11 of the best new restaurants and bars in Hong Kong to try in January 2024, for cocktails with a local twist, Japanese-style pastries, Korean beef and more
- Goodbye 2023, hello 2024 – with the new year comes a raft of new restaurants and bars to try in Hong Kong, including a hotel bar that offers creative cocktails
- Head to Harbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui, for shaved ice desserts and cakes infused with Korean flavours or check out a newly opened spot serving Korean Hanwoo beef
With the new year in Hong Kong comes new bar and restaurant openings. Among them are a celebrity butcher’s restaurant, the revival of an old private-dining icon and a night spot in Central on Hong Kong Island.
Korean concepts continue to pop up in the well-heeled districts of Causeway Bay and Tsim Sha Tsui, with a famous shaved ice dessert cafe and a Hanwoo beef specialist opening their doors. Read on to see where to go to start 2024 – in fact, make it your new year’s resolution.
1. The Mansion
Situated on Wyndham Street in Central, The Mansion works as a hybrid entertainment venue, marrying events with cocktails and a menu inspired by pintxos – Basque tapas.
The space boasts retro cabaret aesthetics and an art gallery that transforms according to the event of moment. One of the main draws is an infinity ceiling decorated with LED lights that can feature electronic artwork. There are also resident and guest DJs, as well as choreographed performances.
G/F, 77 Wyndham Street, Central
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2. Carna by Dario Cecchini
39/F, Mondrian Hong Kong, 8A Hart Avenue, Tsim Sha Tsui
3. Avoca
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The bar menu includes food options such as lobster and crab roll and crispy chicken waffle.
38/F, Mondrian Hong Kong, 8A Hart Avenue, Tsim Sha Tsui
4. Trattoria Felino
The menu is small but we look forward to his Neapolitan and Mediterranean-style fare, such as pizza nel ruotino – 15cm (6-inch) pizzas baked in a tray – and claypot yellow chicken. Look out for dishes such as tagliatelle with saffron and beef ragout.
1-7 Ship Street, Wan Chai
5. Baker by Lubuds
Fancy some Japanese-style pastries? Here to sate that craving is Baker by Lubuds in Taikoo Shing.
Chef Stephen So blends Japanese artisanal precision with European flavours. From croissants boasting a sinful 35 per cent butter content to classics like egg tarts and brioche tropézienne, Baker by Lubuds promises a premium pastry experience.
Shop 307, 3/F Cityplaza, 18 Taikoo Shing Road, Taikoo Shing
6. Inebi
Inebi, opening in Hysan Place in Causeway Bay, promises a culinary journey with Japanese rice, focusing on “Special A Grade” varieties such as Uonuma Koshihikari and Shichiseki.
From roasted foie gras and Wagyu beef Kamameshi to a Wagyu sushi rice ball, Inebi makes carbs cool again.
Shop B202, B2/F, Hysan Place, 500 Hennessy Road, Causeway Bay
7. Sips;;Iban
No, that is not a typo – the double semicolon really does belong in the Korean coffee shop brand’s name. Head to Harbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui, for shaved ice desserts and cakes infused with Korean flavours, such as the soft corn cake and Busan grains shaved ice.
Shop OT G61, G/F, Ocean Terminal, Harbour City, 3-27 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
8. Galbi Town
Signature dishes include cherry blossom honey beef ribs, soy sauce crab, cold noodles, doenjang jjigae (bean paste stew), and Korean-style raw beef.
1/F, Grand Centre, 8 Humphreys Avenue, Tsim Sha Tsui
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9. Gwai Lou
This Teochew (Chiu Chow) restaurant in Causeway Bay provides traditional cold dishes in an upscale setting with modern red decor – gone are the folded chairs and harsh neon lights of typical Teochew da lang (cold dish) restaurants.
Patrons can look forward to classics such as oyster soup, while the signature omelette is filled with plump, fat molluscs.
21/F, The L. Square, 459-461 Lockhart Road, Causeway Bay
10. 2 Sup
Those who remember Sup 1 – a French restaurant opened in Central in the early 2000s – will rejoice at its reopening in Sai Ying Pun. The restaurant has a new name to reflect its address on 20 High Street – in Cantonese, “2 sup” sounds like the number 20.
The fusion bistro is known for dishes such as duck confit claypot rice. On the menu are new dishes such as goose liver crème brûlée and pan-seared quail eggs.
20 High Street, Sai Ying Pun
11. Tango Argentinian Steakhouse (LKF)
The former Elgin Street mainstay for South American meats has reopened in Lan Kwai Fong. The steaks are sourced from Azul Natural Beef, a family-owned business that raises cattle in The Pampas, grasslands that sprawl across southeastern South America.
Diners can also look forward to sausages, tiraditos – Peruvian raw fish – and a great selection of empanadas as well.
2/F, Grand Progress Building, 15-16 Lan Kwai Fong, Central
