Image credit: Dan Allot
A cocktail bar in Stoke-on-Trent is celebrating after being included in a guide to some of the world’s best cocktail bars.
Desire Cocktail Bar, in Piccadilly, Hanley was one of only five UK venues to receive an award in The Pinnacle Guide.
The north Staffordshire venue was rated 1 pin – excellent and was among 29 newly recognised bars across 11 countries.
The guide assesses cocktail bars on their drinks, hospitality and overall guest experience, with a written application and anonymous visits forming part of the assessment process.
The award comes as Desire approaches its third anniversary, while owner Dereece Gardner was also named this week as a finalist in the Best Venue Manager category at the Bar Magazine Awards 2027.
Gardner, who opened Desire in December 2023, said the award was both a personal milestone and an opportunity to put Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire on the international hospitality map.
“When you look at the calibre of bars featured within The Pinnacle Guide and the incredible destinations represented, it really puts this achievement into perspective,” he said.
“To think that our small independent cocktail bar in Stoke-on-Trent is now recognised within that same international guide is something quite extraordinary.”
The other four UK bars recognised by The Pinnacle Guide today are located in London and Edinburgh.
Gardner said he had made it part of his mission to challenge people’s perceptions about what a cocktail bar outside of a major city could achieve.
A reviewer for The Pinnacle Guide praised Desire’s warm welcome and “real pride and affection” for Stoke-on-Trent, adding that “nothing seemed too much trouble” for the venue’s staff.
Gardner said the anonymous assessment process made the recognition even more meaningful.
“We didn’t know who the reviewers were or when they were coming,” he said. “They experienced Desire exactly as any other customer would.
“For us, great hospitality has always been about more than what’s in the glass. It’s about how people feel from the moment they walk through our doors.”
He added: “We don’t have enormous budgets or laboratories full of expensive equipment.
“What we have is an incredible passion for what we do, a talented team and a determination to keep improving.”
The Pinnacle Guide’s profile of Desire is available at: www.thepinnacleguide.com/desire-cocktail-bar
You can read more from Hannah Hiles by visiting her website.
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