The latest addition to Hong Kong’s beautiful line-up of heritage hotel brands, The Hari has been on our radar for quite a while now. Named after the late Hari Harilela, father of Dr. Aron Harilela, the CEO and Chairman of the Harilela Group, the hotel comes strongly anchored family values but with a smell of glamour. One of the most powerful and fascinating clan in town, the Harilela have for long praised a certain lifestyle that perfectly combines family values and an appetite for the aesthetic and the beautiful.
Opened just before the Christmas 2020 holidays, The Hari Hong Kong is located on Lockhart Road right at the heart of a city that never sleeps and overviews the buzzy neighborhoods of Central and Wan Chai.
A Home
With rooms of reasonable size, ranging from 25sqm to 30sqm, but which have been carefully designed to maximise the space, The Hari creates a sense of privacy and home. In an effort to keep things simple, there are only 3 different room categories in the hotel.
Each and every details have been carefully though of, from your check-in at the lounge seating on a comfy sofa to the plush bathrobes in which you will be spending most of your stay, the warm design of the rooms, the luxurious aka heavenly comfortable bedding, for you to feel at ease from the minute you step into the hotel.
The rooms at a glance:
- King or Twin Room: 25sqm and walk-in rainforest shower
- Corner Room (only one per floor): 30sqm, views of Causeway Bay and walk-in rainforest shower
- Premium Corner Room (only one per floor): 30sqm, views of Wan Chai and Admiralty and walk-in rainforest shower
The suites at a glance:
Only 3 suites in total, all located on rooftop floor (30/F) and offering Victoria Harbour views, a private terrace and a bathtub.
For the Art and Literature Lovers
With an art curator entirely dedicated to source contemporary pieces of art for the property, you wouldn’t be surprise to hear that art is everywhere at The Hari. From the monumental piece that greets you at the ground-floor lobby to the ones decorating each and every one of the 200+ rooms and suites.
The lounge, the beating heart of the property, is a great place for socializing, ordering a little lunch or enjoying a cocktail or two but it is also home of a beautiful coffee table books collection in which aesthetes will for sure enjoy getting lost. Whether it is fashion, travel, adventure, history … that you are willing to explore, you will find a book to take you there.
I also have a feeling that when art fairs can happen again, The Hari will be the place where to enjoy some of the peripheral events surrounding the art madness with its location just a stone’s throw away from the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center. You know where to go if you want to meet art critiques, gallerists, collectors and maybe one or two celebrities.
For the Gourmets
With both an Italian and a Japanese restaurant, The Hari will please the palates of discerning gourmets.
Lucciola Restaurant & Bar invites you to enjoy traditional Italian fare such as the Vitello Tonnato along with Piedmont-born chef Francesco Gava family’s recipes such as the Ossobuco di Vitello Brasato – a 24h braised veal shank in Nebbiolo red wine sauce served with gremolada and saffron risotto – or the Spaghetti Acciughe e Tomino Fresco – spaghetti with anchovy, fresh tomino cheese, garlic and parsley. With only 35 seats, the restaurant offers a casual and warm atmosphere that perfectly echoes the vibes of the entire property.
Zoku Restaurant & Terrace is the Japanese restaurant and if both the name, meaning clan and being a nod to the Yakuza, and the menu are very Japanese indeed, the décor screams gastro-pub rather than traditional Japanese eatery. Will you choose to seat in one of the comfy sofa booths or at one of the low tables to enjoy specialties ranging from Makimono to Hosomaki, Temaki, Kushiyaki, Tempura, Nigiri and Sashimi? The beautiful dining room with its asymmetric origami ceiling leads to an indoor terrace where I cannot wait to enjoy sundowners once the weather warms up a bit.