As you traverse the narrow, hilly streets of central Hong Kong amidst towering skyscrapers and tightly packed shops, you’ll likely notice the abundance of antique stores alongside dried seafood, restaurants, street art, and retail. It’s fascinating to learn that the many intricate vases in these shops serve not just as decoration. Within these vessels, rice wine, liqueurs, tea, and even some of the dried seafood mature. Along Hollywood Road, you can admire a variety of these symbols before the attendant behind the counter releases one of the walls in the tiny shop, revealing an atmospheric space that feels like a historical bank. Amidst a massive vault, spiral staircase, bank windows, and benches, you’ll find more than what you expected—except a financial institution.
The newly opened Maggie Choo’s fills what feels like a movie set with live jazz music and cabaret dancers. For Americans, the atmosphere is very 1930s, with modern cocktails and shareable plates including charcuterie boards, irresistible fries, and substantial options like mini beef burgers, popcorn chicken, and slow-cooked lamb shank (with sticky hoisin and sesame).
“The drink program at Maggie Choo’s is designed to appeal to different demographics for different hours of the night,” says Sandeep Sekhri, creator of the Boutique Bars hospitality group. “Maggie Choo’s offers immersive and entertaining experiences, including daily live jazz performances from 7 to 10 p.m., as well as DJ sets with dancers for the later hours, so the bar concept needs to be adaptable.”
Expect curated cocktails in the after-work hours and batch cocktails when the bar is bustling late. Don’t forget to use the restroom beforehand to catch a glimpse of the vault.
For a reality check, BaseHall 02 beneath the Jardine House Tower provides a stark contrast to the dark and mysterious atmosphere of Maggie Choo’s. Amidst huge modern shopping centers, the underground food hall epitomizes the new. The food concepts are chic and cool, with neon signs and beautifully branded stalls separating steaming dumplings and slurpable noodles. At the very back, a quick sign points to the Artifact Chef’s Table, an omakase counter. Beyond that, mystical shimmering circles guide the curious onward.
Follow the shiny dots to a discreet button that triggers a sliding door, leading those in the know onto a textural journey into the galactic space that is the Artifact Bar. Drinks industry experts Beckaly Franks and Ezra Star have introduced a cocktail lounge like none I’ve seen before. The bar resembles the command center of a spaceship, with impeccably crafted cocktails served around orange lighting, while the tables offer intimate spots that feel more like being on a spacecraft in the most sophisticated way, rather than kitschy or themed.
“You lose all elements of time and space,” says Franks about the “Psy-Fi” space designed by Nelson Chow of NCDA, though “an artifact is a sign of time, evidence of journey.”
Order a Bread and Butter and forge new friendships. Despite a layout that allows for an independent experience with your group, this is a meeting point.
“We serve people, not drinks,” emphasizes Franks in all her venues. “At the end of the day, we’re a bar meant to entertain guests, build beautiful teams, and, above all, just have fun.”
Partner Michael Larkin completes the team, which Franks describes as “a triangle of complementary force” behind internationally recognized sister bars like The Pontiac and Mostly Harmless, among others. Ask them where to go next.
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