156 Best Bars in England

Drawn by its reputation for featuring indie stars of tomorrow (think the likes of Jessie J, Laura Marling, The Killers, and Foals), nonmainstream crowds flock to this venue, one of the finest small clubs in London. Weekend pop-punk and hip-hop club nights upstairs host live bands, as well as DJs rocking the decks.

This huge venue in a former Edwardian foundry and blade-making factory retains a suitably industrial vibe for its club nights, live music, food festivals, exhibitions, and art installations.

While not the original venue—that was demolished years ago—this is still a popular music spot, drawing in rock-and-roll fans with its live acts including Beatles tribute bands.

On the ground floor of what was once the Reading Room of the Old Westminster Library, the book-lined Library Bar of this contemporary Indian restaurant (the curries are superb) has Indian-theme cocktails (mango mojitos, "Delhi mules"), delicious bar snacks, and a clientele that includes young politicos. The bar is sometimes used for private events, so it can be a good idea to call before you visit.

The buzzing circular bar in a cellar whips up a sassy cocktail or glass of champagne in this popular venue. In late afternoon, Circo lso serves an imaginative afternoon tea, and at Circo After Dark on Friday and Saturday nights, DJs play from 9 pm until the early hours of the morning.

This elegant Mayfair meeting place remains unpretentious even when it brims with beautiful people. The bar has an Art Deco heritage made hip by the sophisticated touch of designer David Collins. A library of rare Champagnes and brandies as well as a delicious choice of traditional and exotic cocktails—try the Flapper or the Royal Stag—will occupy your taste buds. Request a glass of vintage Cristal in the darkly moody, leather-walled, 36-seat Fumoir.

This dressy champagne and cocktail bar in the city's second-tallest building has stunning 360-degree views. Some of its inventive concoctions make a playful nod to local culture. You can also get afternoon tea or snacks such as tacos and antipasti.

This boho-chic Irish pub is all about the Guinness and the superb, if pricey, seafood. Whether you're in the unpretentious downstairs saloon bar or the more formal dining rooms upstairs, the atmosphere is always warm, welcoming, and buzzing. It's long been a favorite haunt of fashion glitterati such as Stella McCartney, Victoria Beckham, and Alexa Chung.

With 37 beers on tap and 350 more in bottles (one brewed exclusively for The Craft Beer Co.), the main problem here is knowing where to start. Luckily, friendly and knowledgeable staff are happy to advise or give tasters—or why not sign up for a guided tasting session? A huge chandelier and a mirrored ceiling lend antique charm to the interior, and a smattering of tourists and beer pilgrims break up the crowds of Leather Lane workers and locals. As is the case with many pubs in this neighborhood, they are closed on Sunday.

Enjoy canal-side craft beer and pizza at the busiest of a handful of grown-up bars in this ultratrendy area of East London. Rub shoulders with the locals—the community still has its share of artists who made their way east following rent hikes in Shoreditch—as well as visitors who come for late-night raves in the area's many warehouses. There's a warm atmosphere inside, with quirky upcycled interior design and DJs playing on weekend evenings. The beer comes from the on-site brewery, while thin-crust pizzas emerge from the open kitchen.

Run by the same family for nearly three decades, The Dublin Castle has hosted almost every modern British rock group you care to name, including Madness, Blur, Coldplay, and the Arctic Monkeys. With four bands on the bill almost every night, and DJs taking over afterward on Friday and weekends, there's something for most tastes at this legendary venue.

Once a stable block for horses working the canals, this is a great spot for a pub lunch or drink, especially in the summer, thanks to its waterside terrace, balcony, and outdoor kitchen.

This 16th-century coaching inn with a cobbled courtyard has lost none of its old-time character. It also played a walk-on part in scientific history when, on February 28, 1953, a pair of excited Cambridge scientists announced to a roomful of rather surprised lunchtime patrons that they'd just discovered the secret of life: DNA. (Unfortunately they forgot to mention their third colleague, Rosalind Franklin, who has been largely erased from the history of their discovery). A plaque outside commemorates the event.

This sprawling subterranean club opposite Smithfield Meat Market is a firm fixture on the London scene and is regularly voted one of the top clubs in the world. The "fabriclive" series hosts drum and bass, dubstep, and hip-hop crews and live acts on Friday; international big-name DJs play slow, sexy bass lines and cutting-edge music on Saturday. The devastating sound system ensures that bass riffs vibrate through your entire body. Get there early to avoid a lengthy line, and don't wear a suit. Expect a mainly young crowd.

Just around the corner from King's Cross mainline station, this popular pub is the perfect place for a late afternoon pick-me-up or as an evening destination in its own right. Cocktails, craft beers, and an impressive wine list are all on the menu, as is a winning selection of shared plates and more substantial pub fare (their Sunday roasts are legendary in these parts). There's also a cute rooftop terrace.

This handsome, trendy pub in the southern suburb of Moseley is full of polished wood tables, colorful cushions, and stained-glass windows. The beer selection is huge, and the high-class pub food is delicious. This place gets rammed to the rafters for the traditional roasts—beef, pork, lamb, chicken, or nut—on Sunday at lunchtime.

Bars and restaurants come and go on trendy, ever-evolving Burton Road, but this bar and café has stood the test of time thanks to its heated terrace (complete with palm trees), chic interiors, and good food.

Overlooking the university boathouses, this lovely old pub gets honors for its riverside views.

A favorite of student rowers, this small pub has an excellent selection of traditional ales.

Not every pub is also a Grade I–listed, National Trust property, but this is London's last surviving galleried coaching inn. Dickens once frequented the inn's Coffee Room (now the Middle Bar) and name-checked The George in Little Dorrit. The gallery overlooks a cobblestone courtyard where plays may have been performed in Elizabethan times (galleried inns were frequently used as production venues), although the current building dates back only to 1677 after the original was destroyed in a fire. The interior is a maze of 18th-century low-ceilinged rooms replete with wood-paneled walls and period features. The cozy Parliament Bar, where passengers would have waited for the coach, is on the ground floor, while a restaurant is upstairs on the galleried level. Luckily the pub is not just a museum piece—it also has modern amenities like a beer garden and Wi-Fi.

With all-day bottomless brunches, lunchtime charcuterie boards, wine evenings, cocktail hours, and live music, the George Street Social draws an appealingly diverse clientele, which only adds to its charm. Spaced over two levels, the venue seamlessly transitions into a lively bar come evening and makes a great alternative to the city's many traditional pubs.

On the outskirts of the city, this pretty clapboard gastropub has an intriguing setup: instead of a bar, the drinks are piled up on a table in the middle of the room and served from there. Along with a good selection of local ales and craft beers, there's a choice of ciders straight from the barrel and an extensive menu of artisanal gins. The food—from stacked burgers to fish dishes—is great, too, and there's regular live music.

Nestled under old railway arches, Gorilla is a live-music venue, restaurant, and gin parlor with an intimate vibe.

This handsome old pub is popular for its excellent range of traditional ales, as well as for its old-school atmosphere that reminds you pubs like this are a dying breed.

This is the sort of friendly flower-decked local pub you might find on some out-of-the-way backstreet, except that it's right in the middle of town, between Trafalgar Square and Covent Garden. As a result, The Harp can get mighty crowded, but the squeeze is worth it for the excellent cask beer and cider (there are usually 10 carefully chosen ales, often including a London microbrew, plus 10 ciders and perries) and a no-frills menu of high-quality British sausages, cooked behind the bar.

Near Folly Bridge, the terrace at the Head of the River is the perfect place to watch life on the water. It gets very crowded on sunny afternoons, but there's a great, quintessentially Oxford atmosphere. The pub also offers 20 comfortable guest rooms if you want to stay and appreciate the views a little longer.

Set within the fresco-covered, Grade II–listed Sunlight Chambers, this bougie cocktail bar serves a mix of classics and modern concoctions (try the Porn Star martini). Make a night of it with a meal in the seafood-focused restaurant.

House, disco, and techno nights are on the roster at this club in a former mill building near the infamous Strangeways prison.

Located in a charming, quiet, residential enclave just off Notting Hill Gate, this friendly local pub is the perfect place for a pit-stop. Find a spot inside the snug wood-paneled bar or outside on the terrace where you can watch the world go by. Excellent pub food is also served.

Located a short walk up the hill from Hampstead Tube station, the friendly Holly Bush dates back to the 18th century and retains something of the country pub it was before the city spread this far north, thanks to the stripped wooden floors, walls paneled in dark wood, and big open fires. The combination of great ales and organic, free-range gastropub food makes it perennially packed with locals. Try the roast pumpkin and sage ravioli or the pan-roasted hake loin with celeriac, leek, and a mussel velouté; and don't miss the hot cider in the wintertime.