An NYC bar is number one among North America’s ‘50 Best’
For the second year in a row, an organization colloquially known as the ‘50 best,’ has named its pick for, you guessed it, the half-a-hundred finest bars in North America in a May 4 ceremony in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. This comes 14 years after the group first started ranking bars worldwide, and 21 since it launched its best restaurant lists.
Like in 2022, a New York City bar took the top spot. This edition’s honor went to the Double Chicken Please, which was ranked as number 17 back at that inaugural fête last July. The popular Lower East Side cocktail destination first opened its permanent address in November of 2020 after a successful pop-up tour around the U.S. in a vintage Volkswagen minibus.
“We commend Double Chicken Please and its visionary founders, GN Chan and Faye Chen, for reaching the peak of cocktail excellence on the North American continent,” 50 Best content director Mark Sansom is quoted as saying in a statement. “Double Chicken Please is truly pushing the boundaries of flavor in cocktails and doing so with staggering creativity and precision, not to mention a wonderful sense of humor, humility and always flawless hospitality.”
A dozen NYC bars were included among the 50 slots this year. Katana Kitten moved up from its 2022 place from number four to number three. Dante moved to six from eight. Overstory rose to 7 from 27. Employees Only advanced to 14 from 30, likewise Mace from 35 to 18. The Dead Rabbit fell from 31 to 44, as did Clover Club from 43 to 46. Attaboy, last year’s number 1, dropped to 13. Neither Amor y Amargo (last year’s number 23) nor Dear Irving (26) appear in this iteration.
Newcomers Martiny’s, which serves a fun martini and caviar taste pairing, joined at number 29, as did the terrific, recently opened Milady’s, which, in addition to having its own affordable-ish caviar preparation, serves one of New York City’s best burgers. Decade-plus mainstay Maison Premiere was also added to the list for the first time, at number 39.
See where each of these honorees appear in Time Out New York on our long-running and frequently updated lists of NYC’s best bars, rooftops, Irish pubs, frozen drink locales and pseudo speakeasies. See the full list of North America’s 50 Best Bars for 2023 right here.
The ‘50 Best’ is an international list-maker owned by the UK-based hospitality-focused company William Reed. Its bar voting academy “comprises 260 drinks experts, including bartenders, bar owners, drinks media and well-travelled cocktail connoisseurs from Canada, USA, Mexico and the Caribbean, with 50/50 gender balance,” according to its website. In addition to award shows, its business includes other events, conferences and digital products.