An Italian-themed bar that opened its doors less than three years ago in Hong Kong has been selected the world’s best—the first time for an Asian venue.

Bar Leone, famous for outstanding negronis, olive oil sours and other drinks, rose to No 1 in the World’s 50 Best Bars list from second place last year. Spearheaded by cocktail master Lorenzo Antinori, a Roman bartender who previously worked in London and Seoul, the unpretentious venue was chosen as Asia’s best bar for the past two years. 

The ascension comes while the Asian hub pushes to revive its food and beverage scene as the number of tourist arrivals has been recovering steadily.

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“We want to share this with the city of Hong Kong, and the Asia bar community,” Antinori told Bloomberg. “I truly believe that Hong Kong has one of the best bar scenes in the world. It’s really about having a vision, creating spaces that are not just necessarily concept-driven, but places that have a true identity and speak to guests in a very direct way.”

Last year’s winner, Handshake Speakeasy in Mexico City, dropped to No 2 on the list. The bilevel bar in the Colonia Juarez neighborhood, inspired by the Prohibition era, serves classically inspired drinks featuring molecular gastronomy with an on-site laboratory and a lab manager.

Coming in third, fourth and fifth places, respectively, were Barcelona’s Sips and Paradiso and London’s Tayer + Elementary.

In an attempt to replicate Bar Leone’s success in the Chinese mainland, Antinori and co-founder Justin Shun Wah are set to open a branch in Shanghai in November. They also teamed up with barman Simone Caporale from Sips to open another venue in Hong Kong earlier this year. Their Cuba-inspired Montana reflects the colorful atmosphere of the Caribbean island and Miami in the 1970s, with a menu featuring cocktail classics such as the daiquiri, El Presidente and the Montana.

The ranking for best bars is created by 50 Best, which has been publishing the list since 2009 and throwing a party to mark it since 2012. The same organization ranks the world’s 50 best restaurants.

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The list was compiled with input from more than 800 industry experts from 29 regions, including bartenders, drinks writers and cocktail experts, according to the organizer. Each voter was required to name their eight best cocktail experiences from the previous 18 months, with the final ranking adjudicated independently by Deloitte.

The event marking the 17th edition took place on Oct 8 at Hong Kong’s Kai Tak Cruise Terminal, located at the end of the city’s old airport runway overseeing Victoria Harbour. The list was announced in an Asian city for only the second time—it was held in Singapore in 2023.

The list of bars ranked 51st to 100th was revealed last month, highlighting venues from 35 destinations. Europe had the largest regional representation here, with 15 bars including Madrid’s Angelita (51), Berlin’s Wax On (57) and Naples’ L’Antiquario (63).

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While landing the top position is expected to lead to more guests waiting in line outside of the Bar Leone in Hong Kong’s Central district, Antinori is not foreseeing major changes to the place.

“Conviviality, sharing tables and food and drinks. Whatever you read on the menu is what you get. Bar Leone is a very digestible experience. It’s very comfortable,” he said. “Tonight, we are going to celebrate with some tequila.”