Three Spanish bars, chosen among the 50 best in the world in 2020
Paradiso, Salmón Gurú and Two Schmucks, two from Barcelona and one from Madrid, head the new generation of Spanish cocktail bar that has stood out in the 2020 edition of the World's 50 Best Bars
The Spanish bars Paradiso, Salmón Gurú and Two Schmucks have managed to rank among the fifty best in the world this year, according to the “World's 50 Best Bars” awards granted by a British publication. London-based Connaught Bar topped the annual ranking, released Thursday. It is a place located in the exclusive Mayfair neighborhood of the British capital: "It is difficult to think of a bar anywhere in the world that has made excellence such a simple routine," said the judges.
No. 19: Paradiso
The Barcelona-born Paradiso is the best placed of the three Spaniards, in position number 19 of the publication of the publishing group William Reed, whose authors describe its cocktail offer as "pure magic". The place is "a feast for the eyes" , the publication emphasizes: "From the entrance, inspired by a speakeasy", to "the interior of carved and curved wood in the style of Dalí."
Indeed, the Paradiso is a clandestine cocktail bar that is actually accessed through the fridge of a pastrami bar. In 2017 it won the On the Watch award, which rewards the best bars in the world. Before the pandemic, it was common to find a queue of people at the door waiting for access.
No. 22: Salmon Guru
In 22nd place this year is Salmon Guru from Madrid (in 2019 he ranked nineteenth), who received the praise of the jury for his "extravagant drinks that burst - sometimes literally - with flavors and are served in striking personalized glasses." Salmón Guru, a signature cocktail bar, opened in 2016 at number 21 Calle de Echegaray, in the Las Letras district of Madrid, with Argentine bartender Diego Cabrera (Buenos Aires, 1979) at the helm. In 2017, it was ranked 82nd in the ranking.
Yesterday, Cabrera happily answered the phone in his bar: «It was a telematic ceremony, but very emotional, due to the situation and everything. For a moment we did not talk about closure, sadness , it was like a parenthesis. Then it came back to reality. It has been a very tough year for the entire industry. It is affecting us in a particular way, because we are cocktail bar and night business. Since March we have 80% less turnover.We have everyone in Salmon at 50% in Erte. We open at 5:00 p.m. and until 11:00 p.m. when the last customer enters, it is a few hours. We are working to pay taxes and rent, but no profit is generated. If we have closed, the damage is greater. That is why we decided to open, to continue rowing. Members work for free to build the company. In bars there is a capacity control, a distance, while in houses there is no control. We have to learn to live with this. It is very easy to say close, but that is not the solution.
No. 26: Two Schmucks
Of the Two Schmucks, number 26 in the ranking, «World's 50 Best Bars» highlights its «fiercely independent» spirit and its location in El Raval, «one of the most multicultural areas of Barcelona».
In an extension of the ranking, with another fifty prominent bars, another Spanish bar appears, Dr. Stravinsky , also from Barcelona.
Recovery of Spanish cocktails
From 2009 to 2017, only two Spanish bars - from Barcelona - had made a dent in the world's top 50. In 2009, Dry Martini (Javier de las Muelas) was ranked number 30, and in 2010, 26. In the 2011, 2012 and 2013 editions the jury looked at two Spanish destinations, the aforementioned Dry Martini and also Mutis , a "clandestine" cocktail bar that was only accessed as a member or by personal invitation, closed in 2017; in 2014 and 2015 the classic Dry Martini returned. And finally, in 2016 and 2017, silence: no Spanish name among those chosen.
Already on the 2018 list were Paradiso, in which a cocktail, the "Mediterranean treasure," with vodka, sherry, elderberry liqueur and agave syrup has become popular ; served in a seashell enclosed in a pirate chest) and Salmon Guru, by Diego Cabrera , who in an interview with ABC defined his bar in these terms: «It is an atypical, unusual place, different from the front, very discreet, marble, which may make you think it is a Japanese place. It has three different spaces plus a cave, one more pop with comics and neons, another more classic, British, and another Asian, with red velvets. We promote creativity, surprise, innovation. We have rare distillates. You go to Salmon because you want to live an experience, try new flavors. It's a really fun bar. Its success in these years has been the Sprenger Tonic , a long drink cocktail, very refreshing, based on gin macerated with cardamom. It has ginger, cucumber and cinnamon.
