Hanabi Whiskey Bar Rises From the Dead With Refurbished Look and Cocktails

Once in a while, instead of us having to go across town to check out some new bar, the bar comes to us. Actually, to be honest, this has never happened until now, and while Hanabi is not actually new, having operated in our small office compound since 2009, they started making a lot of noise recently with some renovations, so we decided to take a look.

It's worth noting that Hanabi is so close to our workstations that we could throw a spitball at the front door from the window of our office, though we won’t because we wouldn’t want to do anything that would prevent us from receiving free whiskey at the completion of this review.

Up until recently, we acknowledged that this little bar existed, and we thought “wow, interesting, there is a whiskey bar here,” but never saw anyone go inside during working hours. Occasionally late at night, you will, however, see a bunch of luxury cars parked outside, which we assume are the regulars at this tiny place.

As far as we know the new bar hasn’t deviated too much from its original formula, of a high-end whiskey bar that occasionally does cocktails, but we can say that they have given the space a much-needed facelift that features a more polished concrete look, along with some new menu ideas from known Sanlitun barman, Cobain Fu, responsible for establishments like De Refter, Long Jing, and Mesh.

As with the original Hanabi, the private rooms remain, in addition to a beautiful long wooden bar top that seats approximately 10, and a wall that contains over a 100 illuminated whiskey bottles from around the world, giving the room a warm amber glow. 

It's a sharp little place with an ambiance that allows you to sip your whiskey in peace without the noise of the surrounding party zones challenging your smooth jazz induced vibe. This, along with it being the closest bar to Chaoyang Hospital, and the fact there is a parking lot, can make it a destination for whiskey lovers in the neighborhood.

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Email: danielkippwhittaker@thebeijinger.com

Photos courtesy of Hanabi, Kipp Whittaker