Asia’s bar showdown opens in Macau on July 28
The “Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2026” awards ceremony will be held on Tuesday, July 28, at the Wynn Palace Grand Theatre in Macau. The “Bartenders’ Feast” takes place at the Gourmet Pavilion the day before, with a closing brunch party the day after. The ranking will also be livestreamed.
For Vietnam’s bar scene, the 2025 results were a turning point. Five Vietnamese venues made the extended list (51st–100th). For 2026, the focus is on “whether Vietnam can crack the top 50.”
The five Vietnamese venues that made the 2025 list
| Rank | Bar name | City | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61st | Stir | Ho Chi Minh City | Vietnam’s highest-ranked cocktail bar |
| 83rd | Workshop14 | Hanoi | An innovative bar on the shore of West Lake, winner of the Campari One To Watch award |
| 86th | Hudson Rooms | Hanoi | Inside Capella Hanoi, inspired by New York’s Fulton Fish Market |
| 87th | The Haflington | Hanoi | A “night at the museum” concept |
| 93rd | The Enigma Mansion | Ho Chi Minh City | A mansion-style bar, returning to the ranking |
Workshop14—winner of One To Watch just seven months after opening
Workshop14, on the shore of West Lake in Hanoi, won the Campari One To Watch Award just seven months after opening at the end of December 2024. Its bar director is Richard McDonough, the “bearded beverage maestro.” The venue is a renovation of a building erected on the former site of Princess To Hoa’s palace from the 12th-century Ly dynasty, transforming what was once an architect’s studio into a minimalist bar.
McDonough serves technique-intensive cocktails made with local ingredients, saying, “The history of West Lake is a history of craftsmanship—thirteen villages, each mastering a single craft.”
Points to watch in 2026
- All five Vietnamese venues sit within the 51st–100th range. Whether they can break into the top 50 in 2026 is the biggest question.
- In Ho Chi Minh City, new bars keep opening.The rush of café openingsFollowing, a “Saigon Renaissance” is underway in the bar scene too
- Special awards are also planned, including the “Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award” (service) and the “Altos Bartenders’ Bartender Award” (peer vote).
Voices from the industry
- “Vietnam’s bar scene has grown rapidly since 2023. Breaking into the top 50 is only a matter of time.” (a local bar owner)
- The Dot Magazine reports that “whether a Vietnamese bar can crack the top 50—that very question is the biggest talking point of 2026.”
- “With Workshop14 taking One To Watch, it proved that Hanoi is more than just a pho town.” (a food and drink writer)
For Japanese travelers—planning a bar crawl in Vietnam
Stir and The Enigma Mansion in Ho Chi Minh City, Workshop14 and The Haflington in Hanoi. Touring these four across the north and south is efficient. In Ho Chi Minh City, you candessert cafés,combine them to build a bar-crawl route. A cocktail typically costs 200,000–350,000 VND (about 1,200–2,100 yen). You can experience Asia’s top-tier cocktails for less than half the price of Tokyo.
Trends in Vietnam’s bar scene
In Ho Chi Minh City, new venues like Oculus and RAW + Atelier keep opening, drawing attention from bar-focused media.The growth of fine diningThe standard of cocktail bars is rising sharply, keeping pace with it. Whether the 2026 list announcement marks the opening of a new stage for Vietnam’s bar industry is worth watching.
Practical information
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Awards ceremony | Tuesday, July 28, 2026 |
| Venue | Wynn Palace Grand Theatre, Macau |
| Broadcast | Livestream planned |
| Official site | theworlds50best.com/bars/asia |
| Cocktail prices (Vietnam) | 200,000–350,000 VND (about 1,200–2,100 yen) |
Summary
Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2026 will be announced in Macau on July 28. Will the momentum of five Vietnamese venues making the 2025 list translate into a top-50 spot in 2026? A bar crawl in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi lets you taste Asia’s finest cocktails for less than half the price of Tokyo. The announcement will be livestreamed at theworlds50best.com/bars/asia.
Source: The World’s 50 Best / The Dot Magazine / Time Out
