Best-of list · Italy Bars
The 10 best bars in Milan for 2026, from Bar Basso and the Negroni Sbagliato to Camparino, Nottingham Forest and Backdoor 43. Verified by our editors.
The short answer
10 ranked rooms follow. How we picked is at the end of this guide.
Milan gave the world the Negroni Sbagliato and the modern aperitivo, and it still drinks better than almost any city in Italy. These 10 run from a 1915 Galleria counter to a four-seat speakeasy on the Navigli, taking in molecular cocktails, Brera pavement spritzes and a Duomo terrace along the way. We checked each against current listings and venue records in June 2026 and kept only the rooms still pouring. All 10 verified open.
Bar Basso in Porta Venezia has poured since 1967 and gave the world the Negroni Sbagliato, born when a bartender reached for spumante instead of gin. The room is gloriously unchanged, all mirrors and oversized goblets. Order the Sbagliato in its trademark giant glass. Best in early evening before the design crowd floods in. For drinkers who want Milan's living history.
Full listing & hours →Camparino sits under the glass vaults of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, open since 1915 and reborn after a careful 2019 restoration. The ground-floor counter pours a textbook Campari spritz; the upstairs Sala Spiritello runs a serious list. Order a spritz at the marble bar. Best mid-afternoon for the Galleria light. For drinkers who want the city's most elegant aperitivo address.
Full listing & hours →Mag Café on the Navigli helped spark Milan's modern cocktail revival when it opened in 2013. The room is small and vintage, the bartenders precise, the lighting low and warm. Order an off-menu drink and let the bar lead. Best on a weekday evening before the canal crowds arrive. For drinkers who want craft cocktails without ceremony.
Full listing & hours →1930 is Mag Café's hidden sibling, a members' speakeasy whose door stays unmarked. Inside, the lighting runs amber and the cocktails ambitious, built by the same Navigli team. Order from the rotating menu and trust the room. Best late, once you have secured the password. For drinkers who want Milan's most theatrical hidden bar.
Full listing & hours →The Spirit in Porta Romana, open since 2017, plays the 1980s straight, with velvet sofas, mirrored walls and sparkling light. The cocktails are confident and the mood loose. Order a classic done well and settle into a booth. Best later in the evening when the room fills and the music lifts. For drinkers who want a glamorous, unhurried nightcap.
Full listing & hours →Nottingham Forest on Viale Piave is Dario Comino's molecular playground, a regular on the World's 50 Best Bars list with more than 500 cocktails on offer. Expect dry ice, edible flowers and theatrical glassware. Order a signature and let the bar surprise you. Open Tuesday to Saturday from 6:30pm; closed Mondays. For drinkers who want spectacle with their craft.
Full listing & hours →Backdoor 43 on the Navigli bills itself as one of the world's smallest bars, four seats behind a tiny window on Ripa di Porta Ticinese. Reserve ahead, since the room takes four guests at a time. Order a bespoke drink built to your taste. Best booked early in the evening for the full one-to-one session. For drinkers who want the most intimate seat in Milan.
Full listing & hours →Dry Milano in Brera pairs serious cocktails with Neapolitan pizza, a format chef Andrea Berton turned into a Milan institution. The list is clean and classic-leaning, the pizzas blistered and simple. Order a Martini and a marinara. Best before dinner when the Brera streets are still quiet. For drinkers who want a low-key pairing of craft and carbs.
Full listing & hours →Terrazza Aperol overlooks Piazza del Duomo from Il Mercato del Duomo, recently restyled by Vudafieri-Saverino with windows framing the cathedral. It is more spritz terrace than cocktail den, but the view earns the seat. Order an Aperol spritz at golden hour. Best late afternoon before the square fills. For drinkers who want Milan's famous orange aperitivo with a Duomo backdrop.
Full listing & hours →Radetzky in Brera has anchored Milan's aperitivo ritual for years, its shabby-chic sofas spilling onto the pavement. The crowd is stylish and the spritzes flow steadily. Order a spritz and a plate from the aperitivo spread. Best at dusk when Brera shifts from work into evening. For drinkers who want the classic Milanese pavement aperitivo.
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