Kanpai! World Toasts 5 Tokyo Bars in Top 100
Three in the top 50 and two more under 100—that’s Japan’s body count in the World’s Best Bars 2025. This is an industry snapshot of opinions and experiences from more than 800 global bar industry experts including renowned bartenders, consultants, drinks writers and cocktail specialists, with equal gender balance. None of the employees of the organiser or any of the sponsors associated with the awards, including the main sponsor, has any influence over the results. What constitutes “best” is left to the personal judgment of these trusted and well-travelled experts.
Bar Benfiddich
Bar Benfiddich (pictured above) scored 18th for its “Inventive farm-driven cocktails in an ever-changing Shinjuku hideaway.”
Judges said that no two visits to Bar Benfiddich are the same. “Since your last, Hiroyasu Kayama might have tasted an indigenous drink in some new, remote country, unearthed a new recipe from a dusty book or planted something on his farm that’s just ready to harvest.
Most drinks contain something from his farm in Chichibu, an hour north west of Tokyo. Twigs snapped fresh from mizunara or juniper trees might be used to stir a drink; fennel, grown alongside intensely aromatic mint, finds its way into a farm-fresh Julep, sipped through a century-old pewter straw. Kayama might take a splash of honey water from one of the absinthe drippers hanging above the bar, or he might reach for one of his many bottles whose labels fell off decades ago.
Guests sit at a walnut counter facing those bottles—some of which are global classics, others his own work, including a farm-distilled absinthe—as well as fresh fruit and herbs, inventive infusions and a telling painting of an illicit Highland distilling operation.
The room has just 17 seats, the atmosphere a mix of quiet focus and curiosity. Guests lean in to watch Kayama work and often ask questions about the plant in their drink, the antique tool in his hand or the old book open on the bar. Bar Benfiddich follows its own style—one that weaves a path between nature, history and your palate.”
www.facebook.com/BarBenfiddich
ameblo.jp/kayama0927
03-6258-0309
9F, 1 Chome-13-7
Nishishinjuku
Shinjuku City
160-0023 Tokyo
Virtù
In 45th spot, Virtù offers Franco-Japanese cocktails served with award-winning hospitality. “High above the city in the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi, Virtù pairs skyline views with a warmth that keeps the luxury from feeling stiff. Keith Motsi and his polyglot team bring humour and ease to a room of brass details, Art Deco flourishes and floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over eastern Tokyo and the Skytree. Fluent in nine languages, the staff can guide you through the nuances of a cognac or simply let you sink into the view.
The drinks carry the same blend of polish and personality. Most of the menu mixes French spirits with Japanese produce, such as the Smoked Ume Fashioned, made with homemade rye-and-brandy umeshu, Japanese whisky and hinoki bitters. A new range goes all-in on Japanese ingredients, from a garibaldi brightened with local amaro to a martini built on Japanese gin, vodka and vermouth.
A map in the menu pinpoints where ingredients come from, whether that’s a small sake brewery or a local orchard. Service runs on quiet coordination, with details about guests — birthdays, anniversaries, favourite drinks — passed along invisibly so the welcome feels personal without being scripted. It’s that mix of care, craft and comfort that won Virtù the Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award in 2024, and that keeps it from feeling like any other luxury hotel lounge in the city.”
www.fourseasons.com/otemachi/dining/restaurants/virtu/
www.instagram.com/virtutokyo/?hl=en
03-6810-0655
1 Chome-2-1 Ōtemachi,
Chiyoda City, Tokyo 100-0004
The Bellwood
The Bellwood, at 48th, is a “Tokyo hotspot where cocktail kaiseki rewrites the drinking rulebook.”
Opened in 2020 by award-winning bartender Atsushi Suzuki in Tokyo’s eclectic Shibuya neighbourhood, The Bellwood has steadily earned its reputation as one of the best bars in Asia.
“The bar’s concept is inspired by the café culture of late Meiji to Taisho-era Japan, a time in history when Western and Japanese sensibilities began to merge and create a unique experience that straddled both worlds. This revival of the wayō-setchū spirit successfully introduces historical storytelling charm into the modern context through an intimate and innovative cocktail experience.
Suzuki’s impressive bartending pedigree and years of valuable experience working in New York and Japan have left an indelible mark on his approach to cocktails at The Bellwood. The drinks programme borrows inspiration from the kaiseki tradition, where courses such as sakizuke (a small appetiser designed to awaken the palate), yakimono (grilled dishes typically showcasing seasonal ingredients), and gohan (rice, traditionally served toward the end of the meal) are thoughtfully reimagined as cocktails.
Each course takes on the form of a cocktail that draws on both Japanese and Western spirits, carefully chosen to complement the essence of the original dish. The result is a refined and immersive cocktail experience that honours the structure and philosophy of the time-honoured tradition of kaiseki. Tucked away at the back, the unmarked Bell Sushi counter serves a 12-piece omakase where each nigiri fuses traditional technique with global influences—a refined yet playful take on sushi.”
www.instagram.com/the_bellwood/?hl=en
03-6452-5077
41-31 Udagawacho
Shibuya, Tokyo 150-0042
At 65th is The SG Club:
www.instagram.com/the_sg_club/
1-7-8 Jinnan, Shibuya, Tokyo 1500041
And Bar Trench claims 93rd:
https://small-axe.net/bar-trench/
1 Chome−5−8 Dis Ebisu Bldg 1F
Ebisunishi, Shibuya
Tokyo 150-0021
(no reservations)
Best 100 Bars here: www.theworlds50best.com/bars/list/1-50