Meet Hong Kong’s best bartender and best wine list sommelier of 100 Top Tables 2023, Devender Sehgal of Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong’s bars, and Nordic fine dining restaurant Embla’s Yulia Ezhikova
- Sehgal, beverage manager at the hotel, oversees The Chinnery and Captain’s Bar as well as The Aubrey, where he offers an omakase experience introducing spirits like shochu and awamori
- Contemporary Nordic fine dining restaurant Embla is headed by chef Jim Löfdahl, formerly of Frantzén’s Kitchen; Ezhikova opts to emphasise ‘quality over quantity’ in her wine list
Hong Kong’s drinks scene has never been better. Never before has there been such an array of world class options. Whether you want a cocktail, craft beer, wine, whisky, sake or soju, there’s an attractive option for every parched throat.
All of which makes selecting the city’s most outstanding bartender and wine list for South China Morning Post’s 100 Top Tables fine dining guide this year incredibly difficult.
Sehgal has come a long way since he first started bartending 12 years ago in New Delhi. Key to his success this year was his expert hospitality.
“As bartenders, we’re here to provide a service,” explained Sehgal. “So for me, one of the most important things as a good bartender is being able to read the room. It’s really important to be able to understand the guests that come into your bar, to listen to what they are saying and to listen to what they are looking for, what they are curious about and what they may not like.”
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Sehgal’s hospitality as a host is witnessed most clearly in the cocktail omakase experience he curates at The Aubrey. An intimate affair, Sehgal prepares a custom menu for no more than a handful of guests, providing a tailored and intimate experience like no other in Hong Kong.
“For me, the omakase experience fits with the Aubrey concept and what I’m setting out to achieve, to educate and raise awareness of new spirits like shochu and awamori,” he said. “The whole experience is one where you are challenged from the minute you sit down – you are trying new things that you may not normally choose – but from there, guests can learn new things about what they like.”
When it came to settling on Hong Kong’s best wine list, the maxim this year was “quality over quantity”. Certain establishments, especially those in large hotel groups, can draw on a collective wine cellar that provides them with access to many thousands of labels. While undeniably impressive, size is not everything.
Nowhere demonstrates this better than newcomer Embla. The contemporary Nordic fine dining restaurant opened on Upper Station Street just last year and has been an instant success. Chef Jim Löfdahl, formerly of Frantzén’s Kitchen, has done wonders in the kitchen but Yulia Ezhikova has been equally important as sommelier.
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Ezhikova revealed she aims to always have around 200 bottles available for guests to choose from and calls the wine list at Embla “an exploration of flavour”.
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Echoing Sehgal’s words, Ezhikova states that hospitality is her primary focus and that taking care of guests comes “first and foremost”. Despite that, if a customer queries her recommendations, Ezhikova is not afraid to engage in a conversation about the merits of any particular wine. Generally, though, she prefers to let her choices speak for themselves: “The most intelligent speech I can ever give won’t make anywhere near as much impact as the joy of drinking a well-made wine.”
