The rooftop bars of the Casco Viejo are among the better places to drink in Latin America, and the setting is the reason: you sit on the roof of a two-hundred-year-old Spanish colonial building, the bay in front of you, the glass towers of the modern city across the water lit up against a dark sky, and the warm Pacific air moving across the terrace. It is the kind of view that makes you feel good about being exactly where you are.
The Tantalo Hotel bar is probably the most visited and most reliably good: an easy rooftop, good cocktails, a mixed crowd of travellers and Panama City professionals, and the full view. There are several other options within two or three blocks — the neighbourhood is small enough that you can wander and find what suits you. The better spots fill up on Thursday and Friday evenings; arriving before nine gives you the best chance of a table.
The cocktail menus lean on rum, seco Herrerano (the local cane spirit, sharp and clear), and fresh tropical fruits — maracuyá (passion fruit), tamarind, mango. The prices are by local standards high, by any reasonable international standard entirely reasonable.
Go at sunset for the full effect. Stay for the second drink.