Hong Kong’s Bar Leone has retained its place at the top of The 50 Best Bars, taking the No. 1 spot for a second consecutive year. Announced in Milan on October 7, the 2026 ranking puts a bar built around Italian neighbourhood hospitality at the head of the international cocktail scene.
Its guiding idea is an appealing one: Cocktail Popolari, or “cocktails for the people.” For those of us who appreciate a well-made drink, something good to eat and a warm welcome, that sounds like a very good evening.
Cocktails for the people
Co-founded by Lorenzo Antinori, Bar Leone takes its inspiration from the traditional bars of Rome’s Trastevere district. Vintage Italian references and a neighbourhood atmosphere shape the space, while the drinks programme centres on carefully executed cocktails and straightforward hospitality.
The official 50 Best profile describes a room filled with football memorabilia, Italian classics such as negronis and martinis, and small plates that might tempt guests to reconsider their dinner plans. Antinori opened the bar with Hong Kong partner Justin Shun Wah in 2023, following a career in hotel bars.
There’s something lovely about that combination: serious attention to the drink, with plenty of room for fun. Bar Leone’s success makes a case for the enduring appeal of a bar where the welcome matters as much as what’s in the glass.
The 2026 top five
This year’s top 50 includes bars across 26 cities, with 14 new entries. The leading five are:
- Bar Leone — Hong Kong
- Moebius Milano — Milan
- Alquímico — Cartagena
- Bar Us — Bangkok
- Line — Athens
Bar Leone also takes the title of Best Bar in Asia. Elsewhere in the awards, Line receives the Ketel One Sustainable Bar Award, while Alquímico earns the Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award.
More names for the travel list
Mexico City’s Bar Mauro enters the ranking at No. 10, collecting the Disaronno Highest New Entry Award. Athens’ The Bar in Front of the Bar rises 28 places to No. 19, earning the Nikka Highest Climber Award.
New York’s Schmuck receives the Three Cents Best New Opening Award, while Barcelona’s Paradiso is named Rémy Martin Legend of the List. Edinburgh’s Panda & Sons wins the Siete Misterios Best Cocktail Menu Award, and Saikindō in Abu Dhabi receives the SevenRooms Best Bar Design Award.
The individual honours include the Roku Industry Icon Award for Shingo Gokan and the Altos Bartenders’ Bartender Award for Takuma Watanabe. Ecuador’s Isa Mejia receives The 50 Best Bars Scholarship.
Mexico City’s Handshake Speakeasy ranks No. 6, while Mirror Bar in Bratislava takes No. 34.
Where Vancouver fits in
No Canadian bars appear in this year’s global top 100. Vancouver did, however, earn recognition in the separate North America’s 50 Best Bars ranking earlier this year: The Keefer Bar placed No. 7 and was named Best Bar in Canada, while Botanist Bar ranked No. 38.
For anyone planning a trip to Hong Kong, Bar Leone is another address to add to the itinerary. For an evening closer to home, Vancouver’s own recognised cocktail bars offer plenty of reasons to pull up a seat.
Explore the full global ranking.
Bar Leone: 15 Bridges Street, Central, Hong Kong
barleonehk.com
Images supplied by The 50.
