Held in Hong Kong, the Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024 was a big celebration of excellency in mixology across Asia—but perhaps the biggest celebration of all was by the team behind Penrose KL, who came in at a whopping No. 8 in the list, beating award-winning bars including Bangkok’s Vesper, Hong Kong’s Penicillin, and Singapore’s Native.
Beyond their ranking, Penrose also won the Nikka Highest Climber Award, rising at an impressive 42 spots from their entry-level No. 50 in last year’s list. At No. 8, the Chinatown cocktail bar is currently the highest ranking Malaysian bar to have ever graced the Asia’s 50 Best Bars list, overtaking the OG hidden bar Omakase + Appreciate who ranked at No. 10 in 2016.
But that’s not all. Two other Malaysian bars were also on the Top 50 list: Bar Trigona came in at No. 36, while Reka:Bar makes its first debut in the list at No. 41. Four other Malaysian bars were also on the 51-100 list that was released several days ago: Penang’s Backdoor Bodega (No. 52), Three X Co (No. 56), Coley (No. 70), and Junglebird KL (No. 80).
The best bar in Asia, however, went to Bar Leone in Hong Kong. It marks a first: a new entry that tops the list immediately, blowing everyone away. Below, you’ll find the complete ranking of all the best cocktail bars in the region by Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024:
Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024 Complete List
1. Bar Leone, Hong Kong
2. Zest, Seoul
3. Jigger & Pony, Singapore
4. COA, Hong Kong
5. Bar Benfiddich, Tokyo
6. Nutmeg & Clove, Singapore
7. BKK Social Club, Bangkok
8. Penrose, Kuala Lumpur
9. Argo, Hong Kong
10. The Aubrey, Hong Kong
11. Virtu, Tokyo
12. The Cocktail Club, Jakarta
13. Vesper, Bangkok
14. Hope & Sesame, Guangzhou
15. Sago House, Singapore
16. Nighthawk, Singapore
17. Darkside, Hong Kong
18. Mahaniyom Cocktail Bar, Bangkok
19. The Savory Project, Hong Kong
20. Bar Cham, Seoul
21. Bar Us, Bangkok
22. St. Regis Bar, Macau
23. The SG Club, Tokyo
24. Penicillin, Hong Kong
25. Offtrack, Singapore
26. Quinary, Hong Kong
27. Pantja, Jakarta
28. Craftroom, Osaka
29. Smoke & Bitter, Matara
30. Vender, Taichung
31. Native, Singapore
32. Origin Bar, Singapore
33. The Curator, Manila
34. The Bellwood, Tokyo
35. Analogue Initiative, Singapore
36. Bar Trigona, Kuala Lumpur
37. Bar Mood, Taipei
38. Employees Only, Singapore
39. Barc, Kathmandu
40. ZLB23
41. Reka:Bar, Kuala Lumpur
42. Fura, Singapore
43. CMYK, Changsha
44. The Public House, Taipei
45. Mostly Harmless, Hong Kong
46. Alice, Seoul
47. The Haflington, Hanoi
48. Le Chamber, Seoul
49. Atlas, Singapore
50. Pine & Co, Seoul