Tosca (Hong Kong)

July 2016

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel 
Level 102 International Commercial Centre, 1 Austin Road West, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR
Tel: +852 2263 2270
www.ritzcarlton.com/en/hotels/china/hong-kong/dining/tosca

Overlooking Hong Kong Island from the 102nd floor of the new Ritz Carlton Hotel in the ICC complex in Kowloon is the Italian restaurant Tosca. The restaurant is so high up that one can literally see the entire Hong Kong Island from one's seat next to the window. When I was there for lunch, the sky was clear and I could even see over the island to the sea beyond it. It was quite an experience sitting there sipping champagne while watching private helicopters buzz around like dragonflies below me. Tosca probably has the best view of any restaurant in Hong Kong at the moment.

Not to say that this is the usual hotel restaurant which charges premium prices for nice views but serve ordinary food. Tosca has one Michelin star and from my dining experience there, this is well merited. The dining room is quite large, and the high ceiling and generous adornment of crystal chandeliers and other fixtures lend a luxurious and opulent feel to the place. Service here was formal yet attentive and friendly, and despite dining alone that day, I was made to feel very comfortable, with various members of staff taking turns to come over to make small talk.

Despite turning up after 2pm (with a 2.30pm last order), I didn't feel rushed and was able to pick out my food choices and wine (from a decent wine list) while snacking on a gazpacho and smoked mackerel on toast.

I had the set lunch that day. The langoustine with young leaf salad and crab mayonnaise was quite brilliant. The shellfish was fresh and the dish had flavours and textures which were well-balanced.

The squid ink linguini with cuttlefish and chili was rich and the pasta was perfectly al dente. I was surprised by how spicy the chili oil was but it worked well with the dish.

And the main course was the 'special of the day' and was the leg of lamb, which was more French than Italian because of the thick and flavourful deglaze accompanying it. The lamb went perfectly with the half bottle of Brunello which I had with the lunch.

Dessert was a Tiramisu with limoncello which was competently done but (like most desserts in fine dining Italian restaurants) not particularly special. It was a good meal, made special by the stunning views and commendable service.

8 ½ Otto e Mezzo: revisited Jun 16 (Hong Kong)

June 2016

Shop 202, Landmark Alexandra, 18 Chater Road, Central, Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2537 8859
http://www.ottoemezzobombana.com/

In the years since the first time we dined at Otto e Mezzo (see 2012 writeup), we have tried to dine here again whenever we visited Hong Kong, but were unsuccessful in getting reservations at their dining room (our trips to Hong Kong are typically not planned more than 2 weeks in advance and reservations seem only to be successful if made at least 1 month in advance). It was only this year that we realised the trick of getting a meal here at the last minute: by getting a table at the bar.

It is quite a different dining experience: smaller and uncovered tables, noisier and with less light, the clientele here seems more intent on having a quick bite before moving on or enjoying a cocktail with some light bites. However, the menu and wine list is exactly the same as in the main dining room. We took a chance on accepting a table at the bar area once and since then, we have been back four times and each time opted for a bar area seating, even when a table at the formal dining room was available.

In our view, this is still the best Italian restaurant in Asia that we have dined at. The quality of the produce, the consistency of the cooking, the breadth of the wine list (especially where Italian wines are concerned) and the impeccable service (our favourite waiter happens to be a dead ringer for one of our childhood male idols, Hong Kong movie star Simon Yam) makes us keep coming back.

The pictures below are of some of the dishes we have had over the past year. The one menu we always look forward to is the truffle menu. We will always order from that menu if available (only during the northern hemisphere winter months for the European black truffles and the southern hemisphere winter months for the Australian black truffles). Some of the excellent amuse bouche we have had here include the tempura shrimp and the Iberico ham in rock melon puree.

The Homemade tagliolini, butter, parmesan and black winter truffle fondue is the best truffle pasta we have had outside Piedmont. This is a must-order by us whenever available.

We ordered the Tagliatelle, lamb and endive ragout, black olive when the black truffle pasta wasn't available. It was excellent.

Our favourite Veal chop "Milanese" style, large crispy breaded veal chop, potato, Sicilian tomato and oregano salad never failed us each time we ordered it.

The M9 sirloin and beef cheek, green and vegetable salad, red wine and plum sauce is a good alternative to the veal Milanese.

Probably our favourite dessert of all time, the Black truffle gelato, chantilly cream, crispy hazelnet and pistachio is not always available (even if there is a truffle menu). We still dream about this dessert sometimes.

The Italian interpretation of the classic French dessert, the Neapolitan rum baba, did not disappoint. The pastry was soft and spongy yet was able to soak in the exquisite rum and maintain its structure well.The mango and mango ice cream were a good complement to the liquor.

Wagyu Takumi (Hong Kong)

June 2016

Shop 1, Ground Floor, The Oakhill, 16 Wood Road, Wanchai Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2574 1299
www.ginsai.com.hk/en/wagyu-takumi

Update: In the 2017 Michelin Guide, Wagyu Takumi lost one of its two Michelin stars.

Of the top restaurants in Hong Kong, perhaps one of the less-known is Wagyu Takumi. Having two Michelin stars, it certainly doesn't seem to have as much publicity as its peers. But perhaps that is deliberate. It is a tiny restaurant with less than 20 seats, hence doesn't need mass marketing to fill up the restaurant every night. You can find it in a backstreet in the part of Wanchai bordering Causeway Bay, with a classy yet nondescript entrance. Inside is a small dining room with about a dozen seats around an open teppanyaki kitchen. The cozy space is brightly lit and encourages interaction between the guests and the chefs who operate just across them over the counter. With only one tasting menu and no choices to make other than the wine, we could sit back and relax and let the kitchen and wait staff look after us for the evening.

The cuisine here is French-Japanese, i.e. French cooking techniques with the use of some Japanese ingredients and Japanese kitchen equipment. Chek Konishi trained in Japan and France and hence could bring out the best of both culinary traditions. Throughout the dinner, we were kept quenched by a glass of Blanc de Blanc champagne at the start, then a bottle of Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru.

The meal started with the Onion roll (onion cream in thin crust) with caviar, deep fried scallop, wagyu beef tartare on toast. The onion roll was the most memorable of the three.

The "Keguni" (Japanese hairy crab with sweet corn ice cream) was a cold dish which was superb.

The "Bonito" (Marinated and salted beetroot ravioli) was also very good. The raw fish was very fresh and the beetroot was an interesting and successful complement.

The "Kuruma ebi" (Japanese prawn with dashi juniper berry) was a refreshing consommé with restrained umami flavours (the dashi was only a light touch hence maintaining the balance of the flavours).

The house speciality, the "Barley risotto" (abalone and shimanto seaweed with lotus root) was worth the trip. This was amazing. The risotto was cooked in a rich lobster stock, and was topped off by a juicy grilled abalone. We would go there just to eat this again.

The "Kamasu" (pan-fried Japanese barracuda eggplant caviar tomato sauce) was a perfectly cooked fish nicely balanced by the tartness of the tomato.

The "Japanese Wagyu" (charcoal grilled tenderloin with seasonal vegetables) had better not be disappointing. After all this was what the restaurant was named after. Fortunately, the Kagoshima beef fillet did not let us down. It was as good a piece of Japanese beef as we have eaten. And unlike most restaurants which serve such meat, the portions here were extremely generous, to the point where we found it difficult to finish all the beef on the plate. The accompanying deglaze was unnecessary given the flavourful Wagyu.

After such a heavy main course, we were relieved that the dessert, the "Alsatian apple tart" (Kirsch ice cream) was so light. It was very simple yet elegant end to an excellent meal.

We had a very enjoyable dinner at Wagyu Takumi. The premises looked its age and service was ernest but a bit unpolished, but in all the experience was positive and the food was very good with a few standout dishes.

Mandarin Grill + Bar (Hong Kong)

January 2016

Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 5 Connaught Road Central, Hong Kong SAR
Tel: +852 2825 4004
www.mandarinoriental.com/hongkong/fine-dining/mandarin-grill-and-bar/

Hong Kong is one of those places that we go to several times a year, and we often find ourselves staying at our favourite hotel in the city, the Mandarin Oriental. However, it was only in the past year that we discovered Mandarin Grill. Not that we didn't know that it existed, but only that it never struck us as a place which would serve food better than the usual hotel restaurant fare. But as they say, better late than never, and during the past few meals here, it has slowly becoming a favourite of ours.

For starters, the word "Grill" in its name is a misnomer. For the longest time, we mistook the restaurant for a steakhouse, and though the interior does remind us of a modern take of a quintessential New York steakhouse, the cuisine here is modern European if nothing else. The open kitchen and oyster bar counter speaks of the restaurant's contemporary outlook, and its high ceiling and warm lighting makes it a very comfortable dining room for both business and leisure dining.

For a recent dinner, the menu options consisted of a tasting menu and an a la carte option for two or three courses. The a la carte looked more interesting so that was what we went with. The amuse bouche was quite interesting; a globular olive (similar to that of Tickets) with a small olive plant as a prop, a charcoal breadstick with edible leaves and a truffle sabayon which were delicious. The tipple for the evening was a glass of Ruinart blanc de blanc and a bottle of 2010 Moray St Denis 1er Cru "Clos Sorbe" David Duband.

The entree was an opulent Salmon & caviar (organic, Scottish, home smoked, cedar wood, king crab, bagel, egg). The salmon was brought out in a charcoal smoker and served on the plate, allowing us to experience the rich smoke used to prepare the fish. Perhaps it lacked the finesse of the unparalleled version at Amber, but this was very good nonetheless. The accompanying caviar on a bed of king crab meat was quite sublime as well.

The main course of Beef (Japanese, Miyazaki, tenderloin, smoked paprika, spring vegetables) was a larger portion than we expected. Two large slabs of heavily marbled wagyu beef were lighted breaded, and though accompanied by a bone marrow sauce, were so flavourful that they didn't require any of the sauce.

The desserts were the very competent Mango (Japanese, mille feuille, chocolate) and Salted caramel souffle), and the very enjoyable dinner ended off with some rich chocolate truffles. In all, this was a highly satisfying meal with good ingredients cooked perfectly without being too pretentious, with discreet and intuitive service, although at a rather steep price tag compared to other fine dining restaurants in Hong Kong.

We particularly enjoy lunch at Mandarin Grill for a variety of reasons. Firstly, it is highly convenient for a single diner looking for a quick meal without prior reservations; the bar counter is a comfortable option which is almost always available during lunch time. Also, the lunch menu has typically been very good (arguably more interesting than the dinner menu) and the dishes have always been well curated. In addition, there is the option to simply have a glass of champagne with freshly shucked oysters.

One of our favourites was the Chicken (wings, truffle, gnocchi, jus). It was a innovative dish with a rich and thick black truffle sauce which was simply plate-licking good. The Tart (heirloom tomato, basil, homemade goat cheese) was also very special and was a good light entree.

The Pork (dingley dell, belly, cider, cavolo nero, mash) was a very competent dish and the Lobster (Canadian, morel, peas, broad beams, asparagus herbs, gnocchi) was an excellent and very satisfying ragout-style dish.

The desserts were no slouch either. The Mille feuille (strawberry, vanilla, pastry cream) was a very classic French dessert and the Apple (shortbread, cream, sorbet) was a lighter and more refreshing alternative.

Bo Innovation (Hong Kong)

January 2016

Shop 13, 2nd Floor, J Residence, 60 Johnston Road, Wanchai Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2850 8371
www.boinnovation.com

Alvin Leung, the self-acclaimed 'Demon Chef', splits opinion like no other in Hong Kong. The current holder of three Michelin stars, which puts him in the echelon of culinary royalty, his so-called 'X-treme Chinese Cuisine' seeks to use molecular gastronomy techniques on classic Chinese food to produce ultra-modern dining experiences in a highly demanding dining crowd in Hong Kong. We first ate at Bo Innovation back in 2008 when it first came into prominence. At that time, the restaurant had one star, then the following year it controversially received two stars, after which it lost the second star. Now it has three stars, and we were very curious to see if the very mixed dining experience we had all those years ago would be repeated in what we expected to be a much more mature restaurant by now.


Getting to the restaurant was a very tricky endeavour. Our taxi dropped us off at the stated address (i.e. 60 Johnston Road), only for us to struggle to find the entrance. As it turned out, it was along a side road called Ship Street. It was raining quite heavily that day (in the winter), so this made us quite miserable. It didn't help that after taking the lift to the second level, the short 10 metre walk from the lift to the restaurant wasn't sheltered so we got wet walking into the restaurant. This was very unacceptable to us for a three starred restaurant. What's so difficult building a shelter for the walkway? Or if not where were the service staff with umbrellas to receive the guests? Walking into the restaurant dripping wet wasn't the way we wanted to start our meal, and the nonchalance of the staff to the well-being of their guests was unnerving.

The restaurant is in a very small room with a cozy private dining space in the corner, some counter seats and several normal tables. We were seated at a table just by the door. Because the restaurant is so small, the main door opens directly to the outside, so throughout the night whenever anyone came in and out of the restaurant, we would experience the draft of the damp and cold wind from outside onto us. To say that we were uncomfortable throughout the meal was an understatement.

Putting aside the physical discomforts, we were looking forward to the food. There were two tasting menus to choose from and we chose the lighter one which looked more interesting. First off was a fun presentation of a classic Hong Kong street snack; a Chinese waffle with chives in a paper bag which we had to rip open to get to the snack. It was tasty, but we felt that it was quite a large portion (ironically for many people who have this snack by the street side, this is an entire meal in itself).

The first few dishes were good - Scallop (Shanghainese "jolo", wobble, sugar snap puffs, avocado, lemon) and Foie gras ("Mui choy", green apple, ginger bread), although these were more accurately 'western' dishes with some garnishes which were commonly found in Chinese cuisine, and hardly Chinese food cooked in a modern style.

The Umami (toro, har mi oil, mixed noodles, "wok air" powder) was delicious with its deep and rich flavours.

The supplement of Baby food (black truffle "chian dan chee") was very enjoyable and was an egg custard with bits of ham and black truffle, reminiscent of the chicken and egg sandwich this was supposed to reflect.

The classic Molecular (cha siu bao) was in the menu again. This was brilliant; a mouthful of flavours in a bubble which accurately mirrored the taste of a steamed barbecue pork bun.

The Tomato ("pat chun" chinese vinegar, fermented Chinese olives "lam kok", marshmallow with green onion oil) was disappointing because of its overtly strong acidic flavours from which we could tell nothing about the dish.

We had the red mullet before, but in 2008 that version was poorly cooked (undercooked to be honest). This time, the fish in the Red Mullet (black garlic, black bean, yuzu, mullet roe, pepper) was cooked perfectly. However, it was a pity that the black bean sauce was too overpowering and completely overwhelmed the dish.

Another old favourite is the Mao Tai. This version was served in an ancient Chinese wine goblet and came with hawthorn, lemongrass and passionfruit. This palate cleanser was very refreshing and delicious.

The main courses were competent without overly impressing. The Pigeon (black carrot, crispy kale, sour plum pigeon jus) and Saga-gyu beef (black truffle, soy, "cheung fun") were cooked well enough but similar to the red mullet dish, were let down by the lack of subtlety of the accompanying sauces.

The dessert, the Bo Baba (chestnut, sugar cane, imo) redeemed the meal somewhat after the misses of the past few dishes, with the traditional Chinese sponge cake holding the rum in reinterpretation of the rum baba. This dish worked.

We were waiting all night for Chinese food cooked in a ultra-modern style as was advertised, but aside from the very few dishes which followed that theme somewhat (i.e. the Baby Food and the Molecular), everything else was western cuisine cooked using some Chinese ingredients which in most cases didn't add much to the dishes (except make everything more sweet and sour). Granted, the western cooking was of a high standard (for example the meats and fish were cooked precisely), but it felt that in order to shoehorn the Chinese flavours and ingredients to justify the cuisine, often the flavours of such Chinese ingredients were emphasised to the extent that they overpowered the entire dish.

Ironically, the most Chinese of their dishes was the petit fours of Eight Treasures (dried mandarin peel chocolate, dragon eye sesame roll, wolfberry wild honey jelly, chrysanthemum custard tart, walnut cookies maple syrup and osmanthus "dan san").

In conclusion, this was not a bad meal, but even in our most generous of moods, we cannot fathom how this restaurant can be so highly regarded by the Michelin Guide. It fails the basic requirements for three stars on so many levels; the poor design and set up of the restaurant, the less than impeccable service and more importantly, the inability to execute to perfection its culinary identity.