Raa Secures Place Among Asia’s Top 100 Bars for Second Consecutive Year.

Sri Lanka's growing influence on the regional cocktail scene has been recognised once again, with Hiriketiya-based bar Raa ranked number 71 on the prestigious 2026 Asia's 50 Best Bars 51-100 Extended List. Announced on the 14^th of July ahead of the main awards ceremony, the ranking is regarded as one of the region's most influential measures of excellence in hospitality and mixology, voted for by an academy of more than 300 bartenders, drinks writers and industry experts across Asia.

Following its debut appearance at number 84 in 2025, less than a year after opening its doors, Raa's second consecutive inclusion marks another milestone for the venue and further cements Sri Lanka's place on the global cocktail map.

Named after the traditional Sri Lankan coconut sap-based toddy, Raa was founded by childhood friends Don Ranasinghe and Lalla Perera and opened in August 2024 in the surf village of Hiriketiya. The venue is recognised as the world's first bar dedicated exclusively to Sri Lankan arrack and toddy-based cocktails and remains the only bar globally to serve fresh toddy tapped directly on site each day.

Built entirely outdoors and designed around a hyper-local, circular ecosystem, Raa celebrates the coconut palm in its entirety, incorporating every part of the tree, from fruit to husk, alongside wood-fired coastal cooking and a cocktail programme rooted in Sri Lankan ingredients, traditions and techniques.

Reflecting on the recognition, co-founders Don Ranasinghe and Lalla Perera said:

• "To have Raa recognised among Asia's best bars for the second-year running is an incredible milestone for our team and for the local community that helps bring this venue to life every day.
• "We created Raa to show that ancestral crafts such as toddy tapping are not relics of the past, but sophisticated traditions worthy of international recognition. Sharing the flavours, stories and hospitality of Sri Lanka with the rest of Asia means everything to us."

While intentionally focused in concept, Raa has taken Sri Lankan arrack and toddy culture to audiences across the region through a series of international collaborations and guest shifts at some of Asia's leading bars, including Sugarhall in Singapore, ZLB23 at The Leela Palace Bengaluru and House of Sathorn in Bangkok. Praised by international media and visitors alike for its originality and sense of place, Raa continues to demonstrate that a world-class cocktail experience can be built around a deeply local story, redefining the possibilities of modern mixology through just two indigenous spirits. A regional extension of The World's 50 Best Bars, Asia's 50 Best Bars celebrates excellence, innovation and hospitality across the continent. Raa's continued inclusion signals the growing influence of Sri Lanka's independent hospitality sector and its increasingly important role in shaping conversations across Asian cocktail culture.