World’s 50 Best Bars- Insights from Emma Sleight

Ready for the awards in Madrid!

World’s 50 Best   in Madrid--- with Sharlafied!  

Sharlafied will be at the Worlds 50 Best Bars Celebration in Madrid, on Tuesday October 22,2024.

It will be a huge celebration awarding the best bars from around the globe. We interviewed Emma Sleight, Head of Content: Bars & Hotels. She is also responsible for coordinating the Academy chairs around the world.  Let’s find out what makes her tick.

Hi Emma, let’s get right into it-- what is the biggest perk about working with 50 Best Bars?

One of the best things is being able to experience and be a part of the incredible community of bartenders and bar experts around the world that 50 Best has cultivated since the launch of The World’s 50 Best Bars in 2009. People who work in hospitality are some of the most passionate, creative and innovative people you will ever meet and it is such a genuine pleasure to interact with them on a daily basis – and to recognise and celebrate their achievements as part of our official awards and the content we produce around the year on our digital and social channels.

What countries have you been to since you started with 50 Best?

As a former travel and food journalist, I have travelled quite a bit! My first event as part of 50 Best was Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024 in Seoul, South Korea and I stayed on to explore Busan as well. Since then, I have been to San Miguel de Allende and Mexico City for North America’s 50 Best Bars 2024, Las Vegas for The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2024, Hong Kong for Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024 and we just held The World’s 50 Best Hotels 2024 here in my home town of London. Next month we will be in Madrid for The World’s 50 Best Bars 2024 and hope to spend some time in Spain and France before I head home.

You are in charge of the country chairs of 50 Best. You wield a lot of power. What is the question that you get asked most?

Her role takes her to Asia and around the world 

Part of my role as the Head of Content is to manage and recruit the Academy Chairs. We have 28 global Academy Chairs for The World’s 50 Best Bars. The role of the Academy Chairs is to source credible and trustworthy voters who are experts in the bar scene in their respective regions.

The most common question is how we construct the list and the answer is very simple: the list is the result of a simple computation of votes from the 700-strong voting Academy across the globe. 50 Best does not vote, nor do they have any influence over the list or the ranking.

What advice can you give to a bar in a smaller city to get recognized on the 50 Best list?

At North America’s awards presentation 

We encourage bars to focus on delivering the best possible experience to their guests and to view any associated awards as a welcome byproduct of their hard work, rather than making awards the focal point of their efforts.

Bars do not have to sell a certain product, nor do they have to have been open a certain number of years or have to have won any other accolades to secure a spot on The World’s 50 Best Bars list (or our regional

lists), and indeed the same holds true for restaurants and hotels across our other brands.

Bars cannot apply to be on the list. The voting is undertaken by The World’s 50 Best Bars Academy, which comprises more than 700 drinks experts across the world. There are no criteria for the voting, the Academy members are simply asked to vote for what they consider to be the best bar experience they have had during the voting period. What constitutes ‘best’ is left up to each voter to decide. This could be the quality of the drinks, the service, the surroundings or atmosphere or even the price point. All bars, no matter what style or size they are, simply need to ensure that they are producing the best possible bar experience that they can offer.

I understand that 25% of country inspectors and country chairs must be changed every year. That means you are constantly looking for new inspectors. How do you source these inspectors?

Yes, a minimum of 25% of the voters are refreshed annually. It’s important to note we do not deal in ‘countries’ but rather regions as we believe that is the most representative way to approach the global Academy. The World’s 50 Best Bars Academy is made up of more than 700 anonymous industry experts. The role of creating the voting Academy belongs to the Academy Chairs. There are 28 chairs who are each appointed for their knowledge of their part of the bar world. The Academy Chairs are entrusted with selecting the anonymous voters, ensuring that there is a balanced selection of bartenders, drinks writers and drinks aficionados from within the geographical region. There is no set tenure for an Academy Chair, but we bring in new Academy Chairs regularly. These Academy Chairs are not ‘inspectors’ per se. They simply recruit credible voters and, while they are able to vote themselves, their votes carry the same weight as any other voter.

 Can bars nominate themselves for 50 Best?

Bars cannot nominate themselves to be included on The World’s 50 Best Bars list. All voting is undertaken by the 700 anonymous drinks experts who form The World’s 50 Best Bars Academy.

I seem to notice that bars that travel to do guest shifts and host guest shifts seem to get noticed on the 50 Best list. Is this a correct assumption?

While bars that travel and do guest shifts/host guest shifts are of course eligible to be included on The World’s 50 Best Bars list, our voter rules clearly state that voters are required to have attended the bars they vote for during a normal service and not during a takeover, guest shift or any other special event.

 How do you differ from the new Pinnacle Guide?

The Pinnacle Guide is compiled through self-application by the bars, and then judged upon this application process and subsequent interviews. The World’s 50 Best Bars is compiled entirely through votes from the anonymous experts that make up The World’s 50 Best Bars Academy. Bars cannot apply to be on the list and no 50 Best representative, nor any of the sponsors, have any control over which bars feature in the list.

Your most badass bar moment last year

I am firm believer in everyday badassery. However, a standout moment would have been taking to the stage for the first time at North America’s 50 Best Bars in San Miguel de Allende and opening my speech in

Spanish (that I do not speak, which I am sure everyone could tell…) – the crowd was wild that night.

You are a cheese lover, what is your go-to cocktail to pair with cheese?

Blue cheese and a fig martini – or just combine the two into a blue cheese olive martini!

You love a good martini, do you have your own favourite recipe?

I’m a big believer on the colder the better so just straight cold gin stirred with ice with a whisper of

vermouth sloshed around a chilled glass is my go to. Finished with an olive, of course, although I have been leaning into wetter martinis of late.

What direction do you see 50 Best going in for the future?

On stage at North America’s 50 Best 

50 Best is always looking to see how we can improve, evolve and adapt based on global trends and changing markets and consumer demands, so the best thing to do is to keep watching our social channels and signup to our emails for all the coming announcements!

Are physical menus making a comeback?

We see a lot of bars putting an increasingly huge amount of effort into creating and curating their menus – we even have an award dedicated to recognising and celebrating it – the Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu Award. It’s hard to say if bars are heading back to a physical menu exclusively – it really depends on the bar’s personal ethos and approach – if they are digital first, they will likely never return to a physical menu! Consumers are used to accessing digital menus now, so I am sure that will continue to be an option.

Tell me about the education charity you help promote.

I am the trustee of a small charity called Bright Sparks – it supports a school on the edge of a slum in Mohali, Chandigarh that offers free education to neighbouring children who otherwise would not be able to attend school. I have a particular passion for education – particularly getting girls into education in areas where they may not have the opportunity to do so.

Emma is ready to shine 

Rapidfire Questions for Emma

-Martini: olive or twist? Olive

-Hotel bar or stand alone: Depends on the mood

-Your favorite bar personality you are inspired by?

I don’t have favorites! But an undeniable icon that has inspired us all is Ada Coleman – she was light years ahead of her time.

Thanks Emma, and see you in Madrid!

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50 best bars