Ne Cocktailbar

Ne Cocktailbar takes its name from the Negroni, the owner's favourite drink, and the classic Italian aperitif is the heart of the menu. The bar seats around 40 people and is built around its counter, where you can watch the bartenders at work and ask for drinks made to your taste. It sits at 3B Tong Duy Tan Street in the Hang Bong area of Hoan Kiem.

The house speciality is a range of infused Negronis, with versions flavoured with cinnamon, jasmine, chilli, coffee or cloves. Ordering two or three of them in small rounds is a good way to compare how each infusion changes the drink. The chilli Negroni is a favourite for those who like heat, and earlier menus also featured drinks such as Autumn in Hanoi, with ginger and apricot, and Tao Phao, with gin, soy and jasmine.

The bar was co-founded by the bartender Pham Tien Tiep, who also created many of its drinks and has said the name doubles as his son's nickname. The other drink to try is the pho cocktail. He created it for the Diageo World Class competition, where it won, and it takes its inspiration from Hanoi's best-known noodle soup. Made with cinnamon and anise, it is a talking point and a good example of how Hanoi bartenders have used local flavours in cocktails. If neither appeals, the bartenders will make a custom drink if you describe what you like.

Prices are moderate for a cocktail bar in the city. Ne is open daily from 7.30pm to 2am, which makes it one of the later options in the centre. Seats at the counter go first, so arrive early in the evening if you want one, particularly at weekends. With its counter focus it suits couples, small groups and solo drinkers who enjoy talking to bartenders.

The bar is close to Hanoi's Train Street, and The East, a Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant serving northern Vietnamese food, is on the same street at 5B, which makes for an easy dinner beforehand. It is easy to combine dinner nearby with a Negroni here, or to make it the final stop after Polite & Co or the jazz club on Trang Tien Street.