News and Insights

Tell Me What You Eat, I’ll Tell You Where You’ve Been

July 2, 2026

As if travel to Asia didn’t have enough going for it, the region sits at the head of the table for discovering and savoring contemporary dining and drinking trends.

“Food and beverage has always been a major part of travel here, with locals and visitors dining at hotels whether or not they are guests,” observes Magel Ordoñez of FINN Singapore, adding that hospitality brands have learned a lot about crafting memorable experiences at the table, such as the ongoing, multi-city Luxury Dining Series launched in 2024 by the Luxury Group by Marriott International. Ordoñez also points to lounges in her neck of APAC, including Nutmeg & Clove, Jigger & Pony, and Manhattan at Conrad Singapore Orchard, home of the Seasons of Manhattan cocktail menu. Each has been hailed among the 50 Best Bars in Asia or the World over the past few years. “They’ve turned themselves into destinations, inspiring travelers to discover what’s on the menu and in the neighborhood.” 

Just a couple of kilometers east, Hilton Singapore Orchard recently re-raised its image as a culinary destination with a new partnership with American celebrity chef, baker, and author Nancy Silverton, whose Southern California portfolio includes Pizzeria Mozza, La Brea Bakery, and chi SPACCA. In August 2025, Silverton spent a week at the Hilton dishing Californian-Italian cuisine at Osteria Mozza Singapore, the Asian edition of her Michelin-starred Osteria Mozza in LA, with a six-hands dinner featuring Dave Pynt of Burnt Ends in Dempsey Hill, Singapore, and Jordan Keao of Butcher’s Block, the wood-fired fine-dining experience of Raffles Singapore.

With a wealth of emerging urban centers and seven of the world’s 10 largest cities, things are also looking up for rooftop bars across Asia. “Hotels are realizing that providing bird’s-eye vantage points of the skylines around them can be a big draw,” says Cathy Feliciano-Chon, Manager Partner, FINN Partners Asia Pacific, who points to Bangkok, in particular, as fertile ground for cocktails on high.

Sky Bar, one of a collection of highly rated offerings within the Dome atop Lebua at State Tower in the Bang Rak district of Bangkok, is widely renowned for its incredible views and creative cocktails, including the signature Hangovertini, fashioned with Johnnie Walker Blue Label King George V for the cast and crew of The Hangover II. Other local rooftop bars include Akara Sky Hanuman Bangkok with 360-degree views from the 61st floor of One City Centre, and upscale Le Du Kaan Sky Bar on the 56th floor of The Empire Tower, noted by The Rooftop Guide as “the perfect spot to enjoy a breathtaking sunset while feeling the warm evening breeze.”

There are plenty more standouts for sky-high sipping in the region. The Roof of The Tokyo EDITION, Ginza, is a green retreat and quiet sanctuary for seasonal Japanese spirits and natural wine. MO Bar, with industrial-chic design and modern mixology reflective of Chinese heritage on the 79th floor of Mandarin Oriental, Shenzhen, was ranked #21 of Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025. And the Secret Roof of Alila Shanghai, doubling as a sun-drenched coffee spot by day and a high-energy cocktail terrace by night, delights with views over the grey-stoned rooftops of Zhangyuan, a historic complex of 1920s shikumen (stone-gate) townhouses.

Interestingly, the focus on travel-worthy dining and drinking experiences comes as consumption is in decline in parts of APAC. “Sobering Trend: Nearly Half of Young Japanese Never Drink Alcohol” reported the South China Morning Post in September 2025, noting findings from the marketing firm Mery Co that 44 percent of Japanese aged twentysomething don’t imbibe and another 16 percent do so less than once a month. Similarly, NielsenIQ found shifts away from habitual alcohol consumption locally, with 34 percent of Australians, 38 percent of New Zealanders, and 42 percent of Filipinos drinking less.

“People are consuming less alcohol, but they’re still going to bars to eat and drink,” says Annouchka Behrmann, Managing Partner of FINN Partners Hong Kong, who credits lower costs at bars compared with restaurants, and growing creativity on the bar scene. Indeed, as FINN’s Hong Kong office noted in Future of Food 2026, prepared for Marriott International, bars across Asia “are moving beyond drinks to deliver immersive curated experiences.”

For example, The St. Regis Jakarta’s signature St. Regis Bar – ranked #22 among Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025 – channeled New York roots and the multicultural culinary heritage of Indonesia into a twist on everyone’s favorite brunchtime hangover cure with The Batavia Mary mixed with locally made arak, cuka, and sambal oelek. “Listening bars” with roots in 1950s-era jazz kissatens of Japan are also re-emerging, with addresses such as Deaf Shop in Chiang Mai, and Kanpai in Ho Chi Minh City offering melodious alternatives to louder clubs.

Tea pairings are also finding fashion in the fine-dining sphere, as evidenced by the staffing of tea sommeliers at Wing Lei at Wynn Macau and Chef Tam’s Seasons at Wynn Palace Cotai, as well as at Crony in Tokyo, whose co-owner/sommelier Kazutaka Ozawa sees a bright future for the beverage in a health-conscious world: “The fact that tea has no added fructose, is organic, and places less strain on the body are key factors in its growing popularity.” (Each restaurant above has two Michelin stars, by the way.)

Sips & Nibbles

Decline in alcohol consumption isn’t limited to APAC. The sobering phenomenon is one of the Skift Megatrends for 2026: “Teetotalling Travelers Are Just Saying No to Booze.

Ask Google AI for “wine drinking techniques” and prepare to be ho-hummed. Enquire the same for mocktails, and things brighten: “Effective mocktail ‘drinking techniques’ are less about the act of drinking itself and more about the preparation and presentation that elevate the sensory experience, focusing on flavor complexity, texture, and visual appeal.” No wonder bar hounds are thirstier than ever for no- and low-alcohol concoctions, and the hospitality industry is happy to serve.

Indeed, sober-friendliness has become a rage, with lounges and bars whetting dry palates creatively. Billed as one of London’s “most celebrated cocktail and spirit destinations,” The Library Bar at The Lanesborough in Knightsbridge lists eight non-alcoholic concoctions on its menu, from The Blooming Wallflower with cherry and raspberries shaken with fresh lemon and cranberry juice, to the X-Rated with passionfruit and mango juice with vanilla flavors. The Dandy Bar at The Mayfair Townhouse features non-alcoholic cocktails fashioned by Olly Smith, the drinks expert on Saturday Kitchen on BBC1. Try the Blackberry Buzz, detailed by Smith as “a fruity tribute to the darkest, ripest blackberries that used to hang in the hedgerows around my Granny’s house in southern Scotland.”

Sounds delish. Yet Thomas Morris of FINN United Arab Emirates suggests sampling the non-alcoholic creativity of the region around him. “I would hazard a guess that the best mocktails anywhere are in this part of the world. The UAE is such a diverse, multicultural country, with 250 nationalities that really shape the culinary scene.”

Stars on that scene include Emirate cuisine, which Morris says is “finally having its moment” while recommending machboos of spiced rice and meat or fish. Dining destinations such as Michelin-starred Erth Restaurant in the Qasr Al Hosn cultural site in Abu Dhabi serve modern dishes shaped by Emirati traditions and local ingredients, and Bib Gourmand recipient Al Khayma Heritage Restaurant in the Al Fahidi Historical District of Dubai offers full-flavored takes on rustic cuisine. There’s also steampunk-inspired Amelia Restaurant and Lounge at Forbes Travel Guide-recommended Address Sky View in Downtown Dubai, which spikes its full bar menu and extensive wine list with non-alcoholic creativity like the Geisha 69 with honey, ginger, mango and buckwheat. 

Of course, creativity is the name of the culinary game all over. Nathan Kam, Senior Partner at Anthology FINN Partners in Honolulu, points to the “real growth” of locally produced spirits, a growing craft beer scene, and chefs opening restaurants that honor their ethnic roots through their cuisine, using local products grown or raised in Hawai‘i. On the coast of California, Montage Laguna Beach recently reimagined its signature dining experience with Studio Mediterranean as an homage to Mediterranean ingredients and light, sustainable California fare.

Further north in Sonoma County wine country, grapes from Montage Healdsburg were used to create Montage Estate, Montage International’s private label, available at all Montage and Pendry locations. Available since December in Cabernet Sauvignon, with Sauvignon Blanc and Rosé set for uncorking in April 2026, the wines were created in partnership with celebrated winemaker Jesse Katz of Aperture Cellars.

As noted by Torg, a Berlin-based B2B marketplace for the food & beverage industry in Europe, the private label wine market is experiencing “tremendous growth,” not least due to “consumer tastes trending toward distinctive, exclusive, and customized products.” Private label wine sales now account for up to 10 percent of domestic wine sales in the U.S., and up to 50 percent in some European countries. 

With so much good food & drink out there, what are travelers minding their calorie intake to do? Keep their eyes and palates out for “Ozempic menus” serving portions sized for diners on GLP-1s, as appetite-suppressing drugs employed for weight loss are known. As reported in the New York Times, such offerings are popping up all over NYC: From “teeny-weenie mini meals” featuring bite-sized burgers & fries and choice of a mini beer, martini, or wine at Clinton Hall locations, to the Italian Restaurant Lulla in Chelsea, where an aperitivo hour box for four guests comes with nine snack-size items.

Across the Pond, celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal recently began offering a Mindful Experience tasting menu at his three Michelin star restaurant The Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire, England, telling The Caterer that the days when people who ordered a tasting menu had to grab a burger on the way home are over. “Now, as our needs and expectations and appetites change, maybe this carefully structured menu is the perfect answer to what many people are looking for.”

Maybe, and to many, but not to all. As Blumenthal’s reliably snarling contemporary Gordon Ramsey related when asked by The Sunday Times if he’d ever consider smaller-portion menus for patrons on weight-loss medications: “That is absolute bulls***.”