The 57 Best Bars in the Twin Cities

It's no secret that Minnesotans are good at drinking. (We're no Wisconsin, but we do our best!) Where should you go today for the best house spirits, snacks, and even a cycling track? Check out our faves, and buy a round for the room!

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You need a beer, a cocktail, a plate of fries, a tray of oysters. You need a place to watch the game. A place to watch a drag show. (At a bar in Midway, you’ve got both in one spot!) You need to see a friend. You need to make a friend.

There’s a place for that: the bar.

Minneapolis and St. Paul are great bar towns. Always have been.

Take a seat, if you will, and read our favorite joints. And we’ll share the spot that we believe is the absolute best bar in the Twin Cities. Just promise us you’ll tip the bartender—generously.

Craft Work

From tequila old fashioneds to blonde negronis, these bars shine brightest with a glass of perfectly mixed spirits.

P.S. Steak

Loring Park

Keith Mrotek, previously of Norseman Distillery and Marvel Bar, experienced a eureka moment this past July. After taking over the bar program at P.S. Steak, he realized how well New Orleans cocktail culture, both festive and food friendly, fit with a nouveau steakhouse. Look for a Sazerac, a Vieux Carré, a Ramos gin fizz, a Champs-Élysées. And brandy, brandy, brandy. psmpls.com

Colita

South Minneapolis

Everything at Marco Zappia’s bar has something to do with fermentation. Most of it takes place in big glass jugs filled with seasonal fruits or grains, like dried corn straight from Oaxaca. When he finds a flavor he likes, he stops the fermentation by adding spirits, and that unique elixir forms the basis of a cocktail you can get nowhere else on earth. This fall, Zappia says, he plans to experiment with freezing—think ice wine. colitampls.com

Young Joni, Back Bar

Northeast

There are only 50-odd seats in Young Joni’s down-the-alley backbar, but everyone wants one. That’s because the 11-person drinks crew creates playful new menus throughout the year. Once it was a sort of birding guide, another time a time a faux yearbook. Each menu tends to include a dozen cocktails: here a bitter-stirred drink, there a so-called Yahtzee Lessons, with apricot, brandy, and fernet. youngjoni.com

Marvel Bar

North Loop

Three times a year, the bar team deep dives into various drink topics. For example, they invited one of the world’s foremost gin collectors to visit for a lecture and guided tasting. This fall, the focus will be eaux de vie and brandies, some turned into cocktails with the steam-extracted juice of heritage apples. marvelbar.com

Our Fave Bar Snacks

The Irregulars

Everyone likes the idea of a steady spot where the bartender knows your order before you’ve sat down. But there’s magic to be found at these unusual and somewhat offbeat bars. You may want to become a regular.

Ngon Bistro 

Frogtown

Sure, it’s known for a killer bowl of pho, but this French-Vietnamese bar speaks its own separate language. Under the tin ceiling, a Winchester rifle hangs among the Buddhas, vintage glassware, whiskey bottles, and small casks of barrel-aging cocktails. And taps pour from a bronze willow sculpture. Is tonight right for a Tiki drink or a brandy flight? (Answer: Why not both?) ngonbistro.com

The Commodore 

Cathedral Hill

Toasting its 100th anniversary in 2020, this Jazz Age gem likes to keep it easy and cool. Whether you want to walk in the footsteps of F. Scott and Zelda or enjoy a room where you can hold an actual conversation with drinks, this haunt possesses a quiet elegance. What’s in your glass? Maybe something from a local distillery  or a mean Dr. Moran’s Cure-All. thecommodorebar.com

Merlins Rest Pub 

Longfellow

There are pubs where the woodwork has been handsomely stained, and then there are pubs where the bagpipes whistle and the whiskey splashes in your glass. If you have yet to find your signature dram, ask for a whiskey bible behind the bar and have a read. After a few, you’ll be ready for the live Celtic music and the futbol brekkies. merlinsrest.com

Black Hart of St. Paul

Midway

We could never have dreamed this bar into being, but thank God someone did. Sitting in the shadow of the shiny new Allianz Field, this self-appointed “spiritual home for soccer” mates a sports bar to St. Paul’s oldest gay bar. Pregame is serious, but so are the “Pumps and Pearls” drag shows on Wednesday nights. blackhartstp.com

Best Power Bars (St. Paul)

Best Power Bars (Mpls.)

The Gang's All Here

Grab your fellow cube farmers and cut out of work early. Or bring the whole kickball team  together for a drink after the game. These spots can handle the crowd—with grace.

Date Bars

You’re not going to charm your beau at table 42, by the bathroom, next to that kid’s birthday party. Here’s where you’re going for your big night out.

St. Genevieve

South Minneapolis 

The light and elegant bubbles bar now offers a chic array of craft cocktails. Linger into the evening over grilled oysters and escargot. If the conversation keeps rolling, the late happy hour brings St. Genevieve’s famous burger and a glass of sherry. stgmpls.com

Monte Carlo 

North Loop

The grande dame of the neighborhood—it’s been here 103 years—the Monte Carlo brings in all types. Designers, tycoons, youngsters who get it: You’ll find them all crowded around the copper-topped bar, basking in the glow of back-lit bottles. Why are we all here? The Rusty Nail on the drinks menu isn’t ironic, and an order of Beijing wings will make you new friends. montecarlomn.com

Mancini’s Char House

West Seventh Street

Darkly lit, with high-back red booths and not an ounce of pretension, Mancini’s is the official clubhouse of Good Ol’ St. Paul. It feels like the last place on earth where you can follow a Friday steak dinner with rounds (and rounds) of Manhattans and dancing. mancinis.com

Spoon and Stable 

North Loop

While captains of industry tap their expense accounts in the dining room, you’ll find the cool kids at the bar. The drinks from Robb Jones and his crew—we like a gin and tonic, with botanical gin and seasonal herbs and garnishes—may not attract the same national attention that the kitchen gets. But they should. If you promise not to tell anyone else, we’ll hold a seat for you. spoonandstable.com

There's More on Tap

You may go to a taproom for an imperial barrel sour with torched pomegranate and marshmallow powder. But what makes the place a favorite? The trivia nights, open mics, screenings, outdoor concerts, and more. Here are some of the best taproom hangs. 

Game On

It’s not so much about the actual games as courting that feeling. The possibility of winning at something—besides finishing your drink? It’s intoxicating.

Ox Cart Arcade & Rooftop 

Lowertown

Justin Sutherland took a tired craft-beer-and-cocktail bar and filled it with classic arcade games. And he set up the renovated rooftop bar with neon lights and wading-pool hijinks for a summer party. Meanwhile, fruity booze bombs like the Wu Tang (yes, made with Tang) will send you back to college. oxcartarcadeandrooftop.com

Lawless Distilling

Seward

Each season, this tiny dark distillery bar turns itself into a new world. Summer brings “Camp Lawless,” where you roast marshmallows in your drinks and make new lifelong friends. Winter means the “Miracle Bar,” with crocktails served in crockpots, Christmas lights, and visits from Santa. (Being good? That’s up to you.) lawlessdistillingcompany.com

Brit's Pub

Nicollet Mall 

Before everyone had a rooftop, before everyone offered games, Brit’s marked the first sign of spring with its lawn-bowling leagues and strong pints. Proving that sport comes in many forms, that lawn has been put to other fine uses over the years: movie screenings, pole-vaulting competitions, yoga, and Shakespeare performances. britspub.com

Betty Danger’s Country Club 

Northeast

This Nordeast spot winks at the Minikahda crowd with a hot-pink patio devoted to mini golf. But the 8½-hole course is no joke. If you’re going to play a round with a cocktail in hand, might we suggest the Social Climbing (Betty Danger’s signature Bootleg)? And celebrate with your golf partner on the Ferris wheel named The Danger. bettydangers.com

Best Cocktail Rooms

These distillery pioneers have changed the way we think about local booze.

  • Tattersall. This NE distillery, created by bartenders, serves creative cocktails and the widest array of spirits. 1620 Central Ave. NE, Mpls., tattersalldistilling.com
  • J. Carver. Who’d have imagined a former car dealership in Waconia would turn into a spot where local grains lead to high spirits? 1320 Mill Ln., Waconia, jcarverdistillery.com
  • Du Nord. Du Nord throws great parking-lot parties and a famous Big Lebowski night. 2610 E. 32nd St., Mpls., dunordcraftspirits.com
  • Norseman. Tucked into a NE industrial park, with an ever-changing backbar mural, this cocktail room attracts the creative set. 451 NE Taft St., Mpls., norsemandistillery.com
  • Twin Spirits. Grab some Mamma’s Moonshine—distilled from honey during the full moon—at this woman-owned NE distillery. 2931 Central Ave. NE, Mpls., twinspirits.us
  • Royal Foundry. Along with British-style gin, this Harrison venue offers nine-pin bowling and dirt-track bike racing. 241 Fremont Ave. N., Mpls., royalfoundrycraftspirits.com

Take a Dive

Where you’re drinking when you’re really drinking.

And the Best Bar in the Twin Cities is... Grumpy's!

The blue-gray stucco building on the corner of 4th Street NE and 22nd Avenue has housed a bar continuously since 1906, when blue-collar Poles and Croats came in to drink Schlitz. It functioned as a cop bar called Zurbey’s until Russian New Year’s (that is, mid-January) in 1998, when two guys in their early 30s, Pat Dwyer and Tom Hazelmyer, assumed the contract for deed to the bar and renamed it Grumpy’s. Read more

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