At twilight in Macau, as the neon reflections tremble across the harbor water, you can almost hear the collective clink of glasses from Tokyo to Tainan. In this vast, ever-churning tapestry of cities, Asia’s 50 Best Bars — sponsored by Perrier — has unveiled its extended 51–100 list for 2025. It’s an annual snapshot of Asia’s cocktail heartbeat, a portrait of bartenders who think like artists, alchemists, and poets, and of guests chasing experiences that blur the line between the sacred and the profane.
This is the fifth year the 51–100 ranking has been announced, a prelude to the main 50 Best Bars list coming later this month in Macau. Created by the voters of the Asia’s 50 Best Bars Academy — a gender-balanced group of 300+ bartenders, proprietors, cocktail journalists, and nomadic connoisseurs — the list is less a hierarchy and more a wandering road map through Asia’s sprawling drinking universe.
The 2025 edition sparkles with 14 new entries and features bars from 23 destinations across the region. Leading the extended list is Shenzhen’s Obsidian Bar at No.51, a dark, layered, three-story reverie of vintage whiskies and avant-garde craft cocktails. It’s the kind of place you stumble out of at midnight, the cityscape refracted through a highball haze.
Singapore, always restless and always reaching, secures six spots on the list. The highest-ranked is Side Door at No.53, a neighborhood bar conjured by husband-and-wife duo Bannie Kang and Tryson Quek. Side Door balances minimalist design with deeply personal flavors, creating cocktails that feel like whispered secrets in a crowded room. From the honey-warmth of Sago House (No.56) to the sophisticated hum of Origin Bar (No.60), Singapore’s entries map out a city in constant metamorphosis.
In Seoul, the bars thrum with energy both ancient and contemporary. Pine & Co lands at No.52, closely followed by Soko at No.54. Gong Gan — set in a traditional hanok — leaps 26 spots to No.63, as if propelled by some invisible magnetic force. Meanwhile, Charles H, an enduring classic, slides in at No.96.
Shanghai’s presence is equally magnetic. Epic (No.74) offers theatrical high jinks, while Sober Company (No.81), with its izakaya spirit, feels like a love letter to late-night wanderings. Making its debut, Coa Shanghai (No.85) channels the agave-fueled genius of its Hong Kong sibling. At No.97, Pony Up trots onto the scene with Dre Yang’s playful ode to horse culture and riotous fun.
Taipei’s bar scene pulses like a well-kept secret finally whispered aloud. Lab (No.57), helmed by Makita Takafumi, is part laboratory, part sanctuary. Wu (Nothingness) soars up 28 places to No.66 by weaving Taiwanese ingredients into liquid narratives. They are joined by Bar Mood (No.72) and Under Lab (No.73), each a testament to the city’s quiet intensity.
Tokyo, ever the paradox of old and new, brings four entries. Gold Bar at No.67 shimmers with quiet opulence. Tokyo Confidential (No.70) feels like a bar from a Murakami novel, a portal into a dreamlike underworld. The Bellwood (No.79) and The SG Club (No.99) round out the city’s kaleidoscopic representation.
Elsewhere, Bangkok makes itself felt through Mahaniyom Cocktail Bar (No.71), Firefly (No.82), and Messenger Service (No.90) — a newcomer whose betel leaf and fermented rice concoctions summon the spirit of Bangkok’s chaotic streets. Hanoi’s Workshop14 (No.83) overlooks West Lake, conjuring serene reflections in a glass.
Hong Kong, long a battleground of classic versus experimental, delivers three distinct voices: The Opposites (No.80), Mostly Harmless (No.88), and Quinary (No.91), each pushing the city’s legacy forward in unexpected directions.
Smaller scenes rise, echoing the region’s shifting spirits. Phnom Penh’s Sora (No.65) offers rooftop vistas that make the whole city feel like a single, swirling cocktail. Kaohsiung’s Maltail (No.75) dedicates itself to single malt wizardry, while Raa (No.84) in Sri Lanka channels the wild sea air into arak-inspired visions.
From Goa’s tiki-tinged Bar Outrigger (No.55) to Jakarta’s newcomer The Golden Tooth (No.98), each venue reveals not only what people are drinking but who they are becoming. In Osaka, Craftroom (No.58) and Bar Nayuta (No.100) explore custom, almost ritualistic experiences — a quiet counterpoint to Tokyo’s louder pulse.
Emma Sleight, Head of Content for Asia’s 50 Best Bars, describes the list as “a vibrant, eclectic mix” that celebrates Asia’s constantly evolving drinking cultures and global influence. “The surge of new entries and fresh destinations reflects a region in perpetual motion,” she says.
In a year defined by transformation and boundary-blurring creativity, this extended list feels like a series of love letters written in mezcal smoke and clarified milk punch. Each bar represents a fragment of Asia’s ongoing story, proof that the region’s spirit — both literal and metaphorical — refuses to stand still.
The 2025 Asia’s 50 Best Bars list will be unveiled on July 15 in Macau, the first time the ceremony will take place in the city, in collaboration with Wynn Macau and Wynn Palace. Those unable to taste the fevered air in person can tune into the live stream on the 50 Best YouTube channel at 20:00 Macau time, or follow the unfolding drama via the 50 Best social media channels.
In the meantime, there is this extended list — an invitation to wander, to taste, to dream. A map for the thirsty soul…
Position Bar City/Town
51 – Obsidian Bar – Shenzhen
52 – Pine & Co – Seoul
53 – Side Door – Singapore
54 – Soko – Seoul
55 – Bar Outrigger – Goa
56 – Sago House – Singapore
57 – Lab – Taipei
58 – Craftroom – Osaka
59 – The Han-jia – Tainan
60 – Origin Bar – Singapore
61 – Stir Ho Chi – Minh City
62 – Sidecar – New Delhi
63 – Gong Gan – Seoul
64 – Backdoor Bodega – Penang
65 – Sora Phnom – Penh
66 – Wu (Nothingness) – Taipei
67 – Gold Bar – Tokyo
68 – Pantja – Jakarta
69 – The Bombay – Canteen Mumbai
70 – Tokyo Confidential – Tokyo
71 – Mahaniyom Cocktail Bar – Bangkok
72 – Bar Mood – Taipei
73 – Under Lab – Taipei
74 – Epic – Shanghai
75 – Maltail – Kaohsiung
76 – Bee’s Knees – Kyoto
77 – Night Hawk – Singapore
78 – The Curator – Manila
79 – The Bellwood – Tokyo
80 – The Opposites – Hong Kong
81 – Sober Company – Shanghai
82 – Firefly – Bangkok
83 – Workshop14 – Hanoi
84 – Raa – Hiriketiya
85 – Coa (Shanghai) – Shanghai
86 – The Hudson Rooms – Hanoi
87 – The Haflington – Hanoi
88 – Mostly Harmless – Hong Kong
89 – Employees Only – Singapore
90 – Messenger Service – Bangkok
91 – Quinary – Hong Kong
92 – Coley – Kuala Lumpur
93 – The Enigma Mansion – Ho Chi Minh City
94 – Hideaway – Goa
95 – Fura – Singapore
96 – Charles H – Seoul
97 – Pony Up – Shanghai
98 – The Golden Tooth – Jakarta
99 vThe SG Club – Tokyo
100 – Bar Nayuta – Osaka
