Top 50 Cocktail Bars

17

Lab 22

Cardiff, Glamorgan

Once described as an up and comer, Lab 22 in Cardiff now certainly has its feet placed amongst the world’s very best cocktail bars.

Top 50 Accolades
  • 2022 Number 1
There is no doubt about it as the Welsh venue has risen up the ranks of the Top 50 Cocktail Bars list to top 3 (and number one last year), an accolade very much deserved by the outstandingly talented team behind the business.

Owned by Pajtim Tani Hasa, Lab 22 has bags of personality and is a must visit and was recently announced winner of the Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu Award at 2021’s World’s 50 Best Bars. We’ll tell you more about the menu in a moment.

The bar itself is sensationally designed, mixing contemporary style with a touch of elegance and bounds of fun and exceptional experience.

It is a unique space in every sense of the word and offers a scientific approach to its cocktails, incorporating a wow factor into every drink mixed, shaken or poured.

Past menus have seen bartenders breathe fire and harness other elements in their magical approach to making cocktails, a theme that very much continues to this day.

Their sixth and current menu, named Theory + Frontiers, plays on the bar’s scientific interests, pushing them further by looking at the future of the subject as well as invention and of course the environment. The extremely talented team work with unique locally foraged ingredients to mimic flavour profiles of more well known produce.

Take Concrete Daisy which uses rooftop honey – a nod to urban farming – and Point Nemo, an ode to marine exploration through it use of sea-salt chocolate fish scales.

Every cocktail on this thoughtful and intelligent menu offers a comment on the world around us by drawing on important conversations – real thinking drinks.

Should you wish to know more about each of the drinks, including the science and inspiration behind each, QR codes offer the answers.

Of course, guests can order a drink or two from the main menu, but why not try something a little more experiential and book a tasting package.

Five courses cost £44.95 – a bargain in our eyes – and is ideal for groups of up to eight people, while a three course tasting experience costs £29.95.

Those booking the tasting menu will receive a bespoke package of drinks for the evening, each drawing on the ethos of the venue.

Key Information