Best Cocktail Bars in Sunderland

Sunderland's cocktail scene is spread across three areas: Keel Square and Sunniside at the river end of the city centre, the run of bars around Vine Place and Derwent Street near the Park Lane Interchange, and the seafront at Roker. The city also has its own cocktail festival. Sunderland Cocktail Week ran from 30 January to 8 February 2026, organised with the city's business improvement districts, and 37 businesses signed up, with wristband holders able to try signature drinks across the centre and the coast. Every bar below was trading in 2026, and most took part in that week. Opening hours vary through the year, so check before you go.

The Botanist, Keel Square

The Botanist is on Keel Square, at the top of High Street West. Its cocktail list is built around botanical flavours, with a classic cocktail happy hour on weekday afternoons, a Botanista brunch, and a food menu of sharing plates and mains.

Live music plays on Friday and Saturday evenings, and the outdoor area with its festoon lights is popular in summer. It is a few minutes' walk from the Empire and The Fire Station, so it works before or after a show.

Best for: Suits a lively Friday or Saturday night with music.

Ttonic, Vine Place

Ttonic has been a fixture of Vine Place since 2003. By day it is a bar showing sport, and in the evening it turns into a cocktail bar with live music, staying open late at weekends. It has a beer garden and spreads over two floors.

Ttonic was one of the city-centre venues in Sunderland Cocktail Week 2026, and Vine Place has several other bars within a minute's walk if you want to move on.

Best for: Suits a late night out with a crowd.

Angelo's Ristorante & Cocktail Bar, West Sunniside

Angelo's is a family-run Italian restaurant on West Sunniside with its own cocktail bar, run by members of the family. You can book for a full meal of antipasti, fresh pasta and stone-baked pizza, or simply go for drinks at the bar.

It took part in Sunderland Cocktail Week 2026 and is in the heart of the Sunniside quarter, close to the Omniplex cinema.

Best for: Suits a cocktail before or after dinner, in a calmer setting than the bar streets.

Gatsby, Derwent Street

Gatsby is a large corner bar on Derwent Street, a couple of minutes from the Park Lane Interchange. It serves food all day, starting with breakfast in the morning, and turns into a bar with cocktails and live music later on. There is limited seating outside in the pedestrian area.

Gatsby was listed among the city-centre venues for Sunderland Cocktail Week 2026.

Best for: Suits a relaxed start to an evening near Park Lane.

Spacebar, Waterloo Place

Spacebar combines a cocktail bar with an arcade. It occupies a corner building on Waterloo Place that was once a snooker hall, and it has more than 50 arcade machines and games consoles alongside a list of signature cocktails and a food menu. It opens from Tuesday to Sunday, with late opening at weekends.

There is a smartphone quiz on Thursday evenings, and the bar took part in Sunderland Cocktail Week 2026.

Best for: Suits groups who want something to do as well as something to drink.

Poetic License Bar, Roker

Poetic License Bar is beside The Roker Hotel on Roker Terrace. It serves cocktails alongside draught beers, wine and prosecco, and runs cocktail masterclass brunches for groups of four to fifteen at set times on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

The large beer garden faces the sea, so it is one of the few places in the city where you can drink a cocktail outdoors with a view of the beach.

Best for: Suits a celebration or a group booking with a hands-on element.

Tin of Sardines, Roker

Tin of Sardines is a gin bar and kitchen in the former toilet block on Pier View, close to Roker pier. Its focus is gin rather than a long cocktail menu, with a long gin list served with speciality mixers, alongside draught beers, wines and a short cocktail list.

The outside gin terrace looks over Roker beach and the pier, and it is covered in autumn and winter. Brunch is served from the morning, with tapas-style plates later in the day.

Best for: Suits gin drinkers, and anyone wanting a quieter drink by the sea.

Getting there and getting home

The city-centre bars are all within walking distance of each other, and Sunderland station and the Park Lane Interchange are close by for Metro and bus connections. Roker is around half an hour's walk from the centre across the Wearmouth Bridge, or a short taxi ride. If you are planning a full evening, our guide to the best restaurants in Sunderland has places to eat nearby, and our date night guide puts together food, drinks and a show.

Know a place we have missed? Get in touch.