Mexico City's Handshake Speakeasy: Best bar in the world?

The World's 50 Best Bars recognized Handshake as the number 1 bar in the world, topping contenders from New York, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, Melbourne and London

Oct 23, 2024

Handshake Speakeasy has had a reputation as one of the best bars in Mexico City for a while, so in June we checked it out.

Here’s the short version of what we thought:

Pros: Interesting and tasty cocktails, elegant decor and ambiance, good service, worth a visit.
Cons: Too much emphasis on the speakeasy aspect, pretentious, not worth a second visit.

The cocktails

Let’s start with what Handshakes is known for—the drinks. (Keep in mind we visited a few months ago and the menu might be different now.)

The cocktails were well-crafted and each was served with an explanation of the ingredients. They cost $250 to $300 MXN ($12.50 to $15 USD).

A couple of things I liked about the menu:

There’s a good selection of cocktails, and along with the name and ingredients, they used three words to describe each cocktail, two for the flavor and one for the size. So, for example, the Butter Mushroom Old Fashioned (pictured above, bottom left) is called complex/nutty/short.
The offer miniature classics, which are small versions of four cocktails for $100 MXN ($5 USD) each. It’s a nice way to try a few different options without overdoing it, and it’s not something I’ve seen anyplace else.
In addition to the menu offerings, which I recommend because they are so unique, you can ask them to make a classic cocktail for you. They also have two beers, four wines, three non-alcoholic tea champagnes, and two mocktails, which each cost $150 MXN ($7.50 USD), so there are options if you don’t want a cocktail.
Even though we’re studying Spanish, cocktails have their own vocabulary, and it helped to have English menus and English-speaking servers.

The cocktail called Once Upon a Time In Oaxaca came with a story and a show, explaining the process of turning mezcal to agave with a little fire on top of the cocktail. It was fun, but also felt like a gimmick:

The vibe

They take the speakeasy aspect seriously. When we got there, we weren’t sure where to go, and neither were several other people who had reservations at the same time. We all milled around and assumed we were probably at the right place until someone came out, checked off our names and lined us up.

Some of us went in the ground level bar and others went off to a different area. Overall, getting in had a little bit of a lining-up-after-recess vibe.

When you enter, the staff all shouts, “Bienvenidos!” It’s fun at first, but as more groups come in and get seated it’s a bit much.

It’s a pretty and elegant place, with seats at the bar, larger shared tables and smaller tables around the edge of the room. There’s lots of black, gold and candles.

They serve plenty of water, which I appreciate because that’s not always the case in Mexico City (though it’s common in the cocktail bars we’ve been to).

Every guest has a little slate slab in front of them where their drink and water glass sits. If you put your drink directly on the table, there’s a good chance it will be discreetly placed back on the slate slab. Lol.

Getting in

If you want to get a seat, good luck. You might want to wait until the world’s-best-bar glow dims a little. Earlier this year, on June 9, I was able to get a reservation for less than two weeks later, and on a Saturday night, June 22.

At the moment, there’s no availability from 5 to 9:30 pm in the next month. If you do get a reservation, you’ll find out with your confirmation—and be reminded when you arrive at the bar—that there’s a 90-minute limit. Our friends weren’t fans of that:

It’s a bit of a turn-off to be told when you arrive what time you have to leave, but the service is fast so you have plenty of time to enjoy a few cocktails.

The menu

These (admittedly not great) photos give you an idea of what Handshake offers:

All in all, I was glad I checked out Handshake. The cocktails were interesting and unique, which is key for a “best bar,” since you can get decent classic cocktails in lots of places.

If you’re a cocktail fan, it’s worth a visit if you can get a reservation. But it’s more of a one-and-done experience than a place to go back to again and again.