For the second year in a row, Hong Kong will host the Asia’s 50 Best Bars awards ceremony.
Industry players will toast the top 50 bars unveiled at the ceremony in Tsim Sha Tsui’s Rosewood hotel on July 16. Coinciding with the event, Hong Kong bars will have themed nights and host overseas bartenders flying in from Tokyo, Shanghai, Bangkok and Bali, beginning on July 13 and continuing in the days after the awards.
The Post has curated a list of not-to-be-missed events in the form of a five-day bar crawl for those who enjoy a tipple (or three).
Saturday July 13
Shanghai’s Speak Low at XX – 8pm to 12am
Start strong and get acquainted with the venue for this year’s Asia’s 50 Best Bars ceremony by heading to the Rosewood for views of Victoria Harbour and the Hong Kong skyline – and a one-night-only pop-up featuring Japanese-style Shanghai hidden bar Speak Low at the equally elusive speakeasy XX.
Founded by Japanese bartender Shingo Gokan, who was voted bartenders’ bartender in 2019 and named the Roku industry icon in 2021 by Asia’s 50 Best Bars, 1920s-inspired Speak Low occupies four floors in Shanghai, each with its own concept, and serves innovative cocktails with a Chinese touch. In 2021, it was ranked 32nd among Asia’s 50 Best Bars.
XX, 5/F, Rosewood Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon.
Bali’s Potato Head at Terrible Baby – 9pm to 12am
One MTR stop from Tsim Sha Tsui is Terrible Baby in Jordan’s culture-forward Eaton HK hotel. The bar is joining forces with Bali’s Potato Head, winner of the sustainable bar award at Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2018.
Agustin Da Sambiagio, head of beverage operations of the Balinese beach bar, and bartender Devita Anjani will serve its signature tropical cocktails with an eco-friendly twist and a focus on Indonesian rum brand Nusa Caña.
Terrible Baby, 4/F, Eaton HK, Jordan, Kowloon.
Sunday July 14
“Lion City in Hong Kong” with Singapore’s Atlas, Stay Gold Flamingo and Origin Bar at Cardinal Point – 3pm to 6pm
Singapore, host of the World’s 50 Best Bars ceremony in 2023, will be in focus at Cardinal Point in Central. Three Lion City bars that made last year’s Asia’s 50 Best Bars list or long list of those ranked 51-100 – Atlas (27th), Stay Gold Flamingo (32nd), and Origin Bar (95th) – will have guest sessions at one of Hong Kong’s best-known rooftop bars.
Their staff will show off their expertise and their bar’s specialities, including tropical-inspired and vintage European drinks and American-Japanese bartending styles.
Cardinal Point, 43-45/F, Forty-Five, Gloucester Tower, 15 Queen’s Road Central.
“SG10” with Tokyo’s Shingo Gokan at Gokan – 4pm to 7pm; 8pm to 11pm
A bartender with a big international profile, Shingo Gokan is opening his first Hong Kong bar, Gokan, and to celebrate he has invited 10 of his protégés from Tokyo, Okinawa, Shanghai and Hong Kong.
Gokan is part of his name, of course, but also a word in Japanese that means “the five senses” – and sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch will inspire the 24 unique cocktails it will serve on opening night.
Gokan, 30 Ice House Street, Central. Limited presale ticketing via Instagram @gokan.hk.
“Canto Night Takeover” with Shenzhen’s Hope & Sesame, Changsha’s CMYK and Hong Kong’s The Opposite and Kinsman at Ser Wong Fun – 8pm to 11pm
The restaurant has invited four bartenders who represent Cantonese culture to pour the drinks: Lola Liu, bar manager of Hope & Sesame’s Shenzhen branch; Tiger Liang, senior bartender of CMYK in Changsha, Hunan; and from Hong Kong, Samuel Kwok of newly opened The Opposite and Gavin Yeung of Kinsman.
To accompany them, Ser Wong Fun will serve contemporary Chinese bar bites by Little Bao’s chef-founder May Chow, who was named best female chef in the 2017 edition of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants.
Completing a well-rounded sensory experience will be DJ Fabsabs, who will pump out Cantonese disco tracks all evening.
Ser Wong Fun, 30 Cochrane Street, Central. Ticketing via [email protected].
Monday July 15
“Tres Números Unos” with Barcelona’s Sips and Mexico City’s Handshake Speakeasy at COA – 3pm to 6pm or until sold out
The event’s Spanish name, meaning “three No 1s”, may sound bold, but it’s based on the participating bars’ track records: Hong Kong’s COA took first place on the Asia’s 50 Best Bars list in 2021, 2022 and 2023; Sips in Barcelona was No 1 on the World’s 50 Best Bars’ 2023 list; and Handshake Speakeasy is No 1 on the 2024 North America’s 50 Best Bars list.
The three-hour session will operate on a first come, first served basis.
COA, 6-10 Shin Hing Street, Central.
“Taiwan Take Over” with Taipei’s The Public House, Room by Le Kief, and To Infinity & Beyond, and Tainan’s Moonrock at Tell Camellia – 4pm to 8pm
Named 23rd on the 2021 list of Asia’s 50 Best Bars and 97th on its 2024 long list, Tell Camellia’s premise is tea-inspired cocktails; it takes its name from an evergreen shrub native to East Asia used by Buddhist monks for medicinal and spiritual purposes.
It is hosting a one-off pop-up with bars from Taiwan – expect British-inspired cocktails from The Public House, experimental drinks from Room by Le Kief, space-themed concoctions from To Infinity & Beyond and delicate, mellow flavours from Moonrock, which will serve non-alcoholic options for those trying to avoid hangovers during a hectic week of boozy celebrations.
To accompany the drinks, Tell Camellia will serve snacks such as momos, siu mai and fish balls.
Tell Camellia, Shop 2, LG/F, H Code, 45 Pottinger Street, Central.
“Tropic Thunder” with Bangkok’s Tropic City at The Daily Tot – 8pm onwards
After grabbing a bite in or around SoHo, make your way to the other side of the Central-to-Mid-Levels escalator for The Daily Tot, where bar manager and rum enthusiast Maikal Gurung will serve rum-inspired midsummer drinks with help from staff of Bangkok bar Tropic City, ranked 6th on the 2023 Asia’s 50 Best Bars list and 62nd on its long list of bars ranked from 51 to 100.
Stirring up thunder behind the bar will be Tropic City co-founder Philip Stefanescu and bar manager Arron Grendon, a self-taught bartender and the first Thai winner of the Global Chivas Masters cocktail competition in 2018.
The Daily Tot, Shop E, LG/F, Felicity Building, 58 Hollywood Road, Central. Passes including other bar events available on singularconcepts.com.
Tuesday July 16
“No Sleep Charlie” with Seoul’s Charles H and Singapore’s No Sleep Club at Artifact – 10pm to 2am
For a cheeky nightcap after the Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024 ceremony, “No Sleep Charlie” at Artifact bar will have two Asia-based head bartenders to keep drinkers drowsy but awake behind the counter: Odd Strandbakken of Charles H in Seoul, named best bar in South Korea for four years up until 2022; and Juan Yi Jun, co-founder of No Sleep Club in Singapore.
The former, in Four Seasons Seoul, was 7th on the 2022 Asia’s 50 Best Bars list, while the latter was 15th; in 2024, No Sleep Club is 60th on the long list of bars ranked 51-100.
Artifact, Shop 5 & 7, LG/F, Jardine House, 1 Connaught Place, Central.
Wednesday July 17
“Pony Pizza Party” with Singapore’s Jigger & Pony at Bar Leone – 4pm till late
Bar Leone will co-host a pizza party with Singapore’s Jigger & Pony, 2nd on the 2023 Asia’s 50 Best Bars list and 14th on that year’s World’s 50 Best Bars list. Both establishments focus on elevating seemingly simple classic cocktails and serving delicious, down-to-earth snacks.
Guests can lie back and expect retro disco sounds, tasty slices and a relaxing Mediterranean vibe.
Bar Leone, 15 Bridges Street, Central.
Hideyuki Saito of Tokyo’s Gold Bar at The Old Man – 8pm till sold out
The Gold Bar is known for its sophisticated takes on Golden Age cocktails such as the martini, daiquiri and Manhattan. For one night only, its head bartender Hideyuki Saito will be showing his expertise at The Old Man in SoHo.
The Old Man, LG/F, 37 Aberdeen Street, SoHo, Central.
