(Hong Kong, 16 June 2025) — The Doctor is back. After a short hiatus, the enigmatic Dr Robben Fern returns with a new location and a bold new chapter this July - The Doctor’s Residence by Dr. Fern.
(Hong Kong, 16 June 2025) — The Doctor is back. After a short hiatus, the enigmatic Dr Robben Fern returns with a new location and a bold new chapter this July - The Doctor’s Residence by Dr. Fern.
The Doctor’s Residence by Dr. Fern is Volume II of the doctor’s Gin legacy, following his original Gin Parlour at Landmark. Now, housed within the Pottinger Hotel, ‘patients’ can expect emotionally complex cocktails, eccentric G&Ts, and umami-laced bites crafted for the chronically curious.
Specialising in gin and botanicals, Dr. Fern continues to treat your emotional and spiritual symptoms with personalised drinks of fresh, local herbs and botanicals paired with gin and other spirits, but this time from the comfort of his private residence.
Bar Manager Babit Burathoki continues to lead the charge, preparing the physician’s concoctions with the utmost care and expertise for their esteemed guests. “At The Doctor’s Residence, Dr. Fern continues to dish out unusual prescriptions according to symptoms, thoughtfully handpicking all ingredients and mixing them according to preferred flavour profiles,” says Babit.
The Cocktails: 10 New Prescriptions, 10 Altered States of Mind
Part cocktail list, part patient file, each drink arrives with a satirical prescription label — including diagnosis, dosage, tasting notes, and side effects and clinical absurdities — inviting drinkers to explore their subconscious via flavour.
Featuring unexpected ingredients such as squid, bacon, jellyfish, pickled watermelon rind, and floral compounds inspired by literary hallucinogens, the cocktails offer a deeper look into the Doctor's latest obsessions, with a dose of clinical surrealism. Think mushrooms meet mixology, saline seduction with a side of synesthesia, and martinis with a pulse.
A spicy herbal prescription, the Brinewashed (HKD $130) is a popular prescription to consume “when your neurons want a day off”. Consisting of Tamras Gin, coriander extract, house chilli brine, mint, lemongrass and clarified watermelon juice, this pickling blend ensures you “confuse your brain responsibly”.
Shroom Service (HKD $130) combines Native Australian gin and Fernet Hunter with calamansi juice, almond liqueur, coconut oil, finished with a foam composed of locally sourced aged Chinese mushrooms to create a delicate, herbal umami concentrate. Prescribed to subdue the senses and tap into the imbibers’ third eye for a spiritual shakedown, this earthy and tropical golden drink is to be consumed when shiitake happens.
A surrealist twist on the classic Manhattan, Sultan Serum (HKD $130) is composed of Oriental Gunpowder Gin, Plantation Pineapple Rum, Averna, Iron Buddha Tea, Cocchi Storico Vermouth, raw cacao, cocoa butter and garnished with a crown of orange peel. Skip the magic lamp and sip this instead. Side effects include: main character energy and fluent in pyramid schemes.
The Jellyfish Martini (HKD $130) is an aquatic aperitif made with squid distilled gin, thyme sous vide, Mancino Secco Vermouth, sake, jellyfish, cucumber bitters and saline solution, garnished with delicate mini blue jellyfish drops. This is the drink to have for a much-needed spiritual exfoliation.
The Gin Collection:
With over 400 types of gin, The Doctor’s Residence boasts an unrivalled collection — an extensive library of rare labels and botanicals bottled for every type of patient. Dr. Fern’s signature flavour wheel distils the meticulous madness into four core flavour profiles: junipery and citrusy, sweet and confectionary, spicy and savoury, and fruity and floral.
Making its Hong Kong debut, the Doctor proudly welcomes Ortiz IV Gin from Germany — a crisp, small-batch London Dry crafted with 12 botanicals including juniper, lemon peel, almond, cassia, and rosemary. Founded by Amando Ortiz IV and inspired by his grandfather’s Philippine gin tradition, this spirit balances bright citrus with warm spice and a clean, peppery finish — ideal for precise, aromatic prescriptions.
Ortiz IV joins a curated international G&T collection featuring rare and remarkable labels, including Citadelle Rouge from France and the smoky, single malt Ornabrak from Ireland.
Each G&T is paired with bespoke garnishes like elderflower tonics, pineapple gelees, micro herbs, and galaxy raspberries — all served in custom-etched glassware. Guests can also opt for Dr. Fern’s signature Floral Glow Ice (+$40) in any G&T — a translucent block encasing edible flower arrangements. As it melts, floral and citrus notes slowly infuse the gin, transforming each G&T from a clinical coupe to a blooming botanical.
Dr. Fern’s bar menu consists of umami flavour bombs designed to satiate the appetite: think comfort food reimagined with playful textures. Each with their own witty moniker, dishes include moreish concoctions such as Whipped Green (HKD $80) (Asian-spiced whipped edamame, with housemade fermented chilli oil and crispy lotus chips), the Codependent Fish Burger (HKD $120) (curry-spiced fish fillet, shredded slaw, pickles and salmon roe on brioche), Say Cheese (HKD $90) (queso fresco and burnt corn croquettes, ancho chilli mole sauce with housemade pickles) and Double Smashed Buns (HKD $160) (two smashed beef patties, chipotle mayo, caramelised onions, cheese on brioche).
The space, located on the third floor of the Pottinger Hotel, invites guests deeper into Dr. Fern’s world: an indoor lounge that’s snug and retro-chic, with emerald velvet seating, fern-patterned wallpaper, lava lamps and vintage furnishings that whisper secrets from the 1970s. Outside, the terrace opens into a leafy sanctuary of alfresco seating and botanical hideaways — perfect for unfiltered conversations and sunset prescriptions. Complete with a DJ booth, Dr Fern’s Residence hosts up to 120 guests.
Babit concludes, “Inspired by the era of being wild and free, The Doctor’s Residence by Dr. Fern is less of a bar and more of a lucid dream with a gin fixation. A surrealist clinic where botanicals are medicine, flavours are feelings, and the only side effect is wanting more. The new neighbourhood speakeasy aims to capture the pulse of Hong Kong, imbued with psychotropic wit, eccentricity and humour.”
The Doctor’s Residence by Dr. Fern is soft open now, fully open from 1 July.
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For more information, please contact COMPANION
Alex@companioncommunications.com
Dominique@companioncommunications.com
Address
3/F, The Pottinger Hong Kong,
74 Queens Road,
Central
Opening Hours:
Sunday: 5pm - midnight
Monday - Thursday: 5pm - 1am
Friday - Saturday: 5pm - 2am
Open Monday to Sunday including public holidays
IG: @drfernshk
About The Doctor’s Residence by Dr Fern
The Doctor’s Residence by Dr Fern is less of a bar and more of a lucid dream with a gin fixation — a surrealist clinic where botanicals are medicine, flavours are feelings, and the only side effect is wanting more.
Dr. Fern is an enigmatic physician and botanist, dedicated to crafting personalised cocktails that address both physical and emotional well-being. With a passion for treating advanced non-surgical ailments, he concocts peculiar gin prescriptions using bizarre and unheard-of ingredients sourced from his travels around the world, paired with locally foraged herbs and botanicals. With over 400 gins, his extensive collection houses rare and obscure labels, all chosen for their potential to unlock flavour combinations that border on the hallucinatory.
The Doctor’s Residence by Dr. Fern is Volume II of the Doctor’s Gin legacy, following his original Gin Parlour at Landmark. Now, housed within the Pottinger Hotel, guests are invited to step inside the doctor’s private residence. ‘Patients’ can expect emotionally complex cocktails, eccentric G&Ts, and umami-laced bites crafted for the chronically curious.