Named for Hemingway. Built for serious drinkers. No reservations, no phone number, no front door sign.
The Old Man sits at 37 Aberdeen Street in Sai Ying Pun, unmarked and unconcerned with being found by anyone who does not know where to look. Bartenders Agung Prabowo and Roman Ghale opened it in 2017 as a love letter to Ernest Hemingway's drinking life — his favourite bars in Havana, his time in Paris, the daiquiris he consumed at La Floridita. Every cocktail on the 25-drink menu references a Hemingway novel, story, or known preference.
The drinks are exceptional. The Papa's Daiquiri is built on the notes Hemingway reportedly gave to the bartender at La Floridita — extra lime, extra Maraschino, no sugar. The A Farewell to Arms is a stirred cognac drink that shifts through dark fruit and smoke. The Sun Also Rises brings Spanish Sherry into a clarified aperitivo built for the long afternoon. None of these are theatrical in the Quinary mould — they are simply precise, flavour-forward, and deeply considered.
The room holds around 30 people. There is no phone number and no reservations. You show up. If there is a seat, it is yours. The team is relaxed and knowledgeable without performing expertise. This is the kind of hidden gem bar in Hong Kong that locals protect fiercely and visitors spend their first visit wishing they had more time to come back.
From Sai Ying Pun, the most natural continuation is east along Hollywood Road to Quinary for a molecular second act, or uphill to the SoHo strip for something more social. For the complete picture, our Hong Kong bar guide maps the best of all 18 districts.
