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Slideshow
Asia’s Best 50 bars 2017 unveiled
Eight bars in Hong Kong and four in mainland China made it on to this year’s Asia’s 50 Best Bars list. All of the bars were voted for by 200 members of the drinks industry, media and mixology experts from across Asia. We take a look at these exceptional watering holes on the mainland and in Hong Kong.
No.48 Dr. Fern’s Gin Parlour, Hong Kong
A late entry into Hong Kong’s bar scene (only opened in February this year), this speakeasy at The Landmark in Central has already got the bar-goers buzzing with more than 250 types of gin. Its head bartender, Gerry Olino, was the one used to hold down the fort at Lobster Bar at Shangri-la Hotel. The mixologist has used his creative genius to “prescribe” magical gin-based tipples that are guaranteed to dispel your worries and stress after a long-day’s work.
No.42 The Chinnery, Hong Kong
Named after British painter George Chinnery, this intimate bar inside Mandarin Oriental Hotel is one of the city’s most classic bars in town. Offering traditional British cuisine with classic dishes such as shepherd’s pie, fish and chips and pork pie, the bar is most renowned for its extensive single-malt whisky collections with 109 varieties for guests to sample. This is one of the most sophisticated bars in Hong Kong with strict dress code: gentlemen are asked to wear closed shoes at all times with smart shirt and long trousers while ladies are advised to wear elegant attire and proper footwear.
No.33 Janes & Hooch, Beijing, China
Photo credit: © Ben McMillan 2013
A modern take on a vintage dive bar in the heart of Sanlitun’s factory district of Beijing, the hip bar was founded by Warren Pang and Milan Sekulic of Swire Group’s The Opposite House. The bar features exposed brick and wood-panelled walls, polished cement floors and untouched rusted brass ceilings. Don’t miss the ‘Oolong fizzes’ with Theophilus London. You can park yourself here for hours with the Tom Tom Club beats in the background.
No.26 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana, Hong Kong
The bar adjacent to the three Michelin-starred restaurant does not settle for second place. Its bar manager Devender Kumar who won the Bacardi Legacy cocktail competition has concocted a flurry of classic Martinis and Negronis. Also available at the bar are the watering hole’s all encompassing, mighty wine list with more than 2,000 bottles on offer. This is the bar’s debut entrance on the Asia’s 50 Best Bars list.
No.24 Zuma, Hong Kong, China
Known for its Japanese cuisine, Zuma’s cocktail bar is equally mesmerising with a diverse range of Asia-inspired cocktails and 40 different varieties of Japanese sake in addition to premium Japanese whiskies. Be sure to try bartender Arkadiusz Rybak’s ‘Umami Martini’ there, accentuated with hints of Japanese matcha.
No.19 Sober Company, Shanghai, China
The three-in-one establishment doubles as a café, a restaurant and a bustling cocktail bar all in Shanghai’s Hnagpu district. The creative cocktails can really pack a punch. ‘The Godfather III’, a mix of Laphroaig, apricot brandy and candied prosciutto, is for serious drinkers looking to burn the long night. Don’t miss the smooth and buttery ‘Blue in Green’ cocktail as well with just a hint of blue cheese. Even the dining tables here are conversation pieces. Each is decorated with Chinese mahjong tiles.
No.16 The Pontiac, Hong Kong, China
This punk rock bar on Old Bailey Street has been pumping since its opening in 2015. It’s not common to come across a jukebox in Hong Kong that blasts out loud rock n’ roll songs from early 70s and 80s every night. Helmed by Beckaly Franks, a former bartender from Portland in Oregon, the bodacious bartender and her team have turned this dive bar into one of the hottest watering holes in the city. Expect the Coyote Ugly style of bartending as bartenders hop on the counter to pour Becherovka to guests when the nights get raunchy.
No.10 Lobster Bar, Hong Kong, China
The sophisticated and up-scale bar inside Island Shangri-la Hotel grooves to the city’s fine spirits drinkers and jazz lovers. On the sixth floor of the five-star hotel, the bar’s decor reminds people of a grande dame’s boudoir. The cocktails are finely executed and there’s also a wide range of beers and wines to choose from.
No.9 The Union Trading Company, Shanghai, China
This is the brainchild of bartender/founder Yao Lu, a Texan and graduate of the University of Houston. Lu cut his teeth working under bar maven Bobby Heugel. Be sure to try Lu’s ‘Dead Man’s Gun’, made from peated Scotch, blended Scotch, honey and Bendictine, or the ‘Waltzing Matilda’, a classic cocktail from 1895.
No.8 Stockton, Hong Kong, China
The speakeasy bar on Wyndham Street in Central evokes some mysterious flair from Victorian London. Stepping into the bar is like stepping back in time. The bar’s leather furniture, antique lamps and quirky looking photographs strangely inspire a sense of reverie as the bartenders behind the counter steadily churn out a flurry of drinks. Earlier this year, the bar launched its ‘Minds Undone’ cocktail series, paying homage to great literary giants including Truman Capote, Edgar Allan Poe and Ernest Hemingway.
No.7 Quinary, Hong Kong, China
For two years in a row, Quinary was voted the best bar in Hong Kong on the Asia’s Best 50 Bars list, leading the bar scene in the city and rightly so. Watching its bartenders concocting cocktails is almost transcendental as they punctuate the rhythm and pace of the mix with elegance and ease. Its bartender Samuel Kwok has just been named ‘Bartender of the Year’ by Diageo World Class competition in Hong Kong and Macau. Be sure to try their signature, ‘Earl Grey Caviar Martini’, made from a mixture of Cointreau, Absolut vodka, elderflower syrup with Earl Grey caviar.
No.2 Speak Low, Shanghai, China
The sliding bookcase leads to the first speakeasy bar
This quirky cocktail bar tucked away in Huangpu district in shanghai is what its founder/bartender Shingo Gokan calls “a speakeasy in a speakeasy and in a speakeasy”. Once you’ve discovered the store front selling different kinds of bartending tools, walk inside and find the sliding bookcase. It opens up to a flight of stairs, leading down to the first speakeasy bar – a more traditional style cocktail bar with a lively vibe. Following the second flight of stairs up, you will find a map and press on the city you are in (Shanghai), then it leads up to a smaller and more intimate, limited seated bar. Shouting and loud music is strictly banned here, hence the bar name. Its signature drink is the eponymous ‘Speak Low’, a mixture of Bacardi Superior, Bacardi 8, Pedro Ximenez sherry and matcha.
Going to the Pontiac in late July! – Sharon in Portland, OR