacks from around the world. Don’t miss Sunday at the pub, when you can tuck into a traditional roast dinner. The bar also has live music (usually Irish in origin) Wednesday through Sunday.

Don’t miss: A Guinness, of course, but the bar is much more than the specialty tap. The Pornstar martini is as good as any you’ll try in London, and the bar has one of the largest offerings of whiskey by the glass in Boston.

Temple Records

17 Temple Pl, Boston, MA 02111
@templerecordsbar

What do the band Quicksand, the hardcore compilation This is Boston, Not LA, and John Coltrane have in common? They’re just some of the musicians and records lining the walls of chef Jamie Bissonnette’s vinyl bar Temple Records at the moment. Tables are pressed up against the wall of this dark, railroad-style space, which is next door to Bissonnette’s lauded Korean spot Somaek. The bar itself is also a DJ booth, and it isn’t uncommon to see Bissonnette spinning there from his massive vinyl collection. Inspired by Japanese listening bars, the cocktail menu leans into drinks made with iichiko (the highest grade of shochu, a barley liquor), Japanese whisky, and peppery shiso. There’s a snacks menu with bites from Somaek, plus a dedicated sushi bar downstairs. Not into cocktails? The Japanese craft beer Hitachino is available on tap.

Don’t miss: All the cocktails fittingly have music-inspired names. Go for the savory-sweet Off Minor, which mixes gin, Midori, and absinthe with basil and yuzu.

OAK Long Bar + Kitchen

138 St James Ave, Boston, MA 02116
@oaklbk

A glamorous hotel bar loaded with history, OAK Long Bar + Kitchen opened in 1912 as the Copley Café, part of the historic hotel today known as the Fairmont Copley Plaza hotel. (The property’s grand opening in 1912 was presided over by then mayor Boston, John F. “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald, grandfather of President John F. Kennedy.) It famously once housed a working merry-go-round, on which patrons could spin with drinks in hand. Sadly, the revolving bar was removed in 1978, but the elegant space that housed it remains with coffered ceilings, slab marble, detailed plaster finishes, and century-old ceiling tiles. OAK also offers some extra cozy seating: a loveseat for two at either end of the very long bar. On your way in, duck into the Fairmont’s lobby to say hello (and pet) to the hotel’s resident dog, Cori Copley.

Don’t miss: The signature cocktails all nod to the hotel’s storied history, and the Merry-Go-Round, bright with house-made pomegranate syrup, gin, and foaming bitters, might be your new favorite.

Farmacia

5 N Square, Boston, MA 02128
@farmacianorthend

Farmacia in the North End is where to go when you want inventive drinks without making a single decision. You’ll need a reservation to gain entry to the roughly 500-square-foot, nine-seat space, which is deeply intimate and oriented around a 1930s-era marble bar. It’s worth it: The $102 prix fixe experience feels like a near-private tasting, comprising a handful of small cocktails and paired snacks. The menu changes with the seasons, with summer and spring menus reimagining vegetables like carrots, tomatoes, and beets not as garnishes, but as stars of the show.

Don’t miss: Whatever the bartender puts in front of you! The menu changes constantly, but expect libations that blur the line between food and drink like the Black Garlic, a potent blend of rye, black-garlic-infused vermouth syrup, saline, and aerosolized garlic.

Eire Pub

795 Adams St, Boston, MA 02124
@eirepub

Drink in classic Boston culture (and a cold brew or two) at Dorchester’s Eire Pub, a favorite haunt of the late great Anthony Bourdain. Cozy and casual, the round bar and bistro-style wood tables are usually packed with workers at the end of the day, softball teams celebrating a win, locals from the neighborhood, people who left but can’t stay away for long, and entertaining local characters that defy description. Presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton both enjoyed a pint and chat at the Eire, along with almost every local politician you can imagine, plus an Irish prime minister. The walls are packed with sports and political memorabilia, and if you look and listen, you’ll probably learn something new about Boston.

Don’t miss: Guinness. Perhaps a shot of Powers. That’ll do.

Bubble Bath

408 Newbury St, Boston, MA 02115
@bubblebathboston

Located atop the Citizen M Boston Back Bay hotel, Bubble Bath offers a shiny new perspective on historic Back Bay, with views that stretch from the Charles River to Bunker Hill. A glittering jewel box in the sky, Bubble Bath is the latest from chef Tiffani Faison, and the place for sunset selfies in Boston. The space itself is decked out with giant round light fixtures and orbs that are nearly effervescent, a fitting reflection of the bar's Champagne-forward drinks program. The cocktails are similarly effervescent and flirty, favoring bright citrus flavors and fresh fruit. Faison’s culinary talents are on display too, with a tight menu of “snackies” like shrimp cocktail and caviar biscuits.

Don’t miss: Bubbles, by the glass or bottle. The list has plenty of great Champers in addition to more wallet-friendly (but equally delightful) Cava. Don’t forget to pop a gold token (available for purchase at the bar) into the Champagne vending machine, which conveys chilled splits of Imperial Brut and a flute.

Select Oyster Bar

50 Gloucester St, Boston, MA 02115
@selectoysterbar

It’s important that while in Boston, one makes at least one stop at an oyster bar. Chef Michael Serpa’s Select Oyster Bar has long been a local favorite, but since the Michelin Guide recommended it, we can’t gatekeep it any longer. Get a dozen Island Creek or the Gloucester Plateaux (featuring a chilled assortment of oysters, blue crab salad, shrimp cocktail, Maine lobster, and salmon crudo), a Select Negroni or glass of wine, and a seat in the window, ideal for watching the world go by.

Don’t miss: Whichever white you like with oysters; the Foral Old Vines Alvarinho by the glass is a great place to start.