Hong Kong Bars
Your guide to the best Hong Kong bars to visit – all reviewed anonymously and impartially by our experts
What your drink order says about you, according to Hong Kong bartenders
Ever wonder if your friends secretly judge you for not knowing what to order at the bar? Or maybe you've always wondered what the bartender thinks about your fancy cocktail order – are they impressed or do they just think you’re pretentious? We picked the brains of five bartenders in Hong Kong and learned everything from whether or not they’re secretly judging you to the best way to get a bartender’s attention on a busy Friday night. Bottoms up! RECOMMENDED: From speakeasies to sake joints, these are the top Hong Kong bars shaking and stirring your favourite drinks. If you’re trying to cut back on alcohol, though, these Hong Kong bars serve excellent mocktails every bit as creative as their alcoholic offerings.
Tell Camellia
The brainchild of award-winning bar team Sandeep Hathiramani and Gagan Gurung, Tell Camellia unites the world of tea with cocktail culture in a slick new space in suddenly buzzing H Code. (See: The Chicken Bar and Saketen, for example). Camellia sinensis is the Latin name for the tea tree, and so you know what to expect here. The cocktail menu promises drinks made with contemporary and cutting-edge techniques that highlight the flavours of teas sourced from around the world: Kenya, Turkey, Sri Lanka, Taiwan and more.
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Tell Camellia
There’s been a veritable whirlwind of hype in recent months surrounding the new brainchild of accolade-heavy bar team Sandeep Hathiramani and Gagan Gurung. After a litany of unfortunate setbacks delayed the bar’s opening, the swell of anticipant whispers from thirsty patrons has now given way to bums on seats, as Tell Camellia finally opened within Central’s stylish H Code complex in late July. The mission of the bar is to fuse tea and cocktail culture in a way that challenges all who drink here to abandon preconceived cocktail notions, and to steep themselves in the unknown. Of course, challenging staid notions with something seldom seen (or indeed drank) before is never going to be an easy task, especially considering the perennial popularity in Hong Kong of more traditional cocktail styles. However, true to form, the duo seems to be succeeding in their quest here, purveying a delicious selection of cocktails (or Teatails, if you will) that pair well with the bar’s inviting ambience and very personable customer service. Let’s start with the menu which, much like the bar’s interior, is outwardly simple yet impressively attentive to detail. The lineup is split between signature Teatails, all of which are infused with exotic teas and local spices from particular world regions, and house gins that have been lovingly redistilled with different flavoured, you guessed it, tea. The entire experience here has been designed to be gratifyingly thematic, so expect some extra touches
DarkSide
Overlooking Victoria Harbour and the refurbished Avenue of Stars, the Rosewood Hong Kong occupies the prime space vacated by the New World Centre and adjoins the soon-to-open K11 Musea. The luxury property is a feather in the cap for Kowloon, and its flagship bar, DarkSide, pays tribute to this neighbourhood’s history — Kowloon is often (for better or worse) called ‘the dark side’ for simply not being Hong Kong Island. At first glance, the venue appears to have brought the best elements of both sides of the harbour together. The insulated atmosphere of Hong Kong speakeasies like 001 meets the space and comfort of bars like Aqua Spirit in the art deco-inspired form of low lights, plush chairs, velvet drapes, large windows and a stage with a live band playing easy listening music. If you’re looking for a view, however, you might be disappointed, as it is obscured by the hotel’s driveway. The food and drink menus are filled to the brim with options, including port or cognac from the barrel, a wide selection of premium spirits such as whisky, madeira and Armagnac, and classics with twists (Martini vs Vesper, $120). The venue even boasts its own Rosewood-branded pilsner and IPA, as well as decadent bar snacks, including an elevated version of the egg tart ($90) and the Bikini Sandwich ($160), which is comprised of Parisian ham, Emmental cheese and black truffle. We opt for one of the six signature cocktails, the No Rules ($125), and order the wagyu beef cheek tempura ($120) to
The ThirtySix Bar & Co
One of the most popular cocktail breeds in Japan, the highball is a mix of a spirit and a larger portion of a nonalcoholic mixer. While plenty of drinks fit this classification – a G&T and yes, even a Jack and coke, technically belong to this family – the highball is enjoying a new spot in the limelight, fuelled in part by the new-found popularity of the whisky highball in the United States. It started in 2017 when Williamsburg hipster hotspot Kinfolk 90 became the first bar in New York to have a highball-making machine (supplied by whisky distiller Suntory, no less). That kick-started a surge of interest in the cocktail in America and within a year, the New York Times was declaring the summer ‘highball season’. The highball trend is slowing picking up here in Hong Kong too and The ThirtySix is the newest space to jump on train, after Black Sheep’s take on an izakaya, Fukuro, beat it to the punch last year. Sitting above Hollywood Road, this new concept occupies the spot formerly belonging to whisky and cocktail bar Angel’s Share. The physical layout is nearly identical, though the décor has changed substantially. Where Angel’s Share had a uniform gentlemen’s-club vibe, The ThirtySix is a somewhat incoherent mishmash of styles. The place takes its drinks seriously but serves them on light-up coasters that look like they belong at Levels or Drop. The furniture, also, is a mix of clubby tables and stools and deep leather chairs that look like they were left behind by the previ
