The truth is: There isn't an excellent cocktail-first bar in Richmond. There are two major bars that focus primarily on cocktails, but both have problems. Then there are a ton of restaurants that usually have a few nice cocktails on the menu and a couple of bartenders who know what they're doing.

(This is partly due to Prohibition-era regulations requiring that a certain percentage of an establishment's sales come from food, rather than liquor.)

Grandstaff & Stein is the first cocktail-focused bar. It's okay, not great. The menu is too big. Most of the drinks on the menu are (1) straightforward, you-could-easily-make-this-at-home-and-have-had-it-a-thousand-times cocktails, (2) weird, unbalanced Prohibition-era drinks nobody likes, and (3) mediocre signature cocktails that never change.

The Jasper is the second cocktail-focused bar. It's pretty good, almost great. They do excellent renditions of the classics. Getting a Daiquiri for $6 at happy hour is awesome. The staff definitely know what they are doing. The menu is always interesting and inventive, and I have occasionally had some really excellent drinks. There are too many misses for me to say it's a great cocktail bar, though. I think they should pare down the menu and refine their recipes more. In my experience, it is not at all uncommon for 3 of a group of 4 people to not really enjoy their drink. That's not great! That said, while the Jasper would be a middle-of-the-road cocktail bar in a major city like DC or NY, it's probably the best in Richmond. Oh, and it is always packed.

I'll also throw in the Verdant Lady here. It's in the middle of nowhere and the one time I went, I did not think much of it. Oh, also, the Jungle Room, but I've never been. And the folks behind the Jasper are supposed to be opening up a Tiki-focused place in Church Hill. I'm looking forward to that.

Then we have the restaurants. The best bar program is probably at the Roosevelt. I have also enjoyed drinks at Stella's, Heritage, Restaurant Adarra, Laura Lee's, and Helen's.

In summary: In my opinion, the best cocktail bar in the city is the Jasper. The Roosevelt is not really a cocktail bar, but it has a good bar program.