Raise a glass to World Paloma Day

Having featured several times in the prestigious World’s 50 Best Bars lists, Cause Effect Cocktail Kitchen is all about celebrating the flavours and culinary heritage of the Cape, with owner Kurt Schlechter and his team of talented mixologists creating an ever-changing array of cocktails. Expect reinvented classics and offbeat signatures on a menu with a sense of whimsy, but also a serious approach to waste and sustainability. Caus Effect also celebrates the region’s award-winning brandies, with guided tastings of vintage spirits.

This slick bar promises cocktails with a story, and it doesn’t disappoint. Each carefully curated concoction at Fable tells the tale of a local legend, from ill-fated lovers to ghostly ships haunting the seas off Cape Point. If that’s altogether too complicated, there’s an extensive collection of classic pours, craft brews and local wines. Regular DJ sets add to the promise of a lively night out, with flavour-packed food and bold drinks to match.

Ask a local for the best negroni in Cape Town and chances are they’ll point you towards The House of Machines, a diminutive bar in the city centre. In office hours it’s a popular spot for remote workers, but come evening THOM shakes itself off to become a lovably noisy rabble-rouser of a cocktail joint. Don’t expect umbrellas, foams and frivolity here: at THOM they’re more into craft beer and barrel-aged spirits poured properly. With live music most nights and barkeeps unafraid to speak their mind, it’s a bar with plenty of attitude. Just the way the locals like it.

You’ll want to smarten up a little before booking a table at this classy hotel bar. Set on the sixth floor of The Silo Hotel – itself perched atop the world-class Zeitz MOCAA art museum in the V&A Waterfront’s Silo District – The Willaston Bar offers dazzling city views in a deeply elegant setting. Sink into barstools of soft Italian leather and ask the bar staff to pick something for you, or to mix up a surprise. They shake up a fine martini here, but the wine list is equally worth exploring, with an excellent selection of local and international estates.

One of the city’s most popular rooftop bars, Gigi Rooftop is hidden away above Gorgeous George, a design-driven hotel in the heart of the city centre. In a space filled with tropical foliage and natural light, in-house mixologist Leighton Rathbone shakes up a tantalising cocktail menu that includes all the classics alongside bespoke pours utilising local spirits and indigenous flavours. The bar comes alive at sunset, with views out across the city rooftops. 

The Drinkery is a gem of a watering hole is hidden away upstairs in Heritage Square, a modern speakeasy shaking up a menu of innovative house cocktails and the classics done properly. That’s thanks to a bespoke collection of boutique brands behind the bar, from small-batch Caribbean rums to single-barrel single malts. Get there early to grab a terrace table overlooking the sheltered courtyard.

You don’t have to book a suite upstairs (though we’d recommend it) to enjoy a taste of the revamped Cape Grace, which reopened in early 2024 after a major refurbishment and a rebrand under the Fairmont umbrella. Part of the overhaul was a reimagining of the Bascule Bar, a ground-level space overlooking the glamorous marina. But Bascule isn’t about sea views as much as cosying up indoors. Leather couches and sumptuous booths set the scene, the walls decked out with array of works by young African artists to lend the space an upscale aesthetic taking its cue from the vibrant shebeens of Africa. Bascule has always been famous for its whisky collection, and you’ll find hundreds of single malts and bourbons on offer, alongside a creative cocktail selection. Tasting flights are available, tutored or self-guided, as are guided wine tastings on request.  A compact menu of upscale small plates, well-pitched to match the malts and cocktails, ensures sundowners can stretch into a casual dinner, or keep you well-fed into the wee hours.

It’s no surprise what’s on offer at this bar, which is set in a tiny courtyard. The Gin Bar sings the praises of South Africa’s artisanal distillers, with more than 80 local gins available alongside a handful of international brands. That’s an excellent excuse to dabble in a little G&T experimentation, or let the ever-friendly bartenders impress you with one of their House Remedies, a curated selection of house G&Ts “to cure all manner of ills.” The attached Bubbly Bar does the same for Cape Classique – South Africa’s champagne-style sparkling wine – as the main bar does for gin

Reached by tackling three flights of narrow stairs, Tjing Tjing Rooftop Bar is the very definition of a local secret. Taking its design cues from Japan (there’s also a fantastic, izakaya-inspired eatery on the ground floor), expect red-lacquer furniture and embroidered macaque monkeys adorning this 200-year-old attic space. At the bar, dive into the bespoke cocktails made with Japanese whisky, gin and sake, or explore the extensive wine list of boutique South African producers.

The speakeasy game is strong in Cape Town, and particularly so at The Athletic Club & Social, which stretches across three stories of an inner-city venue. It’s a large space, but made up of many intimate corners, allowing you to choose the vibe that’s right for you. Find a cosy nook with your plus-one or groove to a few tunes in the basement. But whatever your night entails – trust us here – get there in time to grab a sunset table on the balcony. The cocktail menu ticks-off all the classics, as well as an impressive array of signature drinks, paired neatly with an extensive canapé menu.