https://www.scmp.com/rss/521856/feed The latest news and top stories on Bar Leone. A leading entity in the hospitality sector, Hong Kong-based Bar Leone specialises in Italian-style cocktails and a curated food menu, embodying the ’cocktail popolari’ philosophy. Primarily serving a broad market seeking approachable, high-quality bar experiences, it has achieved significant recognition, including being named The Best Bar in Asia 2024 and ranking No. 2 in The World’s 50 Best Bars. Its overall business focus is on genuine hospitality... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Jeff Yeung Jeff Yeung When you’re already the best bar in the world, where do you go next? To the Oscars, of course. Several weeks ago, Bar Leone’s founder, Lorenzo Antinori, took to Instagram in a sharp tuxedo to announce that he and his bar had been picked to pour libations at the Governors Ball, otherwise known as the official Oscars after-party. Now back in town after the event, Antinori was finally able to let loose about what was undeniably a career high point for the self-professed film buff. “It was... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3348824/bar-leones-lorenzo-antinori-meeting-hollywood-stars-oscars-after-party?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3348824/bar-leones-lorenzo-antinori-meeting-hollywood-stars-oscars-after-party?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 07:15:07 +0000 Chloe Loung Chloe Loung January often feels like an in-between month: while the festive lights of Christmas and New Year have dimmed, the vibrant celebrations of the Lunar New Year are still weeks away. This weekend’s itinerary is sure to help pass the time. Whether it be a luxury collaboration between the world’s best bar and a designer giant, an Eastern twist on a generations-old ballet or Asia’s largest wellness expo, there is plenty to get up to over the next few days. Read on to find out more. 1. The Bar Leone x... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340924/5-best-things-do-hong-kong-weekend-january-23-25?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3340924/5-best-things-do-hong-kong-weekend-january-23-25?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jan 2026 03:07:52 +0000 Josiah Ng Josiah Ng Hong Kong’s drinks scene is one of the world’s best – but also one of the world’s most diverse and volatile. Every year, the city has had to navigate – to varying degrees of success – trends and shifts in what bargoers enjoy, resulting in celebrated openings and sombre closures alike. Speakeasies (The Old Man, Please Don’t Tell, Room 309, Stockton) in the 2010s gave way to neighbourhood bars in the 2020s. Publications like Time magazine, Fortune and Drinks International all note that Gen Z... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3339842/hong-kong-bar-trends-2026-comfort-classics-and-mindful-drinking?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3339842/hong-kong-bar-trends-2026-comfort-classics-and-mindful-drinking?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jan 2026 02:00:12 +0000 Josiah Ng Josiah Ng Despite this being the year Hong Kong hosted its first edition of World’s 50 Best Bars (with Asia’s 50 Best Bars held in nearby Macau), the scene as a whole suffers from headwinds stemming from declining interest in alcohol and dining out, combined with a significant price gap with the Greater Bay Area, to which tourists and weekend revellers are flocking, as the Post reported earlier this month. Bars and restaurants close every year, but 2025 saw the closure of extremely recognisable venues... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3337568/2025-was-tough-year-hong-kongs-bar-industry-so-how-are-new-concepts-carving-path-forward?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3337568/2025-was-tough-year-hong-kongs-bar-industry-so-how-are-new-concepts-carving-path-forward?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Dec 2025 07:15:08 +0000 Josiah Ng Josiah Ng Hong Kong enjoys a rarefied status as one of the most drinks-literate cities in the world, being home to Bar Leone (which topped the World’s 50 Best Bars list this year) as well as numerous other internationally acclaimed establishments. When the city hosted the World’s 50 Best Bars ceremony in October, the weeks either side of the ceremony saw almost every major bar in Hong Kong host a guest mixologist or a team from cities as nearby as Singapore and Seoul and from as far away as Buenos Aires,... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3333515/how-does-guest-shift-really-work-hong-kong-bartenders-spill-tea?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3333515/how-does-guest-shift-really-work-hong-kong-bartenders-spill-tea?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Nov 2025 10:00:21 +0000 Salomé Grouard Salomé Grouard In Hong Kong’s social scene, few moments are as thrilling as the first date – and the silent third guest is the venue, setting the stage for connection or complication. Who better to decode the perfect meeting place than the experts in social chemistry: bartenders? We asked the city’s masters of mood what transforms a simple bar into an ideal first date spot. They revealed the keys to atmosphere, essential etiquette and their top venue picks for that crucial first impression. Beckaly Franks “We... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3331293/word-streat-bartenders-guide-acing-first-dates-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3331293/word-streat-bartenders-guide-acing-first-dates-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Nov 2025 10:00:14 +0000 Josiah Ng Josiah Ng Ten years is a long time in any nightlife scene. Some of Hong Kong’s earliest innovators and concepts have celebrated a decade or more in the game, and despite the closures of Stockton or The Envoy, establishments like Quinary, Lobster Bar and Mizunara are still going strong against younger and stiffer competition such as Bar Leone, Coa, Socio and Penicillin. The latest to reach the milestone is The Pontiac on Old Bailey Street. It’s long held its reputation as one of Hong Kong’s most raucous... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3329794/drink-focus-hobnail-pontiac?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3329794/drink-focus-hobnail-pontiac?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Oct 2025 10:15:08 +0000 Josiah Ng Josiah Ng As Hong Kong recovers from the raucous party that was World’s 50 Best Bars and the enormous number of guest shifts by visiting bars, the city’s beverage scene is deservedly having a quieter weekend. If you’re looking for more of Hong Kong’s world-class mixology this weekend though, you could do worse than visiting some of the award nominees – who are still delivering the same first-rate beverages, but now without the crowds. Separately, in Central, Yume takes over the former address of Quality... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3329089/your-hong-kong-weekend-drinks-guide-october-16-18?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3329089/your-hong-kong-weekend-drinks-guide-october-16-18?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Oct 2025 10:15:13 +0000 Ashlyn Chak Ashlyn Chak Bar Leone in Hong Kong’s Sheung Wan neighbourhood has topped the World’s 50 Best Bars 2025 list, the first time a Hong Kong bar has topped the rankings. The list was announced at a ceremony in Hong Kong on October 8, also the first time the awards have been held in the city. “It’s an amazing feeling to be here in Hong Kong and to be recognised for this award in our city,” said Lorenzo Antinori, co-founder of Bar Leone, in an exclusive chat with the Post just minutes after the awards... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3328301/worlds-50-best-bars-2025-hong-kongs-bar-leone-takes-top-spot-first-time-city?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3328301/worlds-50-best-bars-2025-hong-kongs-bar-leone-takes-top-spot-first-time-city?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Oct 2025 03:09:54 +0000 Josiah Ng Josiah Ng Few cocktails have made the leap from underrated to timeless classic as quickly as the negroni. With Campari’s Negroni Week in full swing across Hong Kong, there’s of course one bar in particular that feels almost too perfect for the occasion, and that’s Bar Leone. “[The negroni] is one of those Italian staples,” says the bar’s co-founder Lorenzo Antinori. “To me it represents love for conviviality – a ritual rather than just a cocktail.” When Bar Leone took home the title of Asia’s Best Bar in... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3326813/drink-focus-fig-leaf-negroni-bar-leone?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3326813/drink-focus-fig-leaf-negroni-bar-leone?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Sep 2025 10:15:11 +0000 Josiah Ng Josiah Ng When it was announced that two of the world’s most celebrated bartenders, Lorenzo Antinori and Simone Caporale, were teaming up to open a new bar in Hong Kong, the anticipation was palpable. Their new concept, Montana, pays tribute to two iconic eras of Cuban mixology: the vibrant, high-energy flair of 1970s Miami, and the refined elegance of the 1920s Cuban bartending society, the Club de Cantineros. Founded in 1924, the Club de Cantineros was dedicated to elevating the professionalism of Cuban... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3321822/drink-focus-montana-daiquiri-montana?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3321822/drink-focus-montana-daiquiri-montana?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Aug 2025 10:00:19 +0000 Gavin Yeung Gavin Yeung What happens when two of the world’s most accomplished mixologists decide to build the bar they want to drink in? The result is Montana, a tribute to Cuban cocktail heritage on Hollywood Road, as well as a nod to the influence the Caribbean nation’s bartenders had on nearby Florida in the 1970s and 80s. Montana takes its name from an obscure drink in the Club de Cantineros repertoire, the bartending guild that shaped Havana’s hedonistic heyday. “American cocktail history is very important, but... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3319435/montana-brings-cuban-cocktail-magic-hong-kongs-hollywood-road?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/food-drink/article/3319435/montana-brings-cuban-cocktail-magic-hong-kongs-hollywood-road?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Jul 2025 23:30:07 +0000 Cat Nelson Cat Nelson One of the first things I ever loved was a Hello Kitty diary. Yes, there were stuffed animals (Snuffy the bear, RIP), sticker books and an American Girl doll or two, but it’s the red Sanrio diary from 1993 that’s somehow become a core memory. The lock, shaped like Hello Kitty’s head, was cute but flimsy at best. Inside? Kindergarten confessionals, scrawled in shaky handwriting and even shakier grammar. Things escalated in Grade 2 when Miki moved from Japan to our sleepy California town. With... https://www.scmp.com/postmag/culture/article/3319783/week-postmag-hello-kitty-creator-sanrio-and-south-african-safari?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/postmag/culture/article/3319783/week-postmag-hello-kitty-creator-sanrio-and-south-african-safari?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 28 Jul 2025 02:29:58 +0000 Douglas Parkes Douglas Parkes Bar Leone is drenched in Italian kitsch – portraits of famous (and not-so-famous) Serie A footballers, vintage movie posters of Al Pacino, even Vacanze di Natale ’91. Now, after being crowned Asia’s Best Bar for the second year running at this week’s Asia’s 50 Best Bars awards in Macau, perhaps it’s time staff found room on the wall for one more poster – of Rocky. Bar Leone’s story mirrors Sylvester Stallone’s underdog tale. Like Rocky Balboa – the unknown brawler who shocked the world by going... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3318749/bar-leones-lorenzo-antinori-secret-his-latest-asias-50-best-bars-win?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/100-top-tables/article/3318749/bar-leones-lorenzo-antinori-secret-his-latest-asias-50-best-bars-win?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 18 Jul 2025 10:00:17 +0000 Charmaine Mok Charmaine Mok Bar Leone, an Italian cocktail spot in Hong Kong, has maintained its number-one ranking in the Asia’s 50 Best bars list for the second year in a row. In 2024, the Sheung Wan bar made a shocking debut on the list at number one – the only time in the history of the list that a new venue had grabbed the top spot in its first year. The 2025 rankings, compiled through votes by a panel of industry players from the Asia region, were announced in the evening of July 15 at an awards ceremony held at the... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3318366/asias-50-best-bars-2025-list-sees-hong-kongs-bar-leone-take-number-one-spot-again?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3318366/asias-50-best-bars-2025-list-sees-hong-kongs-bar-leone-take-number-one-spot-again?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 16 Jul 2025 02:46:00 +0000 Lisa Cam Lisa Cam At the beginning of this year’s Lunar New Year, a fortune-teller told Richard Ekkebus, culinary director of the Landmark Mandarin Oriental hotel in Hong Kong, that he would reach new heights in 2025. This came as no surprise to the chef, who also happens to be a prolific mountaineer; at the time, he was already planning his next expedition. So, it was a pleasant surprise when new heights came in the form of a third Michelin star for his restaurant Amber, after 17 years of sitting on two. To... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3316962/michelin-starred-hong-kong-restaurants-amber-and-chairman-team-lunch-items?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3316962/michelin-starred-hong-kong-restaurants-amber-and-chairman-team-lunch-items?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 05 Jul 2025 04:15:08 +0000