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This Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­bar was just named among the top 20 in North America

Raise your glasses in honour of one of the city's most acclaimed cocktail destinations!
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Vancouver's Botanist Bar, the cocktail destination at the Fairmont Pacific Rim, has landed on the 2023 list of North America's 50 Best Bars - the sole Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­bar to do so.

Cheers to one of Vancouver's best places for a cocktail (or two!), joining this year's prestigious ranks of .

Announced at a ceremony in Mexico on Thursday night (May 4), among the seven Canadian bars ranked in the awards' second annual installation is Botanist, landing among the top 20 at a respectable 19.

Presented by The World’s 50 Best Bars, "the list recognizes bar excellence across the North American continent and is one of the most coveted in the industry," explain organizers via email. The judging is done by industry experts, who visit bars around the continent anonymously. The judging panels are split into regions and must adhere to  to cast their confidential votes. 

What makes Botanist a stand-out bar?

When it comes to Vancouver's place on the list, Botanist Bar - the acclaimed cocktail destination at the Fairmont Pacific Rim - is spearheaded by Creative Beverage Director Grant Sceney and Head Bartender Jeff Savage.

Having developed a reputation for celebrating the biodiversity of the Pacific Northwest using a technique-forward approach, the bar is no stranger to accolades. Botanist Bar’s Cocktail Lab pushes the envelope with bartending technology such as a rotary evaporator, centrifuge, and a band saw for size-specific ice sculpting.

The creativity and innovation are apparent on their menu both in flavour and presentation (for instance a cocktail that actually levitates) and Botanist has landed several Best Bar lists since it opened and won the Michelin Exceptional Cocktails award last year.

Last month, Botanist Bar received the Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award, given to the bar where the North America's 50 Best Bars judging panel received the single-best hospitality experience across the continent. 

In 2022, Botanist Bar was not among the top 50; the only Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»­bar on last year's list was The Keefer Bar, which did not appear this year. 

North America's 50 Best Bars of 2023 

Here's a look at how the entire awards list shakes out for this year.

Toronto’s Civil Liberties (No.12) wins the title of The Best Bar in Canada for the second year in a row, while Puerto Rico’s La Factoría, at No.24, retains its title of The Best Bar in the Caribbean. Overall, the USA leads the list with 28 bars, with Mexico fielding 14, Canada boasting seven and the Caribbean celebrating one top bar.  

Other Canadian bars on the esteemed list include: Bar Pompette (No.15), Mother (No.37), and Bar Mordecai (No.43) in Toronto; and Atwater Cocktail Club (No.32), and Cloakroom (No.35) in Montreal. 

Take a look at the full list and play your next cocktail adventure across the continent:

Double Chicken Please 

New York City 

Handshake Speakeasy 

Mexico City 

Katana Kitten 

New York City 

Licorería Limantour 

Mexico City 

Jewel of the South 

New Orleans 

Dante 

New York City 

Overstory 

New York City 

Kumiko 

Chicago 

Café La Trova 

Miami 

10 

Thunderbolt 

Los Angeles 

11 

Zapote Bar 

Playa del Carmen 

12 

Civil Liberties 

Toronto 

13 

Attaboy 

New York City 

14 

Employees Only 

New York City 

15 

Bar Pompette 

Toronto 

16 

Baltra Bar 

Mexico City 

17 

Rayo 

Mexico City 

18 

Mace 

New York City 

19 

Botanist Bar 

Vancouver 

20 

Hanky Panky 

Mexico City 

21 

El Gallo Altanero 

Guadalajara 

22 

Sabina Sabe 

Oaxaca 

23 

Arca 

Tulum 

24 

La Factoriìa 

San Juan 

25 

Café de Nadie 

Mexico City 

26 

Kaito del Valle 

Mexico City 

27 

Herbs & Rye 

Las Vegas 

28 

Pacific Cocktail Haven 

San Francisco 

29 

Martiny's 

New York City 

30 

Death & Co (Los Angeles) 

Los Angeles 

31 

Selva 

Oaxaca 

32 

Atwater Cocktail Club 

Montreal 

33 

Service Bar 

Washington, D.C. 

34 

Sweet Liberty  

Miami 

35 

Cloakroom  

Montreal 

36 

Cure 

New Orleans 

37 

Mother  

Toronto 

38 

Milk Room 

Chicago 

39 

Maison Premiere 

New York City 

40 

Aruba Day Drink 

Tijuana 

41 

Bar Leather Apron 

Honolulu 

42 

Yacht Club 

Denver 

43 

Bar Mordecai 

Toronto 

44 

The Dead Rabbit  

New York City 

45 

Allegory 

Washington, D.C. 

46 

Clover Club 

New York City 

47 

Brujas 

Mexico City 

48 

Platform 18 

Phoenix 

49 

Youngblood 

San Diego 

50 

Milady's 

New York City 

 

With a file from Allie Turner