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If there’s one thing we love, it’s clocking out and bee-lining straight for a stellar cocktail, and we take our drinking recommendations seriously, so listen up when we tell you that Gokan's new menu is an absolute must-try. Sure, this venue might not be located in the heart of Lan Kwai Fong, but as one of our favourite bars in the city, we reckon the experience here is definitely worth the hike up to Ice House Street.
As a refresher, Gokan’s menu is split into the five flavours – sweet, sour, spicy, bitter, and savoury – and each flavour is represented in three cocktail styles – highball, on the rocks, or straight up. Building on that beloved concept, the sleek Japanese bar has just updated its extensive menu with a fresh lineup of cocktails.
To start, the Yuzu Daikon Paloma transforms the bright, briny flavours of pickled yuzu radish into a refreshing and crushable highball-style cocktail. Like your drinks to pack a savoury punch? The Mango Hotpot is a must-try. As its name suggests, this drink draws inspiration from Hong Kong’s undying love for hotpot and uses sha cha paste as one of its main ingredients, along with a dash of tamari (Japanese fermented soy sauce), mango for acidity, all topped with a sprig of coriander.
Other highlights include the Geisha Espresso Martini, made with premium Geisha coffee beans and combined with Shingo Gokan’s Japanese sweet potato shochu. If you’re leaning towards something sweeter, go for the Omatsuri Banana, a clarified milk punch inspired by chocolate-coated bananas and whimsically garnished with a chocolate drizzle on the glass’s side, or the Muscat Chu-Hi for a delightfully fizzy, fruit-forward finish.
To help soak up the bar’s new cocktails, Gokan has also rolled out a new selection of elevated bar bites. We’re talking slurpable Awamori clam soup with noodles, crisp yet silky agedashi tofu, and melt-in-your-mouth steamed horsehair crab paired with housemade crab miso.
For those who want something heartier instead, don’t miss the deep-fried curry bun filled with rich Japanese-style curry and minced Wagyu beef, served with pickled ginger on the side. Otherwise, the indulgent udon carbonara generously topped with shaved Parmesan cheese is another choice that hits the spot. Gokan’s latest dishes alone warrant a trip up to the bar for a meal, but if you’re already there, you might as well polish off one (or a few) of the new cocktails.
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