The CLASS Crawl is your insider’s bar tour around the neighbourhood you want to drink in.
In our Bethnal Green bar guide we take you to five of East London’s best cocktail bars, all within walking distance of each other. The bars featured have been recognised in the CLASS Bar Awards - the longest-running bar awards in the UK - and/or been positively reviewed by CLASS magazine, which has been documenting UK bar culture since 1997.
The route: Equal Parts → The Natural Philosopher → Satan’s Whiskers → All My Gods → The Sun Tavern
Walking time between stops: 2–10 minutes
Best for: Cocktail bars, classic cocktails, serious drinks, neighbourhood bars and late-night drinking
1. EQUAL PARTS
Photo: Equal Parts
CLASS rating: ★★★★½
Recognition: CLASS Bar Awards: New Bar of the Year finalist 2024
Go for: Dates, serious drinks and its vinyl collection
Drink: The Flor – olive-oil-washed vodka, fino sherry, distilled tomato water and basil – is one of the bar’s must-try cocktails
Location: Hackney Road, East London
Nearest stations: Hoxton Underground (8 mins walk) or Cambridge Heath (13 mins)
Address: 245 Hackney Rd, London E2 8NA
Price: ££
Reservations: Optional but recommended
Open: Seven days
We’re starting the tour just on the outskirts of Bethnal Green, but Equal Parts is too close – and too good – to miss.
This intimate neighbourhood cocktail bar on Hackney Road comes from the team behind Sager + Wilde and is built around refined classic cocktails and inventive signatures, with savoury ingredients and adventurous flavours.
Exposed plaster, warm wood, vinyl and a beautifully lit, casual atmosphere make Equal Parts an easy place to settle in for a few serious drinks. It’s a particularly good first stop for a date or a small gathering.
Next stop 10 minutes walk
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2. THE NATURAL PHILOSOPHER
Photo: The Natural Philosopher
CLASS rating: ★★★½☆
Go for: A hidden basement cocktail bar with whisky, inventive drinks and a unique entrance through a Mac repair shop
Drink: A seasonal cocktail from the monthly-changing menu, particularly one built around unusual ingredients
Location: Hackney Road, East London
Nearest stations: Cambridge Heath (2 mins walk) or Bethnal Green (10 mins walk)
Address: 489 Hackney Rd, London E2 9ED
Price: ££
Reservations: Walk-ins and reservations
Open: Thursday–Sunday
A ten-minute stroll east along Hackney Road takes you to The Natural Philosopher, one of East London’s longest-established hidden cocktail bars. The entrance is through the MacSmiths repair shop, leading down to a basement bar that has been serving whisky and cocktails since 2015.
The Natural Philosopher is a charming oasis, with warm service, inventive cocktails and a dangerously deep collection of whisky.
Next stop 7 minutes walk
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3. SATAN'S WHISKERS
Photo: Satan's Whiskers
CLASS rating: ★★★★★
Recognition: CLASS Bar Awards: Bar of the Year 2026 & 2025; Best Bar in London & the South East 2026, 2025, 2024 & 2023
The 50 Best Bars: No. 21 (2025); No. 22 (2024); No. 23 (2023); No. 23 (2022)
Go for: Date nights, small gatherings and a place at the bar to watch some of London’s best bartenders create benchmark classic cocktails
Drink: East 8 Hold Up – a signature of the bar – the Satan’s Manhattan or a Miami Vice, a half-Daiquiri, half-Piña Colada serve
Location: Bethnal Green, East London
Nearest stations: Bethnal Green Underground (3 mins walk) or Bethnal Green Overground (11 mins walk)
Address: 343 Cambridge Heath Rd, London E2 9RA
Price: ££
Reservations: Optional but recommended
Open: Seven days
A seven-minute walk from The Natural Philosopher, Satan’s Whiskers is a must-visit stop on this Bethnal Green bar crawl. You might not know it from the nondescript entrance, but this is cocktail bar royalty.
Satan’s Whiskers is a small, intimate cocktail bar where exceptional bartending meets an unpretentious East London atmosphere. Its daily-changing menu draws on a vast repertoire of classic cocktails, while warm wood, vintage drinks posters and a hip-hop soundtrack give the space its distinctive character.
The bar has received major recognition from both the CLASS Bar Awards and The 50 Best Bars. For cocktail drinkers visiting Bethnal Green, it is one of the area’s essential stops.
Next stop 2 minutes walk
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4. ALL MY GODS
Photo: All My Gods
CLASS rating: ★★★★☆
Go for: Groups, late-night drinks, pool, rock music and a chance to hang loose
Drink: The £8 Martini, Frozen Nuclear Daiquiri or Fish House Punch
Location: Bethnal Green, East London
Nearest stations: Bethnal Green Underground (2 mins walk) or Bethnal Green Overground (10 mins walk)
Address: 253 Paradise Row, London E2 9LE
Price: £
Open: Wednesday–Sunday
For a change of pace, All My Gods is just two minutes from Satan’s Whiskers on Cambridge Heath Road, in the foodie enclave of Paradise Row. A homage to London’s great dive bars, All My Gods comes with a difference: the drinks may seem humble, but they have been created by some of London’s most high-profile indie bar operators – Chris Tanner, Jack Wallis and Martyn ‘Simo’ Simpson.
The bar combines serious cocktails with Guinness, slushies, a pool table and an £8 Martini served from the bar’s Martininator. Add motorcycle meet-ups, queer community nights, drag bingo and a soundtrack that leans heavily towards rock, and you have one of East London’s funnest places to drink.
Next stop 6 minutes walk
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5. THE SUN TAVERN
Photo: The Sun Tavern
CLASS rating: ★★★★½
Recognition: CLASS Bar Awards Specialist Bar of the Year 2018 finalist
Go for: Casual drinks, Irish whiskey, classic cocktails and a neighbourhood atmosphere
Drink: The Umbrella Vesper is a signature, or test the credible claim that the bar has the largest Irish whiskey collection in London and the most “legal” Poitín globally
Location: Bethnal Green, East London
Nearest stations: Bethnal Green Underground (3 mins walk) or Bethnal Green Overground (6 mins walk)
Address: 441 Bethnal Green Rd, London E2 0AN
Price: ££
Open: Seven days
Late opening: Until 2am Thursday–Saturday
You’re almost at Bethnal Green tube, but if you’ve got one more in you, The Sun Tavern is just six minutes down Bethnal Green Road. It’s also the latest-opening stop on this Bethnal Green bar crawl, staying open until 2am on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
A real favourite of the bar trade, this lively Bethnal Green neighbourhood bar has a strong Irish accent. Alongside classically inspired cocktails, it has a cavernous Irish whiskey collection and a world-leading offering of poitín.
Local beers, homemade ginger beer, live music, DJs and friendly service give The Sun Tavern an easy-going vibe. It’s a relaxed place to finish the crawl, whether you’re after a final cocktail, a whiskey, or a late-night drink with friends.
The Sun Tavern is one of the UK’s best-known neighbourhood bars – and it just happens, as a handful of others do, to be in Bethnal Green.