Bar Leone in Hong Kong Wins World's Best Bar Again in 2026

Book Hong Kong around Bar Leone if cocktail rankings shape your trips: Bar Leone in Hong Kong was named the best bar in the world for 2026, winning the title for the second year in a row at The 50 Best Bars ceremony in Milan on Wednesday, October 7. Bar Leone's second straight No. 1 finish matters most. It puts Bar Leone ahead of Moebius Milano at No. 2, Alquímico in Cartagena at No. 3, Handshake Speakeasy in Mexico City at No. 6, and Bar Mauro in Mexico City at No. 10.

Mexico City is the only city with two bars in the top 10, Handshake Speakeasy and Bar Mauro. New York remains the U.S. play, with all four American bars in the main 50-1 list located there, but it does not have a 2026 top-10 bar in this set of results.

The 50 Best Bars 2026 is run by William Reed Business Media. The ranking is compiled by The 50 Best Bars Academy, made up of hundreds of anonymous industry experts.

Why Bar Leone in Hong Kong Owns the 2026 Conversation

Bar Leone won No. 1 for a second consecutive year. A first win can be timing, campaign energy, or a year when voters consolidate around a new favorite. A second year at No. 1 is harder to dismiss.

Bar Leone also took Best Bar in Asia, which gives the win a cleaner regional read. It finished above Moebius Milano, named Best Bar in Europe, and above Alquímico, named Best Bar in South America.

A No. 1 bar needs more than casual interest. Bar Leone has its own reservation and walk-in policies. The award was announced in Milan on October 7, which means the post-awards demand cycle starts immediately.

Peer comparison helps. Bar Leone is the reigning global No. 1 and Asia's highest-ranked bar. Mexico City has two top-10 rooms in one trip. All four American entries in the main 50-1 ranking are in New York. Milan gets a boost from Moebius Milano at No. 2.

How The 50 Best Bars 2026 Was Decided

The 50 Best Bars Academy comprises hundreds of industry experts. The ranking reflects a consensus of people who work around bars, visit bars, and track bartending talent across cities.

That methodology makes repeat wins useful for planning. For the second consecutive year, the academy ranked Bar Leone at No. 1.

The restaurant list has trained affluent travelers to move quickly after rankings drop: flights, hotel nights, dining reservations, bar seats, private guides. Bars now behave the same way at the high end. When Bar Leone wins again, the audience is not limited to Hong Kong regulars. It includes people building Asia itineraries around restaurants, hotel openings, and one night at the bar carrying the No. 1 title.

Mexico City appears in the top 10 with Handshake Speakeasy and Bar Mauro, then again in the 51-100 list with Form + Matter at No. 59 and Licorería Limantour at No. 63.

The 2026 Top 10: Mexico City Becomes the Efficiency Play

Moebius Milano, Milan, No. 2

Moebius Milano finished at No. 2 and was named Best Bar in Europe. Bar Leone still outranked it, but Moebius Milano gives Milan a clear bar target rather than a restaurant-only itinerary.

If you are deciding between Milan and Hong Kong purely on the 2026 ranking, Hong Kong wins on the No. 1 credential. Milan makes more sense if you are already crossing through northern Italy or building a trip around European restaurants and want the highest-ranked European bar on the same route.

Alquímico, Cartagena, No. 3

Alquímico in Cartagena ranked No. 3, was named Best Bar in South America, and also received the Michter's Art of Hospitality Award. That combination is the clearest hospitality signal in the 2026 results. A high rank tells you voters rated the total bar experience; the separate hospitality award tells you service registered strongly enough to win its own recognition.

It is a better fit than a purely technique-driven stop if your group includes people who want pacing and hosting to matter. Bar Leone has the global No. 1 title, but Alquímico has the clearest double recognition for ranking and hospitality in this set.

Handshake Speakeasy, Mexico City, No. 6

Handshake Speakeasy ranked No. 6 and was named Best Bar in North America. That puts Mexico City ahead of New York in the North American top tier for 2026, at least by this ranking. If your default U.S.-based cocktail trip has been Manhattan, this is the year to compare it against Mexico City rather than automatically booking New York.

The decision comes down to concentration. Mexico City has two bars inside the top 10, plus additional placements in the 51-100 list. For the highest-ranked North American bar, choose Handshake Speakeasy. For four U.S. entries in one urban grid, choose New York.

Bar Mauro, Mexico City, No. 10

Bar Mauro entered at No. 10 and received the Disaronno Highest New Entry Award. That is the ranking's cleanest new-arrival signal. Handshake Speakeasy gives Mexico City the continental crown; Bar Mauro gives it the fresh-arrival marker.

That matters for planning because one difficult reservation can fail. Two top-10 targets give you a better reason to commit hotel nights, especially if you are pairing bars with restaurants, galleries, and late dinners. Compared with Hong Kong, Mexico City is the stronger multi-bar case. Compared with New York, it has fewer U.S. entries in the main 50, but a higher ceiling in the 2026 top 10.

Special Awards: The Names Insiders Will Track Next

Shingo Gokan, Roku Industry Icon Award

Shingo Gokan received the Roku Industry Icon Award, and his career explains why that honor will matter to bartenders watching the 2026 results. Gokan was born in Kanagawa Prefecture in 1983, started his career in Japan, moved to New York in December 2006 without speaking English, and later founded SG Group (Wa Spirits¹).

His early New York story reads like a map of modern cocktail training. He applied for Angel's Share and did not get the job because he could not speak English. He worked in a restaurant for six months, became head bartender there, and later built a style that connected classic drinks, New York bartending, and Japanese technique. He had taken lessons in the Japanese tea ceremony and had worked at a sherry bar after learning about sherry (Diffordsguide²).

SG Group has expanded from Shanghai to Okinawa and Tokyo. In 2014, Gokan opened the speakeasy-style bar Speak Low and the bar tools shop OCHO in Shanghai. He has also developed The SG Shochu, a honkaku shochu brand with an ABV around 40%. In July, he made his Hong Kong debut with Gokan on Ice House Street, which gives the Bar Leone result another Hong Kong note: the city is drawing major Japanese bartending talent while also holding the 2026 No. 1 bar (Wa Spirits¹).

Gokan has said his drinks incorporate the Japanese culinary rule of the “fives,” and that Japanese glassware and ingredients are only part of the point; the age-old food philosophy and balance matter in every element. That gives you a direct lens for how to order in one of his rooms: look for balance across format, temperature, aroma, texture, and structure rather than a single showpiece ingredient.

Takuma Watanabe, Altos Bartenders' Bartender Award

Takuma Watanabe received the Altos Bartenders' Bartender Award. Watanabe is co-owner of Martiny's in Gramercy Park, giving New York another individual credential in a year when all four U.S. main-list bars came from the city.

For drinkers, that award is useful in a different way from the main ranking. A list placement helps you choose a bar; a bartenders' award helps you follow a person. If you are in New York, Martiny's belongs on the same planning board as the city's four main-list entries, especially if you care about Japanese bartending influence in Manhattan.

Alquímico, Michter's Art of Hospitality Award

Alquímico's Michter's Art of Hospitality Award gives Cartagena one of the clearest travel arguments in the 2026 awards. The bar already ranked No. 3 and took Best Bar in South America. The hospitality award adds a separate reason to prioritize it if you are deciding between Cartagena and another single-bar destination.

Hospitality awards can be more useful than menu awards for a mixed group. A cocktail obsessive may chase technique; everyone else at the table feels pacing, welcome, and service. Alquímico now has both the rank and the service recognition, which makes it a safer pick for a celebratory trip than a bar known only for drinks.

How to Use the 2026 List Before Everyone Else Does

Start with Bar Leone if you want the headline reservation. A second consecutive No. 1 title will push more cocktail travelers toward Hong Kong, and the best move is to treat the bar like a restaurant reservation: check the bar's own channels early, build flexibility into your evenings, and do not leave it to the last night of a trip.

Mexico City is the smarter long-weekend play. Form + Matter at No. 59 and Licorería Limantour at No. 63 add depth from the 51-100 list. If you have three nights, Mexico City gives you more ranked-bar routing than a single-stop pilgrimage.

Use New York differently. Four U.S. bars are included, all in New York City, with Sip & Guzzle at No. 14 and Schmuck at No. 11 among the named entries. Double Chicken Please at No. 53 and Employees Only at No. 78 appear in the 51-100 list. New York may not own the 2026 top 10, but it remains the easiest American city for stacking ranked bars without changing hotels.

Milan deserves a cleaner cocktail slot now because Moebius Milano ranked No. 2 and took Best Bar in Europe. If you are going to Milan for restaurants, design, or fashion, add Moebius Milano before treating the city as a pass-through. Cartagena earns a different kind of commitment: Alquímico has the No. 3 rank, the South America title, and the hospitality award.

The forward-looking read is that Bar Leone's repeat win will keep Hong Kong at the center of high-end cocktail travel through the next awards cycle, while Mexico City's two top-10 placements make it the city to watch for depth. Book Bar Leone for the crown; build Mexico City for the crawl; keep New York on the board for U.S. concentration.