The old Cuban cocktail manuals spoke in code—recipes cloaked in metaphor, whole drinks lost to time and translation. One of them, a forgotten classic called the Montana, has resurfaced not in Havana or Miami, but on a curve of Hollywood Road in Hong Kong, reincarnated as the namesake of a new bar from two of the world’s most decorated bartenders: Lorenzo Antinori (Bar Leone) and Simone Caporale (SIPS).
Opened in July, Montana is more than just another international bar launch. It’s a love letter to Cuban mixology and a tribute to the sugar-rush glamour of 1970s Miami, when the city was awash in Latin soul, neon light, and the syncopated rhythms of Celia Cruz and ABBA. At 108 Hollywood Road, beneath a halo of gold light and with a pulse that echoes the Club Deuce, Antinori and Caporale are bottling joy, one Piña Colada slushy at a time.
This isn’t their first dance. Antinori and Caporale first crossed paths in London back in 2012—Lorenzo then working the bars at The Savoy and Dandelyan, Simone defining the gold standard at Artesian. Since then, they’ve carved out elite reputations on separate continents. Antinori’s Bar Leone has twice been named Asia’s Best Bar, while Caporale’s Barcelona-based SIPS was crowned World’s Best Bar in 2023. Montana, their first joint venture, is a distillation of years spent in the pursuit of perfect service and unforgettable drinks.
The cocktail program is unapologetically bold, poetic, and precise. Highlights include the Montana Daiquiri, a Santa Marta-style daiquiri made with rum, lime, maraschino, and framboise eau de vie—served ritualistically with bespoke shakers during the nightly “La Hora del Daiquiri.” The El Presidente—rum, quince vermouth, saffron and orange curaçao—comes “aged” in dulce de leche-coated bottles. And the Rum & Coke Sour reimagines the Cuba Libre with Italian amaro and ginger falernum.
Inside, the aesthetic lands somewhere between Havana’s Hotel Nacional and a pastel dream from Scarface. The menu leans nostalgic: rum-marinated pineapple slow-roasted on a bar-top rotisserie, scooped onto vanilla ice cream and kissed with Caribbean sea salt. Latin funk rolls through the speakers. It’s curated, but never contrived—hospitality with swagger, not stiffness.
In a city of speakeasies and mixology temples, Montana feels like something rarer: a bar that’s alive, vibrating with rhythm and reverence. Antinori and Caporale haven’t just opened another bar—they’ve conjured a vibe, an era, and a reason to believe in the magic of the perfectly made daiquiri.
For more information, head over to their Instagram.
