“The kind of place where you’re as at home with a pint as you are a show-stopping cocktail.”
The bar was praised for its unique atmosphere and one-of-a-kind cocktail menu(Image: Panda & Sons)
A Scottish city cocktail bar has been crowned one of the best bars in the world. It was praised for its “show-stopping” cocktails and alcoholic sorbets.
On Wednesday, October 8, The World’s Best 50 Bars unveiled its annual list of the top drinking venues across the globe. Only one Scottish bar is featured on the prestigious roundup.
Coming in at number 34 on The World’s Best 50 Bars list is Panda and Sons in Edinburgh. The vintage-style speakeasy, which is guised as an old-fashioned barbershop, is located on Queen Street in the centre of the city.
Panda and Sons was praised by The World’s Best 50 Bars for its unique aesthetic and original menu. It was described by judges “an Edinburgh icon with vintage stylings and inventive cocktails”.
In particular, the bar’s owner Iain McPherson earned praise for his innovative cocktail-making techniques. McPherson, who opened Panda and Son around 12 years ago, was described as “one of the industry’s most influential drinksmiths”.
Also praised was Panda and Sons’ alcoholic sorbets, which can be found in the ‘Frozen Delights’ section of its menu. According to judges, McPherson studied ice cream-making at two universities and founded alcoholic ice cream brand Señor Scoop.
The World’s Best 50 Bars wrote: “This cocktail bar fronted by a family of tweed-wearing hairdresser Pandas is no new concept, having opened some 12 years ago, but the world continues to fall in love with it, step-by-step down its Queen Street entrance. And as word of the bar has travelled—not least in the slip stream of owner-adventurer Iain McPherson—the clientele has become more international.
“Once you’ve visited Edinburgh Castle, climbed up Arthur’s Seat and seen the café where Harry Potter was written, it’s time for a drink at Panda & Sons.
“With vintage vibe and stylings and the wide-armed welcome of the likes of Nicky Craig, Sean Moggach or Chloe Yeung—bedecked in panda aprons—this is the kind of place where you’re as at home with a pint as you are a show-stopping cocktail.”
The judges continued: “Though if you’re of a geeky disposition, the latest cocktail menu Transcend 2.0 is a seminal piece of work. A discovery of sub-zero cocktail making, it features freeze distillation and freeze-drying methods, alongside McPherson’s own techniques, switching and sous-pression, which have made him one of the industry’s most influential drinksmiths.
“Have you ever considered what would happen if you removed the water from a spirit and replaced it with something else? Well, few had before McPherson.
“Take the bar’s Coconut Daiquiri, which sees the water in rum replaced by roasted coconut milk. Or for more sub-zero libations, head to the Frozen Delights section and to the alcoholic sorbets and ice creams.
“McPherson has studied ice cream-making at two universities and founded his own brand of boozy gelato Señor Scoop—you don’t get the moniker Mr Freeze for nothing.”
In addition to being included on The World’s Best 50 Bars’ list, Panda and Sons is also very popular amongst Edinburgh locals and tourists. The bar has a rating of 4.6 out of five on Google, with recent visitors singling out its “incredible vibes” and “one-of-a-kind menu”.
Elsewhere, coming in at number one on the prestigious global list is Bar Leone in Hong Kong. The bar was described as a “tribute to timeless Italian drinking culture in the heart of Hong Kong”, with judges praising its friendly service and mortadella sandwiches.
The full list of the top bars across the globe can be found on The World’s Best 50 Bars website.