Popinjays has a new bar manager and his new ten-drink-strong cocktail menu makes a strong case for knocking off early.
There’s a specific kind of Hong Kong evening that only works from a rooftop. The emails are still coming in, but the light over Central has turned gold, and the city looks better from up here than it did from your desk. Popinjays has always been built for that moment and now it has a new cocktail menu to match.
The sophisitcated rooftop haunt has launched a fresh cocktail list to mark the arrival of Bar Manager Kervin Unido. His debut splits into two collections. The Italian Riff is a seasonal ode to Italy’s bittersweet traditions, while the Popinjays Refined Classics list takes drinks you already know and tweaks them in the most refined and reverent ways. There’s ten cocktails, priced HK$138–168 (roughly US$18–22). Here’s how to drink your way through them.
The Italian Riff: Aperitivo Hour, Upgraded
Unido has crafted the new collection to track the evening itself, with lighter, brighter pours for sundown and darker sippers for once the lights come on.
Start with the Torino Tropics (HK$138, below), the menu’s most playful drink. Campari and Mancino Rosso Amaranto bring the bitter backbone, then lychee and coconut espuma soften everything into something creamy and faintly exotic. Think Negroni on holiday.
The Jasmine Rossini (HK$148) is the date drink. Prosecco carries macerated strawberry and a surprise hit of cold brew, finished with a jasmine tea sparkle. It’s elegant without being precious.
The Caffè Garibaldi (HK$148) is the one to order if you only order one. The classic Garibaldi is Campari and fluffy orange juice but the talented Unido infuses the Campari with coffee, adds cacao, and runs the whole thing through a nitro system – fancy stuff. The result pours with a slow, silky cascade. It’s roasted, bitter and bright at once, and it may be the smartest drink on the list.
You can take a vacation without leaving your seat with the Amalfi Fizz (HK$138), which makes for the coast with gin and Acqua di Cedro, with preserved lime delivering a savoury edge and passionfruit and NON-3 Toasted Cinnamon & Yuzu adding sweetness and warmth.
We’d suggest closing with the Midnight Tonic (HK$148), a clensing, herbal libation laced with Amaro Camatti and Rabarbaro Nardini that’s dancing with zero proof NON-1 Salted Raspberry & Chamomile, with a hint of tonka bean to keep the tempo. This is your last drink before the taxi.
Popinjays Refined Classics: Familiar, Then Not
The second collection plays with texture and savoury depth. Each drink starts from a classic you’d recognise, then takes a sharp turn.
The Wa Mui Sour (HK$148) is the most Hong Kong drink on the menu, with punchy plum-infused pisco and a twist of salted plum (the dried snack every local grew up with). Order it for any visitor who asks what Hong Kong tastes like.
The Tomato & Basil Smash (HK$138) reads like a salad and drinks like a smoky Bloody Mary’s cooler cousin thanks to both gin and mezcal and the marriage of tomato liqueur, fresh cherry tomato, basil, strawberry and lime. Meanwhile, the Jalisco Papaloma (HK$158, above) remixes Mexico’s favourite grapefruit highball with a touch of sweet papaya and a Tajín finish for smoke and heat.
If you’re on the company’s dime, opt for The Jungle Bird (HK$168), the menu’s most complex and priciest option, a symphony of Kampot pepper rum, smoky mezcal, Orgeat, honey, pineapple and pink grapefruit. Tiki fans, this one’s yours. And finally, if you (or your date) has a sweet tooth, the Tiramisu Martini (HK$148, above) makes no apologies, with Ketel One Vodka accentuating a house-secret tiramisu mix for a smooth, decadent nightcap.
The Verdict
Unido’s debut is confident without showing off. The Italian Riff gives Popinjays a proper aperitivo identity, and the Refined Classics prove the team can be clever without being gimmicky. If you go once, start with the Caffè Garibaldi and finish with the Wa Mui Sour. If you go twice, work your way through the rest. You’ll want to.
