A new Italian restaurant and cocktail bar has landed on Central’s Duddell Street. IL PRESIDENTE, from the founders of Wan Chai’s Trattoria Felino, opened this summer with a 70-seat dining room designed by Dix Design and a bar program that treats the aperitivo hour as a main event.
The space sets the tone with rosewood wainscoting, Belgian velvet, British leather, and deep orange tones—a throwback to Italy’s glamour era. Guests ascend the historic granite steps before stepping through a sunset-orange facade into a world of plush carpets and soft lighting.
Executive Chef Marcello Scognamiglio anchors the menu in what he calls “new classic” Italian cooking. Starters include Wagyu beef carpaccio finished tableside with aged balsamic and hamachi crudo with smoked eggplant. Pastas feature homemade agnolotti all’ossobuco with parmesan fondue and a giant cannellone with ricotta and spinach. Mains highlight a breaded veal chop stuffed with Fontina and smoked ham, plus a traditional porchetta carved tableside.
The bar, helmed by Simone Ciambrone, whose resume includes The Ritz London and Bvlgari Ginza Bar, focuses on “educated mixing”—creative cocktails that don’t overcomplicate. The debut menu of 12 drinks channels Italian pop culture: Whisky e Sole reimagines an old fashioned with rye whiskey, Fernet Branca, and almond liqueur; Piazza Duomo puts a complex spin on the Aperol Spritz; Amores Extranos offers a herbal take on a margarita.
The theatrical finale is Gelato al Tavolo, where fresh gelato is churned tableside. IL PRESIDENTE also offers custom napkins embroidered with “Il Solito”—”the usual”—a nod to the kind of genuine, long-term patronage the team hopes to build.
Location: Shop M2, 13 Duddell Street, Central (access via historic granite steps)
Hours: Monday and Wednesday to Sunday, 6pm to 11pm; closed Tuesdays
Reservations: sevenrooms.com/explore/ilpresidente
Tel: 5443 0908 (WhatsApp only)
Instagram: @ilpresidentehk