The Tatler Best 20 Bars in Hong Kong 2025

As part of the very first Tatler Best Awards for Hong Kong and Macau, this unranked list celebrates the 20 bars shaping the city’s drinking culture in 2025.

More than just great cocktails, these venues capture the spirit of the times, whether through inventive mixology, magnetic atmospheres, or the kind of hospitality that keeps regulars coming back.

Chosen through a rigorous evaluation process by industry insiders and trusted tastemakers, this list reflects the energy, diversity and creativity driving Hong Kong’s bar scene forward.

Title: Argo

Location: Central

Innovative cocktails in a sleek, hotel bar setting at the Four Seasons

Argo operates with the slick assurance of a bar that doesn’t need to chase trends—it sets them. There’s a discipline to what they do, an understanding that true sophistication isn’t about theatrics but about knowing exactly when to push a classic just far enough to make it thrilling. Every drink lands with effortless clarity, free of clutter yet full of intrigue. And then there’s Friends of Argo, a steady procession of the world’s best behind the bar, reinforcing its status not just as a great cocktail spot, but as a gravitational force in the industry.

Title: Artifact Bar

Location: Central

Futuristic drinks in a design-forward, subterranean space

There are bars that serve drinks, and then there are bars that excavate stories. Artifact belongs to the latter, treating each cocktail like a discovery—something that should be uncovered, deciphered and ultimately savoured. But for all its reverence for aged spirits, Artifact refuses to be a mausoleum for the past. Instead, it reinterprets history with nuance, showcasing the evolution of distillation through an ever-rotating menu that revels in time-worn liquors.

Title: The Aubrey (Bar)

Location: Central

Eclectic Japanese-style cocktails with a playful twist

A bar that revels in contradictions, The Aubrey is where Japonisme meets art nouveau, where the discipline of Japanese mixology meets stylish modernity, and where every drink is both a study in technique and an invitation to revel. Its ever-evolving menu ensures no creation remains static for long, while a deep-rooted dedication to shochu and awamori reflects its commitment to Japanese spirits with character. This is a bar that entices the purists while indulging the provocateurs.

Title: Bar Buonasera

Location: Tsim Sha Tsui

Elegant Japanese bartending in an intimate setting

If discretion had a taste, it would be served at Bar Buonasera. A sanctuary for those who understand that great drinking can be a quiet affair. But this is no joyless temple—this is where cocktail craftsmanship meets serene sophistication and a fantastic whisky selection. Helmed by husband-and-wife duo Nick Tse and Ayako Miyake, every pour, stir and hand-carved ice is performed with purpose. If you’re looking for flash, go elsewhere. If you’re looking for a masterclass in elegance, pull up a chair.

Title: Bar De Luxe

Location: Central

Refined classics crafted with Japanese precision

Bar De Luxe exemplifies the art of Japanese bartending. It’s not about reinventing the wheel, it’s about making the classics sing. Under the rigorous standards of bar legend Hidetsugu Ueno, drinks here are not merely assembled but calibrated, each element measured with exacting control. Eight years on, Bar De Luxe remains steadfast in its pursuit of purity, allowing just enough quiet innovation to remind the city that, in the right hands, a Martini can still surprise you.

Title: Bar Leone

Location: Central

Neighbourhood charm meets Italian aperitivo culture

At Bar Leone, the focus is on great drinks, tasty food, and even better company—simple as that. This isn’t a bar chasing Instagram moments (though, ironically, their account is one of the coolest out there). Instead, it’s a place where the cocktails are impeccable, and the atmosphere is relaxed and inviting. The food, especially the smoked olives and mortadella sandwich, is so good, you might just forget you came for the drinks in the first place. All of this leaves you with no excuse not to return, again and again.

Title: C108

Location: Central

A modern speakeasy with cinematic flair and creative drinks

C108 is a bar that honours the foundations of mixology. Each cocktail pays homage not just to technique but to the pioneers who shaped its culture, drawing on their stories and testimonials to offer a fresh perspective. The result is a menu where classics are reimagined with quiet ingenuity. Beyond the glass, C108 is fostering a strong community, hosting regular guest shifts and supporting charitable initiatives like Hong Kong Dog Rescue—proving that great hospitality can extend beyond the drink in your hand.

Title: Coa

Location: Central

A mezcal mecca leading Hong Kong’s agave revolution

There was a time when agave spirits in Hong Kong meant tequila shots and poor decisions. Then Coa arrived and rewrote the script, making the case for the depth and complexity of Mexican spirits. While the bar has expanded to Shanghai, its Hong Kong outpost remains a benchmark, offering one of the city’s most compelling and accessible bar programs. In a landscape of fleeting trends, Coa isn’t just one of Hong Kong’s best bars—it’s a bar that has fundamentally reshaped how the city drinks.

Title: Darkside

Location: Tsim Sha Tsui

Sophisticated serves with a side of live jazz and rare spirits

Some bars sell drinks. Darkside sells atmosphere. And while that may sound like marketing fluff, the reality is this: to sit here, in a low-lit corner, watching a live jazz trio, is to be convinced that this is how drinking should always be. Their wide collection of rare aged spirits and whiskies adds depth to an already formidable cocktail list. But it’s the quiet luxury that lingers most—the sense that here, time moves a little slower, and drinks taste a little better.

Title: The Diplomat

Location: Central

Enjoy sipping on classic and spirited cocktails at The Diplomat

If bars were people, The Diplomat would be a friend you can rely on—one that listens but never judges, and always knows exactly what you need. Usually, that’s a savoury Gibson in one hand and a juicy beef burger in the other. The cocktails are classic but never predictable, the kind that feel inevitable once you’ve tasted them. It’s a bar that understands diplomacy in the truest sense: balancing refinement with indulgence, precision with warmth. A bar that deserves a spot in your inner circle of trust.

Title: Gokan

Location: Central

A bar that focuses on the senses

Shingo Gokan has quietly, but undeniably, carved out a space for Gokan in Hong Kong’s crowded bar scene, making it feel as though it’s always been part of the fabric. The cocktails, crafted with the kind of quiet expertise that leaves you wondering how such simplicity can feel so extraordinary, are well balanced and effortlessly drinkable, while Japanese food options make the evening feel complete. Before you know it, you’re already planning your next visit—because with Gokan, it’s never really a matter of if, but when.

Title: Kinsman

Location: Central

A Cantonese cocktail salon that celebrates Hong Kong in the best way

Hong Kong has never been short on great drinking, but Kinsman makes the case that its homegrown flavours deserve a starring role. This Cantonese cocktail salon isn’t just slinging drinks—it’s raising a glass to the city’s golden era, proving that baijiu and Yuk Bing Siu belong in cocktails as much as whisky and gin. With a food menu that reads like a love letter to the city’s culinary traditions, Kinsman isn’t reinventing Hong Kong’s drinking culture—it’s reclaiming it.

Title: Mizunara: The Library

Location: Wan Chai

Whisky heaven with quiet elegance and Japanese craft

Mizunara: The Library doesn’t try to be the loudest in the room; it doesn’t need to. This whisky and cocktail bar is a place where the art of drinking is respected rather than rushed. The shelves are lined with rare Japanese and Scottish expressions, each chosen with a discerning eye for quality. The same philosophy is applied to the cocktails—measured, deliberate and built with hand-carved ice that melts at just the right pace. It’s a reminder that some things are best appreciated with time, and Mizunara is one of them.

Title: The Old Man

Location: Central

Inventive cocktails inspired by Hemingway, full of character

Named after Hemingway, The Old Man doesn’t just reference its literary inspiration; it embodies him. Experimental without being pretentious, intellectual without being dull, it is a place where cocktails are engineered, deconstructed and rebuilt with a level of creativity that would make its namesake proud. Their innovative creations and recent collaborations, including a fragrance brand, have pushed their menu into new territory, proving that a great bar, like a great novel, is always evolving.

Title: The Opposites

Location: Central

Dual-concept bar with contrasting menus and playful creativity

Antonio Lai has been at the top of Hong Kong’s mixology game for over a decade, with his bar Quinary regularly appearing on lists of best bars since it opened. His latest venture with fellow libations wizard Samuel Kwok is a cool-but-not-intimidating subterranean lounge, where each of them delivers an interpretation of classic cocktails. This duality not only shows their individual talents but also elevates the drinking experience, allowing an exploration of contrasting yet complementary flavours in one sitting.

Title: Orchard

Location: Central

Minimalist bar spotlighting seasonal fruits and clean flavours

This bar is proof that fruit spirits deserve far more than a cameo in the world of cocktails. Eaux de vie, schnapps and apple brandies are given their due, and cocktails capture the essence of ripe orchards and late-summer harvests in every glass. The result feels effortless yet deeply considered, with drinks that don’t just highlight fruit but reveal its full potential. This is a bar that draws you in sip by sip, making fruit spirits feel less like a choice and more like the obvious answer.

Title: Penicillin

Location: Central

Sustainable cocktails powered by local ingredients and science

Sustainability in bars is often reduced to a buzzword, a gimmick rather than a philosophy. Not at Penicillin. Here, drinking is an opportunity to rethink how it is made and why. Every ingredient is considered, every byproduct repurposed, and yet none of it feels forced or compromised. The cocktails demonstrate that being eco-conscious needn’t mean sipping something that tastes like moral obligation, and the future of drinking looks a whole lot brighter (and tastier) because of it.

Title: Quinary

Location: Central

Creative cocktails with a flair for the theatrical

Founded by Antonio Lai, Quinary has always been a bar ahead of its time, blending the boundaries between science and sensation to create drinks that defy expectation. This is a place where a cocktail isn’t just a drink but an experience. Now in its 13th year, Quinary remains a mixology playground and serves as a reminder that great drinking should always come with a sense of wonder.

Title: Qura Bar

Location: Tsim Sha Tsui

Glamorous hotel bar with classic cocktails and panoramic views

Tucked within the Regent Hong Kong, Qura drapes itself in Art Deco elegance, a plush hideaway of velvet and harbour views where every sip feels like a ritual. Overseen by drinks historian Gennaro Pucci, the menu reads less like a cocktail list and more like a well-researched thesis on the fine art of mixology, reviving forgotten classics and presenting rare spirits with the care they deserve.

Title: The Savory Project

Location: Central

Boundary-pushing drinks that explore umami and complexity

The Savory Project refuses to play by the usual rules. While others pile on the sugar, this Soho spot dials up umami with the likes of beef essence, fungi and soy sauce. Its custom-built hexagonal bar removes barriers, turning drinking into a more connected experience. Bold, layered and endlessly intriguing, The Savory Project proves that not all cocktails need to be sweet—just smart.