Located in San Sebastian’s tourist-packed Old Town, Cote Bar serves up fresh spins on Gin & Tonics alongside classic cocktails. With a hip late night crowd, it is the perfect place to stop for a few drinks after downing plates of pintxos at one of the nearby eateries. The little bar fills with students, locals, and tourists looking to sip some of the neighborhood’s best beverages and the atmosphere is energetic and social without being too club like.
The dark interior is lit with orange and pink neon and a well-versed bar staff keeps the drinks coming at a high rate. The quality, nonetheless, doesn’t suffer. Cote Bar is known for their G&Ts and the have a menu stock full of plays on the refreshing drink. Each gin and tonic is named after the gin that goes into them, and everyone receives their own unique choice of ingredients. Plymouth comes with lime and orange, brightening up the English distillate’s wetter profile. Those who choose Money 47, meanwhile, will also find orange, but a sweet touch is added via vanilla.
Those looking to try some Spanish Gin will want to look to the Gin Mare. The liquor comes from the nation’s Mediterranean coast, and Cote Bar adds rosemary and cardamom to the liquor, giving it an herbal fragrance that brings depth. Obviously, Cote Bar’s concentration is on G&Ts and the results across the board are superlative.
Cote Bar fills up late night and spins a set of modern tunes at a volume that doesn’t chase loungers out the door. Instead, the bar seems tailor made for those looking to raise their spirits and their glasses while having high energy conversations. Those looking to escape the noisy clubs and dirty pubs that fill San Sebastian’s Old Town will find Cote Bar offers well-crafted cocktails and a stimulating atmosphere without falling prey to the usual tourist trap ideologies.
Find It Here:
Fermin Calbeton Kalea, 48, 20003
Donostia, Gipuzkoa, Spain