Monday, August 31, 2026

The Best Cocktail Bars in Boston, by the Record

4 places in the record

The best cocktail bars in Boston, by the professional record: Esquire, James Beard Awards, and Spirited Awards have all weighed in, and their honors are what rank this list. Equal Measure comes out on top.

Merai and The Koji Club hold the next two places. James Beard Awards and Spirited Awards show up on more of this list than any other guide.

Categories

  1. Rank 1. Equal Measure

    Awards
    Address
    775 Beacon St, Boston, MA · Boston
    Reserve
    OpenTable
    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
    On the Way What's Around

  2. Rank 2. Merai

    Modern Thai Cocktail Bar

    Awards
    Address
    14 Harvard St, Brookline, MA · Brookline
    Hours
    Mon Closed
    Reserve
    OpenTable
    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
    On the Way What's Around

  3. Rank 3. The Koji Club

    Sake Cocktail Bar

    Awards
    Address
    525 Western Ave, Brighton, MA · Brighton
    Reserve
    Resy
    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
    On the Way What's Around

  4. Rank 4. Chemist Cocktail Bar

    Awards
    Address
    109 High St, Boston, MA · Charlestown
    Hours
    Mon 4 PM–Midnight
    Online
    WebsiteInstagram
    On the Way What's Around

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Eat Score

The score comes from the awards it's won, weighted by who gave them: a Michelin star outweighs a listicle. When you sort by what's nearby, distance changes the order, never the score.

    How we score →

    Drink Score

    The score comes from the awards it's won, weighted by who gave them: a Michelin star outweighs a listicle. When you sort by what's nearby, distance changes the order, never the score.

      How we score →

      Stay Score

      The score comes from the awards it's won, weighted by who gave them: a Michelin star outweighs a listicle. When you sort by what's nearby, distance changes the order, never the score.

        How we score →

        Do Score

        The score comes from the awards it's won, weighted by who gave them: a Michelin star outweighs a listicle. When you sort by what's nearby, distance changes the order, never the score.

          How we score →

          Best Place Score

          The Best Place Score rates the area around a point, not any one place. It runs on the scored places nearby: more good stuff within reach, higher score. If it looks low, we probably haven't found enough critics out here yet.