Bar Leone

Lorenzo Antinori and Justin Shun Wah joke that Bar Leone is a sandwich shop that happens to serve cocktails.

Why go

Lorenzo Antinori grew up in Rome and joined the American Bar at the Savoy in London in 2010. He then ran Charles H at the Four Seasons in Seoul and moved to Hong Kong in 2019.1 There he launched Argo in the Four Seasons. Argo entered Asia's 50 Best Bars at No. 3 in April 2020.2 8 In June 2023 he and Justin Shun Wah, who runs the business side, opened Bar Leone on Bridges Street as a tribute to the neighborhood bars of Rome.6 Antinori told The Standard in 2026: Both Justin and I love the idea of a bar that gathers the community together and that caters to the community.1 SCMP's 100 Top Tables recalls fans wondering why the brains behind Argo had decided to open such a basic concept.3 Two years later The World's 50 Best Bars named it No. 1 for 2025, the first bar in Asia to top that list.6 1

The bar is built on cocktail popolari, cocktails for the people: classic drinks, with every recipe and method shared openly.1 Janice Leung Hayes, who writes Eater's Hong Kong map, summed it up in December 2025: flavor-packed drinks that aren't overly serious, and food that's just as good (get the smoked olives and mortadella focaccia).4

Josh Ong of The World's 50 Best Bars reported in 2025 that the bar sold more than HK$1.5 million of mortadella focaccia in its first year.5 Natalie Fong, a Hong Kong food writer, wrote in December 2024 that the bread brings her back: The reason I still crave a trip to Bar Leone is that light, golden, crispy, chewy focaccia.9

Order this / avoid

Drink: the Appletini, green apple and celery with Avallen calvados, bianco vermouth, lemon and black pepper. Wesley Chia of 88 Bamboo (2025): by far our favourite, crisp and clean in taste – a good palate cleanser.8
Drink: the Bicicletta Spritz, passion fruit, Aperol, Nardini rhubarb amaro and sparkling wine. Wesley Chia (2025): Refreshingly pleasant version here and dare I say, faultless.8
Drink: the Golden Boy, elderflower, dry sherry, lemon and orange bitters, one of the signatures. Wesley Chia (2025) found it surprisingly strong.8
Order: the mortadella focaccia, with ricotta and mascarpone, pickled green chillies and smoked olives. Natalie Fong (2024): the saltiness of the olives, the sourness of the pickled chillies, the creaminess of the ricotta mascarpone, and of course, the umami of the mortadella.9 5

What locals & experts say

88 Bamboo (2025): Wesley Chia, after a 30-minute wait at 10pm on a Thursday in March: There are many great bars in Hong Kong but none quite like Bar Leone.8
SCMP 100 Top Tables (2025): The drinks menu is inventive without being impenetrable to newcomers.3
SCMP (2024): Jade Lau, then a bartender at Quinary, named Bar Leone among the bars she takes out-of-town guests to.2
Standings: No. 1, The World's 50 Best Bars 2025. No. 1, Asia's 50 Best Bars 2024 and 2025. No. 3 and The Best Bar in Hong Kong, Asia's 50 Best Bars 2026.6 7

Good to know

Booking: it takes no reservations. Janice Leung Hayes (2025): Get in line at least half an hour before opening, or try your luck late at night.4
Timing: Islands reported in November 2025 that it shuts on Mondays. Check before you go on a Monday.11
Price: HK$300 a head in SCMP's 100 Top Tables, 2025. Wesley Chia reported no cover charge or minimum spend in 2025.3 8
Where: 11-15 Bridges Street, Central. Wesley Chia found only a tiny silver plaque outside the door, so look for the people waiting.8

Jeff's take (his words)

Note: "Named number one cocktail bar in world"

Verdict

should-visit — Go for the Appletini and the mortadella focaccia. Nobody can book a table, so queue before the doors open or come late at night. SCMP put the bill at HK$300 a head in 2025.

Bar Leone.