The Roof (permanently closed)

Address: 26th floor, Four Seasons Hotel, 1418 Professor Wafic Sinno Avenue, Beirut , Lebanon

Style: Hotel bar

Set atop the 26th floor of the Four Seasons hotel, with a wonderful, gigantic abstract mesh of sails artfully constructed to frame Beirut's stunning Mediterranean sunsets, gorgeous palms, low sofas, a long bar, and, during the day, a pool too, The Roof should, without question, be the best bar in Beirut.

Almost everything is right. The service is slick. The door staff know their stuff. The bar staff are lovely. There are even little trolleys for making drinks at the table. And the place is quite awe-inspiringly beautiful, particularly as the sun descends between the sails into the Mediterranean in a glow of peach and scarlet.

But... the drinks?! The Roof is mainly about bottle service and, when we asked, the staff took a while to track down a cocktail list. None of the five fruity options appealed, so we ended up with an "Old-Fashioned". This came stirred with mineral water (and without ice), then topped with soda and chipped ice.

The Roof comes thoroughly recommended for a sunset drink, perhaps a spirit and mixer or a glass of champagne, and it has a good reputation as a place to party too, but it is not a spot that cocktailians will appreciate.