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Douglas Parkes

Having a merry Christmas is practically an order at this time of year. Fortunately, Hong Kong’s best bars and bartenders are here to nudge you in the right direction with a plethora of seasonally inspired drinks. Whether you’re seeking a winter tipple for an extra special romantic occasion or a work do, or you’re just looking to get in the spirit of the season with friends, these concoctions will surely bring some Christmas cheer.
1. DarkSide

The bar team at DarkSide are among the most creative in town, so it’s no surprise they have an entire mini-menu dedicated to seasonal cocktails. Their annual All The Way mulled wine makes a return, topped up with Rémy Martin VSOP cognac and sherry. Plenty of Christmas spices feature in their Festive Manhattan and another classic recipe gets a twist with the Fig Old Fashioned, with toasted pecan-infused Michter’s sour mash, a smoked fig cordial and chocolate bitters. The Hot Apple Toddy swaps whisky for spiced rum and adds Calvados and apple liquor to the traditional citrus notes and, rounding out the menu, the White Christmas is an indulgent dessert of a drink with rum, vanilla, cognac, milk, cream and nutmeg.
2. Feather & Bone

Feather & Bone is an obvious go-to for Christmas, whether you want to eat out or take home a turkey and tackle Christmas dinner yourself. However, the butcher/restaurant chain also serves one of the best mulled wines in town. Made in-house, this rich and fruity wine is expertly blended with a symphony of Australian red wine, warm winter spices, and a splash of orange and lemon juice. It can be ordered by the cup during Christmas meals but is also available for purchase by the bottle (HK$188) while stocks last. It flies off the shelves, so don’t miss out.
3. Bar Q88

The JW Marriott’s intimate lobby bar has long enjoyed a reputation as one of the best spots in Admiralty to unwind. This year, the establishment is offering two festive drinks for the Christmas period. The first is an Asian-inspired take on mulled wine rippling with layers of flavour including red wine, dark rum, red dates, pandan leaf, lime, cinnamon and more.
Those looking to break with tradition can opt for the house special Jingle Bells cocktail, which combines raspberry-infused gin, hibiscus, cherry and lemon – a suitably tart rejoinder to all the sweets on offer at this time of year.
4. LPM

La Petite Maison has gone all out again this Christmas, reviving last year’s incredibly popular “Greetings for Our Friends” cocktail menu. The selection features not one, not two, but four specially designed cocktails, all themed around heartfelt letters to friends and family.
Tribute is a suitably punchy winter warmer made of Rémy Martin VSOP, smoky Islay whiskey and medicinal green Chartreuse, offset by honey and a ginger candy garnish. Garçon de Café is an Irish coffee enhanced by a Christmas-spiced Napoleon reduction and the citrus notes of mandarin. Jean à Jean is LPM’s answer to mulled wine, given some extra kick courtesy of Rémy Martin VSOP cognac and warm after-tones from rooibos tea. Lastly, Madeleine 1957 is served in aged clay pots and marries cognac with a balanced sweetness of coconut and salted caramel and harshness of Angostura Bitters.
5. The Daily Tot

Renowned for its selection of rum and rum-based cocktails, the Daily Tot is doubling down on what it does best this Christmas. Its festive refreshment comes in the shape of a Rum-ish Coffee, a very Daily Tot spin on an Irish coffee that substitutes whiskey for spiced rum and adds hand-drip coffee, demerara sugar and pandan cream. Why the green finish on top? Because sister bars and restaurants under the Singular Concept umbrella are all offering Grinch-inspired concoctions. Other group highlights include the Merry Mischief Midori, a playful mix of genmaicha tea and butter-washed gin, and Ella’s Whoville Winter Warmer featuring Irish whiskey, spiced gin, red wine, cranberry and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
6. Be On Canton

Housed in Harbour City, the Gateway Hotel Hong Kong has prepared an entire mini menu of Christmas cocktails for thirsty shoppers this year. Head to Be On Canton, the hotel’s alfresco terrace, to take your pick from six merry mixes. Highlights include traditional takes on classics like mulled wine and eggnog, as well the refreshing Poinsettia, which combines prosecco with berry notes, and the invigorating hazelnut cream hot chocolate, spiked with a delightful hint of hazelnut liqueur. For those looking to start their New Year’s resolutions early and skip alcohol, zero-ABV options come by way of an Irish cream mocktail and a spiced apple syrup mocktail infused with clementine and cloves.
7. Rajasthan Rifles

Like a premium advent calendar, there are many holiday surprises at Hong Kong restaurants this year. Anglo-Indian restaurant Rajasthan Rifles might not be the most obvious option for a seasonally inspired tipple, but its spiked masala chai is not to be missed if you’re up at The Peak. Crafted with exceptional Darjeeling tea, cardamom, ginger and muscovado sugar, and stiffened with India’s historic Old Monk rum, this is the ideal comforting sip to enliven festive gatherings.


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100 Top Tables

7 best Christmas cocktail menus in Hong Kong: from JW Marriott’s Asian-inspired mulled wine and a spin on Irish coffee, to spiked masala chai and naughty milkshakes

Our selection of the season’s tipples  includes Tribute, a Christmas cocktail at LPM, Hong Kong. Photo: Handout

DarkSide’s All The Way Mulled Wine. Photo: Handout

Feather & Bone’s specially made mulled wine is available by the glass or by the bottle for you to take home and enjoy. Photo: Handout

Mulled wine and the Jingle Bells cocktail, available at JW Marriott’s Bar Q88 this Christmas. Photo: Handout

Madeleine 1957, one of the festive cocktails on offer at LPM this Christmas. Photo: Handout

The Daily Tot’s Grinchmas Rum-ish Coffee, specially for Christmas 2024. Photo: Handout

Be On Canton is offering a range of Christmas cocktails and mocktails this year. Photo: Gateway Hotel, Hong Kong

Rajasthan Rifles on The Peak has a Christmas treat in the shape of its spiked masala chai. Photo: Handout

The hottest new openings in Hong Kong, December 1-7

Tokyo’s popular cheesecake brand Cafe The Sun Lives Here opens its first overseas location in Hong Kong. Photo: Cafe The Sun Lives Here

An ice-cream sandwich in the making at Cafe The Sun Lives Here. Photo: Cafe The Sun Lives Here

Galician octopus from 1862 Bar de Tapas y Vino. Photo Handout

Jin Bo Law’s HK Sour. Photo: Jin Bo Law

A soft-serve and float from Sundazed Matcha. Photo: Sundazed

Drink in Focus: Courtroom’s Habeas Corpus, ‘the best mushroom cocktail ever’?

Courtroom’s Habeas Corpus may still be a work in progress, but it’s already creating a buzz. Photo: Handout

Courtroom’s co-founders Saan Dhakal (left) and Ranjeet Khatri. Photo: Handout

Saan Dhakal prepares a cocktail at Courtroom. Photo: Handout

The Habeas Corpus cocktail at Courtroom. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong’s 12 best Christmas feasts, from Italian at the Grand Hyatt’s Grissini and Chinese at Tin Lung Heen, to traditional turkey at Jimmy’s Kitchen and Magistracy Dining Room

Festive menus have arrived at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong. Photo: Handout

One of the elevated dishes at Above & Beyond at Hotel Icon. Photo: Handout

The festive menu at Cafe Circles at Nina Hotel Tsuen Wan West. Photo: Handout

Christmas lunch at Feather & Bone. Photo: Handout

The Grand Hyatt’s festive feast in Hong Kong. Photo: Handout

Enjoy a festive buffet spread at the Regent Hong Kong’s Harbourside. Photo: Handout

There are plenty of southeast Asian treats to enjoy at the festive spread at I-O-N Wong Chuk Hang. Photo: Handout

Turkey is part of the lavish spreads at Jimmy’s Kitchen. Photo: Handout

Materials used by Joyce Wang Design for The Magistracy have a stately presence: burred woods, marble, leather in a burgundy tone, and brass table lamps. Photo: Handout

Guests at The Cafe can enjoy a tomahawk steak this Christmas. Photo: Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers

A selection of Christmas dishes on offer at The Steak House. Photo: Regent Hong Kong

Enjoy two-Michelin-starred Cantonese fare for Christmas at The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong’s Tin Lung Heen. Photo: Handout

Enjoy Brazilian-Japanese dishes for Christmas at Uma Nota. Photo: Handout

Meet the chefs bringing Michelin-worthy food to private homes and kitchens in Hong Kong, from Peking duck to Chiuchow cuisine

Gabriel Chung’s chu-toro tartare; private chefs are gaining traction in Hong Kong’s dining scene. Photo: Eugene Chan

Felix Cheung’s signature Peking Duck, Beak-To-Tail. Photo: courtesy of Felix Cheung

Felix Cheung’s signature Peking Duck. Photo: courtesy of Felix Cheung

Felix Cheung prepares his signature Peking Duck. Photo: courtesy of Felix Cheung

Gabriel Chung’s dish of female snow crab with yuzu hollandaise sauce. Photo: courtesy of Gabriel Chung

Chef Gabriel Chung at the Sub-Zero and Wolf kitchen at House of Madison. Photo: Eugene Chan

Felix Cheung hosts a private dinner. Photo: courtesy of Felix Cheung

Gabriel Chung’s dish of heirloom tomatoes, smoked ricotta, mixed herbs and flowers. Photo: courtesy of Gabriel Chung

Hui Mei-tak of Pak Loh Chiu Chow Private Kitchen. Photo: Handout

A spread of Chiuchow delicacies from Pak Loh Chiu Chow Private Kitchen. Photo: Handout

Chiuchow soy sauce abalone with fried rice. Photo: courtesy of Pak Loh Chiu Chow Private Kitchen

Dish in Focus: Dim Sum Library’s dan dan xiao long bao

Chef Leung Kwok-wah has married two beloved dishes at Dim Sum Library, combining xiao long bao with the spicy broth from Hutong’s dan dan noodles. Photo: Handout

Dim Sum Library’s dan dan xiao long bao. Photo: Handout

Leung Kwok-wah, executive dim sum chef at Aqua Restaurant Group. Photo: Handout

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These unique drinks offer a festive twist on classic favourites – perfect for celebrating with friends and family or a romantic tête-à-tête


These unique drinks offer a festive twist on classic favourites – perfect for celebrating with friends and family or a romantic tête-à-tête.


7 best Christmas cocktail menus in Hong Kong: from JW Marriott’s Asian-inspired mulled wine and a spin on Irish coffee, to spiked masala chai and naughty milkshakes

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}These unique drinks offer a festive twist on classic favourites – perfect for celebrating with friends and family or a romantic tête-à-tête

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}1. DarkSide

These unique drinks offer a festive twist on classic favourites – perfect for celebrating with friends and family or a romantic tête-à-tête

1. DarkSide