The Best Cocktail Bars in Brazil

Exímia means the constant search for perfection in Latin, which tells you something about how seriously the team takes their cocktail bar on the second floor of Itaim Bibi. The drinks are a deep dive into Brazilian history and native ingredients, without a caipirinha in sight. Landing on The World's 50 Best Bars list, this is a place that makes the case for Brazil through the glass, anthropology and all.

Cathedral ceilings, exposed brick, and tropical plants climbing around plush tweed stools set the mood at this cocktail bar in Pinheiros. The drinks lean deep into Brazil's botanical pantry, gin paired with tonka bean syrup, rue herb, and native cambuci fruit in combinations that sound unlikely until they don't. The kind of bar where you come in curious and leave converted to ingredients you couldn't have spelled when you arrived.

Cannoli at nine in the morning, a Spritz by noon, and a proper Italian cocktail by evening: Locale Caffè runs the full day shift without breaking a sweat. The Itaim Bibi space is relaxed enough for a quick espresso stop but shifts into something closer to a classic Italian cocktail bar once the sun goes down. The drinks lean on aperitivo instincts, herbaceous and citrus-forward, and the vibe follows.

A converted townhouse in Pinheiros that now operates as a cocktail bar, where the drinks list is organized chronologically, the way a serious person organizes a library. Gabriel Santana and his team treat the classics with real rigor, then slip in a handful of originals to keep things from feeling like a museum. You can drink inside in a compact lounge or out on the deck, which São Paulo weather makes an easy call most nights.