When I'm going out in Central, one of the first bars that come to mind is OZU. They serve some pretty intricate cocktails, rock a fun happy hour with tasty finger food, feature an urban ambiance not seen anywhere else in the hood, and constantly have quality hip hop music playing. When all of those things are clickin', it almost becomes too easy to make this a default location to hangout.
The interior is a series of urban artwork sprawled across the walls in mural form. It is unique, clearly custom made, and blends into the intimate feel for ambiance like no other. OZU doesn't feel that small due to the high ceilings, but it isn't huge by any means. There are only a handful of tables and some tallboy table action out front. There are fans mounted on the side for added ventilation, which will prove to be useful during the muggier summer weather (AC units are a tad high up).
One of my favorite times to partake in the OZU experience is during their superb happy hour. Their menu (http://ozubar.com/happy-hour-menu) consists of food and drink items that are priced $50HKD or less. Premium items (top shelf liquor, expensive meats) will be $20+ but thankfully most of the menu is mainly $50. I tend to go simple, such as a their uber tall glass of Asahi from the tap since it's perfectly cold. An added bonus is their Japanese whisky selection (limited to Hibiki, Nikka, and Yamazaki) is priced at $100HKD.
The food menu reminds me of simple izakaya snacks. Things from chicken popcorn + parmesan mayo to pork dumplings to grilled meat on sticks. There are veggie friendly items such as mushrooms, tofu fries, zucchini fries, edamame, and a tempura bucket of sweet potato, zucchini, and green bean. I personally love the chicken slices and pork neck the most, as they have the most flavor and is generous portion wise.
Their specialty cocktails deserve some mention as well. Not only do the Roses & Sake (sake, fresh roses, edenflower, roses syrup) and Smoked Lychee Sake (fresh lemon, sugar, sake, kwai feh lychee liquor) look amazing, but they taste extremely potent as well. When I'm looking for results, I'll shoot for either the Sakella (tequila, sake, lime juice, passion fruit) or the Green Tea Smash (vodka, sake, lemon juice, mint, and green tea syrup). A few of those and I'm feeling great into the night.
Lastly, while many folks will have gripes with the ladies in service, I tend to cut em a break because the DBag count in Central is usually at an all time high. While sipping my drink and snacking, I just let the live DJ (nightly) take over with some serious mixing and get lost into the night. Beware of the tiny bathrooms and be cognizant of the prices as everything can get expensive real fast. 4.5 stars rounded up. read more