You might not find the legendary lost city of El Dorado on the 24th floor of the NHow Hotel in Amsterdam, but you will find Sonora Bar — a luxury Spanish cocktail bar steeped in the mythology of pre-Columbian design. Designed by Barcelona-based studio El Equipo Creativo, Sonora Bar brings Latin American flavours — including their singnature Azul Margarita — to a European audience.

A Spanish Cocktail Bar that Evokes Golden Treasure

Designed to complement its sister space, the Selva Restaurant, located on the same floor of the NHow Hotel, El Equipo Creativo’s Sonora Bar was imagined with a distinctly Latin American flair. But where Selva Restaurant reveals a lush tropical forest, Sonora Bar is the hidden gem in the jungle. 

Sonora, Spanish Cocktail Bar
Sonora, Spanish Cocktail Bar

A dazzling golden structure, the central bar immediately draws the eye. Inspired by pre-Columbian gold idols, the rounded, organic form — evoking a giant mushroom — gleams with a golden finish from floor to ceiling. Grooved surfaces around the room reflect a dappled texture, much like cascading water, that is echoed in the tiled, glass facade behind the bar and the watery pattern of the carpet. Organic-shaped furniture in pops of red and vibrant patterns are meant to evoke poisonous fruit and other jungle dangers that exist by a watering hole. Add in the lush greenery and hanging plants, and Sonora Bar is something out of a fairy tale.

A Spanish Cocktail Bar that Evokes Golden Treasure

Despite the challenge of balancing this dramatic interior with the bar’s stunning view (courtesy of a glass facade by OMA studio) — not to mention cultivating an authentic Latin American feel in a Dutch hotel — El Equipo Creativo is up to the task with the fantastical Sonora Bar. 

Sonora, Spanish Cocktail Bar

“It’s more than just having a drink. It’s about feeling like you’re part of an exciting story,” says the Sonora bar team. “If you want a fun escape and a taste of old tales, come visit. Every sip is an adventure.”

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