Our Story
The world's most
trusted bar guide.
We go to the bars so you go to the right ones. 60 cities, 8 occasions, one editorial standard that never compromises.
We go to the bars so you go to the right ones. 60 cities, 8 occasions, one editorial standard that never compromises.
barsforKings started from a simple frustration. Every other bar guide either lists everything without judgment, or reviews bars months after the crowd has moved on. We built something different.
Our editors live in the cities they cover. They visit the bars on regular nights, not press nights. They pay their own tabs. That editorial independence is the reason our readers trust us. It is also why our weekly newsletter consistently achieves open rates above 40 percent.
We organize bars by occasion because that is how people actually think. You do not search for a bar. You search for the right bar for tonight's occasion. Sports bar for the game, cocktail parlour for the date night, rooftop for the colleague's birthday, neighbourhood bar for the post-work debrief. We built our 60-city guide and editorial around that reality.
Every listing is reviewed by a named editor. Every recommendation is updated at least quarterly. We remove bars that drop their standard. We add bars before they get crowded. That is our commitment.
No press invites. No complimentary rounds. Our editors visit the same way you would, on a Wednesday or a Saturday, unannounced. We order from the menu. We pay the bill. We come back a second time before writing a single word. Know a bar we have not found yet? Submit it for review.
Atmosphere, drink quality, service speed, price fairness, crowd calibre, noise level, seating availability, consistency on return, cocktail creativity, beer range, natural light, and neighbourhood fit. Every bar scores against all 12. Only bars that clear the threshold make the guide.
A great bar in January can be a disappointing bar by April. Management changes, staff turn over, kitchens close. We revisit every listing at least once per quarter. Bars that slip get flagged, then removed if they do not recover. We have removed 340 bars from the guide in the last 18 months.
barsforKings was founded by two executives who between them have lived across four continents, logged hundreds of thousands of miles in business travel, and grown deeply impatient with bar guides written by people who don't drink.
Fredrik is a business executive who has lived and worked across Sweden, Ireland, Spain, Thailand, and now splits his time between Dubai and Florida. He has sat in sports bars on four continents — watching games in Stockholm, Dublin, Bangkok, and Miami — and brings that genuinely global perspective to every city guide. His specialty is high-end sports bars, luxury hotel bars, and the question of whether a city's bar scene matches the quality of its restaurants. The answer is usually no. The exceptions are what barsforKings is built to find.
Morten has called Spain home for years, having previously lived in Sweden, Denmark, the UK, Ireland, and Las Vegas — a trajectory that covers both the world's best pubs and its most theatrical cocktail venues. He has an uncompromising eye for service quality and a genuine taste for champagne bars and rooftop terraces. His European coverage is the most personally vetted content on the site: if a bar in Barcelona or Dublin makes the guide, Morten has sat there long enough to form a real opinion. He covers Southern Europe and the UK with authority that only comes from living there.
Former bartender turned writer. James has worked bars in New York, Chicago, and New Orleans. He knows what the back of the bar looks like — and why it matters.
Sofia spent five years writing for drinks publications in London before moving to Amsterdam. She covers Northern European bar culture with genuine authority.
Priya grew up between Lisbon and Singapore. She covers the Mediterranean coast, Southeast Asia, and the Gulf — regions where bar culture is evolving faster than most guides can keep up.
Tom covers craft beer, live music, and hidden gems across every city in the guide. He drinks more pints per year than any reasonable person should, and he makes no apology for it.
Marcus splits his time between Los Angeles and Sydney. His specialty is rooftop bars and the culture of after-dark drinking in cities where the weather lets you do it properly.
Sponsored listings are clearly labelled. Editorial rankings are never for sale. No bar has ever paid to improve its position in our ranked lists. That separation is the foundation of our readers' trust, and we will not trade it.
We never write that a bar has a "great atmosphere". We tell you that the lighting drops to 40 lux by 9pm, the jazz quartet starts at 10, and the corner booth fits four without feeling cramped. Specific is useful. Vague is noise.
We have all had the experience of following a recommendation to a bar that no longer resembles the description. We review every listing quarterly. If it has changed, we say so. If it has slipped, we remove it. Accuracy is respect for your time.
One email every week. The bars our editors are recommending right now, across 60 cities worldwide.
Our editors read every message. Whether you are pitching a bar for the guide, asking about advertising, or just want to share the best bar you have been to this month, we are listening.
Sponsored listings, newsletter placements, and city guide partnerships across 60 cities. Contact us to get your bar in front of the right audience.