The 10 Best Places to Drink in Cape Town
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The best places to drink in Cape Town, according to the experts: The 50, Difford's Guide, and the Spirited Awards have all weighed in, and their honors are what rank this list. Art of Duplicity comes out on top.
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Cause Effect Cocktail Kitchen and The House of Machines hold the next two places. The 50 shows up on more of this list than any other guide, with Difford's Guide next.
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A cocktail bar that earns its mystique: the address is withheld, the website offers little but a booking link, and you'll need a password before you find the place tucked inside a Victorian warehouse in central Cape Town. The bartenders dress the period, every vintage detail follows through, and the cocktail list is inventive enough to justify the ceremony. A Discovery from The 50 Bar Awards. Other so-called speakeasies are taking notes.
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
- Difford's Guide Difford's Guide: Difford's Guide
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The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
- Difford's Guide Difford's Guide: Difford's Guide
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Rank 1. The House of Machines
Cocktail Bar
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
- Difford's Guide Difford's Guide: Difford's Guide
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Rank 4. fable
Cocktail Bar
The awards
- The 50 The 50 Discovery
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best International Cocktail Bar – Middle East & Africa
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best International Bar Team – Middle East & Africa
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The awards
- The 50 The 50 Discovery
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best International Cocktail Bar – Middle East & Africa
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The awards
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Rank 5. Talking to Strangers
Cocktail Bar
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
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A three-floor cocktail bar where vintage sports memorabilia covers the walls in tribute to a former owner who ran a speakeasy in the basement and apparently collected both pills and pennants. The balcony overlooking Signal Hill earns its reputation. Classics and barrel-aged options anchor the drinks list, while the signature side leans into housemade ingredients and stranger flavor pairings for anyone who wants the bar to do the thinking.
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
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Rank 5. The Drinkery
Cocktail Bar
The building was a slave prison before it became a cocktail bar, which gives Heritage Square's best-kept secret a weight that no amount of exposed brick could manufacture on its own. The Drinkery leans into the history with contemporary art on the walls, a chessboard for lingering, and a living-room vibe that makes ordering a third drink feel perfectly reasonable. The cocktail list skews adventurous, with port and absinthe sharing a glass without apology.
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery
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Rank 5. The Gin Bar
Cocktail Bar
A gin bar tucked inside a Mediterranean-style courtyard, reached through a cafe that gives nothing away. Once inside, the theme is South African gin, with over 70 local bottles on the shelves and a signature G&T list drawn from the building's former life as a morgue, which is either a gimmick or a perfectly reasonable way to name a cocktail, depending on your disposition. No speakeasy cosplay, just a lot of very specific botanical choices.
The awards
- The 50 The 50: The 50 Discovery