Where to Drink in Munich, Germany

Where to Drink in Munich, Germany

Join Müncheners sipping from steins in beer gardens and appreciating Aperols in the Old Town’s aperitivo bars, or head to one of the city’s avant garde cocktail spots for a sultry evening experience.

Enjoying the river banks of the Isar, Munich
Photo credit: Timo Nausch / Shutterstock.com

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Reichenbach Kiosk

We’re always keen for a drinking destination that lets us top up
our tan, and given the quantity of beer gardens in the city,
Müncheners seem aligned with our thinking. For a low-key evening
sun-soak, head to the city’s favourite unofficial outdoor drinking
den: the banks of the Isar. Munich’s best known cornershop, the
Reichenbach Kiosk, is open 23 hours a day (only closing from
5am-6am), giving ample time to choose from their expansive
selection of European beers before golden hour arrives. Pick up a
duo of twist-cap bottles, cross the bridge and head to the
beach-like riverbank for a sultry summer experience.

Address

Fraunhoferstrasse 46, 80469

Summer days at the Chinesischer Turm in Munich, Germany

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Beer gardens galore

Call us easily pleased, but a few hours spent in the sun-dappled
light of a chestnut tree-shaded beer garden, steins on the table, a
soft river of melodious Bavarian accents floating by, sounds like
the perfect use of an afternoon. In Munich, it seems you’re never
more than 5m from a beer garden – there’s even one just outside the
airport (and, trust us, tranquillity levels trump the Heathrow
boozer). Situated between the vast 8,000-seater Königlicher
Hirschgarten and the ditsy Viktualienmarkt garden (complete with
checked tablecloths) is our favourite beer spot, the Englischer
Garten’s Chinesischer Turm – a popular park hangout that sprawls
around a replica Chinese pagoda. The rustic huts offer everything
you need for a classic beer garden meal: roast pork, sauerkraut and
large steins.

Address

N/A

Die Goldene Bar
Photo credit: Alescha Birkenholz

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Die Goldene Bar

This moody drinking den has a dark past – it’s located in a
gallery that was originally opened in 1937 to exhibit National
Socialist-approved artworks. But, in keeping with much of Munich’s
recent push to come to terms with the city’s role in Nazism, Die
Goldene doesn’t shy away from its problematic origins. The original
1937 gilded maps found on its walls provided inspiration for its
name, while the art gallery it sits in aims to explore the diverse
edges of contemporary art, with a particular focus on platforming
POC and LGBTQ+ artists. Come Friday night, you’ll find an avant
garde crowd sipping absinthe-infused sodas and bellini coladas on
the summer terrace.

Address

Prinzregentenstrasse 1, 80538

Enjoying drinks outside Bar Centrale
Photo credit: K&W GmbH & Co. KG

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Bar Centrale

Globe-like glasses of aerospace-orange Aperol are the drink of
choice during Munich’s summer, and there are few bars better to
enjoy the alpine tipple at than this Italian-influenced aperitivo
joint in the city’s Old Town. Terrazzo floors, piled-high pasta
plates and a male clientele in love with the pop sock and Italian
leather loafer look is all you need to know about Bar Centrale. We
recommend heading down early in the afternoon to grab a
pavement-side table.

Address

Ledererstrasse 23, 80331

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