The best cocktail bars Birmingham has are spread from Brindleyplace to Digbeth and Stirchley, and they suit very different nights. Full disclosure: Siamais wrote this guide and lists itself first, and Aluna and Lulu Wild are our sister venues. The other five are independent rivals and bigger names that we think deserve your money.
Oozells Square, Brindleyplace · Thai restaurant and cocktail bar with a 20 drink signature list
Best for: Cocktails with or without Thai food, and drinks around ICC, Symphony Hall and arena shows
This is us. The Book of Siam list runs from £11.50 to £13, with the 1941 as house signature and the £25 Bang Pai Falls sharing cocktail served with fire and smoke. Drinkers welcome without food. Open until midnight Friday and 1am Saturday. Smart casual.
See oursThe Mailbox · Pan-Asian restaurant and cocktail bar
Best for: Cocktails and dinner at The Mailbox
Our sister venue in the Enchanted Ventures group, so treat this as a biased pick. Pan-Asian food with a cocktail-focused bar at The Mailbox. You will spot the name on our menu too: Aluna Coconut Rum goes into our Tukit, Raspberry Ripple and Pina Colada.
Visit our sister venueBrindleyplace · Chinese restaurant and bar
Best for: Drinks and Chinese food without leaving Brindleyplace
Also a sister venue in the same group, a short walk from Siamais. A good pairing for a two-stop evening on the estate. See the Lulu Wild site for its current drinks list and opening times.
Visit our sister venuePinfold Street, city centre · Independent cocktail bar
Best for: Well made originals and classics close to New Street station
Describes itself as an award-winning independent cocktail bar, at 45 Pinfold Street. At the time of writing its site shows it opening from late afternoon seven days a week, with reservations available and a private space called The Den for groups.
Custard Factory, Digbeth · Independent, menu-led cocktail bar
Best for: Drinks enthusiasts who want a changing, creative menu
Opened in Digbeth's Custard Factory in 2022 by a team of experienced Birmingham bartenders, and featured in the Top 50 Cocktail Bars list. Known for regularly changing menus. Its website takes bookings. Check current opening days, as it has been closed early in the week.
Pershore Road, Stirchley · Neighbourhood cocktail bar
Best for: The most acclaimed drinks in the city, if you do not mind the trip
Topped the 2026 Top 50 Cocktail Bars list, as reported by Restaurant Online in February 2026. Listings describe it as walk-in only, with pop culture themed menus, and closed on Sundays and Mondays at the time of writing. Check before travelling.
Colmore Row · Theatrical cocktail bar and restaurant
Best for: Dressed-up groups who want drinks with a performance
A national group known for theatrical cocktail presentation, based in The Grand building on Colmore Row. We could not load its website at the time of writing, so check there for current menus, hours and booking.
Temple Street, city centre · High energy party cocktail bar
Best for: Late nights, birthdays and bookable masterclasses
At 31 Temple Street. At the time of writing its website lists cocktail masterclasses, birthday packages, private hire and a weekend bottomless brunch, with opening hours running to 2am Monday to Saturday. Expect a loud, party-led atmosphere.
A restaurant wrote this list, so read it with that in mind. Siamais is a Thai restaurant and cocktail bar in Brindleyplace and we have put ourselves first. Aluna at The Mailbox and Lulu Wild in Brindleyplace are part of the same independent group, Enchanted Ventures. Those three entries are biased, and we are telling you so.
The other five are not connected to us in any way. We chose them because they are the names that come up again and again when Birmingham bartenders and drinkers recommend somewhere, and because national trade lists back that up. Several of them make more technically ambitious drinks than we do. A useful guide should say so.
Facts about other bars were checked against their own websites and trade listings at the time of writing. We have left out their prices and kept opening hours general, because both change. Check before you travel, especially to Stirchley.
Decide what kind of evening it is before you pick the bar. The best bar for two drinks nerds on a Tuesday is rarely the best bar for twelve people on a Saturday.
If the drink in the glass is all that matters, start with these three independents. Couch in Stirchley is the headline name. It topped the 2026 Top 50 Cocktail Bars list, as reported by Restaurant Online in February 2026, which is a remarkable result for a neighbourhood bar on the Pershore Road. Listings describe it as walk-in only with playful, pop culture themed menus, and it is closed early in the week, so check before travelling.
Passing Fancies opened in Digbeth's Custard Factory in 2022 and features in the Top 50 Cocktail Bars list. It is known for a short menu that changes regularly, and its website takes bookings. Fox and Chance on Pinfold Street, a few minutes from New Street station, describes itself as an award-winning independent cocktail bar. It serves original and classic cocktails and opens from late afternoon every day, which makes it the easiest of the three to fit into a city centre evening.
Some nights call for a show. The Alchemist on Colmore Row has built its name on theatrical presentation, and it has the space for bigger, dressed-up groups. The Cocktail Club on Temple Street is a high energy party bar. At the time of writing its website lists cocktail masterclasses, birthday packages and opening hours that run to 2am for most of the week, so it is one for the end of the night.
Siamais sits somewhere between the two camps. The Book of Siam list has 20 house cocktails from £11.50 to £13, and some come with a bit of drama: the Tequila Cloud is served with air, and the £25 Bang Pai Falls sharing cocktail arrives with fire, smoke and overproof tiki rum. You can drink without eating, there are heated terraces, and the bar is open until midnight on Fridays and 1am on Saturdays. It is a seated bar with weekend house music, not a club.
Birmingham's good bars are spread out, so plan by neighbourhood.
Brindleyplace and Westside: Siamais and Lulu Wild are both on the Brindleyplace estate, which makes them the natural picks before or after the ICC, Symphony Hall or Utilita Arena. The Brindleyplace and Library tram stops are close by. The Mailbox, home to Aluna, is about a 10 minute walk along the canal.
City centre: Fox and Chance on Pinfold Street, The Cocktail Club on Temple Street and The Alchemist on Colmore Row are all within a short walk of New Street and Snow Hill stations. You could visit all three in one evening on foot.
Digbeth and Stirchley: Passing Fancies is in the Custard Factory, around a 15 minute walk from the Bullring. Couch is a few miles south in Stirchley, best reached by train to Bournville, by bus or by taxi. Both are worth a dedicated trip.
At Siamais, start with the 1941. It is the house signature, made with Briottet lychee liqueur, elderflower liqueur and apple, and costs £12.50. If you prefer something stirred and rich, the Toffee Old Fashioned with Toki whisky, dark chocolate and caramel is the same price. Gin drinkers should try the Botanical Bliss at £12, which uses Thai basil and grapes. Non drinkers have eight Koh Mak mocktails at £7.95.
At the specialist bars, the menus change too often for us to name drinks with confidence, and that is the point of going. The best approach at Couch, Passing Fancies or Fox and Chance is to tell the bartender what you usually like and let them steer you. At a themed or high volume venue, stick to the house signatures, as those are the drinks the team makes hundreds of times a week.
Wherever you go, bring ID. Most Birmingham bars run Challenge 25, including us.
On national recognition, Couch in Stirchley leads: it topped the 2026 Top 50 Cocktail Bars list. In the city centre, Fox and Chance and Passing Fancies are highly regarded independents. For cocktails with Thai food near the ICC and Utilita Arena, Siamais in Brindleyplace is our own pick, and we wrote this guide.
In the city centre, Fox and Chance is on Pinfold Street, The Cocktail Club is on Temple Street and The Alchemist is on Colmore Row, all within a short walk of New Street station. Siamais and Lulu Wild are in Brindleyplace on the Westside, a tram ride or 16 minute walk away.
Prices vary by venue, and we have not quoted other bars because menus change. At Siamais, cocktails cost between £11.50 and £13.25, mocktails are £7.95, and the Bang Pai Falls sharing cocktail is £25. Check each bar's current menu online before you go if budget matters.
Siamais is open until midnight on Fridays and 1am on Saturdays. At the time of writing, The Cocktail Club lists opening until 2am from Monday to Saturday, and Fox and Chance lists 1am closes on Fridays and Saturdays. Neighbourhood bars such as Couch close earlier, so check before travelling.
It depends on the bar. Some specialist bars, such as Couch, are listed as walk-in only, while Passing Fancies and Fox and Chance take reservations. At Siamais, walk-ins are welcome when there is space, and table bookings carry a £5 per person deposit that comes off your bill.
Siamais wrote it. We list ourselves first, and Aluna and Lulu Wild are sister venues in the same group, so those three entries are biased. The other five bars have no connection to us. We included them because they are widely respected, and we only stated what we could verify.
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