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.
“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?”
Ho added that he and his team “have been working very hard” as they are currently serving the 17th iteration of their menu.
