Best-of list · City Guide
The insider guide to the best bars in Tallinn. Medieval Old Town wine cellars, craft beer taprooms in Kalamaja, and rooftop cocktails over the Baltic.
The short answer
9 ranked rooms follow. How we picked is at the end of this guide.
The best bars in Tallinn are a study in contrast: medieval cellar vaults in the Old Town where you drink Estonian craft beer beneath 14th-century stone arches, and post-industrial taprooms in Kalamaja where the city's creative class has set up something genuinely interesting. We have been to all of them and this is the list that matters.
The UNESCO-listed Old Town is where Tallinn's bar scene started and where its most atmospheric venues still live. The medieval architecture does most of the work, but the best places here have also built serious drinks programmes to match their surroundings.
How we picked
Tallinn is a better drinking city than its reputation suggests. The combination of a thriving craft beer scene, a growing natural wine culture, and one of the most dramatic settings in Europe — medieval towers, cobblestone streets, views of the Baltic — makes it a city that rewards a long evening's exploration. Start in the Old Town at Hell Hunt, cross to Kalamaja for Frank's cocktail programme, and end at Põhjala Taproom.
Sofia has been covering the European bar scene for eight years, with a particular focus on the Baltic and Nordic regions. She makes the trip to Tallinn at least twice a year and considers Kalamaja one of the most interesting bar neighbourhoods in northern Europe.
Last reviewed 2026-05-08 · The editors recheck hours and closures against current local coverage.