Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2026: Hope & Sesame in China’s Guangzhou takes top spot
Guangzhou's Hope & Sesame has been named the top bar in Asia, marking the first time a mainland Chinese establishment has secured the number one spot. The award was presented at the 11th annual Asia’s 50 Best Bars ceremony held in Macau.
Why it matters
This win highlights the growing influence and sophistication of the Chinese hospitality and cocktail scene on the global stage.
For the first time, a mainland Chinese bar has taken top spot at the Asia’s 50 Best Bars awards.
Guangzhou’s Hope & Sesame was the big winner at the 11th edition of the awards, held at the Wynn Palace resort in Macau on July 28, ending the two-year reign of Hong Kong’s Bar Leone. It also scooped the Best Bar in Mainland China Award.
Its co-founder, Hongkonger Andrew Ho, won the Bartenders’ Bartender Award last year.
“We started with four people, now we’re [a team of] over 100,” said Ho, who opened a Shenzhen branch of Hope & Sesame in 2022, as he accepted the award on stage with his team, who were visibly emotional.
Hope & Sesame’s win coincides with the bar’s 10th year of operation and, when Ho was later asked how he felt, he quipped: “I think the only question is, why not earlier?”
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