A century or so ago, an Italian count with a taste for American bars walked into a Florence cafe and asked for his Americano with gin instead of soda. The swap stuck, the drink took his name, and the Negroni has since become one of the most ordered cocktails on earth. It topped Drinks International's survey of the world's best bars' bestselling classics for three straight years from 2022 to 2024, and its annual charity push, Negroni Week, drew over 15,000 venues across 97 countries in 2025 and raised more than $700,000 for Slow Food. This year's edition runs 21-27 September.

The pilgrimage spot, naturally, is where it all started. Caffè Giacosa on Florence's Via de' Tornabuoni occupies the site of the old Caffè Casoni, where Count Camillo Negroni allegedly made his famous request around 1919 (cocktail historians note the story isn't airtight, but nobody's complaining). Today it's a handsome period restoration with an entire Negroni section on the menu, including a wild Bloody Negroni built on nine-hour tomato reduction with cocoa, white chocolate and miso, plus tasting flights.

In Milan, Camparino in Galleria is the other essential Italian stop. Opened in 1915 by Davide Campari under the iron-and-glass roof of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, it still serves Campari Seltz via the same cellar-fed soda system concept it launched with, alongside a Negroni made with 1757 Vermouth di Torino Rosso and Bulldog Gin.

Beyond Italy, New York has two claims. In Greenwich Village, Dante — a 1915 Italian cafe reborn as an aperitivo bar — runs a whole 'Negroni Sessions' program of variations, from Chocolate Negroni to a vintage version using 1960s spirits. Over in Brooklyn, Echo Lake, the new rum bar from Lost Lake's Paul McGee and former Punch editor Chloe Frechette, pours what cocktail writer Kara Newman calls the best Kingston Negroni she's had, made with funky Jamaican rum. Ask about Undercurrent, the hidden 20-seat basement library of rare and vintage spirits.

London's contender is Bar Termini on Old Compton Street in Soho, a cramped 1950s-Italian homage with four Negroni takes — Classico, Rosato, Superiore and a sous-vide Robusto — served in handmade coupes you can buy and take home, bottled Negronis included.

Sydney's Surry Hills lays claim to the world's only bar dedicated entirely to the drink: Bar Conte, opened in 2022 by Sorrento-born Raffaele Lombardi, now lists more than 40 Negroni variations alongside Negroni-dressed Sydney Rock oysters. In Rome, Freni e Frizioni has been mixing in Trastevere since 2006 from a converted mechanic's shop — its rotating list recently included a Negroni Mediterraneo with Gin Mare, Amaro Santoni, Marsala, bell pepper and thyme. And Mexico City's Bar Mauro, ranked second in North America's 50 Best Bars for 2026, honors a grandfather's pre-lunch ritual with its Negroni 1929; during Negroni Week it takes over Bar 45 at London's 45 Park Lane with tequila-spiked riffs.

Whether you want the historic original, a rum-swapped Kingston, or a menu of 40 variations, there's a bar here that takes the three-ingredient classic seriously — pick a city and start sipping.

Thanks to Elite Traveler for the original round-up.