The 10 best bars in Mexico City, ranked: Bar Mauro, Tlecān, Handshake and more, with opening hours, prices, booking rules and what each bar is like.
The best bars in Mexico City run from award-winning cocktail rooms in Roma to cantinas that have been open since 1876. Five bars in this list made North America's 50 Best Bars 2026: Bar Mauro second, Tlecān fifth, Handshake 12th, Licorería Limantour 20th and Baltra Bar 48th.
This list ranks ten bars. Each entry gives the opening hours, the price where one is published, how to get in and one honest reason to skip it. The basics first: cocktail bars open around 18:00 and close at 01:00 or 02:00, the cantinas of the Centro open at midday, and the best rooms take reservations. A cocktail costs around MXN 150–250 (about €7–12). The Metro closes at midnight, so book your ride home from inside the bar.
We ranked bars on five things: drinks, atmosphere, door, late licence and value. Drinks means a menu with a point of view, from the aperitivo list at Bar Mauro to a mezcal flight at La Clandestina. Atmosphere means a room that suits the drinks. Door means you can predict whether you will get in and whether you need a booking. Late licence means a finish at 01:00 or later. Value compares the price with what you get. Every bar here has a 2026 listing or award, and every address, hour and price comes from the city tourism site, the 50 Best Bars lists, Time Out, Chilango or the bar's own page. Where sources disagree, we say so.
An aperitivo bar on Calle Tabasco that opened in late 2024 and ranked second in North America's 50 Best Bars 2026, the best bar in Mexico that year. The room evokes 1970s Italy, and the menu runs from the Negroni 1929 to El Maurito, made with mezcal, white wine and guava. Skip it if you want to walk in at 22:00 on a Saturday.
A mezcal bar on Avenida Álvaro Obregón inspired by the pre-Hispanic era, ranked fifth in North America's 50 Best Bars 2026 and third in 2025. Spirits come from different regions of Mexico, so it is a good place to learn how agaves and regions change the taste. Skip it if you want a dance floor or a late finish: it closes at 01:00.
A speakeasy behind an unmarked door on Calle Amberes, named the best bar in North America in 2024 and 2025 and ranked 12th in 2026. Booking is online, each slot lasts 1 hour 30 minutes, and a credit card guarantees it. OpenTable lists a price range of MXN 310 to 500. Skip it if you want to stay all night at one table.
The Roma Norte cocktail bar that built its name on mixology, with about 20 cocktails on the regular menu, often built on mezcal, gin and bitters, plus guest bartender nights. It ranked 20th in North America's 50 Best Bars 2026. Time Out lists an average drink around MXN 200 (€10). Skip it if you want a quiet corner on a Saturday.
A cocktail bar on Calle Iztaccíhuatl in Hipódromo Condesa with a rotating seasonal menu, ranked 20th in North America's 50 Best Bars 2025 and 48th in 2026. It is a sit-down bar, so use it as the first stop of a Condesa night. Skip it if you want a loud room or a cheap round.
A hidden speakeasy on the edge of Zona Rosa with a classic cocktail programme. It entered North America's 50 Best Bars at number 35 in 2025, and the 50 Best listing notes that entry runs through a special access system. Hours are Tuesday to Sunday from 17:00. Skip it if you want to turn up in a big group without a plan.
A candle-lit mezcal bar on Calle Luis Moya in the Centro Histórico, described as a red-curtain mezcalería and listening bar. It opens at 18:00, which makes it a sensible first stop for a Centro evening. Go with two or three people. Skip it if you want a dance floor.
A long-standing mezcal bar on Avenida Álvaro Obregón, on the border between Roma and Condesa. A 2026 nightlife guide calls it a classic and puts a mezcal flight at about MXN 250–400 (€12–20), which makes it a straightforward way to compare regions and agaves. Skip it if you want a long cocktail menu or a dance floor.
A gilded room with carved wooden booths on Avenida 5 de Mayo, open since 1876 and the classic Centro cantina for tequila, mezcal and beer. A 2026 nightlife guide rates it strong on history and atmosphere but weaker on value. Skip it if you want cheap drinks or a fast bar: you come for the room.
A house-music rooftop bar with a kitchen on Avenida Chapultepec, with a view of the Reforma skyline. It opens at 13:00 every day, so it works for lunch, sunset or the start of a Juárez night. Skip it if you want a small, quiet bar.
Pick one neighbourhood per night. Licorería Limantour, Tlecān and La Clandestina are within a few blocks of each other on Avenida Álvaro Obregón in Roma Norte, and Bar Mauro is a few streets away on Calle Tabasco. Handshake and Hanky Panky are both in Juárez, near Zona Rosa, and Toledo Rooftop looks over Avenida Chapultepec. Baltra is in Hipódromo Condesa. Bósforo and Cantina La Ópera are in the Centro Histórico, where guides advise avoiding unfamiliar side streets after 01:00.
Book the tables that matter. Bar Mauro requires a reservation, and Handshake bookings last 1 hour 30 minutes, so plan your next stop. After midnight the Metro is closed: order Uber, DiDi or Cabify from inside the bar and match the plate.
Mexico City is easy to drink well in if you book the top rooms and walk the rest. For closing times, prices and safety basics in one place, read our Mexico City nightlife guide. To plan the whole evening by area, use our guide to Mexico City nightlife by neighbourhood, and when you want to dance afterwards, see the 10 best clubs in Mexico City. Find tickets for upcoming nights on NightFind tickets, or read about nightlife across Mexico.
Bar Mauro in Roma Norte, ranked second in North America's 50 Best Bars 2026 and the best bar in Mexico that year. It requires a reservation.
Bar Mauro requires one. Handshake takes online bookings through OpenTable, with a card guarantee and a MXN 250 per person no-show fee. Most other bars here are walk-in, but go on a weeknight to the busy ones, such as Licorería Limantour.
Cocktail bars in this list close at 01:00 or 02:00, and Baltra Bar closes at midnight from Sunday to Wednesday. The city's base rule is service until 03:00, with alcohol sales ending at 02:30. Cantinas such as La Ópera close at midnight.
Time Out lists an average drink around MXN 200 (about €10) at Licorería Limantour, and Handshake's OpenTable price range is MXN 310–500 (€15–24). A mezcal flight at La Clandestina is about MXN 250–400 (€12–20), and a domestic beer in a cantina is about MXN 50–90 (€2.50–4.50).
Tlecān in Roma Norte, La Clandestina on the Roma and Condesa border and Bósforo in the Centro Histórico all focus on it. Eat first and drink water between rounds: the city sits at 2,240 m.
