Singapore Crowned Bar Capital Of Asia With Best Bar Of 2018

Written by: Poppy Skinner Created: 08 May 2018

For the second year in a row, The Manhattan bar at the upscale Regent Singapore Hotel has been crowned Asia's best bar, for recreating old New York glamour with dark wood, marble and leather décor, and vintage cocktail recipes. 

Winners of Asia's 50 Best Bars were announced at Capitol Theatre in Singapore Thursday, highlighting the best watering holes across Asia. 

Rounding out the podium is Taipei's Indulge Experimental Bistro and Shanghai's Speak Low.  With 12 addresses apiece, Singapore and China dominate the 2018 edition of the list.  Inspired by the 'Golden Age' of cocktails, the Manhattan bar pays tribute to the Big Apple with a menu that time travels from the 16th century, when the banks of the Hudson River were being settled by Europeans, through to the 'bright lights, big city' era of the 1980s and 90s. The menu features artisanal spirits and resuscitates classic and forgotten cocktails like the Iron Horse, named after the first steam locomotive that traveled from Chicago to New York City, made with Monkey Sloe Gin, Lillet Blanc, Crème de Cacao, Grenadine and Lemon. 

The Manhattan, helmed by mixologist Philip Bischoff, also features what they call the world's first "in-hotel" rickhouse, a storage space filled with house-made, barrel-aged spirits and bitters, and a storeroom stocked with jars of pickles alongside dried and brined ingredients for their cocktail menu. 

The ranking is published by the same group that organizes the World's 50 Best Restaurants and is based on the votes of 200 journalists, bartenders, bar owners and "well-traveled cocktail aficionados" who make up Asia's 50 Best Bars Academy. 

Here are the top 10 bars in Asia for 2018: 

1. The Manhattan, Singapore 
2. Indulge Experimental Bistro, Taipei 
3. Speak Low, Shanghai 
4. Atlas, Singapore 
5. The Old Man, Hong Kong 
6. High Five, Tokyo 
7. Tippling Club, Singapore 
8. Native, Singapore 
9. The Bamboo Bar at Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok 
10. Lobster Bar and Grill, Hong Kong 

  ARTICLE TAKEN FROM AFP/ RELAX NEWS: vs/cm - Relaxnews

Written by: Poppy Skinner

Poppy covers a wide range of topics at Billionaire, having spent the past 13 years at companies including Singapore Tatler, Her World Plus and Harpers Bazaar UK. She has a passion for fashion, jewellery and travel as well as an avaricious fascination with crime novels. Follow her at poppypskinner on Instagram.