World’s 50 Best Bars 2020 to go ahead with virtual ceremony in November

World’s 50 Best Bars has confirmed that it will go ahead with releasing its 2020 ranking, and that it will reveal the highly anticipated list in November.

The organisation has revealed that it will announce its ranking via a virtual ceremony on November 5, instead of its usual October live event

Its sibling awards World’s 50 Best Restaurants announced back in March that it would postpone its 2020 ranking due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Instead, the organisation had launched the 50 Best for Recovery programme, which has so far raised $1.24m for the hospitality sector, with donations including grants to 236 businesses from 53 countries.

A spokesperson for the Bar awards said, “During extensive consultations with industry figures, its Academy Chairs, bar owners, bartenders and partners, the 50 Best organisation received widespread support for releasing a ranking that aims to bind the community even closer together and provide positive news for bars as they enter the next stage of recovery from the global pandemic.”

Last year, 10 London bars were named in the top 50 list, including The Connaught Bar which came in at number two, and the American Bar at the Savoy, which was ranked fifth.

Fellow Londoners on the list include Three Sheets (16), Coupette (23), Scout (28), Happiness Forgets (40), Swift (41) Kwant (47) and Artesian at the Langham (48), and Lyaness (39), Ryan Chetiyawardana’s bar which replaced his 2018 winner Dandelyan at the Sea Containers London hotel. The top spot in 2019 was taken by New York bar Dante.

Earlier this week, Michelin announced that the star revelation ceremony for 2021's Great Britain and Ireland guide would take place in January next year.