Eat Love Write

Krug Room + Mandarin Grill: Pictorial

2010-09-01T05:47:00.003+08:00

I've always been a fan of the Mandarin Oriental restaurants. Why? Well, because of the below...

Krug Room: "Meat Fruit"
- Liver pâté disguised as a mini pear (thank you, progressive gastronomy). Served with black truffle brioche.

Krug Room: "'Rain' Flower Pot Salad"
Mix of steamed and raw greens arranged in arugula "soil" purée.

Krug Room: "Bounty Bar"
Coconut and chocolate with pop rocks = :D

Mandarin Grill: Amuse Bouche
Spherical olive + spun sugar sitting on some black sesame situation.

Mandarin Grill: "RAW" ($268)
Kindai, salmon, hamachi, botan shrimp, sake, cucumber.

Mandarin Grill: "Black Cod" ($428)
Cod with coriander, ginger, miso, sesame, praline. And Oyster leaf.

FOOD: 4.5/5
SERVICE: 5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4.75/5

THE KRUG ROOM // MANDARIN GRILL ($$$$$)
1/F, Mandarin Oriental
5 Connaught Road, Central
2825-4014 // 2825-4004
www.mandarinoriental.com

[TAIWAN] Du Hsiao Yueh: Good Enough

2010-09-01T05:18:00.006+08:00

(Tan Tsai Noodles: the one Taiwanese dish that moves me)

Yes yes yes, it's a tourist trap. But I made the pilgramage anyway and hit up Du Hsiao Yueh during my Taiwan trip. One of the oldest AND most authentic Tainan joints in Taipei City, Du Hsiao Yueh does a mean Tan Tsai noodle (NT$50) topped with the traditional works of mince and single shrimp.

Compared to the starchier, thick noodles of Taipei, Tainan Tan Tsai noodles are on the lighter, more slurpable side. Personally, I prefer the latter, even in terms of the broth. And seriously, at NT$50 a pop, it'd be obscene not to lap it all up.

(Open since that long ago)

(Lobster roe roll)

As for the other dishes, it blew hot and cold for me. I guess I just really don't "get" Taiwanese food. Among the many small plates we ordered, only the lobster roe roll (NT$200) stood out for me. Part of me resented its resemblance to an American fusion sushi roll (random vegetables + pickled carrot + lobster roe + dab of mayo --> wrapped in nori --> wrapped in rice paper roll) but it was interesting, at least.

I'll probably never understand Taiwanese food. But at least I'll have the Tan Tsai noodles to fall back on. That's good enough for me.

DU HSIAO YUEH ($)
No. 12, Alley 8, Lane 216, Sec 4 Jhongsiao E Road
Taipei City, Taiwan
(886) 2 2773-1244
www.iddi.com.tw

[TAIWAN] Sadaharu Aoki: Love Letter

2010-09-01T05:04:00.003+08:00

Dear Sadaharu Aoki,

I’ve had a crush on you for over five years. I admit, at first, it was your looks that attracted me – everything about you is beautiful. I fell for your clean, minimalistic white packaging, your rows of chocolate blocks dyed in the Pantone spectrum. But it didn’t take long for me to fall in love with everything else about you too – your substance. The perfect crunch-to-chew ratio of your delicate macarons never cease to wow me. And your creativity (matcha/earl gray jam, anyone?) impresses me to no end.

When I see you, I can’t help but spend all my money on you. It’s not that I think you are exchangeable for mere currency, but I just have an urge to splurge and spoil you. Don’t blame me. It’s only because I love you too much.

Best,
Eat Love Write

(Chocolate-encased macarons)

(Chocolates: in all the Pantone shades)

(Macarons: love)

FOOD: 4.75/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: N/A (it’s a counter)

PÂTISSERIE SADAHARU AOKI ($$)
Shop 11073, B2/F, Bellavita
No.28, Song Ren Road
Taipei City, Taiwan
(886) 2 8729-2759
www.sadaharuaoki.com

Yiu Kee: Summer Seafood Tour

2010-08-26T23:30:00.003+08:00

I don’t usually trek out to faraway Ap Lei Chau for lunch on a weekday. But when my favorite food writer, KC Gourmet offered to take me on a seafood tour of the area, how could I say no?

To start things off, KC took me to the fishing ships parked out in the Ap Lei Chau waterfront promenade. Two fisher people were diligently cleaning and gutting their day’s catch with lightning quickness. Impressive. After trading in $20 for a big bag of fresh loach fish, we made our way back to the Ap Lei Chau market for the rest of our lunch provisions.

(Daily catch)

(Loach for lunch)

KC took me on a quick round of the seafood market, all the way explaining to me how to tell if an abalone is fresh or not, or where to buy the best pounded cuttlefish in the winter. We ended up with a few more bags of fresh seafood and made our way up to the second floor cooked foods center to drop off the goods at Yiu Kee. While Yiu Kee has its own menu of stir-fried noodles, rice and bla bla bla, most people tend to do what we did. That is, buy some seafood from the market downstairs and bring it up to Yiu Kee and ask them to cook it to your liking for a nominal “oil fee.”

(Sea snails: big n' fat)

(Steamed abalone: sweetness)

First to arrive was a heaping plate of blanched sea snails. We were ooh-ing over how big and fat the snails looked in the market. Cooked, they were succulently sweet, with a nice bit of chew and bite. Within mere minutes, the two of us had worked up a huge mound of snail shells on the plastic covered fold-up table. Our table was then graced with a half dozen steamed abalone – again, sweet and fresh, albeit with a more deepset flavor and fragrance than the sea snails, thanks to the addition of dried pomelo peel.

(Steamed scallops: lowlight)

(Loach fish in oil salt water)

(Single loach)

The steamed scallops with vermicelli and minced garlic paled in comparison to the first two dishes. Sad, since this dish is usually one of my all-time seafood favorites (well, mostly because of the piled high minced garlic). The scallops were overcooked and tough and stuck to the bottom of the shell. Thankfully, Yiu Kee redeemed itself by doing right by the loach fish. KC had asked for it to be prepared in traditional fisher people fashion known as “oil salt water.” Instead of cooking the fish with direct heat, the fish are submersed in hot water and then a mixture of oil, salt and water is ladled over it. This causes minimal damage to the fish, keeping the flesh soft and tender and locking in all its natural sweetness.

(Mantis shrimp: garlicky good)

(Crazy roe!)

But it wasn’t until the end that the meal reached its ultimate high note when our four mantis shrimps stir-fried in chili and garlic arrived, glistening in its tin pan. We cracked off the shell and took a first bite into the flesh to reveal a big beautiful, bright orange strip of roe. No joke – there was more roe than flesh. I felt like I was eating a mooncake egg yolk. And though mantis shrimp roe is less sweet than, say, crab roe or even lobster coral, it was still pretty effin’ amazing.

What was even more amazing though, was how the two of us managed to polish off everything. The amount of food we had for lunch was pretty obnoxious – it’s the first time I’ve ever downed two whole mantis shrimps and half a dozen steamed scallops and abalone in one go for lunch. But like I said earlier, how could I have said no?

FOOD: 3.75/5 (varies dependent on what you purchase from the market)
SERVICE: 3.75/5
ATMOSPHERE: 1/5 (it’s a cooked food center after all)

YIU KEE ($-$$)
Unit CF3, 2/F
Ap Lei Chau Complex
Ap Lei Chai
2553-1938

Ta Pantry: J'adore

2010-08-25T16:14:00.003+08:00

(Bread and butter)

I am definitely way behind in my postings. It’s been over a month since the wonderful Tata invited the bunch of us up to her cute little private kitchen, Ta Pantry. The occasion? To test out the new “L’Indochine” menu ($500/person) she designed for the summer season.

I’ve always been in love with how Tata’s décor’d up her little Star Street apartment space. It’s got a cozy, rustic French charm, with cute knickknacks here and there (but all artfully placed, of course), a huge shelf of magazines and cookbooks, pink kitchen utensils, and an impressive collection of wine bottles. We arrived to find Tata all aproned up and busy in the kitchen, chopping up this and cutting up that to the medley of classic French pop playing on the sound system.

(Hokkaido scallop green mango curry roule: tastes like the start of summer)

After a few glasses of Veuve Ambal Peche, peach sparkling (yum), we took our seats and prepared to feast. First up was the Hokkaido scallop green mango curry roulé on sea urchin foam. Loved the creaminess of scallop and the subtlety of the dish. The light foam carried brief flavor notes of the ocean without giving away too much too early on. This dish tasted like the start of summer and we eagerly waited for the rest to come.

(Citrusy crabmeat ravioli: summer lovin')

The citrusy crabmeat ravioli was next and oh-my-G I loved this one. The seemingly unassuming single, round ravioli was plumped up with sweet, fresh crabmeat and floating atop a clear chicken broth scented with lemongrass. Now, I’m a big fan of lemongrass so this dish hit all the right notes with me. It’s amazing how light yet satisfying this dish was. It tasted like something you should be eating alfresco in the summer sunshine in a floral day dress. A hands-down winner.

After the crazy-amazing ravioli, a meat-fest ensued. Tata threw in her signature melting onion duck (usually supplementary $150). This beautiful fowl is slow-cooked to tenderness and lovingly carved into small, thick pieces and served atop the caramelized onions. Soooo rich and soooo good. Pork followed duck with the Iberico pork cheek cooked with star anise. The fork tender pork was topped off with a paper-thin slice of mint-infused pineapple, which gave the dish an interesting dimension and depth. It was then drizzled with a blue cheese sauce which, as much as I lurve blue cheese, I personally thought was a tad much for this particular dish. It overshadowed the beautiful flavor of the pineapple a little. But I lapped it all up anyways.

(Melting onion duck: mmmm... rich)

(Melting onion duck: plated)

(Iberico pork cheek: blue cheese or no cheese?)

Another highlight was the coco balsamic linguine with mushrooms. When this arrived at the table, I was thinking, “Fark. I’m full to the brim, there is no way I can polish off a whole bowl of carbs.” I took the first bite, then another, and another, and… before I knew it, it was poof – all gone. It was absolutely genius to use balsamic in this dish. The tart vinegary taste shook me up from my near food-coma state and refueled my appetite. G-e-n-ius!

(Coco balsamic linguine: co-co-crazy good)

(Red wine poached pear crumble: layers and depths)

To end, Tata fed us a super comforting red wine poached pear crumble with tapioca and tiramisu ice cream. Loved the layers to this – the crunch of the crumble, the soft pulpiness of the pear, the chew of the tapioca and the smoothness of the ice cream. Needless to say, this menu got the big fat thumbs up from all of us.

(Financiers to end!)

For those who haven’t tried the new menu yet (there are five menus in total to choose from), you should definitely do so. And for those who haven’t tried out Ta Pantry yet, you should most definitely eff-initely do so. Note though that Tata only does one table per night and advanced booking is required. She tells me that she’s just recently waived corkage as well so… :D !

FOOD: 4.5/5
SERVICE: 4.75/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4.5/5

TA PANTRY ($$$$$)
1C, Moonstar Court
2D Star Street
Wan Chai
9403-6430
http://tapantry.wordpress.com

[TAIWAN] Really Good Seafood: What the Name Says

2010-08-25T00:30:00.002+08:00

On Tata’s (aka the Taiwan food expert) recommendation, we booked ourselves a table for Really Good Seafood on our last evening in Taipei. And no joke – that really is the restaurant’s name.

When we arrived, we were quickly ushered to our table by a crew of unsmiling ladies. Intimidating. They seemed more like prison wardens than professionals in the hospitality business. “Have you ordered already?” unsmiling lady #1 asked as she handed us the menus. Uhmm… you’re handing us the menu. Meaning, we haven’t even looked at the menu yet. How the eff could we have ordered already? Well, apparently, she’s assuming we’re regulars who know how the complicated ordering system at Really Good Seafood works (we do not know how it works). Basically, you can:

1. Order from the multi-fish tanks out front and have the kitchen cook the seafood to order.
2. Order one of the many set meals in the menu
3. Order one of the “Chef’s Recommended” set meals

We went with option 3, going with the NT$2000 option. Head Chef Li was very kind. Realizing that we looked like lost lambs and finding out that we were first-timers from Hong Kong (which is also where he hails from, explaining his fluent tongue of Cantonese), he came up with a long list of suggested courses, running it by us to make sure we approved before he fired up the grill.

(Seafood salad: ocean-fresh and delectable)

(Deep-fried baby oyster rolls)

First up was the chilled seafood salad which mixed together crab leg meat, scallops and some uber fresh octopus. Western influenced but not in tired way and, most importantly, it was absolutely delicious. Everything stood out – even the simple mound of lettuce, which was particularly crisp. Everything was shrouded under a light drizzle of creamy, yolky dressing. So simple and elegant.

Next was the Tainan style deep-fried baby oyster roll. Designed to be wrapped and eaten in a lettuce leaf. A little on the greasy end, even with the lettuce and personally, I’ve never really been a big fan of deep-frying oysters. I prefer them au natural so this wasn’t a course I could fully enjoy. What I did enjoy was the next dish – two whole, succulent slipper lobsters. Again – so simple but executed so that the freshness of the seafood itself becomes the main focal point. All it needed was a slight drizzle of lime juice to bring out its sea-freshness. Same goes for the following course of steamed crabs. Being the good man that he is, Chef Li chose a variety of crabs favored particularly for their rich, sweet roe. I love Chef Li.

(Slipper lobsters: a whole loada' meat)

(Steamed crabs: a whole loada' roe)

Taking a break from the seafood extravaganza, unsmiling lady number something served us a dish of sponge gourd – a famed local produce from Penghu Dao in Taiwan. The jade green gourd was again simplicity done well. After the brief healthy interlude came a French style beef tenderloin. A smoky cracked pepper sauce blanketed the beef, which was, of course, perfectly pinked and juicy on the inside. Delish, but definitely not as good as the preceding seafood dishes.

(Sponge gourd)

(Beef tenderloin)

(Tainan noodles: too much carbs)

(Pudding: sad)

To round off the savory courses, we were presented with individual bowls of Tainan Tan Tsai noodles topped in traditional fashion with a single prawn. The heavy carbs probably wasn’t such a good idea after the giant seafood feast but I did lap up the beautiful broth like nobody’s business. Everything up to this point had been fantastic, which is why it was such a shame that they served dessert. The bland and uninspired cold pudding seemed so out of place in this restaurant that churned out stellar salads and perfectly prepared lobsters and crabs. I took one bite and left the rest. But that one small glitch wasn’t about to ruin the great dining experience Chef Li had created for us. The food really is topnotch and Chef Li has a knack for drawing out the natural essence of every ingredient. That’s real talent. And as lame as the name is, it truly is Really Good Seafood.

FOOD: 4.5/5
SERVICE: 2/5 (4/5 for Chef Li)
ATMOSPHERE: 3/5

REALLY GOOD SEAFOOD ($$$$-$$$$$)
No. 222, Fushing Road South Sec. 1
Taipei City, Taiwan
(886) 2 2771-3000
www.reallygoodseafood.com

[TAIWAN] L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon: No Surprises

2010-08-24T18:03:00.003+08:00

For my first ever trip to Taiwan, I had my heart set on dropping by Robuchon’s newest baby – L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, Taipei. Strangely enough, I’ve heard and read very little about this new outlet. For a city not particularly known for it’s fine-dining scene, this dinner was bound to be interesting…

(Bad bread...)

Thursday of our reservation, we cabbed up to the stunning Bella Vita (officially my favorite structure in Taipei) and elevatored up to floor number five. The set-up is almost identical to the HK L’Atelier, albeit a tad smaller and a lot emptier.

After being greeted and seated, I eagerly awaited for the waitress to plop down the bread basket. Sad to say - the bread falls far short of Hong Kong’s (a little too “fluffy,” lacking that lovely bit of French rusticity) A shame since the breadbasket is one of my favorite things about Robuchon. Still hopeful, I decided to go with the Menu Club (NT$2680) – after a brief struggle, trying to make sense of the Chinese and French only menu, I made my four-course choices.

(Amuse bouche: citrusy...)

First up was the amuse bouche – a shot glass filled with a tart lemony custard of sorts. It was difficult catching the names and explanations of the dishes with our waitress’s jet-speed mandarin. Moments after downing the amuse bouche, first course arrived at the table in a giant glass bowl. It was a “salad” made with tomato mousse layered with celery jelly and topped off with chilled langoustine. The tart tomato worked beautifully with the grassiness of the celery, creating a Bloody Mary-esque sort of taste. Refreshing.

Salad was followed by La Saint-Jacques – a delicately flavored, creamy turnip velouté adorned with a giant succulent scallop. I was most impressed by the thin round of waxy potato floating on the velouté and the similar round of beetroot that was staining the ivory soup purple. So far so good but no real surprises yet.

("Salad" - Bloody Mary-esque)

(La Saint-Jacques)

The star of the meal revealed itself in the main course, L’Amadai. The fish was prepared à la japonaise, sprinkled with shiso flower buds and Japanese pepper leaves. It had the most amazing crisped skin and the milkiest smooth flesh. In other words – addictive. Of course, it also helped big time that the fish was accompanied by a huge vat of Robuchon’s famed potatoe puree. I am deeply in love with these potatoes and easily polished off every single last spoonful of that buttery, velvety, beautiful beautiful stuff.

Pretty satiated with the savory courses, I opted to go light with dessert. Les Fruits Frais was a summery sweet of grassy green basil sorbet dotted with seasonal fruits. Again – good but no surprises, which seemed to sum up the Taiwan Robuchon experience. It also seemed that the Taipei Robuchon sucked at everything its Hong Kong sister excelled at. Like the breadbasket, the petit four chocolate macarons were, in one word – disappointing. They were soggy and airy without the least bit of crispness and chew. Sad, compared to Nakamura-san’s near-perfect concoctions at Robuchon, HK. Ah well, at least I could satiate my macaron needs at the basement level’s Sadaharu Aoki.

(L'Amadai: Fish done Japanese)

(Potato puree: I LOVE YOU!)

(Les Fruit Frais: Summery)

(Coffee + Macaron = :( )

All in all though, I can’t blame this Taipei branch for the “meh” dining experience. After all, like I said, the city isn’t particularly well-versed in fine-dining and even with all its glitches and disappointments, you could tell they were trying. For one, our waitress forgot to explain the dishes upon arrival – by the time she remembered, we were already up to course number three. But nonetheless, she was friendly and helpful throughout (despite the jet-speed Mandarin). Serious props to sommelier Benoît, who recently joined their team after a brief stint in the U.S (he also happens to have been part of the opening team at Robuchon, HK). Hopefully, he’ll help sort out some of the problems… especially with the bread and macarons.

FOOD: 3.5/5
SERVICE: 3.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3.5/5

L’ATELIER DE JOËL ROBUCHON ($$$$$)
5/F, No. 28, Song Ren Road
Taipei City, Taiwan
(886) 2 8729-2628
www.joel-robuchon.net

[TAIWAN] Snow King: Tastes Like Chicken

2010-07-28T00:13:00.005+08:00

When I heard about Snow King, I knew it would be a place I had to visit. This legendary ice cream shop sells over 73 flavors of homemade ice cream, ranging from the ordinary to the way-out obscure.

(73 flavors!)

I made the pilgrimage to this tiny store and perused the menu. Flavor headings included nuts and pulses, “healing” herbal flavors, fruit, alcohol, vegetables and teas, among others. The family went with more orthodox offerings, such as the creamy coconut ice cream (NT60), a perfumed almond flavor (NT65) and a sweet, fresh strawberry (NT55).

(Sesame oil chicken: no joke)

Wanting to take advantage of the quirky flavors, I pendulum-ed between the pig’s trotter flavor (NT110) and the sesame oil chicken (NT110), eventually deciding on the latter. Snow King doesn’t like—my ice cream sphere smelt exactly like sesame oil chicken and tasted that way too. The first bite was hilarious. But somewhere between bites four and five, the sesame oil became way too pungent… it should be no surprise the sesame oil and dairy doesn’t exactly mix well… not to mention the little bits of hardened ginger salt flecked in the ice cream. To be honest, it was pretty damn gross. But hey—it touts itself as being sesame oil chicken flavored and, without a doubt, that’s what it delivered. So kudos to that.

The uber friendly store owner assured me that the sesame oil chicken flavor is fortifying for the body (because of the ginger, she says). I’ll take her word for it. But the novelty aside, Snow King does do some quality ice cream. And if you're not ready to plunge into the chicken/curry/pork floss flavors yet, there's still a myriad of interesting options for you to sample.

FOOD: 4/5 (an extra point for originality)
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 2/5

SNOW KING /雪王 ($)
No. 65, Wuchang Street, Sec 1
Taipei City, Taiwan
02-2331-8415

[TAIWAN] Jiu Dao Kou: Chiu Fen For a Day

2010-07-27T23:44:00.003+08:00

(Soy braised and pickled)

After what I thought was a disappointing bowl of braised beef noodles from Liang Pin, I gave my usually favorite form of carb another shot. This time, it was during our day trip to Chiu Fen where we made a lunch stop at the area’s famed Jiu Dao Kou Niu Rou Mian / 舊道口牛肉麵.

(Yang chun mian: less is more)

We started with two snacks for appetizers—soy braised tofu and eggs and pickled vegetables (both NT30). Not really in the mood for another bowl of beef noodles, I opted instead, this time, for the plain yang chun mian / 陽春麵 (a ridiculously cheap NT35). Don’t underestimate the simple bowl of plain soup noodles; it’s when you strip the dish bare of its toppings and over-cumbersome flavors that you can really tell how good the actual noodles are. And the ones are Jiu Dao Kou aren’t bad. The noodles are more delicate than the thick knife-cut ones at Liang Pin. They’re less al dente but nowhere near mushy. They’re still thick and flat enough to pick up the delicately savory broth, flecked with bits of chopped scallions. Just goes to show that sometimes, less really is more.

(Shaved ice)

And after polishing off the noodles, we picked up a bowl of chilled beancurd pudding in ginger syrup, topped off with glutinous taro and sweet potato dumplings and finely shaved ice. It’s an interesting mishmash of textures (the fine crunch of the ice works particularly well with the chewy, squidgy dumplings) and a refreshing (if still a little filling) way to end a meal.

FOOD: 3/5
SERVICE: 1.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 1/5

Jiu Dao Kou Niu Rou Mian / 舊道口牛肉麵 ($)
4 JīShān Street
Rueifang Township
Taipei City, Taiwan

[TAIWAN] Liang Pin Beef Noodles: First Time

2010-07-27T23:26:00.004+08:00

(Red braised beef noodles: meh)

I wanted my first official meal in Taiwan to be something special. Something memorable. Something effin’ good to eat. Not too much to ask for, right? I definitely thought we were in safe hands when we strolled into Liang Pin Beef Noodles / 良品牛肉麵. After all, their noodles are apparently of the award-winning variety. We plunked ourselves down on one of the grotty stools around one of the grotty tables and—of course, went with the signature—red braised beef noodles/紅燒牛肉麵 (NT100) and a plate of dumplings (NT45).

Unless you request otherwise, the folks at Liang Pin will serve you Shanxi knife-cut noodles. These fat, irregular strands are thick, chewy and unbelievably filling. These carb ribbons slipped and slid between my chopsticks, splattering oil-laden broth (it’s so greasy, it’s undrinkable) all over my shirt. As for the beef… it wasn’t particularly tender or particularly well-seasoned. Long story short—I was pretty unimpressed. I’d take a bowl of HK-style beef brisket noodles over this any day.

The dumplings fared better. Plumped full of tender pork and meat juices. But also, nothing special. Then again, the meal came to about HK$40. I guess I can’t complain too much.

FOOD: 2.5/5
SERVICE: 3/5
ATMOSPHERE: 1/5

LIANG PIN BEEF NOODLES / 良品牛肉麵 ($)
No. 10, Kai Feng Street
Zhong Zheng District
Taipei City, Taiwan
02-2371-2644

8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo: Comfortable

2010-07-14T05:08:00.008+08:00

You know those restaurants that are all hype, $$$, and nothing at the end of it but disappointment and a couple thousand less in the wallet? Let’s not name names… but you all know which ones I’m talking about.

And really, when 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo opened, I had the same fate paved-out for the glitzy, Alexander Building’d restaurant. It had all the makings: celebrity chef (check), beautiful environs (def. check), Central location (duhr), and apparently sky-high prices. I was skeptical… but skeptical in the way that I’d be willing to foot the bill just to prove that my skepticism was unfounded upon. Ugh, writer’s ego. Unfortunaately though, I was proven WRONG… which, come to think of it, is actually really fortunate...

(Lobster salad: with mango)

I booked well in advance to ensure a seat with my equally cynical friend. Good thing we did since the place was p-a-c-kayed on a Monday evening. Awesome business. Before perusing the menu though, I did notice the roughly 3:1 waiter to table ratio. Now, I knew that Otto spared no expense with their restaurant, I just didn’t expect them to surpass hotel-grade service. This A-grade service shown through when W and I came to order. We were tugged between choices from the tasting degustation menu and the à la carte. Seeing how distraught we were, the waiter very kindly suggested we mix and match from the two menus. After knowing that was allowed, we started with the fresh lobster salad with mango. A slightly disappointed start—the flavors were imbalanced, with the tangy mangoes outweighing the fresh briny flavors of the creamy lobster. A shame, really.

BIG B. UUUUUUUUUUU. T.

(Burrata cheese ravioli: mmmmm...)

Just when I was about to write 8 1/2 Otto as another banker’s dining hall, the golden haired waiter placed a shallow bowl of burrata cheese ravioli ($210) in front of me. Unassuming to say the least in terms of appearance—a few triangles of sealed ravioli, plumped with soft cheese. So what? So EVERYTHING when I took a bite. So simple… so comforting. We both paused, looked at each other, and dove in for the second forkful. Things like this are hard to explain—it’s comforting satisfaction in a bite. It’s silky smooth handmade pasta (one of chef Bombana’s specialties) brimmed full of mild cheese, blanketed in a paunch sauce of salty olives, eggplant and tomatoes. If my mother were Italian (she is not), she would’ve fed me this through my Italian (it was not) childhood.

(Beef cheek n' tongue)

And gawd did it pick up from burrata cheese ravioli! For the mains, I opted for the beef tongue and beef cheek braised in red wine with orange and spice compote ($330). Very reminiscent of a dish I had at The Drawing Room. I will duck the “Roland vs. Umberto” question and just go ahead and say it was yummmm. The tongue was definitely more interesting than the beef cheek. But I didn’t really have enough time to appreciate the cow—when W let me take a bite from her lobster cassoulet ($320), I knew that I was a fool to go with meat. Seafood is where chef Bombana shone—the lobster was bedded on eggplant parmigiana, parsley, green peppers, and yummily creamy uni. So fresh, briny… luuuuuuuuuurvely. Food envy? Hells YES.

(Strawberry melba)

(Coffee Trio)

But I didn’t want food envy to affect the rest of my meal. So I was DETERMINED to beat W in terms of dessert choice. She went with a frilly Wild Strawberry Melba of fine strawberry jelly, milk vanilla foam, strawberry pannacotta ($110)—a lifting springtime sweet, to say the least. But nothing compared with my Coffee Trio—tiramisu, warm coffee tart and crunchy coffee ice cream—($110). Read ‘em and weep… I totally won the dessert round.

When the bill came, it was about $900 per person. Seriously, given the extravagant feast we’d just had (plus a cuppa wine each!), it was a steal. Sure, Otto has all that glitz and glam going for it. But more importantly, it also stays true to awesome, comforting food. If a simple bowl of ravioli can slap a smile on your face, or if a lobster cassoulet can make you go “oh wow,”… in the immortal words of Teenage Fanclub, “Ain’t That Enough?”

FOOD: 4.75/5
SERVICE: 4.4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 5/5

8 1/2 OTTO E MEZZO ($$$$$)
Shop 202, Alexandra House
18 Chater Road
Central
2537-8859
www.otto-e-mezzo.com

Xenri No Tsuki: Second Chance at Love

2010-07-14T01:19:00.008+08:00

I don’t really remember any specifics from the first time I went to Xenri no Tsuki. I remember the food being up-to-par (we ordered a whole mess of à la carte items), I remember loving the low-key quiet atmosphere, I remember dropping a whole lodda’ money on the meal. I remember not really being blown away…

(Amuse bouche trio: setting the tone)

… but for some reason, I also remember telling myself that this place had more to offer. And that I should give it a second chance.

Thank God I did. Because if visit #1 was promising, visit #2 made me realize that Xenri no Tsuki was one of my favorite restaurants in the whole of Hong Kong. No joke. I’ve been back three times since my 2nd visit. Why? Because it’s crazy good.

(Rice bowl with minced tuna and uni: The Nelson's starting choice)

After polishing off our beautiful amuse bouche trio, The Nelson and I decided it would be wise to order a small bottle of chilled sake. I was in super girly mood, so meekly suggested we try the seasonal Arabashiri Junmai Ginjo “Spring” sake from Masumi Brewery. Beautifully sweet, with rich floral aromas—really tasted like springtime in a bottle :)

The Nelson went à la carte, starting with a rice bowl topped with minced tuna and fresh uni. Not really wanting to think about what to order, I went with the seasonal Chef’s Recommended Kaiseki set ($500 – $800. I went with $600). I had no idea what I was in for… and I had no idea I would be so blown away by what they had in store for me. First course rolled up—a thick round of daikon on miso paste. Clean, simple presentation to match the clean, simple flavors. A very classy start. Next up was the artistically-presented “five point” appetizer—five tidbits arranged on a giant white plate sprinkled with purple shiso flowers. Fish fin tempura on sliced cherry tomatoes, duo-colored egg, sliced tuber with miso on shiso leaf, chicken roll with burdock and sprouts, mozuku kombu… each item was carefully thought-out and delicately presented. I was definitely impressed by this point.

(Daikon + miso paste)

("Five Points" - prettiness on a platter)

The highlight of the meal though came in the form of course no. 3—seafood dashi teapot soup. The clear broth was fortified with all the goodness of the waters. The first cup was subtle but delicious already. I let it steep for a while. Second cup. Better. Third cup. Amazing. Fourth, fifth… it just got bolder and bolder, better and better. I’m being completely honest when I say that this is the first time I’ve ever been blown away by soup. It was magical almost…

(Seafood dashi teapot soup: the soup that blew me away)

But apparently, the Xenri chefs were just getting warmed up. The next plate to grace my table was a generous sashimi platter. This generosity included fresh uni that tasted like all the sweetness of the sea, a delectably rich jumbo sea scallop, and my personal favorite—creamy-fleshed sweet ebi shrimp. And as an extra testament that Xenri no Tsuki is the real deal—they serve their sashimi with freshly-grated wasabi. Don’t let them tell you otherwise—it does make an effin’ big difference.

(Sashimi: for the love of ebi)

After all the delicate flavors, it was finally time for something big and substantial. Enter the restaurant’s award-winning “Kobe Wagyu Housyou Yaki”—a thick slab of premium Wagyu beef blanketed in a thin, crispy parcel made from beancurd sheets. It was a huge serving… I was trying to calculate how these people are profiting from this $600 dinner, because there was even MORE after this prime Wagyu steak. Yes, a whole lot more. There was a whole salt-broiled carp fish more (milky fleshed and broiled to perfection). There was a seared nigiri platter, which included eel, tuna, uni, salmon and my love-in-fish-form of engawa (flounder dorsal fin). I will forever be grateful to Xenri no Tsuki for introducing me to the wonders of this cut of fish—it has such a wonderful taut bite that melts and melds into an addictive film of fish oil that coats the tongue. Oishii.

(Kobe Wagyu housyou yaki)

(Salt-broiled carp)

(Seared nigiri: bottom left = LURVE of an engawa)

To round off the near-perfect meal, I was expecting just some boring scoop of green tea or sesame ice cream (as much as I love traditional Japanese cuisine, I can’t say I’m particularly inspired by trad. Jap desserts). But thank God the Xenri team kept the surprises coming all the way to the end. My trio of tofu ice cream (silken and refreshing, with a subtle hint of nuttiness), matcha pudding and glutinous warabi mochi left me with a giant idiotic grin on my face.

(Dessert trio: inspiring until the end)

I was well fed and well sake’d. I was happy. It also helped that Xenri no Tsuki’s floor manager is one of the most attentive, friendly and professional people I know in the HK F&B industry. She was on the A-game all the way with her recommendations and explanations (and believe me, I asked many many many questions throughout the meal) and she kept checking in regularly to make sure we were enjoying our meal. And of the many times that I’ve been back, she’s always been just as awesome.

So there sums up why I love Xenri no Tsuki. As much as I love Hong Kong, it’s hard to come by a restaurant that combines kickass food, five-star service, comfortable environs and won’t-burn-a-whole-in-wallet prices (seriously, all that above food for $600…) in one neat package. So when you DO find a place that combines all those things—i.e. Xenri no Tsuki—you’re golden.

It may not have been love at first bite, but I know now, it’s definitely love.

FOOD: 4.75/5
SERVICE: 4.75/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

XENRI NO TSUKI ($$$$/$$$$$)
6/F, Jardine Centre
50 Jardine's Bazaar
Causeway Bay
www.xenri.com

Le Salon de Thé de Joël Robuchon: Go-To-Feel-Good

2010-07-13T21:52:00.004+08:00

Somewhere in the year or so that I’ve been back, Le Salon de Thé de Joël Robuchon became my HK Island side go-to-feel-good place. The pastries, sandwiches, and the to-die-for coffee bring to mind all those happy times I’ve spent wide-eyed in front of Bouchon Bakery in New York. The fact that it’s housed in the same building as Harvey Nichols, and is right next to The Landmark MO is also automatic brownie points. But more importantly, it’s become my go-to spot because, well, I’m just a poor writer and can’t afford eating in the main Robuchon dining room on most days.

(Macarons: hellooooo there)

After all, who am I to say no to Michelin star winning macarons that go for $8 a pop? Or perfect mousse-topped cakes or crumbly crusted tarts at $30-something? OK fine, their coffee is a bit steep at $40/small paper cup… but their coffee is also five times better than anyone else’s, so I guess it balances out.

It also helps that, aside from the stunning sweets, the Salon does a beautiful selection of eat-in dishes. Not too long ago, over a session of Saturday brunch girly gossip, I sold my soul to the salmon fillet marinated in sake and mirin with miso sauce ($190). The fish was so soft and buttery—a perfect canvas for the Japanese marinade. But what made me love more was the accompanying vat of Robuchon’s famed mashed potato purée. It was rich, velvety and oh-so-buttery. B-e-a-utiful.

(Sake-mirin salmon: sorry for the shaky hands)

(King crab jelly layered with tomato coulis and avocado cream: summer flavored!)

I’ve had a fair share of other stellar eats at the Salon. Another stand-out is the king crab jelly layered with tomato coulis and avocado cream ($90). The smooth, summer-flavored layered mixture paired so well with the tiny croutons floating atop the avocado cream. Cap any Le Salon meal off with a few macarons, a cup of black coffee and there you have ample reason to love the place too.

FOOD: 4.5/5
SERVICE: 4.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3.5/5

LE SALON DE THÉ DO JOËL ROBUCHON ($$)
Shop 315, 3/F
The Landmark
16 Des Voeux Road Central
Central
2166-9000
www.robuchon.hk

BLT Burger: The Good Glutton

2010-07-13T21:18:00.005+08:00

Confession: I am not big on burgers.

There. I said it. It’s not that I despise beef patties sandwiched between two burger buns, it’s just that the burger is not really something I would actively order off a menu. Maybe it’s from living next to an In-n-Out Burger shack for two years back when I was in LA. Maybe.

(BLT Burger)

(It's what's inside that counts...)

Despite my burger ambivalence though, I do appreciate a good burger when I’m fed one. And the ones that BLT Burger churn out are. Good, that is. So so good. And as part of Laurent Tourondel’s empire of deliciousness, why wouldn’t BLT Burger kick ass? I went with the signature BLT ($98)–a large and in charge 7oz 100%Black Angus beef patty, blackened and charred around the edges and still beautifully pinked and juicy in the middle. Topped with big fatty strips of bacon and the “LT” veggies… I chomped away happily on this under the soothing blast of the restaurant’s 80s soundtrack.

(Chocolate-praline layer cake: OMG, I love you)

But if the burger was good, the dessert was killer. Absolutely. The Valrhona chocolate praline layer cake ($58) puts the best things about American gluttony and transforms it into a delectable layer cake. Moist, dark, sweet, sinful. Amazing. There must’ve been a gajillion calories in that hefty slice (and à la mode, no less!) but really, when it’s so beautiful, who gives an eff?

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 3/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5 (if you love 80s rock)

BLT BURGER ($$)
Shop 301, Level 3
Ocean Terminal
Tsim Sha Tsui
2730-2338
www.diningconcepts.com.hk

ABC Kitchen: Market Fresh

2010-07-13T20:36:00.005+08:00

The first time I tried out ABC Kitchen was back in March for a dinner organized by the one-and-only Mr. Lau. He's the awesome kind of foodie you want to be friends with - enthusiastic, knowledgable, nice, generous, and soooo in the know.

This was exactly the case with ABC Kitchen. Who woulda thunk that there'd be a fine dining western joint in a cooked food market? I didn't. But here it is - complete with tablecloths, wineglasses, excellent service, all sandwiched between and Indian-Nepalese restaurant and a ChiuChow snacks stall. Awesome.

(Margherita pizza)

(La bouillabaisse)

As for the food, I've been several times now and I have to say, dinner is definitely infinately better than lunch. The bouillabaisse is particularly good and they're extremely generous with the seafood. Also loved the braised til tender beef cheeks. I cut them apart like butter with my fork. Mmmm.

(Braised beef cheeks)

(Look ma, no knife!)

(Signature roasted suckling pig)

Special mention goes to the suckling pig. I still prefer Chinese style roast pig (crunchy skin) but ABC's version follows Spanish recipe. As a result, the skin is less crisp, but the meat becomes unbelievably moist and supple.

(Sticky toffee pudding: mmm...)

(Creme caramel)

The sticky toffee pudding sealed the deal for me. And if YOU'RE still not sold... get this - ABC serves illy's coffee!

ABC KITCHEN ($$/$$$)
CF7, 1/F
Queen's Street Cooked Food Market
38 Des Voeux Road
Sheung Wan
3740-0727

The French Window: Free Time + Pictorial

2010-07-13T19:21:00.004+08:00

Some recent changes in my life has rendered me with a whole load of free time on my hands. In the past week or so, I’ve been waking up in the afternoon, buying random hardcover books (Taschen’s Paris, anyone?), buying random magazines (Japanese Bento mag, Donna Hay), spending time back in the kitchen, drinking more, reading more, writing more. You get the gist of it. Freedom.

And with all this time, I finally have no excuse not to upload the food photos from days gone by. So many meals unposted about, so many photos un-uploaded. Let’s start with…

The French Window (from April, 2010)

(Amuse bouche: tomato tart)

(Soup)

(Vegetable salad, bell pepper sorbet and pesto)

(Organic marrant egg, morels cream, green asparagus)

(Roasted ‘pigeon au sang, polenta churros, spiced red wine sauce)

(Herring potato salad with Avruga caviar and carrot)

(Wagyu beef cheek a la Bourguignon with carrot confit in red wine sauce)

(Lemon meringue tart)

The French Window ($$$$)
Shop 3101, 3/F
IFC Mall
8 Finance Street
Central
2393-3812
www.thefrenchwindow.hk

The Chairman: FINALLY

2010-05-05T00:19:00.005+08:00

September last year it was, I think. That’s when I first heard about The Chairman. The back-to-basics Cantonese fare I had actually never really known. It was big news. I had a chance early on to check it out. Something came up. Cancelled. I had another chance to go. Something else came up. Cancelled. I had a third chance to drop by. Something more came up. Cancelled.

Well, fourth time’s a charm.

Last week, I finally (no joke) nabbed myself a seat at one of the upstairs round tables. Attention to details followed my every step. Two sets of chopsticks for every diner – a pale beige pair for personal use and a black pair for communal use (both engraved with the restaurant’s name). A waistcoated server poured a thin stream of Chinese tea from the long-snouted pot. It was VIP service sans any sort of snootiness.

(Start it up: pig's ears, stomach,cantaloupe)

I took a nibble of the dried shrimps in front of me, wishing there was a bowl of steamed jasmine rice for me to lunge into. But knowing that it was just the start of the meal, I restrained myself. Our first course arrived shortly – a square plate piled with crunchy pig’s ear, unctuous pig’s stomach, cantaloupe strips and a flecking of fragrant chili. A flavorful mix which didn’t wow but had us prepped for the main meal. Two versions of baby duck followed – one plate Dragon Well and chrysanthemum tea-smoked, the other soy braised. Being, usually, a fan of the tea-smoked variety, I found myself surprisingly oohing more over the soy braised version. Such absolutely fresh, sweet-smelling meat braised to tenderness on the bone. Mmmm…

(tea-smoked BB duck)

(... and the soy-braised variety)

The next course definitely had me waxing lyrical. Deep-fried yellow croaker fish – split open across the belly, perfectly gutted and absolutely flawlessly prepared. Deep-fried to such perfection that the bones crunched up like potato chips. These were served with – get this – Italian balsamic (aged for 15 years, no less!), which, I have to say, was absolutely necessary. Without it, the fish was actually a little bland, with its beautiful flavors locked up inside. The balsamic was like the magical key, releasing all of the goldenness in the fish.

(Looks kinda freaky: yellow croaker)

(Good for the skin: steamed fish)

The soup was a little difficult for me to appreciate being that I don’t really have much experience with and knowledge of good Chinese soups. But it was chock full of “stuff” (a whole duck, lychees, conpoy) and yet, was surprisingly unfat (especially with the duck!). a good stomach satisfier. The heftily portioned steamed fish mushrooms and shredded pork. As Isaac explained, the fish served is prized for its high collagen content and indeed, sandwiched between the firm flecks of white flesh and the skin was a layer of smooth, slippery collagen, which added such a richness to the flesh that without, would’ve made the fish seem tough and dry. But as well-prepared as the fish was, we all couldn’t help but turn our undivided attention to the next course – the huadiao steamed crab...

(Hello love: huadiao steamed crab)

(Flavor-soakers: Chan Chuen Fun)

Now, I have a confession to make: I actually don’t like the flavor of huadiao, which explains why I usually pass up the drunken chicken. And, true to my tastes, I was at first put off by the huadiao in the crab but, on a few more bites, I came to tolerate it and a few bites more, I fell more and more in love with it. Before I knew it, I was piling the accompanying thin, flat rice noodles (Chan Cheun Fun) and extra rice into my bowl just so I can bathe it in the crab water-huadiao sauce. Ugh, it was addictive. The alcohol brought out every ounce of freshness in the crab water – it was sweet, bitter, fragrant, LOVELY. The following steamed chicken with coarse sea salt, ginger and scallions was good but sorry, totally overshadowed by the predecessing amazing crab. Bad timing, chicken… but the crab was a tough act to follow.

(Maybe next time: chicken)

Next to the table was a silky smooth steamed egg custard with crunchy bits of pig lard. Welcome to cholesterol land. I scooped two big spoonfuls onto my bowl of rice. Then added more of the remaining huadiao crab sauce. Couldn’t get enough of that.

And can you please indulge me while I go on about how amazing the sweet and sour prune-marinated spareribs are? The meat around the bone were sponges of flavor. I wanted to lap it and lick it and just do nothing but love it. They added lemongrass to the marinade (a personal favorite herb of mine), a genius move that set this spareribs dish apart from any other of its kind.

(Smooth: steamed egg with lard)

(2nd highlight: marinated spareribs)

After a prerequisite dish of greens (morning glory stir-fried with salted fish paste) and a carbs dish to end (chan cheun fun stir-fried with beef. Funnily enough, it’s the second time I’ve had this dish in a single week), we were presented with tiny teacups of almond tea. Adorable. I sniffed and decided I wanted to turn the tea into a perfume that I could just spray around the office and my bedroom. The tea was so velvety, it slipped down my throat like a sweet, liquid almond butter. It’s a shame then that they decided to serve us two scoops of red date and ginger ice cream after that. Someone needs to read the Ben and Jerry’s ice cream book because The Chairman’s ice cream had huge ass ice crystals that seemed so out of place in a restaurant that, up to that point, was serving nothing but absolutely stellar fare. But let’s not let that small glitch ruin the dinner, shall we?

(Chan Cheun Fun with beef)

(Just like buttah: almond tea)

(Let's disregard this: ice cream)

The Chairman is a rare restaurant breed. I don’t expect many other restaurants to follow suit. But who needs other restaurants to follow suit? We already have this. We have The Chairman.

Thanks Isaac for organizing!

FOOD: 4.5/5
SERVICE: 4.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3/5

THE CHAIRMAN ($$$$$)
18 Kau U Fong
Central
2555-2202

Disciples Escoffier: Feed the Heart

2010-04-17T03:14:00.006+08:00

I received an e-mail in my inbox about a week from one of my ever-favorite chefs, Jaakko. I’m always excited to hear from Jaakko but on opening and reading this particular e-mail, I was pretty much up to ecstatic level. It was an invitation. An invitation to the Disciples Escoffier annual gala dinner.

Now, up until a year ago, I still had not been introduced to Disciples Escoffier. What it is, is an association of chefs and gourmands, first set up in France in 1954 to honor the craft of legendary chef-restaurateur-author, Auguste Escoffier and to celebrate and respect food culture. The “disciples” are a world-renowned association and have a special book, have regular invite-only meet-ups, and have inauguration ceremonies involving colored ribbons and awesome food. It’s all really secret society-esque, which makes it seem all that much cooler. They finally set up a Hong Kong chapter in 2008 and appointed Jaakko as president (well-deserved of course).

So come the night of the dinner, I dressed up, heeled up, and trotted over to the Hyatt Regency, TST, brimming with the excitement of a twelve-year-old on boxing day. Probably even more. I arrived on the dot at 7pm just as the invite had requested, only to realize that 7pm on an invitation really means an hour and a half after 7pm. Duhr me… I obviously don’t go to important social events enough. But after saying a few “hi”s and downing a Kronenbourg 1664, we were politely ushered into the banquet hall. I was pretty much crazily excited by this point. But contained it for the sake of, well… not appearing crazily excited in public.

(fresh crab salad with ginger dressing topped with langoustine carpaccio: THE best)

With proper decorum, the dinner kicked off with a heartwarming welcome speech and an introduction to our chef of the night, Msr. Emile Jung. Chef Jung is a veteran of the culinary world – he received his first Michelin star when he was only 25 (seriously…) and became the youngest chef in French history to win a star. Since then, he has added another Michelin star to his resume, and currently overlooks the kitchen operations at Strasbourg’s Au Crocodile restaurant. Needless to say, having the chance to sample Chef Jung’s dishes was an absolute honor.

After a little more speech-making, etc. etc., the first course arrived. Carpaccio de langoustines et tourteau au gingembre (fresh crab salad with ginger dressing topped with langoustine carpaccio). Perfect. Absolutely perfect. J (my +1 for the evening) and I both agreed that this was probably among one of the best first courses we’ve ever consumed thus far. I could literally smell the freshness of the langoustine before actually tasting it. The seafood has a beautiful creaminess to it that lingered, complementing to a tee with the mild, yet absolutely necessary strips of fried ginger. The result was floral almost. And the strips of pickled carrots helped draw out the flavors of the langoustine even more. Oh my gawd, it was lovely.

(pan-fried foie gras with sauce Bigarade, caramelized apple and deglazed rhubarb)

Course numero uno was definitely a hard act to follow, and course two was a good effort. It was foie de canard poële aux pommes et rhubarbe (pan-fried foie gras de canard with sauce Bigarade, caramelized apple and deglazed rhubarb). The foie gras was cooked well – meltingly creamy on the inside but with a smoky “crust” enrobing it – but the flavor was leaning a little on the bland side. The big surprise turned out to be the smallest thing and it was the pink peppercorns that made all the difference. A bite of foie on its own was alright; a bite of foie with a small peppercorn was a whole new level of flavors.

(lobster poached in court bouillon, golden vermicelli pan-fried in arachide-peanut oil, citrus and pink peppercorn sauce)

By course three, I had decided that whoever supplied the seafood for the dinner have officially become my new favorite people. Homard bleu et vermicelles dores aux baies roses (Atlantic lobster poached in court bouillon, golden vermicelli pan-fried in arachide-peanut oil, citrus and pink peppercorn sauce) was another high. The dish already smelt like a winner on arrival. The lobster was so succulent, taut texture without being tough – it won me over in a bite and I’m usually a pretty big lobster skeptic. The court bouillon was aces – the flavors were spot on – bold without being overly intense. The whole thing was just so completely well-executed.

At this point, we had taken a short food break with the start of the silent “Chef auction.” The main purpose of the auction was to garner $ support for Disciples Escoffier’s main goal – that is, to cultivate young talent in the culinary world. This noble goal has won over the full blessings of Miele, who have volunteered their state-of-the-art cooking center as a location for these private dinners for the auction winners. The auction was a huge success, culminating with the auctioning off of the “Scandanvian mafia” team of association president, Jaakko and secretary general, Oyvind Naesheim (exec chef at NOBU). Cute.

(pan-fried beef tenderloin seasoned with dried orange, crispy potato “Maxim” purée of carrot, turnip, celery and salsify seasoned with ginger)

Our final savory course was the filet de boeuf a l’ecorce d’orange purée de raciness et fève pommes Maxim’s (pan-fried beef tenderloin seasoned with dried orange, crispy potato “Maxim” purée of carrot, turnip, celery and salsify seasoned with ginger). Honestly, this was probably my least favorite dish of the night (sad to say). The beef was perfectly cooked, and a cut-open revealed a beautiful juicy pink on the inside. But I couldn’t taste anything, let alone the orange seasoning. The “crispy” potatoes were thin slices of chewiness… not right. This was the only dish I didn’t get.

But I had little time to linger on the beef course as attention was swiftly drawn back to the stage where the new members’ inauguration ceremony was commencing. It was all so exciting and, more importantly, it was very, very smile-inducing to see so many food enthusiasts being honored. Among the many new members inaugurated that evening was Chef Christopher Mark (chef and partner at the super-awesome Bistecca), Chef Graham Burst (chef at InterCon) and young chef, Wilson Luk (winner of the HK qualifiers for the Youth Hope Asia chef competition). Ribbons were doled out, which was followed by a “knighting” ceremony incolving Jaakko and a large wooden spoon. Awesome.

(SweetPearl desserts)

And perfectly timed, inauguration was followed by dessert. Called “sweet pearl delight,” it was actually three different desserts made from a sugar replacer product known industrially as “SweetPearl.” It tastes no different from normal sugar and is supposedly much healthier for you. But more importantly, it made for an awesome dessert. The fancy fruit roll-up-like situation on the furthest left was an intense burst of tartness melded with sugary sweetness. A jab of the fork into the chocolate block yielded a flow of red raspberry sauce from the center. The sorbet was refreshing and light. No complaints there.

As I was telling J, the whole evening was nothing short of amazing and the whole thing felt like a foodie version of Christmas. There was good company, good wine and good food… what more can you ask for? More importantly though, it was truly great to see all this passion that everyone had for the food industry. The wonderful five-course dinner was more than just a meal; the whole evening was more than just a social culinary event. It was a demonstration of our love and respect for food. It was a reminder of what we still have to do. And that, my friends, feeds the heart as well as the stomach.

To learn more about Disciples Escoffier, visit disciples-escoffier-china.org.

Cafe Gray Deluxe: Pictorial

2010-04-17T02:54:00.005+08:00

(First plate: saffron pasta fiore. Tomatoes and lemon thyme. = LOVE)

(Second plate)

(Dessert: floating island)

(First Plate: scallops and asparagus salad. = Still prefer the fiore)

(Second plate: steamed seabass. Ginger bouillon)

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

CAFÉ GRAY DELUXE ($$$/$$$$)
49/F, Upper House
Pacific Place
88 Queensway
Admiralty
3968-1106
www.cfhk.com

07.01.10: ♥

2010-03-27T20:26:00.003+08:00

♥♥♥

(Amuse bouche: Salmon)

(#1: ABALONE. Salad of shimeji. Jicama. Soy syrup)

(#2: BEEF. Carpaccio maki. Lentils. Foie gras. Beef tongue. Broth)

(#3: SALMON. Sweet potato "risotto." Curry Emulsion. Apples)

(#4: SPRING CHICKEN. Potato. Truffle mushroom stew)

(#5: COCONUT. Panna cotta)

♥♥♥

www.libertypw.com

Union J: Seconds

2010-03-27T20:13:00.003+08:00

What the schedule for a good day looks like:

Before 9:30am: Trot over to Salon de The de Joel Robuchon. Pick up big red box of tarts. Grab coffee to go. Head to office.
9:30 – 9:45: Morning chat with I.T.
9:45am-12:45pm: Work work work. Finish column.
1pm: Lunch with some looooovely person. Chat and eat good food.

Well, that was the schedule for last Tuesday at least. The “looooovely person” that day was no other than Tata and the “good food” was provided by the good folks at Union J. We had settled on that lunch spot since a) I hadn’t been in a pretty long time, and b) they had just added a few new things to the menu.

While I don’t remember being blown away last time I was at Union J for lunch, I did fall in love with the space. So open, so clean, sooooo “Noo Yawk.” It seems almost a waste that the restaurant isn’t on street level. I settled on my lunch course-choices over their A-M-AZING sourdough bread. Seriously, Union J bread is in my top 3 in the city (along with Fusion Gourmet and THE Robuchon, of course) so I happily lapped up every crumb of the crusty bread.

(Leafy sesame salad: eat your greens, yo!)

As for my actual lunch, wanting to pretend to be somewhat healthy, I opted to start with the leafy sesame salad. The serving was unexpected ginormous. I did feel very fortified while eating it. Loved the soy vinaigrette and the crunchy edge from the almonds. But was sadly disappointed by the avocados (tasteless, of course, as most avocados so happen to be in Hong Kong) and the oranges (tasteless, of course, as most oranges so happen to be in Hong Kong). They also had that sesame and fried wonton situation going on, which was just a little too “New York Chinatown take on Chinese food” for me.

For my second dish, I went for the crunchy crab cakes with creamy dill-cucumber salad. Oh, this was sooooo much better than the first dish. The crab meat was so delish, made into a soft patty which was then encased by a perfectly seamless, crunchy breadcrumb mixture. Mmmm… the textures… The heaviness of the crab cakes were well-balanced by the tangy dil-cucumber “salad.” It was so beautiful. Much more impressive than the salmon I had the last time I was here.

(Crab cakes: DILL-icious!!)

Near the end of our second dish, Tata introduced me to pastry chef, a.k.a. one of the “J’s”, Jason Casey. And I have to say, his desserts were, without a doubt, the highlight of the meal. The ABC Ice Cream was a happy combo of tangy raspberry and cream cheese sorbet, shortbread and strawberry meringue – the flavors of a strawberry shortbread fitted into a white Chinese takeaway box. Cute. The Cheese Cake with blueberry snow has such a unique and lovely crumbly texture. But the hands-down winner was the Soft Milk Chocolate – a hazelnut and coffee mousse-like cake with olive oil yogurt sorbet. Oh My Gawd… it was nothing short of “ooh”-worthy.

Now wouldn’t you say that that’s what the schedule for a good day looks like?

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

UNION J ($$$/$$$$)
1/F, California Tower
30-32 D’Aguilar Street
Central
2537-2368

Antique: Sugary Sweetness

2010-03-27T20:00:00.004+08:00

The beautiful Shen surprised me with a box of macarons from Antique during her visit. I lurved the colors. If Betsey Johnson’s dresses transformed into French pastries, they would be a box of Antique’s macarons.

Whee to good friends and good food!

(Macarons: so pretty!)

ANTIQUE PATISSERIE ($)
46 Lyndhurst Terrace
Central
2542-2816

Lobster Bar and Grill: Chef Alexander Ehrgott

2010-03-21T02:41:00.002+08:00

I was lucky enough to try Chef Alexander Ehrgott’s food while he was here (back in January - sorry folks), guest-cheffing at Island Shang’s Lobster Bar and Grill. And for a little chef background bio: Chef Ehrgott comes from the famed Schloss Vollrads restaurant in the Schloss Vollrads castle in Germany.

I was so impressed with the refined and clean flavors of chef Ehrgott’s food. The grilled shrimps with white tomato mousse and marinated pepper had the tomatoes’ most intense flavors drawn out, making the humble vegetable even more of a flavor attraction than the prawns. The pea soup with tuna locked in all the essence of the peas, making a bowl of what seemed like pure, pea essence.

(grilled shrimps with white tomato mousse and marinated pepper)

(Pea soup with tuna)

(Mussels)

Needless to say, a wonderful meal.

LOBSTER BAR AND GRILL ($$$/$$$$)
6/F, Island Shangri-La
Pacific Place
88 Queensway
Admiralty
2820-8560
www.shangri-la.com

Bitte Bitte: The Virtue of Trying

2010-03-21T02:30:00.004+08:00

I had heard the hype about Bitte Bitte before. But, not being a particularly big fan of hotdogs (thanks to too many tasteless, boiled frozen sausages, served dry in a Garden brand hotdog bun during my childhood days), I didn’t think it was something worth noting. That is, until we were told straight up to give this place a try. I figured, as long as I didn’t have to queue up for an hour for a hotdog (à la that RIDICULOUS episode at Pink’s Hotdog, Los Angeles), I’d give Bitte Bitte a shot.

(Alligator MESS!)

We trekked out way behind the Causeway Bay Sogo and found the open-air, shoppe. After perusing the many… and I mean MANY, topping-sausage combinations (six different types of sausages and a myriad of different Japanese-inspired toppings), we settled on the Alligator Bites Dog ($27) with avocado, tomato salsa and mayo.

The dog was actually pretty good. The bun was toasted and was fluffy on the inside. The sausage had a nice taut, pop to it on the first bite, which yielded to a well-seasoned, meaty center. The flavors of the toppings worked well too. Our only complaint though would be that the sausage was pretty much sitting on TOP of the bun, instead of being sandwiched IN it, making the whole thing unbelievably impossible to eat without appearing like the district’s clumsiest and unmannered brute. We had mayo smeared across our faces, bits of avocado dropping all over the table, and a sausage constantly in danger of slipping out of its bun.

(Fries: YUMMMMM)

But to end this on a positive note, the fries are abso-effin’ stellar. So beautifully golden and crisp on the outside, flecked with just the right amount of salt. A bite revealed the fluffiness of the potato.We were so enamored, we asked the staff who their fries suppliers were. They didn’t reveal, of course, answering merely “local suppliers” with an awkward smile. Ah well, at least we tried. And sometimes, trying is the most important part.

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 3.75/5
ATMOSPHERE: 2/5

BITTE BITTE ($)
Shop B&C Hoi Tao Court
15 Cannon Street
Causeway Bay
2777-7220

The French Window: Pictorial

2010-03-21T02:11:00.004+08:00

Dec 28, 2009

THE FRENCH WINDOW ($$$$$)
Shop 3101
3/F, IFC Mall
8 Finance Street
Central
2393-3812
www.thefrenchwindow.hk

Shanghai Lane: $38 Worth of Yumminess

2010-03-21T01:59:00.004+08:00

Lunchtime in the office district can be a pain sometimes. You go here and it’s packed, you go there and it’s packed. Not cool. So when Moe and Leo wanted to meet up for lunch in the area and asked me to choose the restaurant, I based my choice on one thing – seating availability.

(Appetizers with a spicy kick)

And that led us to Shanghai Lane, the not-really-new-anymore eatery that opened on Gough Street. The place was bustling, but we managed to grab a seat, thanks to the super-polite and helpful staff there. And being that I only had an hour to blow – I ordered the quickest thing on the menu. The chilled Shanghai mixed noodles ($38).

(Noodles: pre-mix)

(Noodles: post-mix)

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much more than a quick bite to satisfy the hunger, but I was actually really impressed by the noodles. It was a giant bowl of chewy strands, served with thin strips of cucumber, egg, ham, and shredded chicken. I mixed everything into one giant mass with the peanut sauce. Such an appetizing mix of flavors. I finished every last noodle and licked up every last bit of the fragrant peanut sauce. Yum. And all for $38? Not too shabby…

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 2/5

SHANGHAI LANE ($/$$)
35-37 Gough Street
Central
2850-7788

Xenri No Tsuki: Check the Bill

2010-03-21T01:36:00.004+08:00

I was tipped off about this 6th floor Japanese eatery, Xenri no Tsuki, by a foodie friend. From what I was told, this place does old-school, traditional Japanese cuisine, and… they do shirako (male fish genitals). I was actually enticed by the shirako (I’ve never tried it before), but that night, was told by the sushi chef that they were out of that. No dice. Ah well, maybe next time.

(Amuse bouche: Nippon style)

After we made our orders, we were presented with a lovely amuse bouche platter. A bite-size serving of shrimp with jelly and caviar followed by a square of bonito-topped pumpkin and a tamago-esque concoction of some sort. A very welcoming start that heaped automatic brownie points to Xenri. Then came the first of the few small dishes we ordered. The marinated baby squid were slimy and intensely salty. Sooooo perfect with the sake. Then came the chilled uni tofu, which personally, I thought was no surprises there (not that it was not fresh or well-made… but it was just a little boring). Next up, stingray tempura. I’m not sure if I liked the stingray itself – it didn’t really seem meaty enough for my liking, but the tempura itself was perfectly executed. It was crispy and not the least bit greasy. I popped them, piece by piece into my mouth like peanuts, along with the accompanying mayo.

(Sake-perfect squid)

(Uni tofu: fresh but "meh")

(Stingray tempura: like peanuts)

(Cucumber with miso: complimentary from the chefs)

And having nabbed a seat at the sushi bar, there was no way we could bypass the daily specials. We tried a chef-recommended fish, which was diced up and dressed in a light and tangy sauce which really elevated the freshness of the fish. We also gave the jumbo shrimp sashimi a go. This was beautifully prepared, with an accompanying sauce made from all the delectableness in the head of the shrimp. And waste-not – they deep-fried the shrimp head for us afterwards, for our crunchy eating pleasure.

(Fresh fish sashimi of the day)

(Shrimp sashimi with sauce)

And wanting our share of carbs for the evening, we placed an order for my beloved ikura sushi (savory yumminess), and also the grilled eel sushi, which was interesting served with the slice of eel rolled around the rice. How pretty…

(Sushi: carbsssss)

In terms of service, I had absolutely no complaints about the chefs, who seemed like a nice bunch of dedicated, and friendly folk. Our serving waitress, on the other hand, though not unfriendly, seemed only half-awake (we ordered the onigiri, she brought us the teapot rice). But overall, I was impressed with the dining experience at this tucked-away gem… that is, until our bill came. Just as we had been commenting on how cheap everything seemed to be, our waitress handed us the bill, which turned out to be a few hundred $$ over what we had calculated the bill would be. But of course, being not the smartest people in the planet (and finishing a whole bottle of sake didn’t make things better), we didn’t realize this until we had paid the bill, left the restaurant… without taking the receipt, of course. Damn…

So kids, here’s the moral of the story: enjoy the food, double-check the bill, and drink the sake responsibly.

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 3.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3.75/5

XENRI NO TSUKI ($$$$/$$$$$)
6/F, Jardine Centre
50 Jardine's Bazaar
Causeway Bay
2576-1880

AJ's Sri Lankan Cuisine: Kotthu for You

2010-03-21T01:04:00.005+08:00

I dropped by Sai Kung a while ago for my first ever Sri Lankan meal. We made our way down the main street, rejecting all the beckoning from the many Cantonese seafood restaurants and made our way to the quiet stretch of Hoi Pong Street. A cute, rustic-looking cottage stood out… with a Sri Lankan flag waving about at the door.

This was it. AJ's Sri Lankan Cuisine.

(AJ's "bread basket")

We walked into the cottage, into a dining room complete with wooden chairs and tables and a strange but amusing faux waterfall sort of decorative contraption inside. Not knowing the Jacks and Jills of Sri Lankan cuisine, we sort of winged it and just picked a few random things from the menu.

(Pittu)

First up was the pittu ($45), known in English as lightly roasted fresh rice meal with shredded coconut steamed in a bamboo mould. The dish was unexpectedly bland. Which is where the accompanying curry and sautéed onion sambol came in handy. The flavors are actually very similar to Indian food, thought seemingly less intense. Interesting… but not awe-inspiring. The beef kotthu roti ($68), on the other hand, was much more well-received. According the menu, this is a “Sri Lankan street-side specialty” made from elasticized doughy pancake, shredded and stir-fried with veggies, meat and eggs. It was so comforting… like the Sri Lankan version of Chinese fried rice.

(Kotthu roti: like fried rice)

But having nothing else to compare it to, I’m not sure how authentic AJ’s is. All I know is that it’s the only licensed Sri Lankan restaurant in town (at the time of writing of course) and, if you haven’t tried Sri Lankan food before. It’s worth checking out. After all, if you decide that you don’t it, you can always go back to one of those Cantonese seafood restaurants out there.

FOOD: 3/5
SERVICE: 3/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

AJ’S SRI LANKAN CUISINE ($$)
14 Sai Kung Hoi Pong Street
Sai Kung
2792-2555
http://aj.srilankan.hk

Delicious Inn: A Bug's Life

2010-03-21T00:34:00.003+08:00

It’s not that I deliberately try to eat “gross” foods. It’s just that I don’t really mind them. In my mind, a heaping plate of Oaxacan style stir-fried crickets is far more appetizing than let’s say, a corndog. And it’s exactly because of this mentality, I’ve never turned down a chance to chow down a bug, or anything that’s still semi-moving, or anything that looks suspiciously like a booger… you get the idea.

So when I heard that the once-infamous, bug-serving restaurant – Delicious Inn – had recently reopened in Sham Shui Po, I was all geared up to pay it a visit. Aside from the dishes of creepy crawlies, Delicious Inn’s menu is rife with a good several other “unorthodox” items. Think donkey meat, duck chin, fish lips. Fun.

(Caterpillars)

But I was only really there for the bugs that day. Owner, Yu, tells me though that bugs are a lot more difficult to source these days, which explains the scant selection of only three types of bugs. We started off with the caterpillars – these golden-brown thin strips looked and actually also smelt a lot like crunchy potato fries. Stir-fried in spicy salt, these tasted like… well, spicy salt. Literally. The cylindrical cocoons were prepared the same way, but were more “meaty” so the insect protein taste was slightly more prominent.

(Cocoon)

But the star of the night was the salt-baked whole water roaches. These shiny jet-black buggies need a three-step process to ingest, as the owner explained to me. First, take the bug between your thumb and index finger, squeeze a little so the hard back shell pops up. Tear these off, along with the soft, thin wings underneath it. Next, twist the head off, making sure you remove the intestine along with it. Now you’re ready. Move bug to lips and suck from where the head used to be. Voila – bug ingested.

(Water Roach)

Verdict? This was by far the strongest flavored of all the bugs. The protein flavor can be a little disconcerting at first and can taste a little soapy. The creamy texture of the protein doesn’t help either. But other than that, it’s nothing really special. It’s not disgusting, but it’s not something I’d be craving in the middle of the night, like I would a bag of crunchy potato fries.

DELICIOUS INN ($$)
29-33 Shun Ning Road
Sham Shui Po
2748-0002

11.12: Thank You

2010-02-01T00:56:00.002+08:00

Dec 11, 1pm.

(Not for lunch)

("Simple simple")

(#1)

(#2)

Thank You.

La Maison du Chocolat: The Gift of Receiving

2010-02-01T00:35:00.001+08:00

I’m convinced that Nelson was born with a gift – a gift of knowing exactly what… well, gift (sorry, pun seriously not intended) to get me. Every single birthday, Christmas, just-because-you’re-awesome (because I am) present Nelson has gotten me over the past many many years has been – simply put – perfect.

Take the last present he got me for example. A small box of… wait for it… La Maison du Chocolat macarons. Half a dozen sitting so prettifully in a clear box, tied with the classic deep brown ribbon, waiting to be eaten. Perfectly crunchy shells with a bit of chewiness and the perfect ratio of ganache – not toothachingly sweet but just enough to put a giant smile on your face for the rest of the day. In my personal opinion – the best macarons so far in the city (yes, even beating out JPH).

Thank you hun. You’re the bestest!

LA MAISON DU CHOCOLAT ($$)
Shop 109, 2/F, Prince's Building
10 Chater Road
Central
2801-4122

Guru: For The Love Of Chaat

2010-02-01T00:17:00.007+08:00

(Papadam: kickass start)

A while ago, I found my Indian food lover in the form of Guru, “Boutique” Indian Dining. That was back in August. I haven’t been back since then. Why? Don’t ask me why. Just know that, this time, when I went back, it was still the same, beautiful flavors I fell in love with the first time around. And in the words of Teenage Fanclub, “Ain’t That Enough?”

Yes. That’s definitely enough. It also helps that Guru doesn’t do the typical $98 lunchtime buffet thing that every Indian joint this side of the harbor seems to love serving. Hey – I have nothing against all-you-can-eat Indian food, but my lazy ass desires food to come to me, instead of me having to – God forbid – GET UP – and go to the food. Plus, my self-centered side also takes joy in knowing that the kitchen is freshly concocting a dish just for me, instead of plating up some mass-produced curry for all in the house.

(Samosa + Chaat = wow + OMG!)

We started off with some complimentary papadam (Indian wafers) which were flecked on the surface with bits of coriander, chopped onions, chili and Indian spices. So good with the raita and a perfect way to start. Then our “real” appetizers arrived – four fatty samosas ($40), again served with a side of their awesome raita. These samosas were veggie-filled but tasted so deceptively meaty. But good as they were, in no way could they compare to the stellar dish of the meal – the almighty blue mango chaat ($70). Cubes of refreshingly sweet mango, paired with whole wheat cracker crisps for a nice touch of crunch, and all doused under a lovely flavor-bomb of sweetened yogurt, mint and tamarind chutney. The flavors just melded so well together… needless to say, I polished off the chaat with much ease.

We also ordered a berry lamb pullao ($98) of basmati rice with grilled lamb, cashews and fresh blueberries. I was actually really excited about this dish since I remember it being nothing short of stunning the first time I tried it. But perhaps the berries weren’t in season (bland and juiceless) and the kitchen didn’t have their complete A-game on (lamb was overcooked. Tough, dry) so this was a slight disappointment, especially after the wowing appetizers. Oh well, all in all, there were more wins than losses. And seriously, any place that can churn out that blue mango chaat can do no wrong in my books.

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3/5

GURU ($$$)
13 Lower Elgin Street
Central
2547-9998

Classified: Ooey Gooey, Oh-so-Lovely

2010-01-31T23:39:00.004+08:00

Imagine a vat of cheese. Baked in the oven until the outsides become a wonderful, smoky crust while the innards transform into a mass of warm, ooey, gooey, melty deliciousness. No, you don’t have to imagine it, actually. It’s real.

It’s the Mont’dOr cheese.

We were invited to Classified the Cheese Room to try this winter-weather cheesy special and, oh my, it is luuuuuurvely. The cheese “fondue" was served with cubes of crusty bread, apples (so you can trick yourself into thinking you’re being healthy) and – my personal favorite – sweet potato for happy dunking. And happy dunk we did.

FOOD: 3.75/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

CLASSIFIED THE CHEESE ROOM ($$)
108 Hollywood Road
Sheung Wan
2525-3454

Thai BBQ 2: When Food is Just Right...

2010-01-16T22:56:00.003+08:00

Sometimes, you come across something that just makes so much sense in life – something so beautiful, so right – you just start to wonder why you or anyone else has never thought of it before. Such was the case about two months ago.

Not content with our first dinner of a mediocre claypot rice (it was alright but nothing fantastic or blogworthy), we taxi-ed our way out to the food mecca of Kowloon City in search of a spot for “second dinner.” A quick stroll around the block led us to Thai BBQ 2 – a dingy little eatery… the type that has a see-through vinyl door curtain and cheesy Thai soap operas playing in the background. Perfect.

(SO much meat...)

We plunked ourselves down and ordered the very-necessary bottles of beer. And wanting to try something really special, we requested for the Thai style hotpot-grill ($2xx) the restaurant had displayed out front. To elaborate, this genius creation consists of a charcoal-heated barbecue grill, which is raised over a “moat” of hotpot broth. The idea is to cook thin slices of meat on the sloped grill and let the meat juices trickle down into the broth. Sigh… awesome? Quite.

The dainty-cute restaurant lady brought out our platter of meats, which – in all honesty – was probably designed to feed four hungry individuals, as opposed to two already-had-“first-dinner” people. There was a huge portion of beef, pork and chicken – all marinated in a rich-red sauce – along with various pork and cow entrails and beef and fish balls. And let me draw special attention to the grill for a bit, which was brought out, topped with a hunk of beef lard to lubricate the grill and to give the meats an extra aromatic edge when cooking. I was totally in food excitement mode.

(Watch as the meat juices trickle down)

(What love looks like)

We dived right into the meats platter, “ooh-ing” over the tender pork and “aah-ing” over the flavor-soaked beef. So perfect with the beer. And it was a whole new level of amazingness, cooking the basket of greens, enoki mushrooms and vermicelli in the meat-flavor enriched hotpot broth. The vermicelli, in particular, was just beautiful in every way – like little glassy strands that soaked up every ounce of flavor from the soup. All the way through the meal, we kept repeating “hell, I’m so full,” and “crap, I think I’m done.” But the whole thing was so delish, we just kept on eating and eating. We definitely ate more than any decent person should eat, polishing almost the whole meats platter. When the lady came by the clear our plates, she couldn’t help but comment on how impressed she was with how much we managed to finish. Yea, we’re kinda disgusting… but also kinda awesome…

(Proof that we are pigs)

The hotpot-grill plus several beers came in at less than $300 for the two of us. An awesome deal, considering how much food we had. It just all goes to show that when it comes to food, it’s never about the fanciness or the extravagance. Whether you’re eating a slab of foie gras, or something super complicated like uni with cucumber and apple gelee and burnt flour foam… if a simple platter of meats and a few cold beers can make you just as happy and satisfied, then that’s the most important thing. That’s what eating should be about. And thank God for that.

(Dessert after second dinner)

And because we’re absolute pigs, after that big fatty second dinner, what do we do? Head a few streets down to Tei Mou Koon to grab dessert of course! Hong Kong styled double boiled milk ($14) and a small dish of gooey-chewy glutinous rice balls with sugar and chopped peanuts ($10) for a very satisfying food end to a very satisfying food day.

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 1/5

THAI BBQ 2 ($$)
17 Nam Kok Road
Kowloon City
2718-6219

FOOD: 3.5/5
SERVICE: 2/5
ATMOSPHERE: 1/5

TEI MOU KOON DESSERT ($)
47 Fuk Lo Tsun Road
Kowloon City
2382-5004

Caprice: A Cheesy Tuesday

2010-01-14T12:12:00.002+08:00

I had the great fortune of meeting Monsieur Jean-Francois Antony when he dropped by town a little while ago for Caprice’s week-of-cheese extravaganza. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Monsieur Jean-Francois, he is the son of legendary French affineur (i.e. “cheesemaker”), Bernard Antony. Monsieur Bernard Antony is an absolute artist in the cheese world, winning over the trust of big names in the food industry, including Alain Ducasse and Pierre Gagnaire. In other words, these are guys who will feed you some good cheese.

(Clockwise, left to right: awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome)

Given the renown of the Antonys, it is not at all surprising that they are very careful with selecting who they supply their cheeses to. And our city’s very own recently-crowned three-Michelin star Caprice restaurant is among one of the exclusive places where you can sample the Antonys’ cheeses. So imagine how excited I was when I was penciled in for a full-out fromage lunch! My heart melted into a puddle of pure happiness already as I walked into the restaurant and saw the wide selection of cheeses on full display by the entrance. So stunning.

Msr. Antony appeared, very charmingly introduced himself and his family’s business and, brought us our first cheese plate with four different cheeses. Sad to say I couldn’t catch the names of the cheeses as I was too busy being enamored by all the delicious flavors. Sooo heartstoppingly amazing.

And after stuffing our faces with all that cheese, Chef Vincent Thierry very thoughtfully whipped up a “palate cleanser” for us, which turned out to be a huge slab of milky soft halibut topped with a crunchy, zesty breadcrumb topping with a very interesting yellow pepper sauce. I was all over the fish and finished it like nobody’s business. I probably shouldn’t have though, to be honest, because we had a second round of cheese to go. Again, another amazing selection of four different cheeses. Plus more wine. Plus more chit chat.

Is it any wonder I love Caprice?*

(EEEEK!!! I LOVE SOFT CHEESES!!!)

(Top right: paired with quince jam = amazing)

*Congratulations on the third Michelin star!

FOOD: 4.75/5
SERVICE: 4.75/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4.75/5

CAPRICE ($$$$$)
Podium 6, Four Seasons Hotel
8 Finance Street
Central
3196-8888

Takeya: Foodie Friends

2009-12-06T03:43:00.005+08:00

Dinner with foodie friends always = good times. Nothing beats chatting about good food while eating good food… and it’s also nice to have someone who doesn’t think you’re a complete freak show when you whip out your digicam to document every detail of your dinner.

IL chose the place this time and with the directions he gave me, I found myself in some nondescript alley in Hung Hom, faced with a wooden Japanese slide door with the kanji characters for Takeya hanging over it. I walked into the restaurant and fell in love. Such a cute space – very very small, granted (probably seats 15 people at a time) but so wonderfully warm and cozy. It seemed more like a friend’s house than anything. I plunked myself down on a seat and, as always, let IL decide on our dinner choices. If there’s one person I trust with my food, it’d be him.

(Clockwise from top left: potato salad, daikon, chicken neck, cheese with guts)

(Chicken skin and chicken neck)

But before any of our orders, the super-friendly/mumsy waitress, Dodo (wife of one half of Takeya’s older brother-younger brother team) brought over the plate of complimentary purple taro to start. So winter-appropriate. Sighhhh…lovely. Following the taro, the first two dishes to came in the form of a small plate of pickled daikon and a giant mound o’ potato salad ($42). The salad was flecked with bits of bacon and sliced cucumber for a nice bit of crunch, it was a hearty starter and a very easy-eating dish that I kept going back to throughout the night.

And here, can I please mention how good Takeya’s yakitori items are? Please? Because it’s definitely worth mentioning. We went with the chicken skin ($23/skewer) – cooked to crispy perfection and absolutely delish when grilled with a few flecks of salt. The ($23/skewer) was another winner with its slight crunchy mouthfeel. And being an innards person, I absolutely loved the chicken neckgrilled pig intestine ($24/skewer). Fragrant, chewy without being rubbery and so deliciously flavored.

(Cooked pig's intestine)

And following the yakitori-ed version of the pig’s innards, we also ordered a cooked-in-broth version of pig’s intestine ($58). Again, chewy and full-flavored in all the right places. But while everything up to this point was good, it all had to give way when I tried the stellar dish of the night – cheese topped with fish intestine ($48). OMG SOOOO not appetizing-sounding, I know...but SO EFFIN' GOOD!!! This dish + beer = a very good time. The intense savory flavor of the intestine pairs so beautifully with the strong taste of the cheese – the flavor combination just begs to be washed down with an ice cold beer. D-e-l-i-cious.

(Tamago: just like comfort food)

(Grilled mochi)

This high was followed by the most comforting dishes of the night – the grilled tamago ($45). Thick and fluffily light… warm and actually just a tad still-runny on the inside. The tamago felt like a pillow of eggy goodness on the tongue. Both of us were so super impressed. We rounded off the meal with a few pieces of grilled mochi ($25), which were beautiful chewy and messy on the inside but crisp golden on the outside.

And after downing two big mugs of beer each with our meal, the two of us were feeling more than satisfied and more than well-fed. Like I said, dinner with foodie friends always = good times.

FOOD: 3.75/5
SERVICE: 3/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3/5

TAKEYA ($$$)
31C1 Tak Man Street
Whampoa Estate
Hung Hom
2365-8878

Nadaman: Prelude to a Meal - The Hotel Lobby Smell

2009-12-05T20:43:00.004+08:00

I l-o-v-e the Shangri-La hotel lobby fragrance. Seriously, someone should bottle whatever scent that is and market it. I’d buy it. And I also love the fact that, whenever I smell that particular Shangri-La smell, it’s almost always a prelude to a wonderful meal at the hotel. Be it at Petrus on the Island or, in my most recent case, Nadaman at Kowloon Shang.

Not wanting to think about my order, I went straight for the mini kaiseki lunch option, which my lunch-company also went for. We started with a very artfully arranged set of seasonal eggplant and mushroom with sesame sauce, chestnut with miso paste, pumpkin cake roll and grilled crab meat with and beef rolled with asparagus. Too busy catching up and yammering away about which new movies were worth watching and which new restaurants worth going to, I stupidly forgot to take the lid off the eggplant and mushroom for my photo. Duh, me. Well, at least the pale purple pot it was served in was nice and pretty.

(eggplant and mushrooms in a pot, crab and gingko nuts, beef and asparagus, pumpkin cake, chestnut miso roll)

Next course was a very stomach-warming chicken soup with seasonal veggies. Very comforting – I felt like I was glowing after downing this broth and greens. I was kinda elated when the next dish to come up was sliced seasonal sea bream sashimi. I’ve recently realized just how much I love the sea bream with its delish firm flesh and lovely distinct flavor. I polished off the sashimi like nobody’s business. No joke.

(Hearty chicken soup)

(Sea bream sashimi)

The following course was probably the cutest – deep fried lotus root dumpling with shrimp, dried scallop, assorted veggies and grated radish sauce. A very interesting dish with an interlocking layering of flavors and textures. The deep fried lotus root was actually pulped to a creamy paste and was encased in the perfectly crispy “shell.” The shrimp and scallops provided most of the taste to the dish and rode well on the radish sauce. A dish that took a lot of heart to make, I can tell. This was followed by an Indian-inspired grilled silver cod and mushroom with special turmeric sauce. I love cod, I love mushrooms and I love turmeric so this was definitely a winner of a dish for me, though not exactly “Japanese-y.” The fish was soft and fluffy and the mushrooms were wonderfully fleshy. The turmeric could have been a little more prominent but I guess maybe they didn’t want to overdo it on the spices? Ah well, ‘twas good nonetheless.

(Silver cod with mushrooms and turmeric)

(Deep-fried lotus root "sphere" - cute.)

We finished the savory part of our meal with ochatsuke with grilled salmon rice ball. Again, an interesting dish with different textures and flavors. The perfectly-grilled rice ball was scoring massive brownie points with me (I love grilled carbs of any form). And after a short interlude of assorted pickles, we were brought the finishing course of homemade mango tiramisu. A light and sweet end to long and satisfying meal. And with that, and a mini bottle of sake the good folks at Nadaman let me have, I started planning in my mind, when the next time would be that I’d be back in the flower-scented Shangri-La hotel lobby.

(Grilled rice ball)

(Mango tiramisu)

FOOD: 3.75/5
SERVICE: 3.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3/5

NADAMAN ($$$$)
Lower Level 2
Kowloon Shangri-la Hotel
64 Mody Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
2733-8751

Charcoal Egg Waffles Cart: A Brown Paper Bag

2009-11-21T23:34:00.003+08:00

Last week, walking back from a busy restaurant shoot, we came across something that I personally haven’t seen in a long time – an egg waffles cart with a charcoal heater. Old school. And though I had just finished a fatty Middle Eastern lunch not too long ago, with the delicious eggy pastry aroma wafting through the air, how could I resist?

(Proud Cart Owner)

I plunked down a ten while the friendly, chatty man poured a stream of egg batter from his Heineken plastic jug into the pasty mould. Not even two minutes later, there it was – a fresh piece of golden eggy waffles, à la nostalgic Hong Kong style. Crispy on the outside and warm and pillowy on the insides… sigh. Those ten bucks worth of little domes of deliciousness in a brown paper bag were, without a doubt, a very satisfying step back in time.

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 5/5
ATMOSPHERE: N/A

Charcoal Egg Waffles Cart ($)
Around 3-4pm
Near Ladders Street/Bridges Street Intersection

Salon de Thé de Joël Robuchon: Still Like Old Times

2009-11-19T01:21:00.004+08:00

When we were young, we used to all sit at Connaught Garden and stay and gossip about all sorts of random stuff over cups of hot coffee and a spread of food. Then the Star Ferry moved somewhere else, the coffee shop people we used to say “Hi” to all left. And we all grew up and moved away.

Back to present day.

Earlier this week, I decided to take full advantage of the beautiful pre-freezing cold weather by deciding to make it “picnic lunch day.” And wanting to relive the lovely days I spent in Central Park with Bouchon Bakery’s delicious goodies in hand, I hopped on a cab to The Landmark (by the way, loving the Christmas décor!) and escalatored up to Salon de Thé de Joël Robuchon for my picnic provisions.

(Flakey Almond Croissant)

After perusing the offerings at the salon, I settled for two cups of hot coffee ($40 each), a salmon and dill quiche ($32) and chicken mushroom quiche ($32), an earl grey tea cake ($40), on the friendly server’s recommendation, and a small almond croissant ($17). All to go. They wrapped everything neatly into a beautiful red paper bag and off I was, toting Robuchon goods in one hand, a hot coffee in the other and tottering my way to meet the Nelson at the old spot.

And things haven’t changed. Well, save the time constraint, Kenj being still in Australia, and that Robuchon coffee is about twice as expensive as Starbucks (which is already twice as expensive as any other place). We still mindlessly gossiped about unimportant things which were important to us though, and we still had a good time. As for the food – the quiches had a nice crumbly crust but alas, should have asked them to reheat it (duh, me). But the sweets were so delish. The earl gray cake made us fall in love with it a little, with its delicate sweetness and subtle layering of textures. And my almond croissant? Very flakey on the outside and nutty sweet on the inside. Still can’t compare to that Godsend of a croissant from Bouchon Bakery, NYC though but that REALLY set the bar and this is a close enough second for me. I was happy.

(Earl grey tea cake: our new love)

Too bad they didn’t have too much of a selection left by the time I got there. I was actually aching to try the crabmeat with avocado and tomato confit. And maybe I’ll try the sandwiches next time… or better yet, make a meal out of their pastries and desserts :) Ah well, to be honest though, it’s all about the feeling. It’s about sitting there, being happy, and feeling young again.

(An impromptu picnic)

FOOD: 3.5/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

Salon de Thé de Joël Robuchon ($$)
Shop 315, 3/F
The Landmark
16 Des Voeux Road Central
Central
2166-9000
www.robuchon.hk

Bo Innovation: The Perks of the Job

2009-11-18T23:05:00.005+08:00

Finally, the much-delayed post about a meal so extravagant, it bordered on ridiculousness.

Wednesday, November 4th.

I found myself standing in front of the elevators at the front of J Residence. Anticipating though not really knowing what exactly it was that I was going to get. I had just received a call two days ago telling me that I was invited to try a “mind-blowing” (direct quote) menu at Bo Innovation. I didn’t really catch the name of the event… all I knew was that there would be a big-shot guest chef and that I had still never been to Bo Innovation yet (yes – shameful, I know) and I was being asked to go now. What was there to refuse?

I elevatored up to the second floor and was greeted by smiles behind a large white table out front. Asked for a business card and was handed back a nametag to pin onto my dinner jacket. A quick look around the restaurant – this was definitely not what I had expected. There must have been at least sixty seats set up taking up almost both the inside and outside dining rooms of the restaurant. I took a sip from my glass of sparkling chardonnay and looked at the menu for the night and gulped – I was in store for eighteen courses. No, I didn’t miscount… it was really, eighteen.

(Lobster Congee and abalone jelly)

Well, to be technically correct, it was actually a nine course menu, but each course was to be two dishes – one from Alvin Leung (Bo Innovation’s self-proclaimed “Demon Chef”) and one from guest chef and Australia’s 2008 Chef of the Year, Sean Connelly of Astral and Sean’s Kitchen. And as if that weren’t enough already, there would be one wine to go with each dish. Pressure. We began with an anything-but-frugal sashimi of smoked petrossian scallop, tuna toro, oscietra caviar and soy mirin jelly (Astral) and Chinese hybrid caviar, abalone jelly and lobster congee (Bo). The scallops were really quite amazing but I was taken by the lobster congee. It may not have been absolutely delicious but it was definitely an intriguing dish (in a good way of course). The “congee” had the texture of a thick paste but had an undeniably concentrated congee flavor infused with lobster. I can’t say I could really taste the abalone-ness in the jelly but the texture was a fantastic complement to the other components to the dish and the whole thing was just a beautiful burst of intense flavors on the tongue.

(smoked petrossian scallop, tuna toro, oscietra caviar, soy mirin jelly)

We then moved onto the miso soup, foie gras with quail egg wrapped in gold leaf (Astral) which was definitely one of the winners of the night in my book. The foie gras was so amazingly – delicate and silky smooth; the texture of tofu but the unmistakable earthiness of foie gras. I had a word with Chef Connelly afterwards, who told me the foie gras is added to the soup raw and is poached by the hot soup to give it that wonderful mouthfeel. Genius. And I loved how this little bite of magic was bathed in a comfortingly unfussy miso soup. Needless to say, it overshadowed the foie gras lettuce wrap with white miso Muscat sauce and rice paper (Bo).

(Miso soup, foie gras, gold quail egg)

(Foie gras lettuce wrap white miso muscat sauce rice paper)

But all eyes were drawn to course three: hunter valley snails with XO sauce and snail caviar (Astral) and Sichuan snails and watermelon (Bo). Come on, I’ve NEVER had snail caviar before… I didn’t even know snails had caviar! So forgive me if I was a little excited to try this. Well, turns out, snail caviar are just little tasteless white blobs. Urmm… I guess I’ll just stick with non-snail caviar from now on.

(Hunter valley snails with XO sauce and snail caviar)

(Sichuan snails with watermelon)

Crustaceans took over next with a hairy crab soufflé with marinated star fruit, pimm’s and pomelo jelly and aged Chinkiang vinegar (Bo). I liked the fact that I could eat hairy crab sans the messy dissecting process but I couldn’t stop thinking that the dish tasted an awful lot like prawn crackers. I mean, that’s not a bad thing – I LOVE prawn crackers, after all – I just don’t think it was what Alvin was shooting for. As for Chef Connelly, he won the table over with his signature lobster and foie gras burger (Astral). This three-bite burger was l-o-v-e-ly, especially with the sweet hoisin sauce the chef added for a bit of Hong Kong kick.

(Hairy crab souffle, marinated star fruit, pimm's and pomelo jelly)

(Lobster and foie gras burger)

A much-needed interlude palate cleanser arrived in the form of a nitro ginger tea ball. Well, to be honest, this was the “wow” thing a long time back already so I wasn’t exactly “ooh”-ing at the liquid nitrogen trick. Buuuuuut, I WAS “ooh”-ing over the following venison course. The venison steak tartare was delish, along with a duck fat chip and fried ginger, chili, garlic and shallots (Astral). And Alvin’s dish was even better than that, in my opinion. The braised venison with preserved kumquat and fruity red rice (Bo) was just a great combo of flavors. The fruity tang was distinct but still subtle, a little playful on the tongue even. And I loved how the rice had a bit of bite – a perfect complement to the fork-tender venison.

(Braised venison with preserved kumquat and fruity red rice)

(Venison tartare, ginger, chili, garlic, shallot, duck fat chip)

I was pretty much way past full already but soldiered on with course six. The kangaroo “xiao long bao” beetroot “skippy” sauce (Bo) was, sad to say, my least favorite of the night. The xiao long bao was a tad dry for my taste, with none of that lovely soupy inside famous of the XLB. The kangaroo with Sichuan pepper crust and truffled pomme puree (Astral) was better but didn’t really blow me away. Maybe I just don’t like kangaroo meat?

(Kangaroo, Sichuan pepper crust, truffled pomme puree)

Well the next two courses definitely brought it back up again, with a wagyu beef vegemite “ho fun” (Bo) and a wagyu scotch fillet, sea urchin wasabi butter and shitake mushrooms (Astral). Ah, I LOVED the Astral dish. The wagyu was tender and juicy but my absolute favorite part was the wasabi butter. So subtle yet adding a wonderful edge to the dish. And it worked so well with the flecks of sea salt. SO GOOD.

(Wagyu scotch fillet, sea urchin wasabi butter, shitake mushrooms)

Well, there were supposed to be four more dishes and four more wines to go but, sad to say, my eating capacity failed me and I had to finally say “enough.” I had eaten probably a week’s worth of food and really had zero stomach space left for dessert, as much as I wanted it. But it was truly such an amazing experience. The atmosphere was friendly, the service was absolutely topnotch (I was really very impressed with the whole team at Bo Innovation. Massive props to them), and the food? Awesome. Thanks so much to Tourism New South Wales for organizing such an amazing event and thanks to Chef Alvin and Sean for this “flight of gastronomy and wine discovery.”

And at 1am, I finally made my way back home.

Bo Innovation ($$$$$)
2/F J Residence
60 Johnston Road
Wan Chai
2850-8371
www.boinnovation.com

Pierre: Chef Olivier's Take on Things

2009-11-15T02:01:00.004+08:00

(Amuse bouche: a perfect beginning)

Lunch at Pierre is, of course, always good times. Last time I went, I was lucky enough to meet THE actual, Msr. Pierre Gagnaire himself (yes yes, I was completely starstruck like an idiot). And though Msr. Gagnaire wasn’t in town this time around, I did get to meet the equally charming and extremely talented Chef Olivier Elzer who’s just signed on as Pierre’s new exec chef.

(Scallops: refreshing)

(63 degree eggs: MASSIVE food envy)

And because a meal at Pierre pretty much REQUIRES maximum indulgence, we went with the four-courser not-so-express lunch option ($380 for two courses, $80 for each additional course). I started with the scallops with cauliflower – very delicate and light but not the least bit bland. The scallops were delish and the dish as a whole was wonderfully refreshing, especially with its lightly tangy sauce/broth. But as good as the scallops were, I had massive food envy at WY and Johan’s 63-degree eggs after one big bite. This dish is a Pierre Gagnaire classic and Chef Olivier’s rendition was absolutely perfect. The flavors were all spot on, the egg was perfectly poached and ah, the beautiful layer of textures! Must. Order. Eggs. Next. Time.

(Beef ravioli: not mine but beautiful)

(Foie gras custard: comfort food-esque)

As for our middle course, I went with the foie gras custard. When it arrived, we all noticed that it was extremely reminiscent of Chinese steamed eggs. And just like the steamed egg dish, the foie gras custard was extremely satisfying; luxurious without being too in-your-face indulgent. But the foie was definitely overshadowed by my pork cheeks main course. So effin’ tender – I could cut through the meat with a fork. And I was absolutely loving the Indian cuisine influence with a playful hint of turmeric and other spices. Johan’s beef ravioli middle course and lamb shoulder main looked delicious enough, but I had a bite of the smoked salmon and was completely sold by that abso-effin-lutely wonderful flavor. Will get that the next time, definitely.

(Pork cheeks: with a bit of spice)

(Lamb shoulder)

(Bitter almond panna cotta: will pay attention next time)

As for desserts, I ordered the bitter almond panna cotta. To be honest though, I don’t really remember much of the panna cotta because Chef Olivier came out during this course and I was too busy chatting with him and complimenting the previous three courses. So perhaps I should go back for a second try of the panna cotta… yes, I should definitely do that… and order the 63-degree eggs while I’m at it.

FOOD: 4.5/5
SERVICE: 5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

PIERRE ($$$$ for lunch/$$$$$ for dinner)
25/F, Mandarin Oriental
5 Connaught Rd. Central
Central
2825-4001

Zi Nen Ya: Just Say “No” to Whelk

2009-11-09T10:02:00.005+08:00

(Scallops: homestyle amuse bouche. Nice piece in the back...a big hunk o' sand in the second one...)

We were pretty eager to try out this Japanese-expat-favorite in North Point. Zi Nen Ya is famous not so much for its luxurious sashimi but more for its humble, homestyle dishes. We were all set to go sashimi-less…that is, until the friendly, but perhaps a tad too eager-beaver-like waitress jumped over to our table with the nightly-specials whiteboard and started hardselling us various different “it really is extremely fresh today” sashimi. We nodded along to her suggestions of hamachi belly (MP) (which turned out to be deliciously fatty, with a lovely coating of natural fish oils over each slippery piece), sea bream (MP) (refreshingly different from the hamachi, especially when dipped in the slightly sweet clear sauce) and a fantastically crunchy fresh sea whelk sashimi. Of course, only later did we find out that the whelk was $300 a small dish! Ack!

(Sea bream: different in a good way)

(Hamachi belly: mmm...oily)

(Sea whelk: pulled up the price of the meal)

After the extravagant beginning, we went homey (which, to be honest, was the initial plan) and ordered the braised beef tongue ($95) and deep-fried Japanese taro ($55). The taro was alright – a little zingy aftertaste with an ever-so-slight taro flavor. Well-fried though. But the beef tongue? Nothing short of awesome. So amazingly tender and deeply-flavored. I didn’t need to bite the meat at all. I loved.

(Fried taro: alright)

(Beef tongue: magical)

We then went with the five-set dinner ($280) – that is, a choice of five various dishes from a set menu. The uni tofu (orig. $80) was definitely only alright. The tofu wasn’t as silky soft as we had hoped for and the soy bean flavor was a little too much, completely overpowering the uni. The steamed asari clams (orig. $60) were much better – light but full-flavored, plump and fresh and really quite delish. We then moved onto the stir-fried chicken kidney with Chinese chives (orig. $65). A can’t-lose combination that was thoroughly satisfying.

(Uni tofu: meh...)

(Steamed clams: redeeming some points...)

(Chicken kidney and chives: can't go wrong with this)

The assorted skewers (orig. $70) were dainty but comforting. Perfect grilled mushrooms, peppers with bonito, a juicy and flavorful grilled beef, ginko, crunchy salty chicken gizzards and two pieces of chicken wings. Not bad but not entirely memorable. We ended with the deep-fried oyster cutlet (orig. $60). The oysters were fatty enough and again, the restaurant’s control of deep-fried dishes really showed – the oysters weren’t the least bit oily and the inner creaminess of the mollusk remained intact. Only though, the beautiful briny oyster flavor was slightly compromised due to the deep-frying but the dish was still pretty good on the whole.

(Assorted skewers)

(Oyster cutlet: expertly fried)

Service was friendly but with only three people (not including the chefs) manning the super-busy restaurant, it wasn’t as attentive (we had to ask three times before someone finally came to refill our tea). The final bill came out to be a little more than we had initially expected but, then again, we did unknowingly order a $300 plate of sea whelk (which, to be honest, as good as it was, we could have happily done without). I wasn’t blown away this time but I do plan on revisiting because Zi Nen Ya seems like it has solid potential. And plus, next time, I’ll pass on the nightly (i.e. expensive) specials, stick with the homey classics, and experience the quality-for-value-ness of the place.

FOOD: 3.5/5
SERVICE: 3.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5 (props for being “homey”)

ZI NEN YA ($$)/($$$ if ordering from nightly specials sashimi menu)
Shop 36-38
City Garden Shopping Centre
North Point
2508 0862

Go Koong: It All Just Keeps Getting Better

2009-11-05T02:28:00.004+08:00

A “go-to” place is an absolute necessity in my life. In LA, it fluctuated between Susina, Amandine, and this particular bench in front of Dodd Hall. In New York, I had Bouchon Bakery and Central Park :) - places that put a giant smile on your face no matter how many times you go; places that make you feel comfortable yet don’t bore you. I need places like that. And since about two months ago, I’ve found my new “go-to” place in Go Koong, also known as my absolute favorite restaurant in town.

I must’ve been here a gajillion times already, and every time is better than the last. I really can’t find anything I dislike about the restaurant. This time around, I managed to tear myself away from my beloved seafood pajun to explore other parts of the menu. We went with the daegoo gooi/grilled silver codfish ($140) to start off (that is, following the amazing banchans <3!

(Codfish: grilled to loveliness)

The following dish was somewhat disappointing in comparison and probably my least favorite of all the dishes I’ve had at Go Koong. This was the haemool dwenjiang jungol/seafood and bean paste soup hot pot ($300). The broth was way too salty to be had on its own (well, it was miso after all) and the shrimps – though impressively large, weren’t as fresh and firm-fleshed as I would’ve liked (but I loved the fact that the stellar staff team help you de-shell your shrimp). Thank God though that this dish was followed by the absolute high of the entire evening – the danhobakgaalbijjim/steamed sweet pumpkin with beef ribs ($188). O TO THE M-G…this was amazing. Truly, madly, deeply. The ribs were soft, and so tender, they fell clean off the bone. Flavor-wise, it was a perfect balance of savoriness with a tinge of aromatic sweetness from being steamed inside the pumpkin. And the pumpkin, what can I say about the pumpkin to do it justice? It was beautiful. With a soft, almost crumbly texture and a rich yet unheavy sweetness. It actually tasted somewhat like mooncake egg yolk. Without a doubt, my new favorite dish at my favorite restaurant.

(Seafood hot pot: meh...)

(Steamed pumpkin with ribs: can I marry you?)

(Please ignore the dirty plate)

Next up was the complimentary Korean styled scrambled eggs. I know I must’ve said it before but I really do love Go Koong’s food generosity. They’re always spoiling us with free goodies on top of the other heap of goodies we already have on our table. The eggs were nothing too special but, for some reason, I found myself finishing the whole thing and craving a second serving. Food champion much? Hells ya! The last savory course was the mool nengmyun/homemade buckwheat noodles in chilled beef broth ($90). A PERFECT closer – being light and chilled. It was easy on the stomach after the absolute feast we had just eaten. I love the slurp-worthy, chewy noodles and the sweet, refreshing chilled radish strips went extremely well with them. I mixed in a giant spoonful of spicy sauce and a little mustard and downed everything with a happy heart. We ended the night sipping our after-meal chilled cinnamon tea, with a giant satisfied smile on our faces and a very well-fed stomach. I’ve found my “go-to” place and I hope you find yours.

(The K-style scramble)

(Chilled noodles)

FOOD: 5/5
SERVICE: 4.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4.5/5

GO KOONG ($$$)
202, Toyomall
94 Granville Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
2311-0901

Kam Hing: A Very Girly “Da Lang”

2009-11-01T03:47:00.004+08:00

(Chiu Chow soy braised platter: satisfying)

Greasy tables, men in white undervests, a big bottle of Tsing Tao beer and some no-frills Chiu Chow fare… the perfect setting for a two-hour girl talk session.

I chomped away on the Chiu Chow soy sauce braised platter, dipping slices of red sausage, tofu, and goose into the vinegar sauce while listening to how I needed to man up and stop being so self-consciously nervous. Ugh, easier said than done. I then moved onto the surprisingly addictive scrambled eggs with bitter gourd – bitter but with a slight tinge of sweetness, a perfect pair with the scrambled eggs.

(Bitter but good)

(Oyster Omelet)

The much anticipated oyster omelet arrived in the midst of hilarious convo. Deep-flavored baby oysters set in a flour-egg batter. Some oyster-less bites (the bits around the edges) was a tad too floury, but the dish was delish towards the centre. The three dishes, plus the beer and a bowl of plain congee came out the about $80 per person for the two of us, with plenty leftovers to pack away. Not bad at all. And on top of the satisfying food, there was good alch-y and some fantastic girly gossip… all these combined made eating at this grotty restaurant seem even more fun than dining at some of the nicest five star restos in the city. It's true - sometimes, all you need is beer and some awesome company.

FOOD: 3.5/5
SERVICE: 3/5
ATMOSPHERE: 1/5

KAM HING CHIU CHOW RESTAURANT ($$)
398-400 Queen’s Road West
Sai Yung Ping
Western District
2546-2553

Tak Lung: Eat Your Fats

2009-10-31T16:07:00.005+08:00

("Golden Coin Chicken": no gold, no coin, no chicken... but absolutely delicious)

According to mother, we used to go to Tak Lung in San Po Kong all the time to celebrate Grandad’s birthday when I was still little. Funnily enough, I had absolutely zero recollection of the place. But lucky for me, I had the opportunity to revisit on Tuesday night and I was more than ready to reacquaint myself with the days I didn’t remember.

We started the night with the restaurant’s signature “Golden Coin Chicken,” which, for some reason, contains no gold, coin, OR chicken. Props to the guy who came up with the name for this dish. What this dish IS though, is a thick slice of pork fat, topped with a sliver of goose liver (rhyme!), a piece of chaxiu and a thin slice of ginger for good measure. This. Was. AWESOME. Really. The fatty pork was amazingly ungreasy, being rather, somewhat crisp on the bite before melting like a lovely, subtly savory jelly on the tongue (I’m told they used the fat from the back of the neck, which has an almost crunchy, elastic texture). The chaxiu and the thick sauce (also honey-based, I believe) had a wonderful lovely flavor that balanced out both the richness of the liver and the zing of the ginger. It was so good, I totally forgot that I was literally ingesting a solid piece of lard. Glam. No wonder this is a “must-order-in-advance” dish.

Next up was a nice plate of assorted chicken offal. Not bad I would say, but I’ve had better just last week in Shenzhen’s Yu Mi Zhou so I wasn’t completely blown away. Plus, it was a little on the salty side, especially the chicken intestine, which actually benumbed my tongue for a few seconds with its ultra-savoriness. So it was really good timing when the next course to come up was the Yunnan mushroom soup. This soup was the absolute real deal – I felt like a more wholesome person with just smelling the soup. And, as J said, it was really one of the most concentrated chicken broths we’ve ever had. It was like they managed to liquefy a whole chicken somehow… that may not be the most appetizing way to put it but it really was what it tasted like.

(Mushroom Soup: "the heartiest chicken broth")

But now, if you will allow, I must move onto the real star of the show; the next course was literally one of the funniest things I have ever put in my mouth. I plopped the unassuming bite-size round into my mouth. Broke into a HUGE grin and literally said, “I didn’t just eat what I think I ate…” But sure enough, it really was what I thought it was – a big hunk o’ fat (again). This “Chicken Roll” is made up of pork fat (again from the back of the neck) wrapped around some chicken meat and then – as if that weren’t enough – deep fried into crispy little golden boxes. Good? Yes. Healthy? Ha! This dish came with some random sausages and another stellar dish – “Golden Coin Eel”. Pork fat again, matched with a slice of eel and some crunchy diced water chestnuts. And though none of it tasted the least bit oily, I definitely think I officially clogged three arteries then and there. Probably good that the following course was a plate of greens…

("Chicken Roll," "Golden Coin Eel," Sausage: amazing-ness)

("Chicken Roll" : Look! I just ate a piece of fat!)

Following was one of the best sweet and sour pork dishes I’ve ever had. Already, the appearance (think a lovely, bright orange) was a winner. The pork was deep-fried to an absolutely perfect crunchiness but was warm and fluffy on the inside, retaining all its meaty juiciness without being covered by the flavors of the deep-fried flour coating or the tangy sauce. ‘Twas quite beautiful. And next came the most surprising dish of the night – I’m usually totally not into Chinese style cooked whole chicken so I wasn’t exactly excited about the chicken platter that was placed on our table. I took a small piece, bit into it, and…wow. Really wow. I am not making this up – the chicken tasted like bacon. It was absolutely amazing. It was the first time I’ve ever had smoked chicken and really, I have to say it again, wow.

(Sweet n' Sour Pork)

(Smoked chicken)

The super-sweet restaurant staff and owner then gave us a complimentary heaping bowl of clams in spicy sauce with a buckload of chopped chives. A nice gesture but a confusing flavor. I think steaming with a little rice wine may have been nicer as the sauce had a strange sandy and overly-bold flavor that covered up the freshness of the clams. Thinking the meal was close to ending, a giant pot was brought to our table, set over a mini stove. This smelt so good, bubbling away. They lifted the heavy cover to reveal a beautiful scene of braising taro and goose. The goose was nice, yes, but it was completely and utterly overshadowed by the chunks of sandy-soft taro. Of course, being a tarophile, I’m naturally biased towards the tuber, but I wasn’t the only one on the table waxing lyrical about ‘em. Soft without being mushy, subtly sweet with a wonderful aroma… this was my single favorite food item of the night.

(Clams they are a-confusin')

(Waiting...)

(Ta-dah!)

(Fish broth veggies)

(Cheese udon: very strange)

A much-needed second plate of veggies arrived, bathed in a fish broth and topped with a hefty portion of small shrimps. Nothing to write home about but a welcoming dish to a fat-laden meal nonetheless. And to officially end the night, we were presented with a super-random Japanese-Italian fusion, cheese sauce udon noodles dish. But by this point, I was way past stuffed to try this but I believe I may not have missed out much by skipping out on this final course.

And there goes the end of an amazing meal. I guess I really should be berated for having no recollection of a restaurant this awesome. But then again, I was what? Six of seven years old back then…at an age where I would prefer eating rocks over a slab of foie gras. I will use that as my justification. And when my cholesterol level’s started to level off again, I will make it a point to come back here again.

Thanks Isaac for organizing!

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5 (the night of the dinner); 2/5 (restaurant itself)

TAK LUNG ($$$)
25-29 Hong Keung Street
San Po Kong
2320-7020/ 2322-3783

Bowl Burger: When They Won't Shut Up Behind You

2009-10-22T00:17:00.003+08:00

(Burger: The road to get to you was painful)

Wednesday lunch place was supposed to be my choice and I suggested checking out that shiny new Chinese joint that just opened up near the office. Was supposed to be a good plan. But all our way down, I had – not one, but TWO annoying voices behind me going:

“Are we there yet?” “Ohmigawd this is SO far.” “Are we walking to the…omg is this the MTR station?!” “How much further is this place?” “Oh great, look at all these people. Now we’re going to have to wait.” “Don’t tell me you’re lost.” “You’re lost aren’t you?”

I was so disconcerted by these two annoying non-shutter-uppers that I lost all sense of direction, my brain only being able to think: “SHADDUP! SHADDUP! SHADDUPPPPP!” but half exhausted by their sea of complaints, I gave in on my search for the new Chinese place and instead, we dove into the shoebox-sized Bowl Burger on Mercer for a bit o’ beef and carbs.

…which reminds me, I haven’t actually had a fast-food beef burger since moving back to Hong Kong (I had one of ‘em Four Seasons burgers a while ago but, good as it was, it’s just really not the same thing). Weird. We placed our orders and obnoxiously hovered over two just-finishing-up diners with our “we’re waiting for your table, so hurry” expressions.

I went with the #2 single patty beef burger set ($42) with drinks and paper bag of fries. I had read before that the burgers here are all handmade using 100% ground US beef, so I was actually pretty excited to give it a try. True enough, the burgers were perfectly juicy with a good bit of bite. Could’ve been grilled just a little more (I like ‘em kinda charred) but still, would have to say that it was a pretty well-rounded burger overall. Good sauce, good flavor, and none of that ridiculous overflow of unnecessary fillings (my burger pet peeve). The burger was a hefty portion too, though nothing that the food champion in me couldn’t down in its entirety.

(Fries: a paper bag of warm deliciousness)

And special mention goes out to their fries. Leaning towards the thick-cut variety, with perfectly, pillowy-soft potato innards and a hot, crunchy, exterior… I loved. Time permitting, I would’ve downed the whole bag…and gotten another. But time did not permit. Next time then…

So yes, the trip down to lunch was annoying. But the food was good. And on the way back, I had an errand to run so I took a separate, SILENT and PEACEFUL route back to the office. So I guess it ended up being still quite a pleasant afternoon.

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 3/5
ATMOSPHERE: 1/5

BOWL BURGER ($)
25 Mercer Street
Sheung Wan
3118-0676

The Press Room: Lunch of the Food Champion

2009-10-17T20:34:00.002+08:00

I was totally in “Food Champion” mode during Friday lunch at the newly-renovated Press Room. I like the place, with its high ceiling, chalkboard menus (brownie points right there), and casual bistro vibe. It felt like I was taking a lunch break in Chelsea, NY…sigh, if only….

As for the food, I was struggling between the lobster and avocado sandwich and the eggs benedict at first…that is, until the server brought over the chalkboard set lunch menu ($132). A three-course lunch? Done deal. Started off with a simple, light frisée salad with a light balsamic dressing. Standard stuff so nothing to write home about, save the lovely servingware that immediately caught my eye (I’m a huge sucker for nice plates and bowls and stuff like that). The salad did put me in an Autumn-alert mood though, and I found myself looking ahead to frisée mixed in with walnuts and grilled, warm peaches. Can’t wait.

(Frisée salad: would be better if Autumned up)

I went with the beef tenderloin for my main course and, let me just say that I definitely made the right choice. The meat was smoky and slightly charred on the outside, but a lovely, juicy pink on the inside. It was drizzled with a balanced gravy sauce that went extremely well with the vegetables. I loved the rustic presentation of the whole thing, especially the skin-on potatoes on the side, which turned out to be, surprisingly enough, the best part of the whole dish, beating out even the delicious tenderloin. Its slight sweet tinge won me over and I polished off the whole plate.

(Beef tenderloin: take 1)

(Close-up shot of the lovely, juicy, deliciousness)

I had the brownie with chocolate ice cream to end. The brownie was served in a little glass pot, sitting on top a small pool of vanilla sauce. Dense enough, though not as sticky and chewy as THE perfect brownie, with lovely chunks of walnut bits, the chocolately cake went beautifully with the choco ice cream. To be honest, I’m not a huge fan of chocolate brownie OR chocolate ice cream (don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t like these two things or anything…I’d just usually rather something else) and I had wanted to try The Press Room’s lemon tart instead but it was not a set lunch option. Given that though, I happily lapped up every last bit of my brownie à la mode. So yes, it was good.

(Brownie with ice cream: pot of choc)

I was very proud of my food eating abilities. Especially since I was the only one on our table who went with the three-courser. Whee for me and to a satisfying lunch.

FOOD: 3.5/5
SERVICE: 3.75/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

THE PRESS ROOM ($$$/$$$$)
108 Hollywood Road
Sheung Wan
2525-3444
www.thepressroom.com.hk

[SHENZHEN] Yu Mi Zhou: Bugger On

2009-10-17T19:56:00.003+08:00

Los Angeles. Circa 2008.

Sitting alone in a dingy Mexican eatery off Palms with vinyl tablecloths and Spanish soaps on the television. A small flour tortilla in the palm of my hand. I fill it up, top it off with bits of cheese, a squeeze of lime. Wrap. Eat. The first time I tried Oaxacan chupalines (crickets). And it was awesome.

Shenzhen. Present day.

Browsing through the extensive menu at dad-recommended Yu Mi Zhou (literally, “Fish Congee”). We were pretty much enticed by the sound and pictures of everything. Midway through the menu though, I saw something I knew I had to try – bug larvae stir-fried with Chinese chives. Fun.

(Crunchy, yummy cha xiu)

But first up was the restaurant’s signature “crunchy-skin” cha xiu. This was…pretty dayam amazing. The cha xiu was actually two parts of already-tender pork, sandwiching a thin piece of fat to make the whole thing a bite of wonderful, melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness. A little bit of honey sweetness to bring out the natural flavors of the barbecued pork and a crunchy exterior to balance the suppleness of the meat. We all fell in love with this dish. The hugely-portioned pork, pear and pig’s lung soup was next. A very light, cleansing respite to the fatty meat we had happily consumed just a few minutes prior.

(Braised eggplant: the best thing that could happen)

And then the bugs came. Tiny wormy things mixed into a sea of green. The taste was almost like a non-crunchy soft-shell crab – a bite saw the crab-roe tasting innards. Protein-packed. Not awe-inspiring by any means but not bad. And probably would order it cooked with spicy salt next time instead of stir-fried. Or, maybe like the chupalines, they needed a squeeze of lime... The bugs were followed by my absolutely favorite dish of the night – braised eggplant and minced meat pot. I could eat these tender, beautifully-flavorful pieces of eggplant (a.k.a. the king of vegetables) all day and all night and never get sick of it. This dish was a star.

We ended the meal with dad’s childhood favorite – chicken innards (heart, kidney, etc. etc.) and pan-fried fresh oysters. The chicken was nice but, personally, I still prefer cow innards with their stronger earthy taste. The oysters were also good – big fatty things with a slighty charred, crispy exterior and a nice, creamy inside.

(Bugs up-close)

So, needless to say, food was good. The three of us managed to polish off 90% of our six dishes, and the menu still had a whole list of things we wanted to try (especially the desserts). My only complaint would be about the oiliness of the dishes. The bugs and eggplant were literally shining with cooking oil. Though, that was probably to be expected, being that Yu Mi Zhou prides itself on serving authentic, village, homestyle cooking. The service was top-notch and the prices were laugh-worthy reasonable. I felt like I was robbing them blind, almost. Wasn’t surprised at all that the place was packed to the brim by the time we were leaving and won’t be surprised at all if we find ourselves back here the next time we drop by SZ.

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3/5

YU MI ZHOU (SHENZHEN) ($$)
2/F, Chunfeng Road
Lo Wu
Shenzhen
0755-2230-0888

[SHENZHEN] Din Tai Fung: Dumpling it Up

2009-10-11T04:47:00.005+08:00

My very first recollectable memory of xialongbao (soupy dumplings) is of us learning how to eat these piping hot packets of brothy pork in Toronto’s Din Tai Fung. Pick them up by the tops, bite a small hole and slurp out the broth slowly. Then down the whole thing. It was a delicious lesson.

(Garlicky cucumbers)

(Taiwanese beef noodles)

(Signature xiaolongbao: so juicy)

(Shrimpg and pork dumpings: even better than the signature)

And since then, I’ve had my fair share of XLB’s. But another dose of Din Tai Fung? Well, that didn’t happen until yesterday. I made my first trip to Shenzhen today and le madre insisted I try the Din Tai Fung up there. Fine, I had no qualms with that. The signature xiaolongbaos were de rigueur orders (RMB$18 for four) and we also slapped on an order of fresh shrimp and pork dumplings (RMB$18 for four). Both arrived in their steamers in all their piping hot glory. Juicy on the bite no doubt…but the best I’ve had? To be honest, no. The dumplings were literally a one-bite size (i.e. I’ve had bigger) and I just didn’t feel as if it had as much soup as the perfect amount. Don’t get me wrong – I still enjoyed the dumplings – ESPECIALLY the ubër-fresh shrimp-filled one – it’s just that I’ve had better.

(Braised glutinous rice “cake”: not perfect but still delicious)

The cold dish – garlic and peanut cucumbers in chili oil was refreshing with a spicy zing but nothing special. Same went with the braised glutinous rice “cake” which was a little too wet for our Hong Kong-er standards (though this, I’m guessing, could well be a cultural differentiation in tastes). But I was a happy camper with the Taiwanese style beef noodles – the noodles were slightly chewy but not at all doughy and the beef was baby-food-esque tender. I also happily lapped up the Taiwanese style rice (RMB$8), topped with a soy sauce braised egg, shredded meat and conpoy. I loved the intense flavors and dipped in for seconds even though I was already full. Healthy? Probably not. But delish? Yessss.

(Taiwanese style rice: a pleasant surprise)

FOOD: 3.5/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 2.5/5

DIN TAI FUNG (SHENZHEN) ($$)
2/F, Zhonghai Shopping Center
1 Xinyuan Road
Luohu District
Shenzhen
86-755-8230-7588
www.dintaifung.com.tw

Brownie Roll-Out, Matcha Cookies: Thank You

2009-10-11T02:34:00.006+08:00

“No one’s more important than people!”

That’s the one phrase that’s stuck the most with me when I was reading Julia Child’s “My Life in France” a year ago in a dingy little room in New York. This has rung true my whole life – it’s always the people. So now, I’d just like the chance to say “Thank You.” Thank you to everyone who’s taken the time to become part of my life and those who, in turn, let me become part of theirs.

And please, let's all stay in touch.

------

“Brownie” Roll-Out Cookies

3 cups plain flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
225g butter, plus a pinch of salt
1.5 cups sugar
2 large eggs, at room temp
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

Preheat oven to 350°F. Thoroughly mix flour, salt and baking powder. In separate bowl, mix butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and cocoa until well combined. Add flour mixture slowly. Mix until smooth. Shape into a flattened disc and wrap in cling wrap and chill for at least one hour.

Roll the disc out on a floured counter (remember also to flour the surface of the dough lightly, as well as the rolling pin). Roll out to about ¼” thickness. Cut out shapes and place on baking tray lined with grease-proof paper. Bake in the middle shelf of oven for 11 minutes. Cookies should be slightly puffed but firm around the edges. Leave until cool to move and then transfer to cooling rack.

Matcha Cookies

¾ cup icing sugar
140g unsalted butter, cubed
1.75 cups plain flour
3 large egg yolks
1.5 Tbsp matcha powder
Granulated sugar for finish

Preheat over to 350°F. Thoroughly mix icing sugar with matcha powder. Add butter and mix until smooth and uniformly green.

Add flour and mix until fully combined. Add the yolks one at a time and mix after each addition until fully combined. Shape into a disc and wrap in cling wrap. Chill fro at least 30 minutes.

In between two pieces of grease-proof paper, roll out the cookie dough to around ½” thickness. Cut with cookie cutters and place on tray lined with grease-proof paper. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the edges are slightly golden-browned. Remove from oven and dust lightly with granulated sugar. Leave to cool slightly before moving to cooling racks.

(Thank You)

Pop Bites: It Took a Benedict to Remind me of You

2009-10-11T01:17:00.004+08:00

(Eggs benedict)

One thing I really love about the office is its proximity to SoHo. Most days though, I can’t be bothered to drag my lazy ass into a cab out to that side for lunch but it’s nice that that the option is open should a special occasion call for it. Well, Friday called for just such an occasion.

Originally, we wanted to pop into The Flying Pan but, as half-expected, it was super bopping during lunch hour. No worries, plan B, Pop Bites, had several free tables and chairs. I went with one of their all-day breakfast options of eggs benedict ($78, including coffee/tea), which – for some reason – I haven’t had since moving back to Hong Kong.

Always slightly unique, Pop Bites does their eggs benedict with toasted French baguette bread instead of English muffins. The two slices of crusty bread were topped with a bed of arugula, slices of ham and a perfectly-poached egg each. The yolk was still runny but not so much that it spilled out all over the place in raw messiness. Delish. The bread sopped up all the yolk and the whole thing really worked when combined with the savoriness of the ham and the slight spicy kick of the arugula. My only complaint though was that the eggs were a little on the small side. Well, that is, compared to what they serve in the land-of-ridiculously-big-portions, a.k.a. America.

Food won’t blow you away but it’s more-than-above-par. Plus, the staff are friendly, the prices are reasonable and, most importantly, it’s a great hangout spot. And thanks to the benedict, for reminding me of what a great lunch option I had, just waiting for me with open arms at the edge of SoHo. Oo...and I STILL haven't tried their delicious-looking cakes!

FOOD: 3/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

POP BITES ($$)
3 - 5 Old Bailey St.
Central
Hong Kong
2525-4141

Go Koong: Food Generosity

2009-10-11T00:03:00.006+08:00

Maybe I’ve been unconsciously affected by Los Angeles…or the fact that Yvonne has been feeding (i.e. forcing) Super Junior clips into my brain (I still cannot believe I know the members by name now instead of hairstyle description) but I’ve been finding myself falling madly in love with Korean food. It’s crept up and slammed Jap-fare down on the “My favorite Cuisines” list. I guess it can’t be helped – eating K-food brings back happy memories of dinner extravaganzas with the Debs and the Sun and it’s become sort of a comfort food for me. And though Hong Kong’s Korean restaurant scene can’t compete with that of LA’s K-town, we still have some pretty kickass choices here. Enter Eddie’s restaurant – Go Koong.

I admit it – I am shamelessly in love with Go Koong and it’s one of my fave restaurants in the city. I must’ve written about the place at least three times in the last two months alone. So when we had to pick a place for the Nelson’s special birthday dinner, we both agreed it would be no other place than GK.

Ahhh…the wonderful chime of “oso oseyo” (welcome) from the super-friendly staff always puts a giant smile on my face on walking in. We were guided to the table I sat at the very first time I visited the restaurant. Nostalgia. Like all first time Go Koong-ers, The Nelson was very impressed by the restaurant’s hefty, Bible-thickness menu. Choosing from the seemingly gajillion dishes here is never easy. Knowing about the restaurant’s large-and-in-charge portions though, I recommended we just order two dishes first, which should already be more than enough.

(Oyster pancake and potatoes, among other banchans)

And here, let me just say that, one of the reasons why I love Go Koong so much, is for their banchans. They have the most AND the best banchans of any Korean restaurant I’ve been to in Hong Kong and they never skimp. Being a self-proclaimed “Banchanman,” this was a VERY decisive factor in my love for the restaurant. That night, they had the slightly sweet potato cubes that I love so much, as well as an absolutely delish oyster pancake, PLUS nine other things, PLUS a small bowl of sweet pumpkin congee each. Sigh, I love food generosity.

Midway through stuffing my face with kimchi and listening to gossip the Nelson had to dole out, our seafood pajun (pancake) arrived. This is one of my all-time Go Koong favorites. So crispy around the edges and so moist and chewy in the centre, with generous amounts of squid and other seafood and scallions for an extra dose of flavor. Soooo good. Our other dish was the Nelson’s K-food favorite – Korean ja-jeung mien. The noodles had A LOT of sauce – no joke - pre-mixing, it appeared in its bowl as one big dark brown gloop. I’m not going to lie – personally, Korean JJ mien was never a favorite of mine but I enjoyed the dish enough that night. I like the slight sweet tinge to the sauce and the small bits of pork were deliciously tender.

(I love = seafood pajun)

But just when we thought we had ordered just the prefect amount of food, one of the super-friendly waitresses brought a big fatty plate of japchae to our table, telling us, “a gift from the chef.” Awwww…see? Is it any wonder I love this place? Go Koong’s japchae is nothing short of delish. In fact, I had it with my mom before who, in her own words, “doesn’t like japchae,” but, on trying Go Koong’s version, again in her own words, “did like japchae.” On top of the noodles, the restaurant also gave us two bowls of flavorful yet light seaweed soup to wash down the Korean feast we had. Had to abandon plans for the Korean shaved ice dessert yet again (I’ve only ever been able to stomach dessert ONCE after the main meal at Go Koong…and that was only because Eddie FORCED me to try it, despite my stuffed-to-the-brim-ness).

(Japchae, JJ mien, seaweed soup)

With a refreshing cup of sweet cinnamon tea, we ended our meal at Go Koong which, as anticipated, was awesome as usual. I seriously love everything about this place. From the excellent service (in true Korean resto style, the staff here help you take care of everything on the food-serving side, even helping you flip your meats on the BBQ grill and dividing up the pajun onto your plates for you) to the clean, comfy space to…of course, the effin’ fantastic food. To sum it all up, in four simple words: I Love Go Koong.

FOOD: 5/5
SERVICE: 4.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 3.5/5

GO KOONG ($$$)
202, Toyomall
94 Granville Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
2311-0901

-----------

Side note:

The times when we used to skip morning PE classes to grab breakfast at McDonald’s. The coffees we drank over long gossip sessions. The embarrassed looks we had when “Gregrid” didn’t let someone eat fried chicken. The “OH MY GOD!” presents (:D) I would receive in my mailbox in LA. The “gift wrapping lady” incident. The excited discussions about Stefano Pilati and Louboutins. All these things.

Happy Birthday hun!

You and Kenj make me very happy. Thanks for being in my life. Thank you.

Union J: Making Up for NYC

2009-10-10T11:16:00.007+08:00

My biggest regret during my last NYC extravaganza was missing out on a meal at Jean Georges. My food-nerd heart was saying “yes” but sadly, after a meal at WD-50, several Bouchon Bakery excursions, and a very nice white dinner jacket (among other things), my wallet was saying “uh-uh. No mas.” Damn you, wallet. Damn you.

So, suffice to say, I was pretty dayam excited when I heard about the opening of Union J in LKF, a new modern American resto helmed by Jean Georges disciples, Jason Casey and Eric Johnson. Well, that was back in late April when the news broke – in between being unemployed, becoming employed, and then being completely busied-out by being employed, I found my Union J trip continually pushed back. It was like the big fatty James Joyce book that I’ve been meaning to read but never got around to.

That WAS the story…until Thursday rolled about and I finally had the chance to drop by for lunch. I was ready to dole out massive check points already just for the décor. Casual and fun, with a boisterous, “chic-canteen” vibe – SO New York. Plus, I’m biased – any place with a chalkboard menu automatically scores some serious brownie points.

(Keep it RAWWWWW: tartar and runny yolk)

Onto the menu, Union J keep it simple with six of each appetizers (called “small dish” here because that makes it sound cooler), mains (“large dish”) and desserts (“sweets”). I dived into the crusty and still-warm sourdough bread and scanned the two-course set lunch options. Eventually, I opted to start with the steak tartar with cherry olive tapenade. I loved the presentation – so simple, with the bright bold colors of the tartar and tapenade standing stark out against the clean, white plate. Promising. The tartar was also topped with a raw egg yolk…two raw things in one dish? Definitely bodin’ well for me. The tartar itself was fresh and deliciously seasoned. A bite of beef mixed with a bit of liquid egg yolk was an even more fantastic thing. And because I am a (newly-converted) olive fiend, I downed the tapenade like it was ice cream on a hot summer’s day. Lovely with its hint of cherry tartness. The tartar was served with a slice of melted cheese-covered toast which, although lovely in its own right, I was way too enamored already by the tartar to pay it much attention. Sorry cheesy bread, maybe next time.

(It's not that I don't like you salmon, but your mashed potato friend is HAWT!)

As for the “large dish,” I went with the salmon, which was slightly disappointing after the steak tartar high. The salmon steak was slightly overcooked, being just a tad too dry to be perfect. The mandarin segments on top were bland, but the combination of the two in one dish shows the chefs’ creativity (salmon + mandarin orange = potentially beautiful flavor combo). I didn’t loathe the dish but I wasn’t in love with it. But the mashed potatoes that came on the side? Now THAT, I could love. So herby, so creamy, and oh-so-buttery. Sighhhhhhhhh...

I was way too full to stomach dessert, though I did take a greedy glance at the delicious sounding sweets menu while the friendly wait staff were clearing the table. Ugh, I shall come with an emptier stomach next time round. So there ends my long-awaited Union J visit and, I’m happy to say that I am more than satisfied with the restaurant. The atmosphere and dining concept is something I think the Hong Kong dining scene needs more of and I absolutely adored the food… well, the ones worth adoring at least. And with an oh-so-charming “no hopes, no dreams, just real cooking” slogan, how could I NOT love this place? Glad I finally got to try Union J… and maybe now I can get started on my James Joyce book.

FOOD: 4/5
SERVICE: 4/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

UNION J ($$$/$$$$)
1/F, California Tower
30-32 D’Aguilar Street
Central
2537-2368

Monsieur Chatté: You Can't Always Get What You Want (But You Get What You Need)

2009-10-06T00:56:00.005+08:00

I had a very idyllic plan for today.

Type away at the office (klack klack klack). And then…
1) Grab lunch-to-go from somewhere close.
2) Fill up on cookie cutters and colored sugars.
3) Maybe pick up a bunch of flowers?
Skip back to the office.

Well, one out of three isn’t a bad run. I made my much-delayed stop at the rustic red French specialty foods store, Monsieur Chatté. I LOVE the bakery smell that fills the place. And the bottles of wine amidst jars of jams, and boxes of biscuits next to cartons of candy. How lovely.

I picked up a Provence veggie baguette sandwich ($38), filled with thin slices of grilled eggplant, zucchini, peppers, carrots and fresh arugula. I ticked off the first thing on my to-do list. Stopped by Pantry Magic on my way back and realized they didn’t have anything I wanted. Disappointing – I wanted to have a giant shopping extravaganza a la Surfas in LA. No dice on number two. Walked by a flower stall but realized I still didn’t have a vase. Cross off number three.

Well, things don’t always go according to plan. At least I had my veggie sandwich… that’s good enough for today.

Monsieur Chatté ($)
121 Bonham Strand
Sheung Wan
3105-8077
http://www.mrchatte.com.hk

W52: Pasta Potential

2009-10-05T00:21:00.012+08:00

It’s amazing how quiet the LKF-ish area is on a Sunday early afternoon. I quite like it. If only Wyndham Street could be this un-traffic-jammed during the work week when I’m trying to get back home at night. If only…

I made the cross-harbor journey today to brunch out with a fellow foodie and restaurant-hunter at the newly-opened W52 restaurant. Being a five-minute cab ride from the office, I wanted to give this place a trial run to see if this could be a potential new lunch spot. The simple, minimalist décor (think light woods and a lot of natural light seeping in) was promising already but I was totally sold when they showed me up to the first floor dining room in the awesome James Bond-esque glass elevator which runs alongside the restaurant’s wine collection display.

(Selections from the antipasti buffet)

We took a look at both the set lunch and the à la carte menus and decided we were more enticed by the latter. The super-nice staff let us order two à la carte pastas as if it were part of the set lunch deal, which included dibs at the antipasti AND dessert buffet and, of course, coffee/tea at the end. The antipasti selection is fairly standard – caprese, grilled veggies (eggplant!), and various Italian meats. Good for chatting along to.

(Simple, fresh, beautiful: buckwheat tagliatelle)

Thank God we only ordered half portions of each of the two pasta dishes because the portions were already pretty hefty. We couldn’t even finish the homemade buckwheat tagliatelle and duck ragout. The tagliatelle was a little too soft but the sauce was spot on. Light, fresh, with a little twinge of sweet tomato tartness. But this dish was totally overshadowed by the casoncelli and pears served with butter sauce. Also homemade, the casoncelli was perfectly al dente – just the right amount of bite without being doughy at all. I also L-O-V-Ed the concentrated savoriness of the filling, just as much as I loved the crispy thin wafer of bacon sitting atop the pasta dumplings. Soooo good. The pasta paired really well with the butter sauce which, impressively enough, didn’t taste or feel overly greasy or fattening. Our waitresses grated just a tad too much of cheese over the pasta but hey, more cheese can’t hurt right? Right.

(The High: casoncelli in butter sauce...and all that cheese)

The dessert buffet was slightly disappointing (especially after that pasta-high) but I’m not going to hold that against them. After all, it’s a batch of pre-made sweets that’s been sitting out…and drying out (well, at least the crepe was). The mango mousse cake was alright but, next time, I’m definitely going to be ordering from the very promising sounding dessert menu. Chocolate mousse with yogurt sauce? Zabaglione? Nice.

(Order off the menu next time: dessert buffet selection)

I managed to get a good glimpse of W52’s potential today. I wasn’t expecting the restaurant to have their A game on (after all, it’s Sunday brunch) but if their casoncelli is anything to go by, this is definitely a spot I’ll be dropping by again real soon. And, as an added incentive, the staff are really great – friendly and thoughtful (they brought us two plates for sharing our pastas without us even asking them). And I totally adore the simplicity of the whole restaurant concept – everything from the no-fuss yet sophisticated food, to the simple, clean, white serve-ware. So chic! I had a nice time…and the best bit? I know it can only get better from here :)

FOOD: 3.75/5

SERVICE: 4/5

ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

W52 ($$$/$$$$)
52 Wyndham Street
Central
6768-5252
www.w52.com.hk

RED SoHo: Avocado in the House

2009-10-04T03:46:00.003+08:00

I have been dying to go back to RED SoHo ever since dropping by for their “just-opened” visit the other time. I’m not going to lie – the shallow side of me was completely sold by their chicer-than-thou interior décor (Carrie Bradshaw and co. would lunch here…if they were based in Hong Kong). And being just a stone’s throw away from le office, I made my long-awaited lunch-stop there to see if the resto had more to offer than just its looks.

After perusing the several set lunch options, I went with the grilled chicken salad, with the “pizza of the day” ($98) as the main. And let me just say, RED SoHo gets brownie points just for the salad’s avocado alone. Since I’ve moved back to Hong Kong from Sunny Cali (i.e. the State of the Avocado), I’ve literally been hard strapped to find a just-rightly-ripe-avocado; avocados in HK are always either under ripe or over…but for some miraculous reason, they’re the perfect fresh consistency at RED SoHo. So effin’ delish – too bad the chef decided to use thin slices of the ‘cado in the salad instead of big fatty chunks. Seriously, I’d have no qualms if the salad was nothing but avocado. I wonder who their avocado supplier is…I totally need to get in on that.

After polishing the salad, my “no-way-I-can-finish-this-on-my-own” pizza arrived. I ordered this for the eggplant (a.k.a. love in veggie form) topping which, sadly enough, wasn’t as hefty as I had wished. Nonetheless, the pizza was effin’ fantastic – the thin crust was perfectly crispy and I couldn’t help but grin at how sinfully gooey the mozzarella (i.e. 85% of the pizza) was. Definitely not the healthiest thing one can order for lunch but…whatever. I actually managed to polish it all off save two slices, which is pretty food-champion status. So proud of myself.

Too full to stomach dessert (though the chocolate layer cake I sampled on my first visit was absolutely lovely), I ended the meal with the di rigueur black coffee (extra $15). A little over a hundred bucks for lunch and a very full stomach = my RED SoHo lunch experience. The food didn’t blow me away but, hey, this ain't Pierre. It’s comforting American food served by smiley wait-staff in a cozy-chic environment. And if that still doesn’t sell you, trust me – the avocado will.

FOOD: 3.5/5
SERVICE: 3.5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5

RED SoHo ($$$)
2/f, Kinwick Centre
32 Hollywood Road
Central
8199-8189
www.pure-redsoho.com

Eat. Love. Write.

2009-10-04T02:59:00.000+08:00

White wine steamed clams to celebrate comin' back into the blog-O-sphere!

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival :)