The Martini is hardly a monolith. The combination of gin (or vodka) and vermouth can be assembled in countless ratios, for results that run the gamut from bone-dry to fashionably “wet.” Some include special touches, from bespoke bitters to eye-catching garnishes, and no, they’re not all served in V-shaped glasses.
But what makes a Martini truly iconic? The distinguishing characteristic is rarely what’s in the glass. More often, what makes a “bucket list” Martini comes down to the dedicated bartenders mixing the drink, the presentation of the finished cocktail and the theatrical technique that goes into its creation—whether thrown, rolled or poured from a Christofle decanter. At one noted London destination, the bartender makes a performance of tossing vermouth on the floor after rinsing the glass to emphasize the dryness of their house Martini.
To zero in on the essential Martinis—those worthy of a pilgrimage just to try—we asked several bar world professionals to name their “bucket list” examples. To be sure, these aren’t the only memorable Martinis around. And still others, like Pegu Club’s Fitty-Fitty, belong firmly in the modern Martini canon, despite their bar of origin no longer existing.
Here, 10 Martinis worth seeking out right now.

The Grill's Martini | Photo: Lizzie Munro
Bottled Martini, The Grill | New York City
Originally created by Thomas Waugh, who has since decamped from both The Grill and New York, this prechilled Martini served at the restaurant’s bar (known as The Bar) gave credence to the now-widely adopted practice of prediluting spirit-forward cocktails. The Grill’s version blends two gins, two vermouths and spring water, then is chilled to ice-cold perfection in the freezer and poured from Christofle crystal decanters at the iconic Midtown address.
The soaring room “feels Martini-worthy,” explains William Elliott, bar director at Brooklyn’s Maison Premiere. “It’s a balanced Martini that you’re also getting to enjoy in an incredibly built space.”
Read More →Atlas Martini, Atlas Bar | Singapore
A three-story tower of gin bottles—more than 1,000 expressions—framed by carved wooden columns is the centerpiece of the extravagant Art Deco room that is home to Atlas Bar. With that kind of collection, naturally, the Martini gets special attention.
“They use Ambrato vermouth, which is a little different,” says Simon Ford, founder of Fords Gin. “But the thing that makes it pop is the Champagne vinegar they use in it—it livens it up.” Orange bitters round out the house formula. If that’s still not special enough, Atlas also offers a selection of vintage gins spanning the 20th century.
Connaught Martini, The Connaught Bar | London
At The Connaught, it’s all about the Martini cart (or trolley, in English parlance) wheeled tableside by a white-gloved bartender. If you’re lucky, Agostino Perrone, director of mixology, will be the one steering the famed trolley.
“If you’re sitting there and Ago Perrone wheels up that cart, and he does the stir with the ridiculously long pour, and there’s no bubbles from however high up he pours—it’s a master at work,” says Joaquín Simó, proprietor of New York’s Pouring Ribbons, describing the “sheer theatricality” of the house serve. “It’s their show pony,” notes Simó, but the drink—a blend of Tanqueray No. 10 gin, a proprietary blend of vermouth and housemade bitters—would be remarkable even without the performance.
Martini, Keens Steakhouse | New York City
What’s a Martini list without a Steakhouse Martini? At Keens, more than 100 Martinis are sold each day in V-shaped glasses, in one of New York’s last remaining 19th-century chophouses where thousands of clay pipes hang from the ceiling.
Here, the drink is “as classic as they come,” says Matt Chavez, bar manager of Ci Siamo in New York. Whether guests select vodka or gin, or call by brand, what arrives is a drink that’s “big, dry and cold,” Chavez says. “I always expect them to be haphazardly prepared, but they are always extremely satisfying and very cold (can’t emphasize temperature enough).”

Harry's Bar Martini | Photo: Colin Dutton
Shot Glass Martini, Harry’s Bar | Venice
Just steps from the Grand Canal, Harry’s Bar was founded by Giuseppe Cipriani in 1931. Here, the Martinis are delivered not in V-shaped glasses but in frosty shot glasses emblazoned with the bar’s logo, pulled straight from the refrigerator.
“The drink’s appearance always startles newcomers,” writes author and Punch contributor Robert Simonson in his book The Martini Cocktail. “The small glasses were originally employed because Harry’s was determined from the very first to deliver cocktails as cold as possible—not an easy feat in the 1930s and 1940s. Thus, small glassware, which kept the drink colder longer.”
Old King Cole Martini, Maison Premiere | Brooklyn
One of the most elaborately presented Martinis in New York, the Old King Cole is prepared tableside: One bartender makes the drink while a second holds the silver tray with all the trappings. It’s a meticulously calculated formula, made with saffron-tinged Old Raj gin, Mancino Secco vermouth and orange bitters. A selection of garnishes—Castelvetrano olives on a sleek cocktail pick, a manicured lemon twist and seaweed—is presented in a small bowl of crushed ice. It’s a big production, and you wouldn’t want it any other way. “They nail it,” affirms Lucinda Sterling, managing partner of Brooklyn bar Seaborne.
Thrown Martini, Boadas | Barcelona
Barcelona’s oldest cocktail bar is notable for its Art Deco surroundings and thrown Martinis, in which the drink is poured back and forth between two shaker tins at a height that increases with each pour, a technique that founder Miguel Boadas first learned at El Floridita in Havana.
“It’s a dance,” explains Jena Ellenwood, cocktail educator for Dear Irving and Raines Law Room. “Sitting at the bar there is like watching theater or ballet—the white coat–wearing bartenders artfully throw ribbons of cocktails back and forth without missing a beat.” The result is an expertly chilled, aerated, silky Martini, made with London dry gin, just enough extra-dry vermouth to rinse the mixing glass, and perhaps a quick spritz of bergamot “perfume” to finish. Olives are the preferred garnish, Ellenwood notes: “Olives in Spain, amiright?!”

Dukes' Martini | Photo: Jason Bailey Studio
Dukes’ Martini, Dukes Hotel | London
“There’s no danger of getting a warm Martini at Dukes,” says Elliott. “[The gin is] poured out of the bottle frozen, poured undiluted and unbelievably dry.”
At Dukes, once a favorite of James Bond creator Ian Fleming, the drink is a double, containing four ounces of that frozen, almost syrupy gin (or vodka), and the barest minimum of vermouth. If Alessandro Palazzi is behind the bar, most likely he’ll rinse the V-shaped glass with English dry vermouth—then disdainfully toss the excess over his shoulder, onto the carpet.
Read More →House Martini, Wildhawk | San Francisco
Although six-year-old Wildhawk doesn’t have the historical pedigree of a Dukes or a Keens, its House Martini has attracted the attention of bar pros well beyond the Bay Area.
“When someone says ‘classic cocktail,’ I envision a perfectly chilled, expertly made Martini in a highly curated room,” says Keli Rivers, Sipsmith brand ambassador and former “ginoisseur” at San Francisco’s gin palace, Whitechapel. “Wildhawk is the living embodiment of this daydream.”
Wildhawk bar manager Christian Suzuki explains what makes the drink special: It’s a 5-to-1 ratio of gin or vodka (at present, guests have a choice of nine gins and two vodkas) to vermouth (the latter either Noilly Prat or Dolin Dry), kept in the freezer. “We serve these Martinis in a Japanese tokkuri—or sake carafe—that has also been in the freezer, to keep the Martini nice and cold,” says Suzuki. “Since they are made from clay, the Martini stays insulated for a slightly longer period of time. Guests will then pour from the tokkuri into their Martini glass.” The finishing touch: a choice of a lemon twist, olive or onion garnish.
Martini, Musso & Frank Grill | Los Angeles
Is it the iconic room, frozen in midcentury Hollywood splendor? The red-jacketed bartenders? The specters of all the celebrities who have rubbed elbows along the long mahogany bar since 1919? Is it the Gilbey’s gin, the bar’s house brand, once well-known but rarely seen today, or the Spanish olives cured in-house?
Most likely, it’s all of the above, plus the signature presentation: a petite two-and-a-half ounce V-shaped glass, plus a carafe stashed in a bucket of crushed ice for plentiful top-ups.