Cocktail Bars in Bologna
Bologna's cocktail bars run from Japanese flavors to drinks the 1960s would recognize. The best cocktail bars in Bologna start at Sentaku Izakaya on Via Marchesana, where izakaya plates and cocktails carry guests from aperitivo to after dinner. Bamboo Lounge on Strada Maggiore opens at 7:30am and stays up until 2am, with seasonal cocktails that rework international traditions. Guero on Via Goito pours flights of three 25 ml measures, from Mexican mezcal to Scottish single malt. Volare, on Via Belvedere, keeps a short list of classics such as the Sazerac among wood paneling and vintage signs, and serves no spritz. Bamboo Lounge runs happy hour daily from 5pm to 8pm. These are the bars we would start with.
- Sentaku IzakayaPINNACLECocktail Bar
Sentaku Izakaya
Sentaku Izakaya brings the Japanese izakaya, a place where drinks and food are meant to arrive together, to Via Marchesana 6 in the heart of Bologna's old town. It opened in December 2023 as the next step for the team behind Sentaku Ramen Bar, which Nicolò Ribuffo and Claudio Alessandro Musiani started in the city in 2017, with Musiani now executive chef and owner. Bar manager Erick Munguia runs a cocktail program that joins izakaya conviviality to a contemporary mixology approach, with attention to raw ingredients and modern technique. The kitchen sends out small plates to share, from little bites built for the drinks to fuller dishes such as bao, katsu sando and a marinated roast cauliflower. In 2025 The Pinnacle Guide awarded it 1 Pin.
Via Marchesana 6, 40124 BolognaFull profile - Bamboo LoungeCocktail Bar
Bamboo Lounge
Bamboo Lounge calls itself an urban refuge in the center of Bologna on Strada Maggiore, where an exotic jungle atmosphere meets quality. Its seasonal cocktails reinterpret drinking traditions from around the world. Food runs through the day from breakfast and lunch into the evening, and happy hour is every day from 5pm to 8pm.
Strada Maggiore 23/C, 40125 BolognaMon-Thu 07:30-02:00, Fri-Sat 07:30-03:00, Sun 07:30-02:00Full profile - GueroCocktail Bar
Guero
Guero is a cocktail bar on Via Goito in central Bologna, built for cocktail lovers. Its signature list is organized by spirit, from agave and rum to gin, vodka and whisky, next to classics, sparkling drinks and mocktails. Guests can also order tasting flights of agave, amari, rum and other spirits, with tacos, burritos and snacks from the kitchen.
Via Goito 9/2A, 40126 BolognaMon-Thu 18:00-01:00, Fri-Sat 18:00-02:00, Sun 18:00-01:00Full profile - I ConoscentiCocktail Bar
I Conoscenti
I Conoscenti Cocktail e Cucina is a cocktail bar and restaurant in Bologna's historic center, named after the fourteenth century Palazzo Conoscenti on Via Manzoni. The concept is cocktail and food pairing, with dishes signed by chef Salvatore Amato. The palazzo also houses the guest rooms of Casa Conoscenti, and in summer the team moves to a second site in the hills above the city.
Via Manzoni 6, 40121 BolognaFull profile - VolareCocktail Bar
Volare
Volare is a cocktail bar at Via Belvedere 10d in Bologna's historic center, built to be a 1960s bar rather than a bar that merely borrows the look. Co-owner Peppe Doria opened it on 28 June 2021, in the middle of the pandemic, with partners Fabio Tiberio and Giuseppe Montanaro. Inside, retro wood paneling covers the walls, joined by vintage signs, peg boards and a dial telephone fixed to the wall. The compact list keeps to classics such as the Tom Collins, Sazerac and Boulevardier, plus a rose and vanilla rosolio sour and niche spirits true to the period, and spritzes are off the menu. The house signature is the Fellini, Doria's aperitivo of Martini Bitter Riserva Speciale, Giusti balsamic vinegar, lemon juice and Sanbitter Dry. Snacks run to olives, mortadella and peanuts.
via Belvedere, BolognaFull profile
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More of Bologna
These are the cocktail bars specifically. The full Bologna guide ranks the best bars of every style, and the directory lists all 6 with a map and filters.
