Asia’s 50 Best Bars has once again announced their extended 51-100 list for 2024. This year’s list is a veritable United Nations of inebriation, spanning 19 cities and featuring 15 new entries. Singapore, unsurprisingly, leads the pack with eight bars. And three cocktail bars in Vietnam featured too.
Ho Chi Minh City managed to secure two spots, with STIR – Modern Classic Cocktail climbing 24 places to No.58, and newcomer Drinking & Healing debuting at No.99.
Hanoi has joined the party too with The Hudson Rooms at No.81, a 1920s-inspired oyster and cocktail den.
Emma Sleight, Head of Content for Asia’s 50 Best Bars, praised the “diverse cohort” and “innovative drinking experiences” represented by the list.
The full list, including the bars at 1-50, will be revealed at a live ceremony in Hong Kong on July 16th, ensuring that at least one city in Asia will have a collective headache on July 17th.
(Re)Introducing The 3 Cocktail Bars In Vietnam In Asia’s 50 Best 2024 51-100 List – Stir, Hudson Rooms And Drinking & Healing
The three cocktail bars listed in Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024’s 51-100 list offer distinctly different experiences and attitudes.
Capella Hanoi’s Hudson Rooms pays homage to New York’s golden era with its glamorous ambiance reminiscent of Grand Central Station, concealing the exclusive Track 61, a secret bar-within-a-bar for those in the know, or with a coveted ticket that enables them to dig around in cabinets in the corridor behind the bar to find the button that opens the door to the secretive speakeasy.
In contrast, Drinking & Healing stands out as the vibrant rebel, bouncing with energy and contemporary flair, where modern mixology meets a lively, uninhibited atmosphere.
Completing the trio is Stir – Modern Classic Cocktail, a sophisticated speakeasy with a Vietnamese twist, blending local flavors and traditions with the allure of a hidden gem, offering a more intimate, culturally rich drinking experience.
“Busy building deeper, more meaningful relationships”
“The bar industry is growing so fast in Vietnam,” Lam Duc Anh, co-founder of STIR – Modern Classic Cocktail shakes his head in awe. “I think the quality is becoming really high. And with that comes a kind of healthy pressure. The evolution means we’re all challenging each other to create even better drinks and to offer even better service. And that has to be good for the consumers too.”
“I think in Vietnam, we’re hungry for our place on the global stage,” The Hudson Room’s bar manager Sean Halse concurs. “In the past, we’ve trailed the region but things have really ramped up in the past few years. I think we’re ready to take the crown! And the feeling is palpable in the way our team is always asking how to improve, and how to be more unique and successful.”
“I think the growth isn’t only domestically,” Jimmy Nguyen from Drinking & Healing nods. “We’ve all been busy building deeper, more meaningful relationships with the bar communities in places like Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, and Malaysia.”
The Hudson Room: Inviting Over Legends And An Already Legendary Martini
The Hudson Room has hosted some legends over the past year. Holly Graham, from Tokyo Confidential, and Gabriel Gigla from Pickwick’s Chronicles, in Bangkok dropped by for a guest shift. As did Paolo Maffietti, from Maybe Frank and Maybe Sammy in Sydney, Arathorn Grey from Tippling Club, Singapore, and Lolita Goh from JungleBird, in Kuala Lumpur. “Man, so many memories,” Sean murmurs. “We got to host so many legends who really brought the energy and elevation to the team with their global knowledge.” But the Hudson Rooms also looked inwards, bringing the best of the domestic bar scene to their sophisticated space.
“However, I think our biggest mission was developing the new menu. It’s connected to America’s famous train routes. The team dug deeply into the topic to tie the flavors of the cocktails to the journey and destination of each train,” Sean Halse explains. “And in Track 61 we have the ‘President’s Carriage.’ Try the deep fried olive that goes with the T61 Martini, it’s already become a guest favorite.”
Over the past year, the three bars have been riding the industry’s resurgent energy in Vietnam – although most bars and restaurants will be quick to remind you times are still tough here after the pandemic and financial scandals have continued to subdue the economy. But as Jimmy points out, they’ve been working hard while having lots of fun over the last twelve months here and abroad.
Stirring Things Up With Stir – Modern Classic Cocktail Bar’s 4-Day Birthday Bash
Things have been similar around 1,500km south of the Hudson Rooms, at Stir – Modern Classic Cocktail, in Saigon. “We’ve also been working on our new menu,” Lam Duc Anh continues. “It’s going to be closely linked to Vietnam’s terroir and ingredients. And besides that, we’ll open an experimental new lab room, which groups of four to six guests can book.”
And, just like their Hanoi-based counterparts, all the hard work has been interspersed with lots of hedonism.
Take Stir – Modern Classic Cocktail’s 3rd birthday celebrations at the end of February and the beginning of May, for example.
Over four nights, they welcomed some of the region’s leading bartenders. First, there was Nick Wu, from Bar Mood in Taipei, then Agung Prabowo and Ric Chow from Penicillin Bar, in Hong Kong. Then they invited over Korea’s Kim Minhong and Macc Saharat from Bangkok – both former winners of DIAGEO World Class in their respective countries. And finally, on the last night of celebrations, Adrian Foo and James Moon from Jigger & Pony, in Singapore
“I think I might still be recovering from it,” Lam Duc Anh laughs.
A Colorful 5-Year Journey For Drinking & Healing
Drinking & Healing is only slightly older at five years old. “We called the new menu ‘A Colorful Five-Year Journey’ Jimmy remembers. “And each cocktail represents feelings we’ve had and things that have happened along the way.”
The Saigon cocktail bar may have a claim to being the most community-minded, regularly hosting events and guest shifts for Vietnamese bartenders, such as their after-hours bartender nightcap events, sprinkled with the occasional international guest shift, like the one in March from Giuseppe Destefano, winner of London No.3 Pursuit of Perfection Cocktail Competition 2023 Global Finalist. But the hedonistic, musically-oriented Saigon cocktail bar is as likely to host a visiting beatboxer or a local drag show.
More To Celebrate On The Night?
All of these reminiscences bring us right up to date, and the imminent announcement of Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2024. And with the conspicuous absence of another popular bar in Hanoi from the 51-100 list, Hudson Rooms, Stir – Modern Classic Cocktail and Drinking & Healing may have much more to celebrate for Vietnam on the night…
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