Happy hour in Hong Kong: We reveal the best bars to party in all week long
For the party crowd, it's the timeless question: where to next? And in Hong Kong, the options are seemingly endless. So here's our pick of the best theme nights, special deals, and little-known happy hours to keep you out all week long
Start the week off right with one of the most successful and long standing restaurant promotions in the city: Super Monday from Asiaxpat. Head to www.supermonday.com - you must enter the "www." part of the address - and order your free card to enjoy two-for-one Monday night deals at many of Hong Kong's best dining rooms.
Too much hassle? Try Linguini Fini's new SoHo home for Wings Night. Starting in October, HK$98 gets you all you can eat French fries, Buffalo wings and ice cold cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon. While Monday nights are pretty quiet in most cities, this is not so in Hong Kong if you know where to look.
Hungry Mondays at Dragon-i - so named because models eat for free - are always heaving with the club's usual mix of beautiful people. Plus, being a Monday there are no tourists and fewer drunks to worry about. Happy Monday, pop a bottle.
After work make a beeline for the Langham hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui where Wine o' clock is in full swing from 7pm to 9pm. HK$248 gets you free flow wine, but the real draw is the food spread: unlimited cheeses and Italian charcuterie.
After hors d'oeuvres it's best to keep things classy, so hop over to Stockton in Central for its Oyster Revolution promotion. Each Tuesday Stockton puts oldies on the hi-fi and shucks fresh French oysters to accompany their gilded age cocktails.
Hopefully those oysters put you in the mood for love because tonight's the night when Hong Kong's singles head to Fatty Crab for Tinder Tuesday: match with someone at the bar on the popular dating app and be rewarded with a free shot of mescal.
Afterwards, those who are still standing or haven't paired off usually head to Tazmania Ballroom where you can enjoy the spectacle of punters playing table tennis while table-bound waiters carrying sparklers and champagne bottles dodge the balls. Tuesdays at Taz are especially popular with models.
It's midweek but it doesn't feel like it at Boqueria in LKF Tower. It boasts one of the best value happy hour food spreads on offer, where HK$188 gets you free-flowing sangria and draught beer as well as free range over a countertop full of pintxos (bar snacks popular in northern Spain).There's enough grazing to be had for this happy hour to take the place of dinner so let the night begin.
One of the city's favourite quiz nights kicks off at 8pm at Delaney's in Wan Chai. The test of knowledge is a good cover, but we all know why you're really here. Cringeworthy as it may be, Wednesday is, of course, ladies night in Wan Chai.
Women drink for free in most of the neighbourhood's establishments, so swallow your pride and join the throngs for this time-honoured hump day tradition: dance on the bar at Carnegie's, tear up the floor at Rio, and end the night in front of Typhoon watching secondary school couples arguing.
Not your scene? Perhaps salsa is more your speed. Club 97 in Lan Kwai Fong offers one of the best and most crowded Latin dance nights, and beginners are welcome.
Taiwanese eatery The Night Market in Elements offers a craft beer happy hour every day from 5.30pm-7.30pm. Buy one brew and get free Taiwanese snacks.
While you're in West Kowloon, stop by the W Hotel's Woobar for one of the best and potentially most dangerous happy hours: Vintage Cocktail Thursday, where HK$278 gets you free-flowing classic cocktails until 10.30pm.
Then it is off to another ladies night, this time in LKF. The whole area will be overflowing with thirsty revellers, but Play and Privé are two of the most popular Thursday destinations for Hong Kong's most discerning party people. Not in the mood? Instead of Central, stay in Tsim Sha Tsui and head for Vibes atop the Mira Hotel.
One of the city's best-kept secrets, Thursday at Vibes is Arabic Nights, with Middle Eastern snacks, hookahs, music and belly dancers. Alternatively, both Brickhouse and Three Monkeys are at their trendiest - and most crowded - on the penultimate night of the working week. Great for people watching.
Anyone who can't find something to do on Friday night must not be trying, but we love the after work scene at Ted's Lookout in Wan Chai. Great drinks and American bar food.
Unfortunately, Ted's is tough on your wallet, so offset the damage at two of Wan Chai's best, and least known happy hours. The first is at The Fleming hotel where HK$138 gets you free-flowing wine, the other is Hong Kong Café, which boasts the cheapest happy hour beers in the city.
By now you are probably quite drunk, so it is time to head somewhere where you can dance and your bad behaviour will be tolerated. Fly in Central can be hit or miss, but it really shines on Friday nights when revellers flock to hear a roster of local and visiting DJs and do their thing on the dance floor.
Feels like you have had one weekend too many already? Perhaps it's time to switch gears. Artouch on Hollywood Road is a new bilingual art, movie, and performance venue opened by local tattoo artist Sze Chow. It hosts different programmes every night (Tuesday's are open mic nights) but Saturdays are given over to live classical music performances.
Too highbrow? How about you jump on a ferry to TST, home to our favourite watering hole, Castro's on Ashley Road. The bar really comes into its own on Saturdays. Come in the afternoon to enjoy a cigar and people watch through the open windows. Stay on as the vibe changes into an all-out party as a diverse crowd files in. It can be a wild scene but the excellent service keeps the atmosphere light and manageable.
Everybody knows Sunday is brunch day. And the best brunches in town deserve their own article, but we're especially eager to try the Fat Elvis Waffles at Central's new American-style venue, The Diner. Waffles with banana, peanut butter, bacon and Canadian maple syrup should be just what you need by now. The Diner is very new so best to make sure the waffles are available before you make the trip.
The one problem with The Diner brunch is the only free flow they offer is coffee. Quelle horreur! Not to worry. Head to Armani/Privé for the After Brunch Party, every Sunday from 3pm-7pm. It's like a brunch buffet without the food; HK$250 gets you all you can drink Peroni, prosecco and selected cocktails. Now, time for a nap. After all, Monday is just around the corner.
WHERE THE ACTION IS
MONDAY
Dragon-i: Podium, The Centrium, 60 Wyndham St, Central, tel: 3110 1222
Linguini Fini: 49 Elgin St, Central
TUESDAY
Fatty Crab: 11-13 Old Bailey St, Central tel: 2521 2033
Tazmania Ballroom: 1/F LKF Tower, 33 Wyndham St, Central, tel: 2801 5009
The Langham Hong Kong: 8 Peking Rd, TST, tel: 2375 1133
Stockton: 32 Wyndham St, Central, tel: 2565 5268
WEDNESDAY
Typhoon: 37 Lockhart Rd, Wan Chai, tel: 2527 2077
Club 97: 9 Lan Kwai Fong, Central,tel: 2186 1897Delaney's: One Capital Place, 18 Luard Rd, Wan Chai, tel: 2804 2880
Boqueria: 7/F, LKF Tower, 33 Wyndham St, Central, tel: 2321 8681
Carnegie's Bar & Restaurant: 53-55 Lockhart Rd, Wan Chai, tel: 2866 6289
THURSDAY
Play: 1/F On Hing Building, 1 On Hing Tce, Central, tel: 2525 1318
Brickhouse: 20A D'Aguilar St, Central, tel: 2810 0560
The Night Market: Elements mall, Shop 1028, tel: 2807-2292
Three Monkeys: 151-155 Hollywood Rd, Sheung Wan, tel: 3151 7771
Woobar: The W Hong Kong, tel: 3717 2222
Vibes: 5/F, The Mira, 118 Nathan Rd, TST, tel: 2368 1111
FRIDAY
Ted's Lookout: 17A Moon St, Wan Chai, tel: 2520 0076
The Fleming: 41 Fleming Rd, Wan Chai, tel: 3607 2288
Hong Kong Café: 98 Jaffe Rd, Wan Chai, tel: 865 2238
Fly: 24-30 Ice House St, Central, tel: 2810 9902
SATURDAY
Castro's: 1/F, 16 Ashley Rd, TST, tel: 2957 8041
Artouch: 91-93 Hollywood Rd, Central, tel: 9780 1853
SUNDAY
Armani/Prive: 2/F Chater House, 8 Connaught Road Central, tel: 3583 2828
The Diner: 4-8 Arbuthnot Rd, Central
