For the first time in the platform's six-edition history, the top tier of Indian hospitality has been entirely reimagined, signaling a fundamental rebalancing of the nation's aesthetic and sensory priorities.
The 2025 rankings represent a watershed moment in the architecture of Indian luxury. For the first time in the platform's history, neither Delhi nor Mumbai featured in the Top 4. Instead, the center of gravity has shifted decisively toward the South and the coast.
Bar Spirit Forward (#1) and Soka (#2) secured the top two spots nationally, confirming that Bangalore has moved from a breakout contender to the benchmark ecosystem for the country. It is a city that now defines the national standard, not through volume, but through a rigorous commitment to design-forward, high-concept mixology.
This "Great Rebalancing," as co-founders Vikram Achanta and Radhakrishnan Nair observed, is less about the decline of the traditional metros and more about the arrival of a fully formed, multi-polar bar culture. The meteoric rise of Goa's Bar Outrigger (#3) and Boilermaker (#4) into the top five signals that the beach state has moved beyond its legacy as a seasonal retreat to become a primary site of technical innovation. Simultaneously, Kolkata emerged as a serious hub, placing four bars in the Top 30, a testament to the city's nocturnal renaissance and its evolution into a serious cluster for the sophisticated palate.
What makes this shift so intellectually compelling is the diversification of the "luxury" lens. The awards this year mirrored a maturing consumer psyche that values depth over distance. We saw the debut of a new Wine category, recognizing institutions like Captain's Cellar in Delhi and Bangalore's Wine in Progress, signaling that the Indian drinker is no longer content with a singular spirit narrative. The recognition of Burma Burma for Best Non-Alcoholic Menu and Chennai's Avartana for Best Cocktail Menu, outperforming 56 other entries, proves that the lines between fine dining and bar excellence have finally blurred.
The industry's conscience is also growing as wide as its geographic footprint. For the second consecutive year, the Best Work in Sustainability award returned to Kerala, with The Colony Bar at Grand Hyatt Kochi proving that environmental stewardship is now a prerequisite for excellence.
As we look at the 2025 list, we see honors distributed across 11 cities, from the palace-dotted streets of Jaipur to the backwaters of Kochi. This is the new India: a country where "access" is no longer a metropolitan privilege. The bar has become our most democratic theater of presence, a space where local ingredients, global techniques, and a fierce sense of community converge. The hierarchy has been leveled, the glass has been refilled, and the future of Indian hospitality is now a story told in many voices, across many borders.
