After a few years visiting bars, I have developed a sort of an instinct: when I enter a bar, especially if I am alone, I can tell whether that will be a memorable evening or not. It has to do with the energy in the place, the "partner in crime" smile of the bartender, the …
Freccia Bar, Piumazzo, Italy
Piumazzo is a tiny village between Modena and Bologna: a church, a bunch of houses and fields all around. In such a place one would expect the typical countryside bar, in Italian "il bar di paese", with a few old fellows sipping their Camparis or bianchetto (white wine). On the contrary, in Piumazzo something unusual …
La Reserve Deux, Torino, Italy
One of the best feelings of being a serial barcrawler is when you enter into a bar without any particular expectation and you slowly realise that that bar is a gem. The welcome you get from the bartender, the lights, the music, the athmosphere, the accpmpanying food, and of course the drinks. Even better, when …
Foscolo Bar, Matino
A Martini in Matino is a Matini? Foscolo is a cocktail bar and a restaurant in Matino, a beautiful tiny village in Salento, Puglia, Italy. If you don't know what Salento is, that is one of the greatest spots in Italy (tip: avoid going in August) with plenty of old villages, great seaside, and all …
Bar Boheme Mixology, Catania
Ice cube engraved with the bar logo The Bar Boheme has no cocktail menu, by choice. A very smart and cocktail-educated waiter starts by asking about your tastes and preferences, and designs the cocktail on the spot with you. And the result is simply perfect! On the classics side, things are equally good: I dared …
Spirits Botique, Olbia, Italy
The Spirits Boutique bar is a small gem in Olbia, on the nort east Sardinian coast. The place is something between a bar and a liquors shop, created by bartender Emilio Rocchino with the idea of becoming a reference for the many bars and restaurants of the nearby Costa Smeralda (or at least for those …
Macondo, Bologna, Italy
A cocktail bar in Via del Pratello, the students' area in the city with the olderst university in the western world, where beer and wine is normally what you get (and not of the best quality)? Well, yes. The Macondo was a susprise for me too, a bologna former resident (with some experience of the …
Smile Tree, Torino, Italy
Life is sometimes bizarre. You travel around for years searching for the perfect mixture between quality of drinks and creativity in making something new, then you end up in a town (Torino in my case) which is surely not known for its cocktail scene, and you find a bar that is probably the most creative …
Bar@Hotel Cala del Porto, Punta Ala, Italy
The bar at the Hotel Cala del Porto is not precisely a Martini bar, but if you happen to pass by this wonderful corner of Tuscany, and you feel like having an expensive but perfect rest, this is the place. Not only you'll be able to sip your dring by looking at the wonderful marina of …
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Harry’s Bar, Florence, Italy
Back in 1952, the famous bartender Giuseppe Cipriani, creator of the Harry's Bar in Venice, convinced his friend Enrico Mariotti to use the name “Harry’s Bar” also for his new bar in Florence. Since then, the bar is the realm of Leo Valdorini, probably the only bartender who was honoured with the Key of the City …