Downtown Phoenix cocktail destination named among best bars in US: 'Grander sense of place'

Wine Enthusiast released its list of "The Best Hotel Bars in America for 2023" and one Phoenix cocktail destination made the cut.

Nils Bernstein, writer and food editor of Wine Enthusiast, curated the list based on 25 years of experience plus feedback from trusted friends and coworkers. He called it a list that "seeks to elevate the escapist charm of the hotel bar."

Twenty-five hotels from coast to coast made the list. Among those were bars such as Bar Pendry in Chicago, Chandelier at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas and Tonga Room at Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco. Here in Phoenix, Little Rituals at the Residence Inn/Courtyard by Marriott earned a nod.

Owned by Ross Simon and Aaron Defeo, Little Rituals was also a top 10 nominee for Best US Hotel Bars for Tales of the Cocktail awards in 2023 and top four in 2022.

Bernstein called it a dim and sexy space, and praised the housemade ingredients that incorporate seasonally available farmers market inputs such as marigold, shiitake mushrooms and lime leaf.

"These aren’t merely bars that happen to exist on hotel property," Bernstein wrote, "but drinking dens that convey a grander sense of place."

Details: Little Rituals at Residence Inn/Courtyard by Marriott Phoenix Downtown, 132 S. Central Ave., Fourth Floor, Phoenix. 602-603-2050, littleritualsbar.com.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Downtown Phoenix bar named among 25 best hotel bars in America