The man behind the world’s best cocktail bar is coming to Glasgow next weekend for a special takeover at one of the city’s best-known drinking spots.
Lorenzo Antinori, co-founder of Hong Kong’s Bar Leone, will be behind the bar at Kelvingrove Café in Finnieston on Saturday 17 October as part of the Scotland Served cocktail festival.
The visit comes just days after Bar Leone was named The World’s Best Bar 2026 at The 50 Best Bars awards in Milan on Wednesday.
It is the second year in succession that the Hong Kong venue has topped the prestigious global ranking, ahead of Moebius Milano in second place and Alquímico in Cartagena, Colombia, in third.
Bar Leone opened in Hong Kong in 2023, founded by Rome-born Antinori with business partner Justin Shun Wah.
Inspired by the traditional neighbourhood bars of Rome, it has built an international reputation by deliberately avoiding the formality sometimes associated with high-end cocktail bars.
The philosophy is described as cocktail popolari – cocktails for the people – with the emphasis on well-made classic drinks, relaxed hospitality and Italian food.
The bar is known for its negronis and martinis, as well as smoked olives and a mortadella sandwich which has developed something of a cult following of its own.
Its interiors feature vintage Italian football memorabilia and references to 1970s Rome, designed to make the space feel more like a neighbourhood bar than one of the world’s most celebrated cocktail destinations.
Antinori previously worked at influential bars including The American Bar at The Savoy and Dandelyan in London before moving to the Four Seasons in Seoul and then Hong Kong, where he helped establish the acclaimed Argo.
Bar Leone made an immediate impact after opening, entering Asia’s 50 Best Bars at number one in 2024 before going on to become the first bar in Asia to top the global list in 2025.
Its Glasgow home for the evening also has an illustrious history of its own. Kelvingrove Café at 1161 Argyle Street dates back to 1896, when the premises opened as a café and ice cream parlour.
After the building later fell into disuse, it was revived in its modern form and became one of the venues associated with the transformation of Finnieston into one of Glasgow’s main food and drink districts.
The restored original Kelvingrove Café signage remains on the exterior of the building, while cocktails have been central to the venue since its revival.
The Bar Leone appearance will be among the headline events in Scotland Served, a new nationwide cocktail festival taking place from 14 October until 1 November.
More than 400 bars, pubs, restaurants and hotels across Scotland are participating, from Glasgow and Edinburgh to Aberdeen, Dundee, Perthshire and the Highlands.
The World Class Cocktail Festival is being staged in partnership with Johnnie Walker and The Singleton, with organisers aiming to showcase different ways of drinking Scotch whisky through cocktails.
Glasgow venues taking part include Kelvingrove Café, The Pot Still, Blue Dog, Absent Ear and The Gate.
In Edinburgh, participating bars include Panda & Sons, Hey Palu, Bramble and Gleneagles Townhouse.
Panda & Sons will go into the festival with another major international accolade after receiving the Best Cocktail Menu award at The 50 Best Bars ceremony in Milan this week.
Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, Ninety-Nine and The Tippling House in Aberdeen and Draffens in Dundee are also involved.
The Singleton of Glen Ord Distillery Bar and Malt Rooms are among the Highland venues taking part.
The festival coincides with the World Class Global Finals, which will bring more than 50 leading bartenders from around the world to Scotland to compete for the title of World Class Bartender of the Year 2026.
A series of international guest shifts will take place around the country while the competition is under way.
On the same night as Antinori’s Glasgow appearance, Ago Perrone of The Connaught Bar and Erik Lorincz of KWANT in London will be at The American Bar at Gleneagles.
Bannie Kang of Side Door in Singapore will appear at The Gate in Glasgow on 18 October, while Maura Millia of The Rosewood Chancery in London will be behind the bar at Hey Palu in Edinburgh on 21 October.
James Kemp, Head of Luxury Customer Marketing and Trade Advocacy at Diageo, said: “At a time when Scotch is being embraced by cocktail culture around the world, Scotland Served is an opportunity to celebrate the creativity happening in bars across the country.
“Scotch whisky is something that we should all be extremely proud to call our own, and by bringing together more than 400 venues, we’re giving consumers the chance to discover Scotch served differently, from bright and zesty Johnnie Walker Highballs to flavour-forward Slowed-Down Sours made with The Singleton.”
Eleanor Morgan, Head of Whisky at Diageo GB, added: “Scotch is a spirit with incredible depth and versatility, and there are so many new ways to experience it that go beyond traditional expectations.
“Scotland Served is a chance to explore that versatility through cocktails, with bartenders experimenting with different flavours, techniques and ingredients to reveal new dimensions of Scotch.”
Scotland Served runs from 14 October until 1 November.