Tag Archives: central

The Great Indian Kebab Factory

5 Apr

the dim sum diaries hong kong

the great indian kebab factory hong kong

When I was asked if I wanted to go for dinner at The Great Indian Kebab Factory, I knew I simply had to try it; I thought it could either be truly awful, or it could be pleasantly surprising. Thankfully it was the latter.

the great indian kebab factory hong kong

I, quite wrongly, associate the word ‘kebab’ mainly with Ebeneezer’s, which, perhaps again quite wrongly(?), is somewhere I would never set foot in, no matter how many jelly shots I’d consumed at Al’s Diner (OK, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration – maybe after a few). The Great Indian Kebab Factory (hereby referred to as TGIKF), however, is incomparable to that god-awful place; it is sophisticated and charming, with rich purple velvet chairs and elegant chandeliers. It is spacious and inviting, setting the scene for an enjoyable, leisurely meal.

TGIKF’s food is contemporary Indian, with a strong focus on kebabs, of course. There is an a la carte menu, but I strongly recommend trying the 11-course set menu, which changes every fortnight.

Our feast began rather unusually, with a salad consisting of cucumber, lettuce, watermelon and pineapple, served with an interesting strawberry and mustard dressing – a curious yet refreshing start to the meal.

the great indian kebab factory hong kong

Following this came three test tube shots of lassi – strawberry, mango and original. Without being overly filling and heavy, as I sometimes find lassis to be, these were wonderfully creamy, cleansing the palate in preparation for the myriad of kebabs to follow.

the great indian kebab factory hong kong

the great indian kebab factory hong kong

These kebabs, which are technically only a starter, are served individually to each diner, with the promise of unlimited further helpings should you be particularly fond of any (or all) of them.  On this occasion, having chosen the non-vegetarian menu, they consisted of red bean and mint kebab (amazing, light and very delicate in flavour), Peshwari chicken tikka (just as it should be, with an unexpected fiery kick), peri-peri fish (wonderfully flaky, and again satisfyingly spicy), garlic and bell pepper prawns (fresh and heavily loaded with spicy ginger), paneer tikka (light, delicate and moreishly smooth), and last but not least a minced lamb seekh kebab (so good I had to have two of these).

the great indian kebab factory hong kong

Try, if you can, not to get too excited and over-order on the kebabs; after all this, there is curry! Butter chicken curry to be precise – creamy, delicious butter chicken curry that explodes with the rich flavours of cinnamon and cardamom. Served alongside this is a gloriously warming dhal, fluffy vegetable rice and a selection of freshly baked naan bread. Again, these are served directly on your plate by the timid yet friendly waitresses, who are ready to serve you second helpings to your heart’s content.

the great indian kebab factory hong kong

I warn you again not to get too excited, as the masala chai gelato is not something you want to miss out on. The other dessert of TGIKF Bengali garam rosoguilla (a cottage cheese dumpling soaked in saffron syrup) was not for me, given it’s slightly rubbery consistency, but I could certainly have had two (or three) helpings of the creamy, intensely flavoured gelato.

The 11-course set menu costs a mere $268. Add on wine and/or one of TGIKF’s exciting cocktails (try the ‘Slumdog M’ or the tamarind margarita), and expect to pay around the $400 mark. Service wasn’t remarkable, but neither was it bad. The only thing we found bizarre was how a place that served such delicious food for an affordable price was so empty. Perhaps people don’t know about it yet, or perhaps people aren’t sure about the name, but seriously, please don’t be put off by the name; this is definitely no Ebeneezer’s!

The Great Indian Kebab Factory

19/F, Wellington Place – M88
2-8 Wellington Street
Central
Hong Kong

(Also at Shop 202, Miramar Shopping Centre, 102 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong)

Tel: +852 2810 7000 (Central)
Tel: +852 2317 7008 (Kowloon)

www.thegreatindiankebabfactory.com

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St Betty

22 Oct

 

 

st betty hong kong

The only thing I loved about Alan Yau’s Bettys Kitschen in IFC (reviewed here) was the décor. Fortunately the revamped space, now known as St Betty, has kept the look, but changed everything else, including the chef, making way for two-Michelin-starred chef Shane Osborn from London’s Pied à Terre.

Actually, I lie; remember the colourful fresh fruit baskets that used to line the entrance? These are now baskets of wine and sparkling wine – who needs fruit when you can have bubbly?! Other than that, the high ceilings with fans and low hanging lights remain, as do the tall windows overlooking the gorgeous construction site (hopefully not for too much longer), and the rows of fresh basil plants at the back of the room.

One of the main changes is the restaurant’s ethos. Chef Osborn has brought with him his love of all things local and, apart from a couple of necessary imports, insists on using locally-sourced ingredients for all of his dishes. Back in London, he told us, he used to grow herbs on his rooftop; unable to have that same luxury in Hong Kong, the restaurant instead has a half-acre of farmland in the New Territories that is currently being converted into a greenhouse.

st betty hong kong sunday roast

I was invited to try St Betty’s brand new Sunday roast menu. Aside from the Sunday carvery at Harrington’s and perhaps a couple of other mediocre attempts around town, it’s hard to find a good roast in Hong Kong. I can confidently tell you, however, that St Betty has swooped in and rectified this.

At the moment the only meat on offer is roast beef, served only medium-rare (who would have it any other way?!), and St Betty is currently the only restaurant in Hong Kong to have a Josper oven. What’s a Josper oven, you ask? Answer: a godsend. Described by the FT as “the latest must-have chef’s toy”, a Josper oven is basically an indoor charcoal-fired barbecue that ensures the food maintains all of its natural moisture and flavour, whilst also giving it that wonderful smoky taste.

st betty hong kong sunday roast

For Chef Osborn’s Sunday roast, the Australian Angus sirloin is slow cooked in the Josper oven, leaving it pink and succulent all the way through, without any messy juices. It had the most incredible flavour that I think even those who like their meat well done would appreciate. Served alongside it was a dollop of whipped horseradish cream that worked perfectly with the beef without overpowering the flavour.

The gigantic Yorkshire pudding was delicious, especially used as a vessel for the rich gravy. I loved the root vegetable mash, made with first-roasted-and-then-puréed carrots, swede and parsnips, and the Chinese cabbage with Japanese bacon was also incredibly tasty. The only slight let down for me were the potatoes, which were not quite crispy enough for my liking… although once smothered in gravy, they were hard to resist.

st betty hong kong sunday roast

If the roast beef alone isn’t enough to please homesick Brits then the rhubarb and apple crumble that’s served for dessert will definitely do the trick. A layer of creamy custard lines the cast iron dish, which is topped with a wonderfully tart mix of rhubarb and apple, another layer of custard and finally a generous heap of vanilla-infused crumble. It is quite honestly one of the best crumbles I have ever eaten. At first glance we grumbled about the fact that it was served with cream instead of custard, yet with custard surprises hidden underneath the crumble, there was no need for any more.

Although the regular a la carte menu isn’t exactly cheap, this Sunday feast comes at the very affordable price of only $298 per person (for a minimum of two people). Don’t let the high prices of the regular menu put you off, however, as if what I ate on the weekend is anything to go by, then the rest of the menu will be 100 percent worth it, with carefully thought out, delicious tasting, fresh ingredients and excellent service. Forget everything you disliked about Bettys Kitschen and give St Betty a chance to wow you, because I can guarantee that it most definitely will.

St Betty

Shop 2075, Podium Level Two
IFC Mall
Central
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2979 2100

www.stbetty.com

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Masu Robatayaki & Sushi

29 Aug masu hong kong

 

dim sum diaries hong kong

 

 

Masu hong kong

The excitement of a new sushi restaurant will never ever get old, despite how many our beautiful city is loaded with, so when I heard about Masu Robatayaki & Sushi’s arrival, I was as keen as wasabi to put it to the test. Masu is Privé Group’s newest baby, located in On Hing Building, just off Wyndham Street.

The décor is very minimalistic, using shades of cream and grey to create, in my mind, a rather boring and drab ambience. Diners can sit around the sushi bar or on proper tables, but there is nothing particularly eye-catching about the décor.

Thankfully, however, the food completely makes up for any lack of atmosphere; as the name suggests, Masu serves up everything from scrumptious sushi to incredible robatayaki, with endless choices in between.

In fact, endless is exactly what the menu is, almost to the point of being overwhelming. Unsure where to begin, I asked the manageress Rabina to order for us, knowing she would be sure to serve us the restaurant’s signature dishes.

masu hong kong

After a failsafe bowl of salted edamame, we were served a beautiful selection of assorted sashimi including sweet shrimp, yellow tail, salmon, scallops and tuna, served, of course, on a mound of ice. Each piece of seafood was incredibly fresh and wonderfully tender, melting like butter in the mouth.

masu hong kong

A Japanese fruit salad followed: a lovely combination of gorgeously juicy sliced tomatoes and soft smoked aubergine paired with a delicious garlicky sauce. It certainly contradicted my belief that salads are inexorably boring.

masu hong kong

The signature Masu deluxe rolls that came next were possibly some of the best sushi I have had the pleasure of eating. Wrapped inside the rice was egg, crab and finely sliced cucumber, while delicious seared Wagyu beef, toro, Hokkaido uni and salmon roe sat neatly on top, all drizzled in a sweet ‘secret sauce’. Although it was rather difficult to eat in one go, the flavours all complemented each other perfectly.

masu hong kong

On to the robatayaki, the beautifully cooked asparagus was impossible to fault. However the grilled ox tongue, marinated in delicious spices, could have been amazing, yet it was so tough I could barely sink my teeth into it, which left me rather disappointed.

masu hong kong

Thankfully, the succulent chicken wings made up for it. I am usually hesitant about ordering chicken wings, as there’s often more skin and fat than meat, but these chickens had definitely been well fed.

masu hong kong

Even better was the minced chicken meatball, served alongside a soy and egg yolk dipping sauce. The meat was spectacularly juicy, not dry in the slightest, and simply packed full of flavour. I rather wish we’d each had our own meatball rather than having to share…

masu hong kong

Next came a plate of cute little beef croquettes. Tender chunks of beef and slightly pickled veggies were encased in very fluffy and flaky batter that was far from greasy and dangerously more-ish.

masu hong kong

Last but by no means least (of the savouries) came a bowl of steaming Inaniwa udon noodles. The broth was rich and comforting and the noodles had a perfect chewy texture; although we were struggling to eat another mouthful, it was near impossible to refrain from finishing the whole bowl!

masu hong kong

The delicious meal ended with a scoop of sesame ice cream, which was exactly what we needed to cleanse the palate and send us into a comfortable food coma.

Service started off a little hesitantly, but they made up for it as the meal progressed, making sure to change our plates after each and every dish; I seriously hope they have a dishwasher! As you can imagine, being part of the Privé Group, a meal at Masu Robatayaki and Sushi doesn’t come cheap: a hearty meal without drinks would likely cost between $400 and $700 per person, minimum. If, however, you’re after some commendably fresh and delicious Japanese fare where setting (and cost) isn’t important, then definitely give Masu Robatayaki and Sushi a try.

Masu Robatayaki & Sushi

UG/F On Hing Building
1 On Hing Terrace
Central
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2537 7787

www.masu.hk

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Table for Two HK’s Healthy Summer Dining Experience

30 Jul

 

Table for Two HK TFT HK

Table for Two HK has partnered up with nine amazing restaurants all over the city that will each serve their very own special TFT HK dishes throughout the month of August, as part of its Healthy Summer Dining Experience. When you purchase these dishes, part of the proceeds will help TFT HK provide school lunches for children in developing countries, in line with their motto: Order for one. Feed two. And help the world eat better.

The other part of the deal means that, as well as helping feed starving children, if your photo of your TFT HK dish receives the most likes on Facebook, you can win exciting prizes.

As one of Table for Two’s Food Heroes, I was lucky enough to be invited along for the launch of the Healthy Summer Dining Experience, which took us on a tour of six of the participating venues to taste their special TFT HK dish or drink; our own little restaurant crawl, if you like.

The Genie Concept

We started our day at The Genie Concept to try their fresh organic pineapple and kale juice. 

The Genie Concept Hong Kong

I was initially a little put off by the thought of drinking kale, yet was taken by surprise at how delicious and refreshing this juice was. Kale is rich in vitamin C and vitamin B6, and is also particularly good for women, given that it helps protect against breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

The Genie Concept in Sheung Wan offers 1, 2, 4 or 6-day juice cleanses designed for the busy Hong Kong lifestyle. Instead of your three meals a day, Genie will deliver you six freshly-pressed juices in a reusable cooler. For those, like me, who would not be able to handle this, you can just pop by for the one-off tasty juice or even some delicious healthy dishes.

If your photo of your pineapple and kale juice gets the most likes, you could win a 1-day Genie Concept Cleanse.

The Genie Concept
Shop B, G/F, Universal Building
5-13 New Street
Sheung Wan
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2803 0369
www.thegenieconcept.com

Grassroots Pantry

Grassroots Pantry Hong Kong

Our next destination was Grassroots Pantry, to try their Quinoa salad with orange hazelnut dressing, full of fresh flavours and interesting textures.

Grassroots Pantry Hong Kong

As you already know from my recent review of Grassroots Pantry (find it here), I adore this sweet little haven tucked away in Sai Ying Pun. The décor is charmingly beautiful, the staff greet you with a smile, and the vegetarian food is wholesome and delicious. Hong Kong definitely needs more places like this.

If your photo of the quinoa salad receives the most likes, you could win a voucher to attend a Grassroots Pantry workshop.

Grassroots Pantry
12 Fuk Sau Lane
Sai Ying Pun
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2873 3353
www.grassrootspantry.com

Light

Light radiant food Hong Kong

We moved on to Light, to try their Black Bean Burger.

Light radiant food hong kong

Light is an adorable little café on Eastern Street that feels far away from Hong Kong. Lovely owner Stephanie admitted that her aim is for people to “leave feeling better” after having eaten there; I certainly did.

The black bean patty is perfect: crispy on the outside with a moreish spiciness to it encased in a wonderfully fluffy homemade whole-wheat bun. I was rather anti veggie burgers, until I tried Stephanie’s.

Light radiant food hong kong

The winning photographer will receive a free dinner at Light.

Light
1 Second Street (entrance on Eastern Street)
Sai Ying Pun
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2559 9098

MANA! Fast Slow Food

mana hong kong

MANA!’s Organic Mezze Platter awaited us next, full to the brim with hummus, babaghanouj, black and green olives, green salad and their famous flatbread topped with zaatar – the perfect sharing platter.

mana hong kong

MANA! is my favourite healthy lunch spot at the moment, as you can see from my review here, and judging by how busy it is every day of the week, it’s clear that most of Hong Kong is of the same opinion.

If your photo wins, MANA! is giving away a dinner for two.

MANA! Fast Slow Food
92 Wellington Street
Central
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2851 1611
www.mana.hk

Teakha

Teakha Hong Kong

For dessert, we ventured back into Sheung Wan to try Teakha’s Lemon and ginger tart, made with a ginger snap base and a creamy lemon topping, sprinkled with fresh lemon zest.

Teakha Hong Kong

I’ve walked past Teakha multiple times, but have never had the time to check it out. After tasting the amazing tart and ogling the rest of the cakes on display, I will certainly be making the time to go back.

The best photo will win a Teakha tea set for two.

Teakha
18 Tai Ping Shan Street
Sheung Wan
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2858 9185
www.teakha.com

The Flying Winemaker

The Flying Winemaker Hong Kong

Our final stop was for a glass of Eddie McDougall Cabernet Merlot 2010 from King Valley, Australia at The Flying Winemaker.

The Flying Winemaker Hong Kong

Hong Kong-born Eddie McDougall’s Cabernet Merlot is light and easy to drink; in fact it went down far too easily for a 2pm tipple.

The lucky winner will receive two vouchers to a WineSkool Tongue Explorer class, apparently “the cheekiest and most enjoyable way to learn about tasting and understanding wine”.

The Flying Winemaker
31 Wyndham Street
Lan Kwai Fong
Central
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2522 2187
www.eddiemcdougall.com

The final three participating restaurants in TFT HK’s Healthy Summer Dining Experience are Veggie SF, FoFo by El Willy and Pure Bar + Restaurant – not a bad selection. So as from Wednesday 1st August, you can make a difference by eating healthily at the same as helping a starving child eat healthily too…and of course you might be lucky enough to win some great prizes!

 

 

 

 

 

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IR1968

3 Jul

The Dim Sum Diaries Hong Kong

 

 

IR1968 Hong Kong

My favourite kind of places are the ones that take you completely by surprise. The kind where you arrive with no expectations whatsoever, yet you are immediately wowed by the ambience, the service and, most importantly, the food. This can certainly be said about IR1968.

I had heard that the family-run restaurant, which first opened in 1968 (hence the name), had moved to L Place, yet foolishly, although I work just around the corner, I had not yet been to try it. Until one gloomy lunchtime, when a friend and I decided we wanted somewhere different, and I suddenly remembered the Indonesian restaurant I had carelessly neglected.

The laid back décor, a mixture of unfinished stone flooring and stripped wooden tables, immediately enticed me. With a vintage-looking hawker-style bicycle and the odd soda crate dotted around, it was reminiscent of the sort of street-side dining scene you would expect to see in Indonesia. The chilled out Indonesian music softly playing in the background completed the scene and gave me high hopes for an unexpectedly successful meal.

The vast menu is traditionally Indonesian, with everything from pork satay to nasi goreng, to beef rendang on offer. However, feeling the pressure of adhering to a strict one-hour lunch break, we opted for the set menu, which starts at $98 and changes weekly.

IR1968 Hong Kong

The set began with a Gado Gado salad. Although at first sight this measly salad may not look particularly appealing, you must learn not to judge a book by its cover, as, to taste, it was utterly delicious and more-ish; crunchy lettuce leaves, soft chunks of potato and crumbly boiled egg, dressed in a creamy peanut sauce.

IR1968 Hong Kong hainan chicken

After the comforting salad, you may choose one of five main courses, which vary in price depending on ingredients. The Nasi Hainan Ayam (Hainan chicken rice) is a dish I always associate as comfort food, but the healthy kind (provided you take the skin off). IR1968’s version was exactly as it should be: beautifully tender white chicken meat, with the necessary ginger and sweet soy sauces, and, obviously, rice. There were no surprises that drew away from the simplicity and honesty of this dish.

IR1968 Hong Kong duck

We both agreed however that my choice of Bebek Menyayat was definitely the winning dish. As we learnt from my review of Bebek Bengil in Ubud, Bali (find it here), ‘bebek’ means duck. This dish consisted of incredibly tender stewed duck in a rich, creamy coconut-curry sauce, topped with crispy-fried garlic and lemongrass. The flavours were intense and delicious, although I would have liked it to have been just a touch spicier. There is actually a note on the front of the menu that suggests asking if you like your dishes spicy; perhaps I should have followed this advice.

IR1968 Hong Kong mango sticky rice

The set menu includes a drink, but does not include dessert. If you know me by now at all, you’ll know that I neeeed to have something sweet after my meal. And of course I have to please my readers. So we chose to share some Purple sticky rice with mango. It was everything this dish should be and more: a thick layer of wonderfully creamy and sticky rice, topped with a layer of sweet coconut milk and chunks of fresh, soft mango. The perfect end to a delicious meal.

Service at IR1968 is efficient and dishes are certainly served fast, so it’s definitely possible to do in a one-hour lunch break. It’s honest, it’s reasonable and it’s so close to work that it would be rude not to go back. Many times.

IR1968

5/F The L Place
139 Queen’s Road Central
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2577 9981

www.ir1968.com 

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Hide-Chan Ramen

20 Apr

Most people will have heard of Butao Ramen and its ridiculous hour-long queues for a very simple bowl of Japanese ramen noodles. I haven’t actually been myself because I’m not sure I see the point in queuing for hours for a very simple bowl of ramen. Unless I had snacks to keep me going, there would be no way of shutting up my grumbling stomach and I’m sure it would disturb the other customers. Actually maybe this would be a good idea – scare off the customers with my growling stomach and head straight to the front of the queue.

However, when there is Hide-Chan Ramen, on Wellington Street, there is no need to put this experiment to the test. We went for lunch after the mad rush, at around 1.30, walked straight in and were seated immediately. This was somewhat surprising, seeing as this particular link of the Hide-Chan Ramen chain with other restaurants in Tokyo and New York, only opened its doors a mere two weeks ago.

We were presented with three sheets of paper and three pencils, resulting in three very confused expressions. When I’ve ordered ramen before, there has never been so much choice – you have your standard ramen with beef or pork or vegetables etc. and that’s that. In Hide-Chan Ramen, however, you have a choice of what kind of soup base you’d like: Hakata Original Ramen, White Hide (apparently has lots of collagen in it(?)), Black Hide (with a charred garlic taste) or Red Hide (with an added touch of Korean sweet chilli sauce). The HCR team pride themselves on the fact that they use selected pork legs and boil them for a minimum of 24 hours to create their stock – all MSG-free! You can then choose the level of spiciness you would like: low, medium or high; what consistency you would like your noodles: soft, medium or hard; if you would like any extra garlic (I found this absolutely hilarious as they give you a small bowl filled with about six garlic cloves and a garlic crusher – never seen anything like it before in a restaurant!); and what part of the pig you would like your pork to have come from: shoulder, belly or neck (if you’re a vegetarian you can skip the pork, but there doesn’t seem to be an option for any non-vegetarians who are against eating pigs). In case you haven’t picked up on it yet, you use your little pencil to tick the box next to your selection. You then have the choice of adding extras such as bean sprouts, soft-boiled egg, dumplings, more pig, and a variety of sauces – I have no idea what these sauces are as they are just called “black sauce” or “red sauce” but I’m sure they are delicious. If you’re feeling extra hungry you can even tick the box for “noodle refills!” All of these extras come at an added cost but nothing to get your knickers in a twist over.

I selected Black Hide, medium spicy (I was told the Black Hide was not allowed to be spicy but I pleaded and was brought a small dish of spicy sauce on the side), medium consistency noodles, pork shoulder with soft-boiled egg and bean sprouts. I was having a bit of an off-day – part post-7s sickness, part mid-week blues – so this was the perfect comfort food and definitely brought my spirits up. For me, there’s always something about soup noodles that makes you feel like you’re being given a great big cuddle and all is well with the world. Is that weird?!

There is also the option of adding a side dish of 10 pan-seared Hakata dumplings, which we were unable to turn down. Guess what’s in the dumplings…. pork of course! To complement your dumplings, you may choose a range of rather strange toppings: cheese (really?!), cheese mayonnaise (excuse me?!), Tarako mayonnaise or (our selection) green onion mayonnaise which I promise tastes much better than it sounds. I could probably live off those dumplings. Although obviously I would need chocolate too.

 Total bill was just over $100 each not including drinks, so a little bit pricier than somewhere like Misocool but as you can completely customise your meal without someone saying “no, cannot,” it’s definitely worth that little bit extra. I’d like to try Butao Ramen as a comparison but not until they see to their lunchtime traffic problem.

 

 Hide-Chan Ramen

Upper Ground Floor
The Loop
33 Wellington Street
Central
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2522 5990

Date visited: Thursday 31st March 2011

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Watermark

20 Apr

I had a friend from home visiting for the Rugby 7s and on her last night, although we were both suffering from the excesses of the weekend, we wanted to go for a nice chilled out meal in a scenic location. She had been up to the Peak earlier in the day and we weren’t in the mood to trek all the way over to “the dark side” to dine somewhere with a view of Hong Kong’s spectacular skyline. The next best thing was to go somewhere with a view of the TST harbour. Watermark, just above the Star Ferry, offers an unobstructed view of the harbour with huge glass windows giving you the feeling that you’re almost sitting on the water. You know it’s going to be a special place from the moment you walk in, with its long entrance way leading you to a large open space with high ceilings and, of course, the harbour view. Lest we forget that en route you must walk past several windows where you can peer into the kitchen and observe all the scrumptious meals being prepared. What immediately caught my eye was some sort of chocolate dessert which I knew I had to find on the menu and HAD to order no matter how full I was at the end of my meal!

 As we decided on our resto venue very last minute, we obviously hadn’t booked a table, so although there were tables available, none were right next to the windows. We could still see the harbour but had a few big heads in our way obstructing the “unobstructed view” so I would definitely recommend booking a table and requesting one close to the windows, especially if, like me, you are trying to show off our beautiful city and try to convince your friends to move out here too!

 The waiters were all very attentive and immediately brought us some warm bread with a delicious dipping sauce. Although our taste buds were certain there were hints of garlic and lemon in this dip, we were advised that it was merely Greek yoghurt with a touch of salt and pepper, sprinkled with parmesan. Maybe the 7s confused our taste buds but regardless it was delicious and a nice touch to replace the average slab of butter most restaurants serve you.

 As we weren’t outrageously starving, we passed on the starters, although they did look tempting – particularly the Iberian ham with roasted capsicum, crispy eggplant and aged manchego – and went straight for the mains. My friend ordered the spaghetti with seared langoustines and tomato concasse and, after asking our very helpful waitress what the most delicious dishes on the menu were, I opted for the chef’s speciality of Brittany cod with salsify, wild mushrooms and watercress. Both dishes were divine; neither were unnecessarily big portions, both were beautifully presented and our plates may as well have been licked clean as there was not a trace of food left over. I have grown up with the saying “waste not want not” drilled into my little brain, but this time I did not need to be reminded as I had no intention of leaving any of my delicious cod behind. I used to never be a fan of the fungus but these days I rather enjoy my mushrooms, and must say that these ones were particularly special. After the cod, they may have been the star of the main course. I won’t say they were the star of the show, however, as that award definitely goes to the delicious dessert which I had saved a little corner of my stomach for – I always say that there’s a separate compartment for dessert.

 We were pretty full after having asked for a second round of bread and dipping sauce, but I located the scrummy looking dessert which I had previously glimpsed through the window into the kitchen: it was a melting middle chocolate pudding served with vanilla bean ice cream. The kind that you just softly touch with the tip of your fork and it oozes all over your plate. The kind that Marks & Spencer used to include in their amazing food-porn adverts. The kind that even though I was absolutely stuffed, I couldn’t bear to leave a crumb of. Each of the desserts on the menu had its own little tagline underneath. For example, apparently the pear tart is “to impress your date”, and the chocolate pudding is “to be eaten without showing your teeth!” The cheese served with figs and walnut bread seemed to be one of their specialities “as an excuse to stay for longer” but unfortunately I couldn’t find the cheese compartment in my stomach. I think the pudding stole it.

 A little bit pricier than the average place but not out of this world prices and definitely worth every penny (sorry, cent. I live in the dollar world now), especially taking into consideration that you’re most likely also paying for the view. Mains ranged from $160 to $400.They also have a great wine list. New Zealand Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc was the most expensive one on the list but I couldn’t turn down a glass and it was delicious. Our bill came to $611 after a kind discount for paying with an HSBC card. I can picture my father who worked for HSBC from the age of 18 jumping for joy at this!

 Watermark

Central Pier 7
Top Level
Star Ferry
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2167 7251

Date visited: Tuesday 29th March 2011

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