The Pawn is now the Woo Cheung Tea House as Woo Cheung was the name of pawn shop at this location. I had a 9 course dim sum lunch set. Very nice but pricy. The set was HK$460 per person so alacart will be more. But it was very good, pretty & totally Instagram-able. Try this place if you want to splurge a little. read more

Tips: Happy Hour Sunday to Thursday 5 pm - 7 pm I do like the theme of The Pawn. Preserving the Old Hong Kong back in the 50s. A touch of the Colonial Era here and there. English spoken everywhere in the establishment including the patrons and staff. One of those places that Expats might feel right at home without communications issue. I almost tempted to speak Cantonese to the staff. Happy Hour drink prices is reasonable. Beers at $60, Cocktails at $70. Choices are limited but you can always pay full price and order from their regular menu. The balcony area overlooking the Tram track seems to be the best place to lounge and people watch. The entrance though is hidden at the side of the building. A little speakeasy feel, I do like that. read more

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I came here for lunch and had their set menu. The price comes out to 240 hkd for a 3 course set: appetizer, main, and dessert. You do get bread and butter but it's one piece of bread and not a bread basket. The food is prepared quickly and the pace that the food came out was perfect for a business lunch. I was able to sit down, order, and eat in about 45 minutes. The food presentation was at a five star level. The dishes were all presented beautifully and was impressed given how quickly the food came out. The taste was good but not as great as the presentation. The portion size isn't large and if you have a large appetite you may want to order off the a la carte menu. I ended up ordering the squid appetizer, red snapper , and chocolate mousse: 1) squid appetizer is really a light dish. The squid is prepared nicely but their isn't too much of it. The sauces were really nice and I enjoyed it even though it was only four bites. 2) the snapper was paired with a potato purée and green beans. The green beans were cooked perfectly and had a nice crisp bite to them. The fish looked nice but the meat of the fish was a bit mushy. I didn't enjoy the texture of the fish very much. 3) the chocolate mouse was really nice to look at. The mouse was formed in the shape of a cherry with a chocolate shell encasing put over chocolate cake base. Very tasty and aesthetically appealing dish. Overall my experience was a positive one and I hope to come back to try the brunch or dinner menu. read more

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Real talk, this place feels like a Hollister clothing shop.....with a bar. Maybe it's the leather lounge chairs, overly dim mood lighting, trance music, even those wooden panel divider things! Luckily, no overwhelming cologne scent though :) I came with a friend on a late Wednesday night around 11:30pm to grab a quick drink. It was super easy to locate from Wan Chai MTR, just take the A3 exit onto Johnston Road. Pros: (+) Large drink selection - even though the mixed drinks seem to be predominant here, I appreciated the 4-5 draft beer options they had. I was a fan of the Grimbergen blanche! (+) Breezy patio balcony area - good for small groups Cons: (-) Swanky prices - it's unfortunate that being hip ain't super cheap. The cocktails average around $100-140HKD, draft beers $70-90HKD. Overall, The Pawn is a hip, expat bar with hip prices to match; worth checking out once, but maybe not twice! read more

It's OK if you happen to be in Wanchai and you like to have a few drinks and hang out with some expats without having to go to Lan Kwai Fong (LKF), and you don't mind the high prices relative to the location. It's nice that it's located in a preserved historical building. Other than that, there isn't much to write home about. Place was cool with a distinct British flavor, but not particularly trendy or hip. The servers were cool and friendly, but the service was mediocre and confusing at best. Minutes after our drinks arrived, our server brought us another drink that we didn't order, so we let her know. Within the next few minutes, several servers brought that drink to our table even after we repeatedly told them we didn't order it. And you've probably guessed it -- that drink appeared on our bill. A few minutes later, they asked us to move to another table because the one that we're seated at was reserved. Really? So why did you seat us there in the first place? Meh... read more

Came here for the weekend brunch. Service was great, but the meal was highly disappointing. I guess since Tom Aikens' name is on the menu, I had expected so much more. We shared four appetizers all of which were below average, except for the avocado toast -- which isn't rocket science to compose. The ceviche was not marinated properly, The chicken salad was way over-dressed. Lobster mac n cheese was dry and bland. The main courses were all dismal. The steak dish had seriously hard Yorkshire pudding which was hard to cut into. The roasted potatoes on that dish were so overcooked the exterior had separated from the interior when you cut into it. The English Breakfast had a piece of black pudding that was like a hockey puck, burnt to a crisp and crumbled when I tried to cut into it. The roast chicken had rubbery skin and the presentation was appalling. Hollandaise sauce on the salmon Benedict (called Eggs Royale here) had a strange dark yellow hue and had a glossy, shiny finish. They offer a dessert buffet which is great if you have a sweet tooth. The best item on that dessert buffet was the treacle bar. All in all, the only thing I loved about the restaurant was the location. Housed in an old pawn shop, the decor and atmosphere is awesome. The setting is comfortable with both inside and patio seating. Only wish the food was better. read more

East meets West This is an old pawn shop building. You enter the second floor through a narrow unmark staircase. The balcony is open air. English is widely spoken here and the service is at par in the Central area. However, the drinks is just mediocre. Come here for the ambience. read more

The Pawn - Bars Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

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One of my favorite restaurants in HK! This British gastropub offers a tasty gourmet meal in a fancy retro setting but you pay $$$ for it. My British boss loved this place, and he used to take his team here whenever he can on our business trip. I love their braised ox cheek on mash and lemon trifle, sooooooo good!!!! read more

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I am not sure why this place reminds me so much of the Heritage 1881. Maybe because they are both listed as local heritage conservation site and now we have actually enjoy our meal up there. Before I talk about the restaurant, a little bit on its history: pawn shops used to be so common in traditional history where people can offer their possessions in exchange of loans. Back then it was seen rather embarrassing to be seen in such places (implying financial difficulties possibly), so you will see a wooden screen, which is called Dong Zung, at the entrance and before the counter. This is to block the customers from being seen outside so that they can be safely concealed by the board. Nowadays, that screen was fashioned in a rather contemporary 'door' and yet did not lose its aesthetic. This four-storey building captures the essence of the old time Hong Kong. As for the food, there are really lots of choices (and very costly just to warn you first). Personally, I love the Mussels, clams and calamari as they are very fresh and nicely seasoned. For a seafood fanatic, that is just PERFECT for me. What I like to do there is to bring some friends along, enjoy a good old meal while looking at cars driving back and forth on the busy street of Wan Chai. Though it is rather pricey, I will see that one of THE experiences in Hong Kong. So make a reservation and come and see! read more

The Pawn - Bars Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

Fancy cocktails about $100 each, wine, cigars. An exhaustive list of each. Not your typical cocktails like cosmopolitan, The Pawn's cocktails are crafty. For example, Blooming HK $120 Citadelle reserve gin washed with honey comb, Monkey Shoulder whisky, Kina L'Avion d'Or Aperitif, chrysanthemum bitters. Milk Tea $100 vodka infused with Lapsang Souchong tea, Mancino Biano vermouth, white chocolate, lemon, Boker's bitters, cotton candy. My friend had two sour cocktails, both were pretty good! So all four cocktails were nicely made, very strong. Blooming HK is as nice as it sounds. Unfortunately Milk Tea (served in a super cute mini milk jar) just tastes like creamy lemon juice. Alright with cocktails aside, I think the bar is just another typical lounge that I see everywhere in America, Canada, and Europe. It's the same thing, just located in Hong Kong. People who visit here are all foreigners either working here or just visiting friends. There's a b*ch blonde waitress who takes over serving all the tables, behind her are all the Asian waitresses who are trampled over. They are waitresses too but their job is to clean the table while the blonde girl doesn't. The Asian waitresses speak perfect English. There is nice DJ near the patio. By nice I mean he's really kind. However I think it's weird he's on the same floor as everyone, personally I think DJs should be in a cool-looking-upper-stage-booth-kind-of-thing. And yes there is a patio. Overall the atmosphere is not bad. read more

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I went there yesterday for an afternoon coffee. I found this place via a blog post on the best "wifi cafe"s of Hong Kong. Boy was I disappointed. Firstly, the place was not hard to find. Only a few minutes away from the MTR subway, and right on the footstep of the tram line, The Pawn is a building that you wouldn't really miss if you tried. It is an old historical building, as the name might suggest, it might have been a pen shop in the past. The facade is old, with Chinese features, you go up through an unmarked narrow staircase - very cool to begin with. Upstairs, the restaurant has a modern yet cosy decor. I can't really describe it for my lack of interior design vocab, but think of it as a loungy bar/ restaurant type with modern but tropical accents (geometric patterns, lime green and earthy hues). I was immediately impressed. I was seated and ordered coffee, of which starts at HK$50. Expensive. But I thought, ok, if I can actually stay here a while and get some work done, then that's fine. I proceeded to ask the waitress for the pword for wifi upon ordering. She told me the the password is very long, so she has to type it for me. That was basically code for giving me limited access to wifi no? Needless to say, I was disappointed to not get the chance to use my laptop. I mean, the place was empty, I could've just pulled out my laptop and asked for the password again.... but to get stares and the attitude from the staff? I guess this wasn't the place for what i wanted to do. I've also noticed that, although less than 5% occupied, it WAS occupied only by expat tai tai's at that time. Tai Tai's for those who are not from HK, mean (google definition) "ladies who lunch." In other words, a tai-tai is a woman who is married to a wealthy man, loves to shop, and goes to spas. So in other words, my experience there was tainted with snob appeal. From my guess, this place probably attracts (wannabe) hipsters, snobby expats and the like. I probably won't be going back despite the really nice decor/ atmosphere. read more

The Pawn - Outside facade, couldn't miss it - Bars Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

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I knew about Tom Aikens and his casual dining back in London. Since I really enjoyed it back then, I discovered there's one of his restaurants in HK and thought I might want to try it out. It's on the second floor of the place used to be the pawn shop, thought it's pretty cool building on this historical block. I went in on a Wednesday night and even better was I got 30 percent off on a la cart by reserving it with an app. I thought the interior design was quite pleasant. I was sat not on the balcony but in the inside section. It was a nice scene across the restaurant, not too tight nor crowded. I started off with a cocktail and thought it was quite decent. I had a shepherds pie and cheese cauliflower both came out really great. I am a fan of shepherds pie and I am really satisfied with that. I also tried some of the fish and chips and spinach salad my friend had. I thought there fish was brilliant. Spinach salad and the fries were alright. The staff were in generally nice but there was one was not that friendly at all. I guess the food made up for that. It's definitely a place to go back for more. A perfect place for a date too I would recommend for. Good job Tom !!! read more

I'm always willing to give a place a second shot, but The Pawn ran out of chances tonight. I don't like giving bad reviews. Mostly because it's an admission that I went to a bad restaurant. But I try to be responsible and let people know what they may be getting themselves into. First off, the bar (especially the bartender) were the best thing about the Pawn. The two stars I gave are principally for the pre-dinner cocktails. The decor reminded me of a taco cantina. Dark tile floors and wood tables. Not good ambiance for such an expensive place (more on that later). The menu was pretty limited. I got the filet. It was tender and tasty, but I ordered a side that did not come out with my meal. After asking about it twice, it finally came out after I was 2/3 of the way done with my steak. I no longer wanted it and asked that they remove it from our bill. The bill came and it was an eye opener. $1500 HKD for two entrees and 4 drinks. The quality of the food and service did not even approach the cost. I'm willing to pay a premium for a great meal. This was not a great meal or experience. I do not recommend The Pawn. read more

The Pawn - Sirloin filet. Brined for 24 hours. Juicy and tasty - Bars Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

I've been to the Pawn a few times, but don't expect a full review on the bar-restaurant itself. It's basically a great hang out for drinks with a cool terrace overlooking the tram rails. This is rather a review on the building architecture. You may have noticed the building distinctive features but haven't been so curious as to look into its background? You're in the right place. Keep reading. The Pawn, as it is colloquially known, was initially partly occupied by a Chinese pawnshop called 'Woo Cheong Pawn Shop', dating from 1888 and classified as a tong lau. Tong laus are pre-war Chinese style apartment buildings typically found in Hong Kong, Macau, South of China and Taiwan - the Blue House is also one of them (read review for more info). They would devote the lower ground for commercial purposes and the rest of the building for residential uses. Throughout history, the pawn has also been the site of various shops selling hats, shoes and birds. Even though it looks like a single block, it's comprised by four different ones all sharing a common façade. It went through restoration, which gave it a more British looking appearance, although not everyone was happy with this makeover. A few years ago the building underwent yet another change - this time Stanley Wong was picked to design the interior of the Pawn, giving it an even greater British flavor and turning into one of the favorite bars in the Wan Chair district. And just as a curiosity, the Woo Cheong Pawn Shop is still around; I haven't been able to find out where they are operating nowadays but I'm still on the hunt, stay tuned! read more

The Pawn - Bars Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

Will have to wait until I try some more food to give the full five stars, but this iconic venue had delish drinks, cool vibes, and a neat history. I felt charming just being in the place. They were able to accommodate our rather large party at the last minute, very polite and efficient service, and yummy fries. I will be back! read more

I visited the pawn in the afternoon so I feel like I had a bit of a different experience than other reviewers. I loved the location and felt like I was entering some cool, secret, hip (and I mean hip) space. The crowd seemed like a nice mix of expat business people and couples. They were only offering fish and chips for food which we enjoyed. Greasy but what can you expect! They had some interesting cocktails on the menu. Got their special and it was tasty. My SO went with a straight forward gin&tonic. He loved the tonic that they served. Great service. In conclusion: cool, hip space that I would love to spend more time in! read more

The Pawn - Fish & chips available during the afternoon. Pretty good! - Bars Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

The Pawn is in a renovated pre-war building that actually was Woo Cheong Pawn Shop. It has a very hip ambiance. Great craft cocktail drinks -- definitely worth the visit. I had Jet lagged #2 - which was apropos after a transpacific flight. The noise level is pretty decent given it is a bar - was able to hold a conversation without having to yell. Recommend for foodies, hipsters, etc... read more

The Pawn is actually, well, a pawn. I should add "was"- this is one of the very last buildings in Wanchai which still has the old colonnade style corridors underneath and it is on the register of listed buildings. It opened up a few years ago and back then there was a huge hype about it- and indeed the hype was sort of justified. Being able to wine and dine in a location like this, with the promise of top notch British cuisine sounded too good to miss. Unfortunately, I still haven't been there for food. I have gone, however, for drinks on several occasion and as soon as you enter the location you would be hit with a sense of history and appreciate how old buildings seem effortlessly classy. the décor inside is much like a pub (or gastropub these days) and I just found myself distracted from the conversation when I couldn't help but just admire the location for what it is. there is seating on the balcony for those who could stand it and I presume it would be a brilliant place for brunch on weekends. This place is not cheap- standard drinks will cost you around HKD100 and more but I would say that its probably worth it as much as you would pay entrance fees to a museum. At least you could drink here... read more

What you rarely ever find me at is a hipster bar. And there are a lot of those in San Francisco. More than one of my old dive bars got bought out by a restauranteur who immediately turned it into a hipster bar. From a design perspective, the Pawn is very much your hipster bar. A pre-war building that was renovated and repurposed as a bar and restaurant. The decor is dark. So I can't tell you what it looked like for the most part. The alcohol may have also clouded my memory. More on the alcohol later. I can tell you that the two bars are very well stocked and well designed. While I know HK to be hot and humid, the large open (what I assume to be French Doors) opens out to the balconies overlooking Johnston Road. Worth going out an watching the street from a few floors up. The drink menu is extensive from shots to cocktails. There's a rather elaborate drink menu which also features the mixologist who crafted the drinks. Oh man, it speaks to my inner-wannabe hipster. Notwithstanding the hipster nature, the drinks are quirky and are very very well thought out and not just a rehash of the inverse mojito or whatever that is. Food is interesting, but definitely limited. I would not recommend coming here for dinner. Bar food, maybe. It is rather pricey, but the ingredients are still worth a go. Because of its size, even at full capacity, it did not seem too noisy and I could talk with a person at one of the end table and still comprehend someone on the other end. Finally, the service is definitely its worst point (not the bartenders). This poor girl who was waiting our rather large party of 10 could not keep our orders together. She tried really hard to get everything proper. The drinks and food were fine for the first round, but she started tilting as the night went on. Bartenders were knowledgeable and awesome when I ordered my own drink at the bar. read more

My fav spot in hk to kill an afternoon with friends. Great food great service and great ambience. Don't get why the reviews aren't 5 stars all. Get at it. read more

Nice atmosphere, the service will let you WAAAIT and the food is awful and overpriced. Get used to second hand cigarette smoke while sitting there, waiting for slow service. They do have free wifi. read more

A good place to stop in for a drink and to grab a bite. Nice beer selection, good service and relaxing atmosphere. Was so good, I came back twice. An nice break from the busy streets of Wan Chai. read more

The Pawn's renovation must have cost a lot because the prices have inflated and the service is still mediocre. With the ship street options around the corner, we won't even bother to come here anymore. I should have left when the bartender with the early 90s high school haircut rolled his eyes and judged me when I requested a double bourbon. Isn't it your job to pour the drinks when I'm paying? Sorry if I'd rather have a nice stiff drink instead of one of your over priced cocktails. Sheesh. read more