This glamorous spot in Surfside was just named the best hotel bar in the country
A glamorous lobby bar in a luxury hotel near Miami Beach was just named the best hotel bar in the country.
As part of Food & Wine’s annual Food & Wine Global Tastemakers Awards, Champagne Bar at the Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club in Surfside was praised for its style and substance.
Calling the bar “The Amalfi Coast meets Miami Beach,” Food & Wine called Champagne Bar a “polished, palm tree–populated parlor where, behind a marble clad bar, charismatic drinkmakers in white tuxedos assemble a tight list of classics.”
“Each drink is prepared with gusto and generous servings of spirit,” the story continues. “Don’t be fooled by the name. Yes, there’s plenty of bubbly to go around, but this venue is much more an ode to the high art of Martini making. The eponymous signature serve is as good as any you’ll find in this city. And the mezcal-based variant, infused with peanuts, is a salty-savory revelation.”
Champagne Bar wasn’t the only Miami-area bar to be honored. Broken Shaker at Freehand Miami in Miami Beach was ranked the no. 4 best U.S. hotel bar, a spot that “hasn’t rested on its laurels,” according to Food & Wine, which praised drinks like The Shoreline Spritz with gin and Suze.
Sweet Liberty in Miami Beach, which celebrated its 10th anniversary with a party last fall, was named no. 9 on the top 10 list for Best U.S. Bar. Co-founded by Dan Binkiewicz and the late bartender John Lermayer, who died in 2018, Sweet Liberty “is the spot to order a frozen piña colada blended with a couple of whole coffee beans and topped with a float of PX sherry (a Lermayer signature), and perhaps the piled-high vegan cauliflower nachos too.”
No Florida restaurants made the top 10 lists, but Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club was ranked no. 3 on the Best U.S. Hotel list, while Miami itself made the Best U.S. City list (barely — it was ranked no. 10).
To create the Tastemakers Awards, Food + Wine polled more than 400 chefs, travel experts, food and travel writers and wine professionals from around the world, then turned over the results to its Global Advisory Board, who ranked the top nominees in each category.