43

Nouvelle Vague

Tirana

A modern expression of Albania’s drinking culture

Nouvelle Vague has become one of Tirana's defining cocktail bars: a compact, colourful address in the Blloku area that helped put Albania's drinking culture on the international map. Opened in 2012 by brothers Sofokli and Evis Cali, it was conceived less as a conventional bar than as a creative, constantly evolving meeting place, taking its name from the French New Wave and channelling that same spirit of experimentation where a young, cool crowd fills the interior and spills out into the street every evening. Over the past decade it has grown from a neighbourhood favourite into a globally recognised destination, breaking into The 50 Best Bars list in 2025.

Inside, the bar is a riot of colour bedecked in technicolour tiles, pendant lights wearing jaunty hats and painted stripes slicing across the ceiling. Inside the glass, the bar's strength lies in its ability to make Albanian ingredients feel contemporary. Its current menu, Origin'al, is built around local spirits, produce and memories, especially raki, which is treated with the seriousness usually reserved for whisky, gin or mezcal. This ethos is manifest in serves like Nou Whey, a creamy blend of hazelnut milk, tonka, elderflower and pear raki, or Black Sabah, inspired by the Albanian ritual of coffee with raki; and the Deviated Negroni, made with juniper raki and fortified Kallmet wine. Other signatures draw on quince, honey, bee pollen, boza, paprika and blackberry raki, turning regional flavours into polished drinks.

Fiercely loyal to its locale, Nouvelle Vague has also helped energise the city's drinks scene through Tirana Cocktail Fest events, bringing international and local bar teams together for pop ups over a series of music- and-dance-driven evenings.

Contact