On Hollywood Road, in the restless heart of Hong Kong’s Soho district, Montana takes its cues from a world far beyond the city. Its drinks belong to the golden age of Cuban bartending; its music and atmosphere recall Miami in the 1970s, when waves of Cuban immigration brought new flavours, sounds and energy to the city. Salsa met disco, neon glowed against rum-filled glasses, and a night out could stretch well into the following morning.
Behind the bar are Lorenzo Antinori and Simone Caporale, two longtime friends whose careers have placed them among the most influential bartenders of their generation. Antinori is the founder of Hong Kong’s Bar Leone, named The Best Bar in Asia and ranked second on The World’s 50 Best Bars list in 2024. Caporale co-founded Barcelona’s Sips, which was named The World’s Best Bar in 2023 before placing third globally and taking The Best Bar in Europe title the following year. Montana brings their considerable experience together in a project shaped as much by friendship as professional ambition.
The pair first met in London in 2012. Caporale was then building the reputation that would help Artesian at The Langham secure four consecutive World’s Best Bar titles. Antinori was developing his own approach through roles at The Savoy’s American and Beaufort bars, before becoming head bartender at Dandelyan. Their friendship grew over late-night drinks and a shared belief that the best bars should feel candid, generous and alive rather.
That philosophy runs through Montana. The bar takes its name from an obscure cocktail found in a historic manual produced by the Club de Cantineros, Cuba’s legendary bartenders’ guild. Founded around the principles of technique, discipline and hospitality, the organisation helped establish the standards associated with Cuba’s great cocktail era. At Montana, that heritage is treated with respect, though never with the solemnity of a museum piece. The classics have been studied closely, then adapted with the confidence of bartenders who understand when to preserve a recipe and when to push it forward.
The Montana Daiquiri follows a formula found in a 1930s edition of the Club de Cantineros manual, combining rum, lime and maraschino with a float of kirsch eau-de-vie. It arrives with bespoke shakers and has its own nightly ritual, La Hora del Daiquiri, during which the bar turns its attention to one of Cuba’s most enduring contributions to cocktail culture.
The El Presidente is more elaborate. Rum is joined by quince vermouth, orange curaçao, saffron and bitters, before the drink is “aged” in a bottle coated with dulce de leche. It is a composition that respects the elegance of the original while introducing richer, more unexpected flavours.
Elsewhere, a Rum & Coke Sour recasts the Cuba Libre with Italian amaro, ginger falernum, cola syrup and lime. The Piña Colada is blended with barbecued pineapple juice and toasted coconut, served as a playful slushy that suits the bar’s more exuberant side. Mojitos are kept cold and sharply made, while the eponymous Montana offers guests a chance to discover the little-known drink that gave the bar its name.
For all the attention given to the cocktails, Montana has been conceived around the full arc of an evening. Music is central rather than incidental. Celia Cruz, Gloria Estefan and ABBA might follow one another on the playlist, echoing the unlikely combinations once heard across Miami’s dance floors. Latin funk moves beneath the sound of conversation, while golden light, colourful neon, warm sun-faded tones and vintage lettering give the room a feeling of familiarity without turning it into a nostalgic set.
The reference point is the Miami dive bar: relaxed, lively and centred firmly on the counter. Montana draws particular inspiration from institutions such as Mac’s Club Deuce, where atmosphere comes from the people in the room rather than overt displays of polish. The result is a space that feels considered but avoids preciousness. Strangers can settle in for a single Daiquiri and find themselves staying for another round.
Food follows the same Cuban thread. The signature BBQ Pineapple Helado begins with pineapple marinated in rum and spices, then slow-roasted on a rotisserie positioned beside the bar. Served with vanilla ice cream and Caribbean sea salt, it brings together heat, sweetness and a touch of theatre, while the wider menu revisits Havana favourites for a contemporary Hong Kong audience.
Montana’s appeal lies in the meeting of exacting craft and easy pleasure. Antinori and Caporale have spent their careers examining what makes a cocktail memorable, yet here the technique remains largely behind the scenes. What reaches the guest is a cold glass, an inviting bar stool, music at the right volume and the sense that the night could still go anywhere.
In a city already known for accomplished cocktail bars, Montana offers a distinct proposition: Cuba through the lens of Miami, interpreted in Hong Kong by two friends who understand that hospitality begins with making people feel at ease. The Daiquiris may be razor-sharp and the recipes grounded in history, but the real measure of the bar will be simpler—the conversations that begin across its counter, the songs that keep guests in their seats and the decision, inevitably, to stay for one more.
To find out more about Montana, visit the links below:
Montana
Shop A, G/F
108 Hollywood Rd
Central, Hong Kong
Web: montanabarhk.com
Instagram: @montanabarhk