A Toast to The Speakeasy

Fog blanketed the mountains behind San Ysidro Ranch in Montecito on July 1, as guests gathered to celebrate The Speakeasy, the hotel’s exclusive bar, being named one of the world’s best hotel bars in the Forbes Travel Guide’s 2026 Hotel Star Awards.

This year, Forbes recognized just 37 hotel bars across 18 countries, from Singapore to Scotland. The Speakeasy was one of only five bars in the United States to receive the distinction.

The evening began with guests mingling over specialty cocktails beside the ranch’s rose garden. Large white lettering reading “SYR X FORBES” was displayed above the koi pond. Canapés, including strawberry gazpacho and prosciutto and goat cheese crostinis, circulated atop gleaming silver trays. Nearby, a server wandered through the crowd with a roaming caviar cart, preparing caviar atop crème fraîche and blinis to order.

“We wanted to thank everybody for coming tonight,” said the hotel’s general manager, Ian Williams. “It’s a really special occasion for us. The property is not very large, so we couldn’t invite a lot of people, but we wanted to invite people that are very dear to our hearts.”

A toast followed Williams’s brief speech. Multiple bottles of Billecart-Salmon Le Réserve Champagne were uncorked with a sharp knife — a technique I later learned is called sabrage. Moments later, glasses brimming with bubbly were passed around.

From there, guests made their way to The Speakeasy, tucked around the corner from the ranch’s Stonehouse restaurant — you might not have known it was there had you not been looking for it. 

Inside, music filled the intimate space as flamenco dancers performed, their footwork echoing off the bar’s stone walls. At each table sat an impressive seafood tower piled high with crab legs, oysters, lobster, and shrimp. More bites from the bar’s limited-edition menu circulated throughout the evening, including halibut crudo and Wagyu beef sliders that melted in your mouth.

The cocktail menu, new for the summer, featured inventive offerings such as the Secret Stash, made with Jefferson’s Small Batch Bourbon, Michter’s Rye, Cynar, Crème de Banane, black walnut bitters, and banana caviar. 

Sitting on a tufted red velvet couch with my fiancé and another couple, we planned to stay for only a few hours. Then someone ordered espresso martinis. Before we knew it, it was 10 o’clock, and we found ourselves wondering where the evening had gone.

Time, I decided, did not exist within the walls of San Ysidro Ranch’s The Speakeasy.

Check out the full list of Forbes Travel Guide’s 2026 Hotel Star Bar Awards here.