The 8 best bars in Bucharest, ranked: Bartini Rooftop, Linea, Interbelic, Nomad Skybar and more, with cocktail prices in lei, opening hours and honest downsides.
The best bars in Bucharest cluster in two places. The Old Town around Strada Lipscani has the rooftops and the party-led cocktail bars, and the streets around Universitate and Piața Romană have the quieter drink lists. Calea Victoriei adds a craft beer taproom, and Strada Știrbei Vodă has The Owl, a bar that builds each drink to your taste instead of using a menu.
This ranking covers eight bars, from rooftops to a gin bar, with the price of a drink where it is published, the hours and a reason to skip each one. Cocktails cost about 45–55 lei (€8.50–10.50), a draught Romanian craft beer about 15 lei (€2.80), and most bars close between 02:00 and 04:00. One warning applies to the Old Town: ask for a priced menu before you sit down, and check the bill line by line.
We ranked bars on the same five things as clubs: sound, crowd, door, late licence and value. For a bar, sound means music at a level where you can still talk, or no music at all. Crowd means a room that suits the drink. Door means how easy it is to get a table, including reservations. Late licence means open past 02:00. Value compares the price of a drink with the setting. Every price and hour comes from the bar's own site or a local guide dated 2026, except Linea, whose hours come from an undated listing. Caru' cu Bere, Fratelli Herăstrău and Hard Rock Cafe are in our directory but not ranked.
A martini bar on the top floor of Strada Constantin Mille 18, with listed cocktails at 47–55 lei and a close of 03:00 on Friday and Saturday. It ranks first for printed prices, a bookable table through ialoc.ro and a rooftop panorama. Skip it if you want a dance floor: Nook, in the same building, is the place to dance.
An eighth-floor rooftop bar above the Old Town, with cocktails quoted at €8–11 (about 42–58 lei), a weekday rooftop brunch and bookable igloos in winter. A listing gives Friday 18:00–04:00 and Saturday 14:00–04:00. Skip it if you want to walk in on a weekend, because reservations are recommended, and confirm the hours first.
A cocktail bar with the energy of a club, open until 05:00 on Friday and Saturday. The Thursday Most Wanted night costs 40 lei after 23:00, or nothing with a ticket from interbelic.ro for entry before 23:00, and the weekend nights are 21+. Skip it if you want a quiet cocktail on a Friday or Saturday: the dance floor is the point.
A restaurant, bar and club on the upper floors of Strada Smârdan 30, with a retractable roof, DJs and live projects. It opens at 16:00 every day and closes at 04:00 on Friday and Saturday. Skip it if you want a quiet bar after dark: the club side takes over at the weekend, and Old Town prices are worth checking before you order.
The Owl makes personalised drinks instead of working from a menu, with gin cocktails from 45 lei according to a local guide updated in September 2026. It is open Wednesday to Saturday, 18:00–02:00, on Strada Știrbei Vodă. Skip it if you are in a hurry or want a known price: ask what the drink will cost before you agree.
A greenhouse bar in the garden of the former Casa Brătianu, serving mixology in a room with no music. You order at the bar, and it stays open until 02:00, from 12:00 on weekdays and 10:00 at the weekend. Skip it if you want music or a guaranteed table: it does not take reservations, so a busy evening can mean a wait.
A gin bar on Strada Plantelor with over 80 gin and tonic recipes in a 14-page menu and an elderflower gin drink at 32 lei. It opens Tuesday to Sunday from 18:00 and closes at 23:00, so it works as the start of a night. Skip it if you want a late bar, and ask the bartender for a shortlist before you open that menu.
The taproom of the Zaganu craft brewery, opened in 2017, with ten Romanian craft beers on tap and the Zaganu IPA at 15 lei. It opens at 12:00 daily, and a local guide lists a 21:00 close. Skip it if you want to drink late; it works best as a stop before dinner.
The Old Town bars are close together, so you can compare before you sit down. Linea and Interbelic are both listed at number 17 on Lipscani, Nomad Skybar is on Strada Smârdan, and Caru' cu Bere, the neo-Gothic beer hall, is on Strada Stavropoleos. Bartini Rooftop is on Strada Constantin Mille, the street that also holds Control, and Sera Eden is on Strada C. A. Rosetti in the same central stretch. Start early: GinOteca closes at 23:00 and Fabrica de Bere Buna lists a 21:00 close.
The three unranked venues have a reason. Caru' cu Bere closes at 00:00, Fratelli Herăstrău by Herăstrău Park publishes only weekend hours, and Hard Rock Cafe is a concert venue that closes at midnight. After the bar, the metro has stopped by 23:00, so order Bolt or Uber for the ride home.
Pick the bar for the hour. Go to GinOteca and Fabrica de Bere Buna first, to The Owl and Sera Eden for a conversation, and to the rooftops or Interbelic when you want the night to carry on. For closing times, prices and getting home, read our Bucharest nightlife guide. When the bars close, our list of the 10 best clubs in Bucharest covers the next stop, and the neighbourhood guide shows which area to base yourself in. Looking for a room near the Old Town? Compare options on NightFind stays.
Bartini Rooftop on Strada Constantin Mille 18 for martinis at 47–55 lei, Linea on the eighth floor of Lipscani 17 for views over the Old Town, and Nomad Skybar on Strada Smârdan for a retractable roof and DJs.
About 45–55 lei, or €8.50–10.50. Bartini lists martinis at 47–55 lei, The Owl starts gin cocktails at 45 lei, and rooftop guides quote €8–11 at Linea and €8–10 at Nomad Skybar.
The Old Town is generally safe with normal caution, but a safety guide updated in March 2026 warns that tourist-focused venues may inflate bills, charge for items you did not order or show menus without prices. Ask for a priced menu and check the bill.
Rooftops close at 03:00 or 04:00 on Friday and Saturday, Interbelic at 05:00, and most bars at 02:00 on other nights. GinOteca closes at 23:00 and Fabrica de Bere Buna lists 21:00.
Sera Eden, a greenhouse bar with no music and no table reservations. For a drink made to your taste, try The Owl, which is open Wednesday to Saturday only.
