Cabo San Lucas Whiskey Bars: Where to Drink a Good Pour in a Tequila Town

Let me be straight with you: Cabo is a tequila and mezcal town. A bar built only around whiskey is a rare thing here, and we would rather tell you that than invent one. What Cabo does have is a handful of rooms with a deep spirits shelf, a fireplace or a cliff view, and bartenders who will pour a neat one without a raised eyebrow. That is this list. Every place on it stocks spirits and does cocktails well, and we have noted the hours and price level so you can plan the night.

Whiskey with a sunset

Sunset Monalisa

Km 6 on the Corridor, and the best sunset seat in Los Cabos. It is a $$$$ fine dining room, Mediterranean, open 4pm to 10:30pm every day, with a 4.5 rating from over 2,100 reviews. There is a fireplace, live music and a real cocktail program, and the upmarket, romantic mood is exactly what a good pour wants. Book a table for the last hour of light, order the whiskey after the sun goes, and let dinner follow if you feel like it.

Downtown Cabo San Lucas

Edith's Restaurante

On Av. del Pescador near Medano Beach, Edith's is the old-school room in town: historic, romantic and $$$$, open 5pm to 10pm daily. A 4.5 from close to 1,200 reviews. Live music, a wine list people talk about, and spirits on the back bar. It is a dinner place first, but a whiskey at the bar before your table is a very good way to start.

Salvatore G's

Italian, $$$, on Vicente Guerrero, open 11am to 10:30pm (from 4pm on Sunday). A 4.8 rating from nearly 2,000 reviews makes it one of the highest rated rooms in town. Happy-hour drinks and food, great cocktails, a proper wine list, and yes, spirits. Come early for the happy hour, stay for pasta.

Cabo Wabo Cantina

You already know the name. Vicente Guerrero, $$, 9am to 11pm daily, live music, dancing, and a 4.3 from more than 6,200 reviews. This is not a quiet sipping bar. It is the loud one, with happy-hour drinks and a spirits shelf that gets a workout. Go for the band, order a whiskey and cola, and do not expect a tasting flight.

Romeo & Julieta

Italian on Blvd. Paseo de la Marina, $$, open 4pm to 11pm (2pm to 10pm on Sunday), with rooftop seating and a 4.6 from around 1,400 reviews. Late-night food, live music, a good cocktail list. An easy stop near the Marina when you want a drink and a slice of something after 10.

San José del Cabo

Acre Restaurant

Out at C. Rincón de las Animas, Acre is a farm-to-table restaurant with a bar that stands on its own. $$$, open 11:30am to 10pm most days (Saturday and Sunday run 10am to 2pm, then 5pm to 10pm). A fireplace, rooftop seating, live music and a 4.6 from about 1,600 reviews. Great cocktails, a great wine list, spirits on the shelf and late-night food. If we had to name one whiskey stop on the San José side, this is it.

La Lupita Taco & Mezcal

Yes, the name says mezcal. Hear me out. On José María Morelos in the art district, open noon to 10:30pm, closed Monday, $$, with live music, a rooftop and a 4.6 from around 2,200 reviews. If you like whiskey, you will probably like a good mezcal, and this is the place to find out. Spirits are the whole point of the room.

Baja Brewing Company

The San José brewpub, $$, open 11am to 10pm daily, live music, 4.5 from close to 1,400 reviews. Beer is the reason to come, but the bar stocks spirits and cocktails too, so the whiskey drinker in a beer group is not left out.

Todos Santos, for the road trip

Oystera

An oyster bar in Todos Santos on Calle Benito Juárez. $$$, open 10am to 9pm (noon to 8pm on Monday), with a fireplace, rooftop seating, happy-hour drinks and a 4.6 from close to 1,500 reviews. Oysters and a whiskey at the bar is a combination we stand behind.

Before you go

• Price levels. Sunset Monalisa and Edith's are $$$$. Salvatore G's, Acre and Oystera are $$$. Cabo Wabo, Romeo & Julieta, La Lupita and Baja Brewing are $$. Expect the $$$$ rooms to add up once you move from one pour to two.
• Bring your own? Check the current duty-free allowance before you pack a bottle, and do not expect a restaurant to let you open it at the table.
• Peak season. November through April is the busy stretch. Book Sunset Monalisa and Edith's a week or more out.
• Tipping. 15 to 20 percent, pesos welcome.

No dedicated whiskey bar, but plenty of good rooms to drink one in. See more of where we drink on our Cabo restaurants page.