Rum Journal: A Legendary Rum Bar in Athens, Greece, Baba Au Rhum

We’ve written often in these pages of the joy of the Rum Bar, a bar that celebrates the best of Caribbean rum-making with a diverse, robust selection of rums from across the region. 

For years, such bars were few and far between, even in the Caribbean: places like Antigua’s Papa Zouk, or the Rhum Room in Anguilla. 

But rum’s glories have found favor beyond the islands of the West Indies, and that includes one particularly impressive bar in a place never confused for a rum destination: Athens, Greece. 

It’s called Baba Au Rhum, and this intimate bar on a side street in Athens has one of the world’s most impressive rum collections, with nearly 400 rums on offer and a menu that includes expressions, some rare, from across the region. 

Yes, you can find some particularly good offerings from places like Cuba and Martinique: a host of Santiago de Cuba bottles, along with some rarer Agricole blends like JM’s astonishingly good Triple Millesime (triple-vintage). 

It also includes some lovely Caroni bottlings, with a playful decor that includes walls of cocktail-themed books. 

It’s been here for 15 years, under the stewardship of enthusiast Thanos Prunarus, with a friendly staff and an always-energetic vibe. 

Another welcome touch? Order a rum neat and you’ll get a few pieces of delicious dark chocolate on the side, a well-harmonized pairing with a sugarcane spirit.  

The cocktail list is strong here, too, but with this many Caribbean rums, a snifter and a rum neat is the way to do it. 

Yassou. 

To learn more, visit Baba au Rhum.

— CJ