Art Bar is the full-service bar of Crosstown Arts inside Crosstown Concourse in Memphis. It serves a curated list of wines and craft beers with classic cocktails and nightly specials built on local, fresh and foraged ingredients from Memphis and around the world. Musicians who played a Memphis show that day can ask for a separate menu with special prices.
Bar DKDC is a bar and music room at 964 South Cooper Street from chef and owner Karen Carrier, pairing specialty cocktails with international street food. The small plates menu ranges from Oaxacan dishes to Spanish tapas and changes every five weeks. The intimate room is filled with textiles from India and masks from Cuernavaca and Taxco, with a vintage photo booth and a calendar of bands, DJs and comedy.
Cameo is a cocktail bar at 1835 Union Avenue in Memphis that sums itself up as fancy drinks and party time. The room is dressed with taxidermy and framed curios under a pressed tin ceiling, DJs play, and a fog machine gets regular use. The drinks list changes with the seasons and includes zero-proof options, with a kitchen open until midnight or later.
Memphis Whistle is a cocktail bar in a small space on Young Avenue in Cooper-Young, run by Jef and Amanda. Its signature cocktails are built on house shrubs, fruit and vinegar bases infused with herbs and spices, which can also be ordered on their own with soda water. Prohibition-style classics such as the Old Fashioned and a barrel-aged Negroni sit alongside a food menu.
These are the cocktail bars specifically. The full Memphis guide ranks the best bars of every style, and the directory lists all 6 with a map and filters.
Best bars in Memphis