HONG KONG - Capping off days of guest bartender shifts, spirits brand pop-ups and everything boozy in between was the ninth edition of the Asia's 50 Best Bars awards, held for the second consecutive year at The Rosewood Hong Kong hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui.
This year, four venues in Bangkok are in the ranking.
Hundreds of guests congregated at the luxury Kowloon hotel to hear the results of the ranking, compiled through votes by a panel of industry players from the Asia region.
Prior to the awards ceremony, many were curious to find out whether Hong Kong bar Coa, which had been ranked in top spot for three consecutive years, would retain its crown for a record-breaking fourth.
In a surprise twist, Coa placed 4th on the list this year; the bar's reign was ended by none other than fellow Hong Kong entrant Bar Leone, which debuted on the list and went straight to the number one spot.
It is the first time in history that a bar has entered Asia's 50 Best Bars and taken the top ranking in its first year of operation.
Dohyung Kim of Seoul’s Zest bar, left, with Lorenzo Antinori of Hong Kong’s Bar Leone moments before the number one bar was announced. (Photo: South China Morning Post)
The Italian watering hole in Sheung Wan on Hong Kong Island co-founded by Lorenzo Antinori opened in the summer of 2023 and quickly became one of the city's most beloved bars, known for its straightforward yet complex cocktails and equally moreish bar food.
When it came down to announcing the final two spots, both Bar Leone and Zest in Korea were introduced as the best bars in their respective regions.
Antinori quickly weaved his way through the crowd to stand arm in arm with Zest's Dohyung Kim, who earlier in the evening received the prestigious Bartender's Bartender award for his contributions to the industry.
"I'm speechless," Antinori said as soon as he got on stage to receive the award with the rest of the team, who were visibly in tears.
"It's a project of love. We want Bar Leone to be a celebration of simplicity. We want a place where people feel welcome," he said.
He paid tribute to the community in Seoul as well as Hong Kong, who welcomed him when he moved to Asia seven years ago. Prior to opening Bar Leone, Antinori was in charge at Argo at Four Seasons Hong Kong.
The bar community were ecstatic in their appreciation for the Italian bartender, with continuous chants of "Lorenzo! Lorenzo!" echoing across the ballroom.
"We believe that maybe there was a mistake. Maybe they forgot about us, and we should leave quietly," Antinori joked in the press room, referring to the anxious wait during the ceremony to hear whether his bar had made it to the list or not.
Antinori says that Hong Kong's bar scene is very competitive but at the same time "it gives you a lot. We are a Hong Kong bar, and we are very proud of that."
The high-energy ceremony handed many awards to bartending talent around the region, with several firsts: Barc became the first bar in Nepal to join the list, while the inaugural award for best bar design went to Singapore's Atlas, a beautiful art deco-style gin parlour which was envisioned by Hassell Studio.
The best new opening award went to Hong Kong's The Savory Project, which ranked 19th in its debut showing.
This year's list has 18 regions around Asia represented, with Singapore once again leading with 11 entries, while Hong Kong boasts eight. There are 15 new entries in the ranking this year.
In 2023, the top five bars were from different regions: Zest in Seoul (5th), Bar Benfiddich in Tokyo (4th), BKK Social Club in Bangkok (3rd), Jigger & Pony in Singapore (2nd) and Coa in Hong Kong (1st). That year, Singapore led the charge with 11 entries on the list compared to Hong Kong's eight; Seoul had six entries.
The event was attended by a mixture of local and industry professionals from the bar and spirits trade, along with influencers and journalists flown in from around the world to cover the festivities; the event is listed as one of Hong Kong's "mega events" in 2024.
The ceremony for World's 50 Best Bars, previously held in Singapore in October 2023, will move to Spain later this year; the rankings will be announced on Oct 22 at the Madrid Arena.
The full list of Asia's 50 Best Bars 2024
An asterisk denotes a new entry to the list
- 50 Pine & Co, Seoul *
- 49 Atlas, Singapore
- 48 Le Chamber, Seoul
- 47 The Halflington, Hanoi *
- 46 Alice, Seoul
- 45 Mostly Harmless, Hong Kong
- 44 The Public House, Taipei
- 43 CMYK, Changsha *
- 42 Fura, Singapore
- 41 Reka, Kuala Lumpur *
- 40 ZLB23, Bengaluru *
- 39 Barc, Kathmandu *
- 38 Employees Only, Singapore
- 37 Bar Mood, Taipei
- 36 Bar Trigona, Kuala Lumpur
- 35 Analogue Initiative, Singapore
- 34 The Bellwood, Tokyo
- 33 The Curator, Manila
- 32 Origin Bar, Singapore *
- 31 Native, Singapore
- 30 Vender, Taichung
- 29 Smoke & Bitters, Hiriketiya, Sri Lanka
- 28 Craftroom, Osaka *
- 27 Pantja, Jakarta
- 26 Quinary, Hong Kong
- 25 Offtrack, Singapore *
- 24 Penicillin, Hong Kong
- 23 The SG Club, Tokyo
- 22 The St Regis Bar, Macau *
- 21 Bar Us, Bangkok *
Bar Us, Bangkok. (Photo: Bar Us, Bangkok)
- 20 Bar Cham, Seoul
- 19 The Savory Project, Hong Kong *
- 18 Mahaniyom Cocktail Club, Bangkok
- 17 Darkside, Hong Kong
- 16 Night Hawk, Singapore *
- 15 Sago House, Singapore
- 14 Hope & Sesame, Guangzhou
- 13 Vesper, Bangkok
Vesper, Bangkok. (Photo: Vesper)
- 12 The Cocktail Club, Jakarta
- 11 Virtu, Tokyo
- 10 The Aubrey, Hong Kong
- 9 Argo, Hong Kong
- 8 Penrose, Kuala Lumpur
- 7 BKK Social Club, Bangkok
- 6 Nutmeg & Clove, Singapore
- 5 Bar Benfiddich, Tokyo
- 4 Coa, Hong Kong
- 3 Jigger & Pony, Singapore
- 2 Zest, Seoul
- 1 Bar Leone, Hong Kong *
Representatives of the 50 bars and other awardees on stage at the Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024 ceremony at the Rosewood hotel in Hong Kong. (Photo: Asia’s 50 Best Bars)
