With hideaway speakeasies nestled in Hong Kong’s many nooks, crannies and alcoves, there are so many drinking spots to choose from should a torrential downpour suddenly emerge past grey, cloudy skies. Here’s where to drink in Hong Kong this August.
A brand-new Middle Eastern-inspired speakeasy concept nestled in the very heart of SoHo, ZZURA takes its name from Zerzura, a hidden oasis in the Sahara Desert. The nooks, crannies and hideaways in ZZURA are designed to evoke a sense of mystery; a vignette of a faraway, almost other-worldly locale brought to heel in Hong Kong. A special Bait-al-Sha’ar reception awaits at the entrance, and the bar’s drinks menu is spice-forward, with flavours and ingredients like goat milk yoghurt, saffron and sumac making grand entrances.
Roji launched new cocktails! New on the drinks menu is Pepper Miso (HK$120), which twists on a classic Margarita with red miso and, layered on top, a Japanese pepper for a tingly finish, and Yamanashi (HK$120), a red wine-based cocktail tempered with Japanese melon liqueur, sake, white cognac and a lightly-pickled cucumber garnish. If you’re nippy for a snack, Roji’s last food orders have now extended to 11:30pm.
A riff off fine-dining tasting menus, Twenty Fifth Hour’s ‘The Journey to 25:00’ follows a 6-cocktail itinerary in what is essentially a love letter to the long-running Luk Yu Tea House the speakeasy is perched atop of. Starting at 08:00 – Yum Cha and ending at 25:00, the cocktail bar’s witching hour, the menu is a homage to classic Hong Kong flavours like Mango Pomelo Sago Pudding (yes, there’s a cocktail ice-cream on the menu!) and a homemade soup with a shot of cognac to end the evening. 19:00 – Abalone is a particular highlight, rendered from homemade bourbon whiskey with a shot of plum wine made by Head Mixologist Kenzo Lee’s mother.
Note: Reservations can only be made via WhatsApp at +852 5546 8540.
Housed in the same space as brand-new “Fine Bistronomic” concept Ami, Wood Ear complements the former’s Parisian fare with a collectors’ worthy line-up of the finest whiskies in the world, with over 400 rare casks and bottles sourced from private auctions and private collectors. Basking in a rich, warm amber glow from Yabu Pushelberg-designed interiors, Wood Ear promises to be a whiskey lover’s paradise with a “Whisky Journey” tasting that takes patrons through an itinerary of rare single malts.
For those with a divergent palate, a range of whisky-based cocktails are also on the menu.
When: Through 31 August
Past a saturated blue wall and behind a gilded golden door on Staunton Street is THE POET, a hideaway speakeasy touted as Hong Kong’s best hidden bar. Introducing yet another layer of complexity to the bar’s drinks menu is an August-only collaboration with award-winning premium CBD brand OTO. Presenting: a ‘CBD Mindful Menu’ that tempers THE POET’s signature flavours — see: longan, osmanthus, shochu and hawthorne — with OTO’s first-of-a-kind CBD cocktail bitters, so you can sip, savour and luxuriate in the carefully curated sensorial experience.
CBD-infused mocktails are also on the menu for those who do not imbibe!
Joey Wong
Editor
Retired Tumblr girl Joey has written her way through fashion trends, youth culture and luxury retail in New York and Hong Kong. Beyond internet adventures tracking down the perfect vintage find, you can probably catch her tufting rugs, swigging back Bloody Marys — her third, probably — and making fastidious spreadsheets about her Animal Crossing island.
