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Reviews F-L
FINDS Scandinavian Restaurant
I
haven't heard of too many Scandinavian restaurants. Even on summer trips
to Iceland some years ago I'd tended to live on service station hotdogs
and whatever I could carry in my backpack. So until Finds opened at the
top of Lan Kwai Fong a few weeks ago all I knew of Scandinavian cuisine
were pickled herrings, Danish bacon, hakarl and Brenniv'n.
Those last two are Icelandic specialities. Hakarl is shark meat that has been buried in the volcanic sand for several months and Brenniv'n is a kind of schnapps that is affectionately known as 'black death' to the Icelanders. Neither of them are on the menu though the manger did hint that they were looking into the possibility of importing Brenniv'n.
The restaurant takes its name from the initial letters of the five Scandinavian countries; Finland, Iceland, Norway, Denmark and Sweden. This is no doubt a more practical solution to finding a name that would be meaningful in all five very different languages most of which have a generous helping of those unusual characters and squiggly bits from the dusty end of the font where most languages never go, and that are unpronounceable to people who weren't born there. The menu, I was relieved to note, is in English.
It is not a huge menu but almost everything on it was tempting. Each dish is given a brief explanation. In the description for turnip soup with gingerbread ($65), for example, we are told how the Vikings used to make pork shaped gingerbread as a sacrifice to the gods and that turnips are one of the oldest farmed vegetables in Scandinavia.
For starter I ordered a dark cep broth with poached egg and crushed bacon ($85). The menu tells me that from late August the forests of Scandinavia are filled with wild mushrooms. The cep is a rich, fleshy mushroom which gives the dark brown broth a delicious flavour. It is served with a selection of bread and crispbread.
But while the soup echoes traditional forest fare the decor of the restaurant is sleek and modern. Predominantly white with large curvaceous bar and windows that open onto a balcony area over looking the top of Lan Kwai Fong. They seem to have done away with walls altogether and what supporting pillars there are have been textured to look like blocks of snow. The result is cool and sophisticated but never lets go of the Scandinavian love of simplicity and open space.
The
main course was served on a large rectangular panoramic plate. Fillet
of pikeperch sauteed with horseradish, lemon crushed potato and roasted
cabbage sauce ($210). Since the region is blessed with a lot of rivers
it only seems reasonable to expect freshwater fish to figure highly on
the menu. A pikeperch is a species of perch that masquerades as a pike,
presumably to avoid predation. The flesh is white, very light and succulent
and quite delicious.
The cooler climate of Scandinavia isn't suitable for larger fruits so berries are a key component of most of the desserts. One of the rarest is the Arctic cloudberry. The cloudberry is found only in the marshy areas of Lapland which covers the northernmost parts of Norway and Finland. It is represented here in the cloudberry baba with bourbon vanilla ice cream ($85). The berry itself has a similar shape to a raspberry but is pale orange or yellow in colour and has a wonderfully sharp and tangy flavour.
I rounded the meal of with a coffee and sat back to listen to the music which has been exceptional all evening ranging from the classic Getz/Gilberto to the Penguin Cafe Orchestra.
Finds is open Mondays to Saturdays from noon till late
December 2004
The Flying Pan
I
reviewed this restaurant before but the gremlins that cyberspace unleashed
in my computer ate half of it. I couldn't bring myself to rewrite the
whole thing so I decided to wait until I had another opportunity to go
there.
I'd thought I really should go at breakfast time but normally I eat quite a light breakfast and at Flying Pan breakfasts are not light. Then I reasoned that the whole point is that breakfasts are available 24 hours a day so it really wouldn't be in the true spirit of the restaurant to actually go at breakfast time. So I went at dinner time.
The last time I'd had a 4X4X4 combo which, to me, had sounded more like some kind of wheel arrangement on a truck drivers rig but actually meant 4 each of eggs, bacon and sausage, 4 slices of toast and 4 sides. The sides included baked beans, potatoes, grilled tomato, spiced apple.
It had needed a plate the size of a truckers hubcap and was as much as I could do to eat it all but eat it I did, and washed it down with a piping hot pot of Earl Grey Tea.
Much as I'd enjoyed that meal I didn't feel capable of eating such a large one this time. I also felt I had a duty to try something else.
There is plenty to choose from. The omelets from around the world include the Monterey - with spinach, shrimp and onion, and the Moscow - with smoked salmon and cream cheese. I was tempted by one called the Kitchen Sink which, according to the menu, had "loads of meat and veggies".
Poached eggs are also well represented. There is Eggs Benedict, Eggs Puerto Rico - with ham and asparagus and Eggs Norwegian which is made with smoked salmon. I opted for Eggs Houssard. This is poached egg with grilled steak and tomato on an English muffin. It comes with a choice of two sides, I had baked beans and potato and a juice.
This was a good choice and was just the right size. But if you are like me and like to mop up all the egg yolk and baked bean sauce with the last of your bread or toast you may want to order a little extra. The muffins, though nice, just don't do the job adequately.
The meal was washed down with another pot of Earl Grey and then, in a fit of extravagance I ordered a banana split for dessert.
It's often said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Now you don't have to wait till morning to enjoy one.
Flying Pan, G/F 9 Old Bailey Street, Soho, Hong Kong Tel 2140 6333
Flying Pan, 3/F 81-85 Lockhart Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong Tel 2528 9997
Fourth Floor
When
I mentioned going to Harvey Nichols for dinner, people started looking
at me strangely - it seemed nobody knew about Fourth Floor, the
Harvey Nichols restaurant, which seems a pity.
The entrance (with large sign) is on Queen's Road Central, right next to the new Landmark Mandarin Oriental hotel, through a brightly-lit foyer which also leads directly into the shop itself. There is a discreet elevator on your left which goes directly to Fourth Floor.
You may be forgiven for thinking you've wandered into a 1980's disco when you step out of the elevator. The floor and low ceiling are covered with a giant 'crazy paving' coloured red, yellow and blue, with pink neon running along the cracks. The bar area at the front is full of high, black leather and chrome stools and a long sleek black counter with a crowd of sleek black-clad wait-staff. There are also several groups of suit-wearers winding down with cocktails after a hard day making fortunes upstairs in the Landmark.
Get past this, though, to the eating area and things get a little more relaxed, with low-slung chairs, fresh white linen, and cheerful servers, though we still thought they could do with softening up the hard lines of the surroundings.
We decided immediately to try the house red wine, which is Harvey Nichols' own label, and were interested to find out that apparently every Harvey Nichols in the world has its own restaurant, where they serve the exact same wine - a Bourgogne Pinot Noir (2002).
The
menu is mainly European with some interesting touches. Roast scallops
with parsnip puree, curried apple crisps, caper and raisin emulsion
was very tempting amongst the appetisers, but in the end, I opted
for the Smoked salmon, which came with smoked salmon mousse and
cauliflower panna cotta, which sadly drained away the flavour, though
the sprinkles of beluga caviar bumped it back up a little. My companion
couldn't resist the Breaded frogs' legs, accompanied by garlic escargots,
which were all pronounced very good.
There is a whole section of the menu devoted to foie gras, which caught my eye. Wild mushroom risotto with pan-fried foie gras and sauteed langoustines sounds delicious! In the end though, I ordered Red emperor snapper - pan fried, and served on saffron risotto with tomato basil butter. The fish was a fairly small portion, but soft and flavourful, the risotto a delicate counterpart. We shared the other (large) main course - Lamb rack, served with eggplant stew, chorizo and rosemary jus.
It was lucky we did share, because when it came to the dessert menu, we spent so long picking out our two items that the waiter felt sorry for us and brought our third choice out anyway! It looks like the chef has really been let loose on this part of the menu.
First up came White sesame panna cotta, with black sesame ice-cream, and vanilla sabayon - I can't resist sesame or vanilla and this really was delicious. Next, my companion had to order the Whisky souffle, with crispy filo pastry surround, served with caramel sauce and vanilla ice-cream. I suspect he was hoping for a more alcoholic taste, but the whisky flavour was one that lingered on the tongue, rather than being overpowering. The third dessert - Apple strudel with prune and armagnac compote - sounded tame, until we noticed the 'caramel balsamic ice-cream' accompaniment. This ice cream really is special, it was a new flavour to me. Imagine the toffee on a toffee apple but not too sweet, make it smooth and creamy and cold and you're almost there. But the best way, of course, is to go along and try it. I'm sure you wont be disappointed.
9pm and, replete at last, we said goodbye to our friendly waiters, but promised to return for at least the foie gras, and perhaps we could squeeze in time for the other desserts too.
Bill approximately $900 for two plus wine.
Fourth Floor, Harvey Nichols
The Landmark,
15 Queen's Road Central
Tel 3695 3389
Frites
Frites
has been open a couple of months now, so when a friend suggested
we meet there for lunch, I jumped at the chance - a restaurant named
after chips! (thats fries to you Americans.)
The entrance is just up a few steps of Pottinger Street, from Queen’s Road Central, up a flight of stairs and you come out into a large bright room, with high ceiling, black and white checked tiles on the floor, and heavy dark wood furnishings, with banquette seating in dark green leather. The seating is generously spaced, so that even if you do share a table as we did, you never feel crowded.
At 12.45 there were only a few tables taken, but I noted that every one had a reserved sign on it. It later filled up, with a large proportion of European customers.
As expected from a Belgian place, the first large menu I was handed was mainly for beer, all offerings from the homeland, and ranging from $45 up. I’m not a huge fan of beer at lunchtime, so from the small wine selection, I ordered a New Zealand Rose, which was light and refreshing.
There is a set lunch of three courses for $98, from which I chose the pork and duck terrine to start, followed by linguini with mussels (how could I resist) in white wine sauce. My companion chose from the regular lunch menu, which was printed on paper placemats at every seat. Schnitzel and frites ($160) seemed appropriate.
There are a variety of other hearty items, including a ‘half-meter sausage’ with mash, which we noticed rolled up on a neighbor’s plate. There is also a selection of 6 different ‘mussel pots’ in half ($165) or full-kilo ($295) size.
The schnitzel arrived spreading across half the plate, and was tasty, but we were disappointed with the chips. If you’re going to name your restaurant after them, they really ought to be something special, and these were pretty standard fare.
The terrine was delicious, and came with a fresh berry compote. The linguine was quite small, but well prepared, the wine sauce a perfectly simple foil for the fresh juicy mussels. Overall, the lunch deal was a good one, with higher quality ingredients than many lunch ‘specials’. I noticed they also have an ‘Express dinner’ deal between 5-7pm - one course with house beer, or wine for $118, which I am sure I will go for in the near future.
I must admit, it is a very homey and comfortable place, which encourages you to hang around just a bit longer... and maybe you really ought to try one of those beers... It was certainly very difficult to think about getting back to work.
Frog Face Fish
It's
an odd name for a restaurant but it does it's job. From the moment
I heard of it I was intrigued and knew that it wouldn't be long
before I was tucking my knees under one of their tables. They'd
only been open a week and I wasn't even sure what cuisine to expect.
Frog Face Fish specialises in seafood dishes. Predominantly European but with a few ideas borrowed from elsewhere such as the cajun blackened red snapper ($205) or a thai-inspired red curry & coconut broth that is served with the fresh mussels.
It is a very modern restaurant, cool jazz vibes were playing in the background. It was still quite early so I had the place, mostly, to myself.
I ordered a glass of Chilean Sauvignon Blanc and picked up the menu. There is the regular a la carte menu plus a sheet of daily specials which varies from day to day depending on what the chef finds in the market.
I
must say most of the menu looked very tempting, the absinthe flamed
seafood broth and the sole with grilled banana and almonds both
had me licking my lips.
But I couldn't resist the roasted red pepper and crab risotto ($105). This is served with a dollop of tangy and spicy, semi-freddo (part frozen) avocado on top. This melts into the rice and the overall effect is truly delicious.
For the main I chose an item from the daily specials; porcine dusted roasted black cod on truffle oil mash ($245). Again I had no complaints. The cod was delicious and flakey and the dish lived up to its promise admirably.
By now the restaurant had filled up a bit though late arrivals would still find a table.
After a respectable pause I turned my attention to the dessert menu. I firmly believe that a meal isn't complete without dessert but it seems to be an area where a many restaurants take the easy way out. Not at Frog Face Fish. Here there were several desserts that I would have liked to try but in the end I settled on home made bread pudding with ice cream.
This really was a luxurious bread pudding; made with apricots and steeped in counter served with a wonderful chocolate and orange flavour ice cream and garnished with mandarin oranges. Together with coffee it rounded off an excellent meal.
G/F 43-55 Wyndham St,
Central,
Hong Kong
Tel 2869 8535
Funky Fish
Funky
Fish is a Japanese restaurant at the top of the Langham Place mall in
Mongkok. I don't often go to Japanese restaurants, I tend to indulge my
sushi craving at lunchtimes so they tend to get overlooked when it comes
to dinner.
I don't often go to Mongkok either, under normal circumstances the mere suggestion would be enough to fill me with horror but then someone said "There's restaurants up there you know..."
Well I didn't know. I'd sort of suspected there must be but I was using lack of evidence as an excuse not to go and look. So when that someone threw down the gauntlet like that there was only one thing for it.
So there I was one rung from the top and getting hungry. I had been to the top and there are restaurants there but I made the mistake of peering over the edge into the abyss of shops below. I beat a hasty retreat, down a floor and ducked into Funky Fish.
The vertigo was just beginning to subside but the waitress led me to a table that offered just an inch thickness of glass between my back and a fall of ... I concentrated hard on the menu. The sushi and sashimi was tempting but I wanted to try something a bit different this time. The waitress was very helpful and patiently answered all my questions.
My first question had about what was included in the Chef's Selection Appetizer Box ($98). She explained that it contains nine different dishes some of which are on the regular menu but others that vary slightly from day to day depending on what chef finds in the market. It's quite big and is usually shared.
I was hungry so I ordered one anyway and to go with it a bottle of Asahi beer to go with it. All of the dishes in the box were tasty but the ones that stood out for me were the octopus in shiso wasabi sauce, braised whelks and one of the two squid dishes. I'm afraid I don't know what the sauce was the waitress couldn't remember the English name (and I forgot the Chinese name) but I can tell you it was very good indeed.
It's a popular restaurant. I'd arrived about 7.30 and was one of the first customers but by eight it was doing a brisk trade.
You don't have to have fish, the menu includes beef teppenyaki as well as lamb, pork and chicken options. But I love fish and while the grilled yellowtail and the salmon belly were both tempting I went for the herb grilled sea bass with fried bean curd sheet.
The fish was firm and fresh and quite a generous size. Nevertheless I did find myself wondering if I should order a noodle dish to finish off. But then some noodles were delivered to the people sitting nearby and I came to the realisation that it would indeed be too much.
Instead I ordered a dessert of sesame mousse ($38). There were also numerous green tea options on the dessert menu including ice cream and whilst I don't mind it I find it hard to get all that enthusiastic about it. Sesame in the other hand is a wonderful dessert flavour. My mouse, sweet but not too sugary, was served in coconut milk was delicious but could perhaps have benefited from being just a little more chilled than it was.
I paid my bill and got up from the table trying desperately not to look down.
There a lot more in Langham Place and I shall be back to explore in a little more depth before long.
June 2005
Gaia Ristorante
It
was a balmy evening, I couldn't feel the breeze but there must have been
one because the leaves on the tree above were moving. Behind me the sound
of a fountain splashing and from somewhere else a clock chimed seven.
A waiter glided over with a bread basket and menu, another one lit the
candle on my table.
I love the twilight, the light has finished but the dark has not yet begun I was wallowing in the atmosphere. Another waiter approached carrying bottles. I was wallowing and not paying attention.
"I'll have a look at the menu before I decide on wine', I said. "No, no", he replied, "would you like olive oil for the bread?" I sat up and looked at the bottles. They didn't look anything like wine bottles really but, as I said, I wasn't paying attention. "Oh, yes please," I said, "and some balsamic vinegar".
I dunked a large corner of focaccia bread into the oil and watched as a young couple stopped briefly on the steps for a little hug. Italy does that, it brings out the romantic in you, and whilst this certainly wasn't Italy it was about as close as you can get to it on the MTR.
I
turned my attention to the menu. It was varied and interesting and as
usual in such circumstances the temptation to over order is great. Sea
scallop stuffed ravioli ($188), and sangiovese marinated rabbit stew with
home-made pasta ($178) were both intriguing but I'd ruled out pasta. Folded
pizza with melted soft crescenza cheese and parma ham ($148) also sounded
intriguing but I'd ruled out pizza as well. Pasta and Pizza are best shared
but, despite the romantic setting, there was only me.
I did fancy some parma ham though so I ordered some with a basil leaf salad and buffalo mozzarella cheese ($138). As one waiter left with my order another one arrived carrying a small dish, "mushroom risotto" he explained as he put it down. It was about the size of a five dollar coin but it set off a little explosion of flavour that left me feeling very hungry indeed and thinking that perhaps I should have ordered a pizza after all.
I ordered a glass of glass of Pinot Grigio and dived back into the bread basket in search of something to mop up more olive oil. There starter I'd ordered was one of the simpler dishes on the menu, nevertheless it was very satisfying. I wolfed it down in no time and was very tempted to continue my assault on the bread basket but I didn't want to spoil my appetite before the main course arrived.
There was, of course, much to choose from on the menu. Pistachio crusted lamb chops with mint infused olive oil ($268) caught my eye as did the Australian black Angus beef with myrtle and raisin. But it was the seared tuna with black pepper on an eggplant puree topped with candied onions and citrus ($258) that won my heart. It was delicious, the tune was very fresh and tender and the portion was generous.
I
tried to take it slowly, to savour every mouth full but all to soon, it
seemed, I was staring at an empty plate. Though I have to confess I was
glad that I hadn't ordered the pizza. The clock chimed eight, I decided
to wait a few minutes before ordering dessert.
At this point the waiter produced another delightful surprise. Grapes that had been marinated in grappa for seven days, and served in a glass of grappa. It was a wonderful touch but I wanted to save them for last.
For dessert I ordered caramelized apple and puff pastry with honey grappa sauce and vanilla ice cream followed by coffee. The dessert was very nice but it was the grapes that took the curtain call.
2004
Giardino Italian Restaurant
Yes, yes I know it sounds a bit like a clothes shop but it's actually not a bad little Italian place on Minden Avenue, around the back of Chungking Mansions. There's quite a few trendy little cocktail bars down there as well.
Both of these discoveries surprised me. The last time I had been around the back of Chungking Mansions was a very long time ago indeed. Old hands may remember there was a pub called the Blacksmiths Arms around there somewhere but pretty well nothing else.
I'd been up on Granville Road and was trying to find my way back to Star Ferry through those little back-streets that all look the same. Everytime I go up that way I do the same thing, and everytime I get lost. Still It's usually a good excuse to stop somewhere and cool off. Last time I accidentally found Fatts Place (I had tried to find it once before but failed). This time I stumbled upon Giardino.
It was a little before seven in the evening, the place seemed reasonably quiet and the staff all had friendly smiles so I went in.
It's on a corner but the interior is a rather peculiar 'V' shaped affair, with one side of the restaurant not being able to see the other. The interior designers handled their task well and turned an odd shape into a cosy little restaurant just perfect for a romantic tryst. Which is just what the only other customers appeared to be enjoying.
I tried to flutter my eyes at the waitress but she merely thought I was ready to order. I asked for a glass of Pinot Grigio and a plate of Grilled Garden Vegetables ($68) and hid behind the menu while I made up my mind what to have for main course.
For an Italian restaurant I thought the bread basket was a little bit spartan, usually Italian restaurants have better bread than most. This one offered only a couple of bread sticks and a single piece of herb bread. I hoped it wasn't a sign of things to come.
The vegetables were pleasant enough though. They consisted of slices of red and yellow peppers, aubergine (eggplant), and zucchini. Grilled and very lightly salted.
For main course I ordered the grilled swordfish with tomato salsa and a pesto cream sauce ($168). Swordfish is quite dense but flakey. It's also moist and a little sweet. It was served with some more grilled vegetables on a bed of creamed potatoes and worked well with the pesto sauce.
There were only four desserts on the menu, all of them quite predictable. I opted for the Strawberry Napoleon ($60). This is essentially layers of strawberries and cream. I've never been very complimentary about the quality of strawberries found in Hong Kong but all credit to the chef who had obviously gone to great lengths to find some decent ones.
Giardino may not be the best Italian restaurant in Hong Kong but it is perfectly acceptable at it's price point. And it is a very cosy little hideaway.
Giardino G/F Minden Avenue,
Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel. 2312 7398
Gingko House
Gingko House is run by a social welfare group called Everbright Concerned Action and is staffed by entirely by retirement-aged workers. The idea behind it is to help alleviate the financial problems and loneliness encountered by the elderly.
It was a chilly evening when I arrived but the warm smiles of the staff made me feel instantly welcome. I was promptly shown to a table and given a menu.
The decor is simple but attractive. The tables are well laid out and the staff wear black black waistcoats and bow ties. Tony Bennett crooning in the background complete an atmosphere of old fashioned charm.
The menu is predominantly French and Italian and offers some very tempting dishes such as Fried Herbs Sole Fillet with Truffle Cream Sauce or Pan-fried Silver Cod Fillet with Mango & Angel Hair pasta.
I ordered a glass of house red and an artichoke and avocado salad ($58). It was a generous salad, fresh and crisp, and could easily have been shared between two.
To follow I went for the roast rack of lamb ($208) which was served on a bed of mashed roast chestnut.
The Gingko dessert, as named on the menu, turned out to be a soufflé. Again it is a very generous portion and could easily shared between two people. I did the best I could and it wasn't long before I was looking at an empty plate. I finished off with a coffee.
It was a fine meal delivered by an enthusiastic staff who clearly enjoy their job. In 2007 Gingko House won the top award in a scheme organised by HSBC to recognise corporate commitment to social responsibility.
Gingko House
44 Gough Street
Central
Tel. 2545 1200
Golden China Restaurant
A street lined with window-displays of grilled ducks, geese, pork and orange-tinted octopuses is a common sight in Hong Kong. For generations, local families have relied on their neighbourhood "Siu Mei" shop which stays open for ridiculously long hours and has a constant supply of takeaway protein.
Yet for all that, it is surprisingly hard to get decent "Siu Mei" in this town.
To qualify as a good piece of "Cha Siu", or barbecued pork, it has to be well marinated, juicy, has the right proportion of fat to lean meat, preferably charcoal-grilled, and just a touch burnt to add that extra smoky aroma.
And believe me, that is very hard to find.
There are well-established Chinese restaurants that are pretty reliable for their barbecued meat as well as other more elaborate dishes on the menu. In Central, there are Tsui Hang Village in New World Building, Yung Kee (the goose restaurant) on Wellington Street and Luk Yue Tea House on Stanley Street. But if you want a meat specialist, there is a new place which I am beginning to frequent regularly.
Golden China Restaurant looks just like its name. Faux China-town appears to be the style they are going for. But once you've looked past the gaudy lanterns and fake red and gold lacquer, it is a pretty comfortable place to sit down for lunch.
It may not resemble the traditional Hong Kong "Siu Mei" shop - it's too clean - but the food is authentic enough.
You will be presented with bilingual pamphlets which explain the history of the Chinese barbecued meat and for HK$23 you get a choice of meat with a bowl of rice and some greens. It's a little bit pricey but perhaps not unreasonable for the middle of Central. The soup of the day - untainted by the all-too ubiquitous MSG - costs just HK$6 and there's a lot of it. That, too, comes with bilingual information on why it's good for you. The tea they serve is very good for what is essentially a cafe. They've picked the Luk On tea sold by Ying Kee in Wanchai. This is a smoky red tea with a hint of sweetness that is popular among my grand parents' generation. I like it, too.
The meat has been very good in the four or five times that I've eaten there in the past two months. The soup tends to be a bit watery - probably because my taste buds have been tainted by MSG - but good enough to pass as homemade. It's the rice that I have an issue with - on a couple of occasions my "Cha Siu" and barbecued duck were served on top of soggy rice. It was horrible. It's like being served a good steak with lumpy mashed potatoes.
But overall I would highly recommend Golden China. And Chinese barbecued meat if you haven't tried it before.
Golden China Restaurant
9 Jubilee Street
Central
Hong Kong
Tel: 25451472.
GOD - Home Cooking
Given my aversion to shopping this is the kind of place that I could
easily miss. Indeed had missed until I was asked if I'd eaten there
and what I thought of it.
The restaurant is tucked away on the second floor of the Goods Of Desire shop overlooking Leighton Road in Causeway Bay. It's not a fancy place, it's exactly the kind of place you might want after a hectic afternoon shopping.
The decor is simple but functional some of the tables have nice sofas on which to lounge and the red Chinese lanterns that hang from the ceiling are a pleasing touch.
It is quite busy though there are still unoccupied tables. Most of the other guests appeared to be young couples taking a break from the melee in the shops and one group of office girls who seem to be celebrating something.
The menu offers an intriguing selection of international dishes. The starters alone tempted me with satays, Vietnamese style spring rolls, deep fried camembert with cranberry sauce. I was torn between potato skins ($28) and some thing called 'Slim+Fit' which consisted of sauteed spinach and garlic.
Good sense told me I should go for the healthy option but right at the last moment indulgence prevailed. I knew I was going to enjoy the potato skins. Indeed potato skins a pretty hard to hurt. All you need is a dollop melted cheese, some sour cream to dip them in and a sprinkle each of bacon bits and chives. And for the price I thought they were excellent value for money too.
The menu also offers a wide range of shakes, smoothies and other drinks. I ordered a banana strawberry shake ($38).
For main course had a dish called 'In bed with Pumpkin' ($88). This included a salmon steak served with home made pumpkin mash vegetables and dill sauce.
I was pleased with the choice, it had been a tough call between that and the fish and chips with beer batter. For people who might want something lighter Home Cooking also serves Vietnamese, Malaysian and Japanese noodle dishes.
For dessert I opted for the ginger pudding with ginger Ice cream ($48) and rounded off with a coffee.
This is a neat little eatery, decent food and reasonably priced. And you can do all your shopping on the way out!
2/F Leighton Centre,
77 Leighton Road
,
Causway Bay
Tel 2881 8196
Golden Myanmar Burmese Restaurant
This is a small restaurant on Jaffe Road. It is along that stretch that is not quite Causeway Bay but not far enough along to be Wanchai, between Canal Road and Marsh Road. It is one of those little corners of town that I have no need to go to so I never noticed it before.
Needless to say that, having discovered it, II couldn't walk past without having something to eat. Conveniently it was dinner time, or very nearly, and since I've never been opposed to an early dinner I went inside.
There are probably only enough tables to seat 16-20 people. The decor is simple but comfortable and there was a TV playing Burmese karaoke videos but not so loud that it was intrusive.
It is run by a husband and wife team and it was the wife who welcomed me in, took my order and explained some of the dishes to me.
There are numerous dishes which are familiar all over the region such as noodles and spring rolls but there are others which capture the imagination and just have to be tried.
Pickled tea leaf salad ($45) was one. This is a very popular dish all over Burma I was told. The tea leaves, which were imported from Burma, have to be picked very young otherwise they become too bitter. They are served with sesame seeds and roasted beans that add a pleasing, crunchy contrast to the leaves. The dish was mildly spicey but I'm sure that this could be increased or decreased upon request
The dish was delivered by the husband of the team who told me that this dish would typically be served as a snack when friends came round for a beer. I had been thinking a beer would be a perfect accompaniment and took the prompt to order a Heineken.
For the main dish I had ordered a pork and mango pickle curry ($48). I was keen to know if it would lean more towards a Thai style curry or an Indian style. When asked how spicy I would like it I opted for medium.
The curry did lean slightly more towards the Indian style retained plenty of character of it's own. It was both tangy and sweet and the spiciness was just right. To go with it I also ordered deep fried calabash ($35), or summer squash. This was reminiscent of a pakora though not heavily spiced allowing the refreshing flavour of the squash to come through.
To finish I ordered Burmese style banana pudding. This was very tasty but just a tad dry and I couldn't help thinking that a drizzle of coconut cream would have done it proud.
Golden Myanmar
G/F Shop 8 Dandenong Mansion
379-389 Jaffe Road
Wanchai
Tel 2838 9305
Good Luck Thai
There are a number of restaurants around town that over the years have become so familiar that I tend to forget about them. Or at least forget to talk about them. Good Luck Thai is one in particular. I've lost count of the number of times I have eaten here, whether it be lunch or after an evening in the Fong it's a restaurant that rarely disappoints.
They must be doing something right or I wouldn't keep going back so I decided it is time to put something into words.
The restaurant is in Wing Wah Lane which, for those that are unfamiliar with the area, is a sort of appendix to Lan Kwai Fong. It's a rowdy little alleyway, packed with interesting eateries. At the entrance to the lane jovial touts try to encourage you to dine at their place. Good Luck Thai is on the left just around the corner
Like the alleyway itself it is often rowdy, particularly at night time. I decided to go along early to beat the crowds but even at 6.30 there were a number of people already there. There is seating inside and out, I took a table just on the inside, ordered a beer and settled down.
The decor is basic and functional and a brief glance at the menu tells you that the emphasis here is on value for money. Yum Talay ($75) is one of the more expensive items on the menu. I decided it would make a nice starter.
Yum Talay is a spicy seafood salad dressed in fresh lime juice. The menu does offer more other, more familiar, starters such as fish or prawn cakes and spring rolls and if you are in a group then a selection of these would be a good choice. The yum talay would be considered a main dish but one that I guessed, incorrectly, would be quite light.
The seafood consisted mostly of squid, prawns and mussels. It was a generous serving and came garnished with a full compliment of chilies. If you prefer a milder version be sure to let your waitress know when you order.
There is a Malaysian restaurant just across the alleyway that is owned by the same company and because of it's proximity Good luck Thai is able to offer the option of Indian bread with your curry. Being a great lover of nan bread I ordered two ($20 each) to go with a green pork curry ($48).
I've had the green curries here before, they are particularly rich and creamy and come in portions that could easily be shared amongst a group of four. The pork was lean and tender and the nan and the curry sauce seemed almost as if they were made for each other.
During the course of the meal the evening staff started their shift but although the number of customers had grown it was still early and they filled in the time chattering and catching up on the days gossip. The waitress was still chattering away when she came to collect my plates and, forgetting to switch back to english, asked me in Thai if I enjoyed my meal. I replied in Thai (it is one of the few things I can say) which earned me a big smile.
I ordered Tak Goh ($20) for dessert. These are little cakes of sago and corn topped with a thick layer of coconut cream and wrapped in banana leaf trays.
As I left more and more people were flowing into the lane looking for good and inexpensive places to eat. It wouldn't be long before Good Luck Thai and all the other restaurants would be doing brisk business. I wandered off into the fong in search of another beer.
Graze
This
is a brand new cafe that has just opened at the western end Bonham
Strand. I used to live near here many years ago and would have been
grateful for a place like this.
It follows a familiar format, they offer coffee, tea, smoothies or shakes. There is a range of sandwiches and other types of hot and cold snacks available. And there are, of course, cakes and pastries.
I hadn't really been planning to go there but I was passing and there it was, so I decided to pop in and take a look. They'd only been open four days but they seemed to be well organised already. The staff were cheerful and friendly.
The decor is pleasant. Pastel green and comfortable seats make you feel relaxed but there isn't a printed menu. I had to get up again and read the board by the door. I can understand the the sandwiches and pastries may well vary from day to day but a printed drinks list would have been helpful. I was hot and gasping.
I ordered a smoothie called a daydreamer, and I went for a large one ($32) since the large was only a couple of dollars more than the regular. The daydreamer is mostly berries, with raspberry and blueberry being the dominant. It was deliciously sharp and tangy. I like that.
To eat I ordered a slice of bacon, onion and tomato quiche ($25) and a peppered ham sandwich ($38). The quiche was a pleasant surprise. I've been to so many places where the quiche is dry and lifeless, but this was moist and tasty with a generous amount of cheese mixed in.
It's difficult to hurt sandwiches but one sure fire way of doing so is to slop massive amounts of 'mayo' onto them. I'm happy to report the good folks at Graze resisted the temptation. Although if you are partial to lots of mayo I'm sure they would oblige and slather some more on.
I'd cooled down a little now and moved towards the door to surf the internet on one of the two funky iMacs there. That meant the pastries were right behind me and despite being a little full already I could hear a slice of apple crumble singing to me ($25). I was also intrigued to find out what iced green tea with vanilla would be like.
Both were good. The crumble would have benefited with the addition of some cream or custard. The tea did need to be sweetened and there is a choice of honey or syrup. The correct amount will vary from person to person. I think it may take me a bit of practice to get just right.
Graze
142 Bonham Strand
Sheung Wan
Hong Kong
Tel 2850 7766
Green
Green is a funky little Thai restaurant in the Sanlitum Causeway Centre. That's on the walkway opposite the Sun Hung Kai Centre in Wanchai. There is an abundance of foliage outside underlining the restaurants name and if that doesn't get the message across the green neon glow radiating from the bar most certainly will.
The owners have managed to achieve quite a lot with the
space available. A lounge area, basks in the green neon beside the bar
and is separated from the main dining area by another two trees. The furnishings
are simple but stylish. The overall effect is pleasing, very modern but
also very Asian.
There are no major surprises on the menu and all the classic Thai favourites are there - Tom Yam Gung, those delicious fish-cakes and the spicy sour salads - and they are done well. The menu also the infamous som tam (green papaya salad) but it's only for those that like it hot.
They have an impressive range of set dinner options (and lunch for that matter) but in the end we decided to go a la carte. I never really think in terms of appetisers or main courses when eating Thai, usually I just order a range of dishes and see which comes first. But before we could do that we had to first make a short list and then whittle it down.
The frogs legs with lemon grass ($68) and the seafood pomelo salad ($85) were both very tempting but alas they had to be postponed for another time.
What we couldn't possibly go without though was the soft-shelled crab with chilli and basil ($88). To go with it we also ordered the Thai style charcoal grilled pork neck ($68) and a classic green chicken curry ($88).
The crab was the first to arrive. It has a delicate flavour and is best while it is still crisp and hot so we dug in with gusto. My guest thought it was just about the right level of spiciness but I added jus a little extra chilli. We were soon distracted by the arrival of the pork.
The slices of pork come with their own, deliciously spicy, dipping sauce. The meat itself isn't spicy, just dip as much or as little as you want.
Lastly came the green chicken curry. For me this is as quintessentially Thai as tom yam gung. Sometimes I think that all Thai children are taught to make this dish at school. I've eaten it so many times and in so many different circumstances from home cooking in rural Thailand to the swankiest restaurants but I've rarely had a bad one. This I'm happy to say conformed to the trend, lean tasty chicken, crisp eggplant and the almost intoxicating fragrance of hora pa, or Thai basil.
The restaurant was starting to fill up now but we had just enough room to share a dessert. Mango sushi is a slightly different take and the mango and sticky rice combination. The black and the white sticky rice are rolled together with the black on the inside and then sliced sushi style the mango is then layered on top and coconut cream and a sprinkle of peanuts added. An elegant finish to a delicious meal.
Green Cottage Vietnamese Restaurant
The waiter was very keen to point out that the chicken wings are very
good, famous even. The menu read Fried chicken wing with butter (4 pieces)
$32. Normally I would give such a standard dish a miss but I could see
he was going to be disappointed if I did so I agreed.
But there was nothing particularly standard about these wings. The 'butter' is, in fact, a misspelling. The wings are fried in a very light, tempura like batter and served with limes and salt. It turned something quite ordinary into something a little bit special. I was impressed
It seems I wasn't the only one, it was only seven o'clock but the already the restaurant was doing a roaring trade, baskets of chicken wings very much in evidence as an army of waiters and waitresses tend the tables. I turned my attention back to the menu.
There's a lot to choose from - hot noodles, cold noodles, curries, satay, a wide assortment of rice dishes. There was roasted shrimp roll on sugar cane, soft shell crab ... I looked at the waiter, I knew he was keen to help.
"I'd like noodles," I said, "what is good?".
"Beef" he said without hesitation. He explained that the beef was very lean and tasty. I'd been considering the Shredded Fish Noodle Soup of Cholon ($27), he said that was also good but was still convinced that I would like the beef noodle soup better. I ordered a small bowl ($25).
He was about to head off to the kitchen but stopped when he realised I was still looking at the menu. He looked at me inquisitively but this time I decided to go it alone. I was wrestling with one of my favourite dilemmas. Was it going to be the soft shelled crabs ($25-40 each depending on size) or should I go for the Baked big prawn with cheese ($85). To keep him busy while I vacillated I ordered some shrimp, pork and salad cold spring rolls ($25 for two).
The baked prawns won the day and the waiter made a bolt for the kitchen still writing the order down as he went. I could understand his hurry, the restaurant by now was packed. The noodles weren't long in arriving. "You're very busy tonight" I remarked to the waitress as she put them down. "Same every night" she smiled and hurried off to fulfil another order.
Green Cottage (the walls outside are actually painted yellow) was one of the first Vietnamese restaurants in Hong Kong. Opening it's doors for business way back in the 1970s. The interior is pleasantly simple, with framed photos of Vietnam on the walls. It has built what appears to be a formidable reputation for serving authentic Vietnamese food at great prices.
The beef noodles bore this out. The beef was lean and tasty as promised, sliced thinly and cooked in the piping hot broth. The 'small' bowl was quite a bit bigger than I had been expecting.
The spring rolls were firm and fresh and were delivered with a dipping sauce that was sweet, spicy and sour all at the same time.
The usual range of soft drinks and beers are available but they also offer a small selection of French beers and a range of tropical fruit punches. I had opted for palm seeds in coconut milk ($19).
There was a little bit of a wait for the prawn but not a long one - turnaround here is fast. It arrived sliced down the middle and with a generous layer of grated parmesan cheese melted and blistering on the top. It was delicious. The cheese was a sharp contrast but it didn't overwhelm the more delicate flavour of the prawn which was firm and succulent.
I rounded the meal off with Black glutinous rice with coconut cream ($16). It was pleasant but desserts were not the restaurants strong point. I decided to head elsewhere for coffee. When I left people were queuing up outside. Good food, great prices - always a powerful combination.
September 2005
Gunga Din
Gunga Din is probably one of the longest surviving restaurants along Wyndham Street. "Twenty years and counting" quipped Gunga, the original owner and manager, when my companion asked. My guest had been a regular at Gunga's when he worked in the area some years ago. And Gunga still recognised him!
After all the "long time no see" greetings were out the way we ordered a couple of beers which arrived promptly along with fresh poppadoms. We settled down with the menu.
The restaurant had undergone a few changes since the last time either of us were there but I'm happy to report the food was as good as ever.
The Onion Pakora ($32) and Chicken Samosas ($35) that we ordered for starters went down well.
To follow we ordered Chicken Jalfrezi ($88). This is a dry spicy curry that is popular in both India and Pakistan and is made with green peppers and coarsely chopped onions.
We also ordered a Fish Tikka Masala ($115), which I hadn't had before and most impressed with. Large chunks of fish tikka in a rich masala sauce for me this was the highlight of the meal.
For vegetables we ordered a classic Aloo Sag ($60), a potato and spinach curry which I frequently enjoyed for lunch many years ago. We mopped it all up with nan bread and washed it down with more beer before rounding off with the inevitable gulab jamun.
"Don't leave it so long before you next visit", said Gunga as we paid our bill and left. Somehow I don't think we will.
January 2007
Gunga Din
Lower G/F
57-59 Wyndham Street
Central
Hong Kong
Tel 2523 1439
Habibi
I'd been meaning to go along to Habibi
for quite some time so when a good friend of mine returned from a holiday
in Egypt it provided just the memory jolt I needed.
We arrived at seven-thirty. There were a few other diners but it was not too crowded at that time. The decor caught our attention immediately. Tall arches, a large bevelled mirror along one wall and ceiling fans and light fittings shipped in from Egypt combine to create a feeling of 1930s Cairo. But it is very tasteful and not at all overstated.
The menu does offer set dinner optionst but we decided on a la carte for maximum flexibility. It all looked delicious and would have been happy to try any of it. In the end we decided to start with one cold mezze, Babaganough which is roasted eggplant with tahina and lemon juice ($50) and two hot mezze; Halloumi, which is goat cheese lightly fried in olive oil and served on a bed of fresh greens ($65) and Dawud Basha, Egyptian style meatballs a in dill flavored tomato sauce ($55).
For drinks my guest ordered a refreshing lemonade with rose-water ($30) and I had a Sakara Egyptian beer ($48)
Babaganough is a time honoured classic dip, ours was wonderfully fresh and slightly smoky. The halloumi was also very tasty, I enjoyed the slightly chewy, almost squeaky, texture but my friend was less enthusiastic. She did agree though, that it tasted good. The secret of the dawud basha is in the aromatic sauce where the tomato and the dill were perfectly balanced, "... even better than the ones we had in Egypt", enthused my friend.
For
main course we selected the Mashwiaat ($200) which is an Egyptian style
mixed grill. It consists of chicken, marinated lamb chop, beef kebab,
lamb kofta served on skewers with rice kaalta. For vegetables we went
with Kidar Bel Firik ($120), grilled vegetables served on a bed of seasoned
wheat berry pilaf. Both lived up to expectation, the meats were succulent
and tender, the vegetables fresh and crisp.
Middle eastern desserts are notoriously sweet and whilst they are very nice, I usually can't eat too much. I suggested that we should share the Hellue Al Sham ($45), an assorted plate of mixed Egyptian homemade sweets. My friend insisted that, while she was willing to play a supporting role, I was going to eat most of it.
In the end I think I did rather well getting through more than my fair share of a plate that included both Balawa Bil Ishta (phyllo with fresh cream and mixed nuts) and the ever popular baklava.
My friend finished with fresh mint tea and I a hot and strong Egyptian coffee.
Habibi also has a special room called the cabin where guests can smoke traditional shisha pipes. The tobacco is mixed with apple to give a unique fruity flavour but since neither of us smoke we missed out on that.
On Saturdays they hold belly dance performances at 8.30 and 9.30. Reservations are strongly recommended.
April 2006
Habitu
Habitu,
located on level three of Lee Gardens Two in Causeway Bay is a modern,
stylish restaurant specialising in the cuisines of southern Italy. For
a comparatively large establishment it does an admirable job of being
cosy and intimate.
This has been achieved by splitting up the area into sections and the thoughtful use of some home-style furnishing. A table with plants, a bookshelf, plasma TV and even a fire place separate the sections up and give each part of the restaurant a different feel. There are four main sections; the main dining area, a VIP room, The Sun Room and The Garden Terrace on the rooftop for al fresco dining amid the skyscrapers of Causeway Bay. The main dining area includes The Hudson Bar and the Chefs Table where diners can watch as the kitchen staff go about their culinary art. We took a table in the main dining area and studied the menu.
The first item we ordered was Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Whipped cream and Sea Urchin ($80). This was huge bowl of wonderfully rich and creamy soup, others may accuse it of being a little too rich or perhaps a tad too sweet coming so early in the meal. I had no such problem but I should say it is not a starter for those with smaller appetites. The sea urchin provided a pleasing taste of the ocean that contrasted well with the earthy flavour of the pumpkin
We had been very tempted by the pan-seared Goose liver with wild fungi in port wine and caramelised apple but felt that may be just a little too rich after the soup. Instead we took our time over some coppa ham and veal prosciutto with poached pear and cantaloupe melon ($110) while the kitchen prepared the pasta course.
This
gave me a moment to peruse the wine menu. I'd settled for a glass of house
Chardonnay but the wine list is impressive and deserves a mention. There
are about a hundred wines to choose from, mostly Italian and French but
Australia, New Zealand and Chile are also well represented. All budgets
are accommodated with about twenty choices coming it at $350 or under.
Top of the class is a 1985 Chateau Lafite Rothschild which can be enjoyed
for a princely $4,200 a bottle.
The pasta course was a seafood extravaganza. Black ink spaghetti with clams, mussels, prawns, cuttle fish, scallops and fish fillet in a creamy sea urchin sauce ($180). The black "ink" in the spaghetti is actually squid ink which gives the spaghetti a unique texture and flavour which, along with the sea urchin sauce, complements the seafood perfectly. And it was indeed worth complementing, fresh and tasty and it didn't embarrass me once. I'm quite shy about eating shellfish, especially mussels. It's a tricky business prizing them away from the shell. One lapse of concentration, the cutlery slips and the mussel becomes missile and takes flight across the restaurant. The only recourse is to duck behind a wine menu and hope nobody noticed.
By now I'm sure I must have been wearing a look of well fed contentment and smiling upon the world in general but there was still more to come. The final entree, Roast rack of lamb ($250) was delightful. Four tender and juicy ribs arranged in a pyramid over truffle mashed potatoes. The black olive and sun-dried tomato sauce complemented the meat perfectly.
For dessert I was torn between raspberry napoleon with basil sorbet and fresh cream ($65) and baked Alaska with winter chestnut sauce ($80) so I took the easy way out ... Both of them were deliciously naughty, the winter chestnuts are a perfect accompaniment to this classic dessert. But for me the Napoleon won by a hair, or rather by a raspberry. Admittedly the baked Alaska was decorated with raspberries but the napoleon had lots of them. Raspberries are not very common in Hong Kong and I'd forgotten just how much I enjoyed them.
15 June 2004
Hakka Ye Ye
I got into a bit of
a mess. I like to think my chopstick technique is pretty good but peeling
prawns just isn't possible so it was fingers to the fore.
These particular prawns were cooked in Hakka rice wine and served on a bed of steamed cucumber so they were particularly messy. But they were also really delicious and I wasn't about to let decorum, or the threat of a stained shirt, put me off.
Hakka Ye Ye, as the name suggests, serves traditional Hakka cuisine but the restaurant itself is prim and modern. Only a few tastefully framed photographs on the wall hint of the past. It's quite a small place and the lack of more elaborate decor allows it to seem more spacious.
The staff were friendly and efficient, tofu nibbles and tea were served the moment I sat down. They were also more than happy to explain the dishes. For a starter I'd had the the Ye Ye crispy pork nuggets ($42).
These were dumplings
of minced pork mixed with dried squid and fried in a bean curd wrapper.
Hakka Ye Ye does have a small wine list but the glass of Tsing Tao that
I had was probably a much better accompaniment.
The main event were the prawns ($138) though drunken chicken had also been a contender. For vegetable I ordered stir fried mixed mushrooms with snow peas ($88) and white and red mixed rice.
All the dishes were generous servings, designed for sharing, so by the end of it I was really quite full. I had just enough room left for a bowl of pumpkin and sago.
It was a good meal. And considering it could have fed two of us excellent value as well.
Hakka Ye Ye
2/F Parekh House
63 Wyndham Street
Central
Tel. 2537 7060
October 2007
Harmony Vegetarian Cafe
Harmony Cafe is tucked away on a little side road called Tang Lung Street that runs from Hennessy Road to Canal Road on that stretch right in front of Times Square. Though finding the road is the easy part. The restaurant is on the first floor at number 21 and is marked only by a small sign on a grey gate.
This is a friendly little place with seating for probably no more than 15 or 16 people. The decor is simple, just some book shelves and magazines and a few ornaments. The atmosphere is relaxed and the strains of Bob Marley drift through the air.
I'm not quite sure why but Bob Marley seems to be very popular in vegetarian
restaurants. Still I've no complaint with that, I like Bob marley. So
with head gently bobbing to the music I perused the menu. 
There
is a fairly wide choice of dishes ranging from vegetarian pizza, noodles
rice and salads. A couple that caught my eye were the steamed veggies
and mushrooms with organic brown rice and the bean sprouts and and tofu
soup. But in the end I opted for the baked Italian salad. ($30)
This consisted of tomatoes and basil with mozzarella cheese melted over the top. It was a simple but pleasing dish dish. I also ordered a glass of organic red wine ($50) which was produced by a small vineyard in France. They didn't have any more information than that but it was quite drinkable.
For those who don't want wine there is a mouthwatering range of fruit smoothies and healing juice combos. Apple and beet root, for example, would boost my circulation whilst apple and lime would calm my nerves.
My main course was grilled eggplant and noodles with homemade organic soy sauce and garnished with alfalfa ($45). This didn't look like such a large dish at first but it was certainly very filling and very tasty too. Like the starter, the key to is success was it's simplicity.
For dessert I ordered a Fresh Fruit and Tofu Parfait. This consisted of mango, strawberry, banana, cinnamon, flaxseed and raw honey ($35). Again this was a very pleasant dish, it could have been even better had it been chilled just a little more. But it is a small complaint in what was otherwise a very pleasant meal.
Despite being small and difficult to find the restaurant had a steady stream of customers.
They are open six days a week, Tuesday-Sunday. On Mondays they give demonstrations where you can learn to cook your own organic food. For reservations for both restaurant and demo call 3109 3152
Harmony Vegetarian Cafe
21 Tang Lung Street
Causeway Bay
October 2006
Harvester
The
waves were lapping the shore, birds were chirruping in the trees. My colleague
and I made our way along a table of delicious yet healthy looking morsels
choosing whatever took our fancy. Which in my case was a bit of pretty
well everything.
It was hard to believe that we were really in a restaurant on small road at the back of Western Market.
I don't know how long Harvester has been open, it is still quite new looking so I would guess its less than a year. Having said that, it is already very popular, we were there around 7pm and it was already quite busy. I'm told that it gets very busy at lunchtimes.
It is not difficult to understand why it is so popular, it combines two of my favourite elements. Good food and great value.
The system is simple. Once you have found a table you collect a plate and choose the items you want from the buffet. Once you have decided the cashier weighs the food and charges accordingly, $12 per 100 grams of food. Mine came to $48. It's a system the the owners believe encourages people to take only as much as they need.
The food was a blend of western and Chinese style vegetarian dishes. There were potatoes, tomatoes with mozzarella cheese, vegetable dumplings, fake prawns on tofu, mushroom and pumpkin dishes. All of which were very tasty indeed. I can't really single one out above the others, nor can I think of one that I would rather not have had.
In addition there is congee, green bean soup and brown rice all included in the cost.
Harvester also stocks a wide range of other organic products such as wine and herbal teas. They can cater for private parties and corporate events and even offer a health consultation service.
G/F, Shop A-B,
Yardley Commercial Building,
New Market Street,
Sheung Wan
Tel. 2542 478y
June 2007
Havana
As
the name suggests this is a Cuban styled restaurant and as such offers
the mouth watering promise of a blend of Mexican/Spanish and African styles
of cooking. It also offers jerk chicken which is a famous Jamaican dish.
Jamaica is only a little bit south of Cuba so we'll let it pass. Besides
I had my heart set on that jerk chicken.
I've never been to the Caribbean. The only other time I've tried this style of chicken was from a small takeaway called 'Bunny's Jerk Chicken' in Brixton, South London, many years ago.
Traditionally the meat would be placed in a deep, stone lined pit, and then covered with green wood. When burned the wood adds a delicious smokey flavour. But prior to this the meat would have to be 'jerked'. This involves making holes with a sharp object into which a variety of spices would be pushed. Including, according to Bunny's recipe, a generous amount of habanero (Scotch bonnet) pepper.
I ordered a ginger Mojito and waited for my guest. A Mojito is essentially a light rum mixed with lime and mint. It is available in classic style or with a variety of added flavours ($68) as well the luxury which has added Champagne ($78).
My guest arrived and we studied the menu. There is a good range of appetizers available. For the indecisive there is the Havana Sampler ($128) which includes four of the options on the menu. Deep fried prawn spring rolls with red curry and plum sauce, beef stuffed potato cakes, crunchy mozzarella, and crab croquetas with jicama slaw.
My guest was quite impressed with the freshness and crispness of the spring rolls, I liked the crab cakes. though it has to be said all of them were quite yummy. I'd also ordered a bowl of callaloo ($48). This is a spinach and okra soup which is popular all over the West Indies and has as many variations as there are islands. Havana add crab-meat and serve it with Cuban flat-bread.
Although Cuban music has enjoyed something of a renaissance in recent years I think the staff might revolt if they had to listen to the Buena Vista Social Club over and over, no matter how good it is. While we were there the music was distinctly Jamaican with a generous helping of Bob Marley.
Before
long the entrees arrived. My guest had ordered Peppercorn encrusted tuna
with black bean ($168). This is served with a delicious corn and mango
salsa. It was indeed well encrusted. A little too much?, I enquired. My
guest admitted that, whilst taste was good, the peppers did have the upper
hand.
The jerk chicken ($160) was served on a delicious sweet potato mash with jicama stuffed tomato. The chicken itself was very tasty. My guest felt that Chinese people may find the meat a little dry for their tastes but I had no such problem. Indeed it was pretty much as I was expecting, though quite a bit more conservative with the chillies than my previous encounters with the dish. Though I'm sure the chef would be able to add more if requested.
There are only two desserts on the menu and since there were two of us it wasn't such a difficult decision. There is Chocolate fudge cake with berry and dark rum compote ($48) and Jamaican sticky ginger pudding ($52) both were wonderful though I think if I was left to choose just one I would go for the ginger pudding.
Himalaya
This restaurant is tucked away down a little side street off Johnston Road. At street level it is merely a doorway and quite easy to miss.
Inside the restaurant is simple but spacious. Indian popular music and dance was showing on a large screen TV but there was nobody there to watch it. I had the restaurant to myself.
It serves both Indian and Nepalese cuisine and there is a good variety of each. The menu is divided accordingly with good explanations of each dish and where it comes from. I'd gone along specifically for the Nepalese food.
I started with Bhogate Sandheko ($35). This is a simple dish made with some nice tangy grapefruit with yoghurt and sprinkled with chilli powder to give it a little extra bite. Following was a Chicken Choila ($65). This is a delicious chicken dish that has been barbecued and served with chillies, ginger onions and coriander.
Next, just to remind me that Nepal shares a long border with China, cam some steamed chicken dumplings ($40) in soup. The dumplings are called momo. They were pleasant enough but they did seem a little out of context alongside the rest of the food I had ordered. It was a generous serving though, definitely designed to be shared.
Following this was a dish that I was particularly looking forward to, Himali Lamb Sekuwa ($65). This is cubes of barbecued lamb spiced with timmur. Timmur are the same peppercorns that make Sichuan cuisine so distinctive. It was nice though I would have liked it to be more heavily spiced.
Finally came the Jhol Halu Ko Macha ($78) which is a very tasty but light fish curry in a thin sauce. And mopped up, of course, with nan bread.
For dessert there were the usual gulab jamun but it was the very last item that caught my attention Himalaya Special ($35). I ordered and waited in anticipation. When it arrived I was surprised to find that it consisted of three scoops of Ice cream, chocolate, vanilla and strawberry, sandwiched between two slices of banana. It was topped with cream and finished off with a little pink umbrella.
'Is this a traditional Nepalese dessert?' I asked the waitress.She grinned.
20-30 Tai Wong Street East
Wanchai
Tel. 2527 5899
I Caramba!
The first word that springs to mind when you walk into I Caramba is 'margarita'. Perhaps it has something to do with the sunny decor and the cheerful latin music that greets you, or perhaps it was partly to do with the fact that I had just walked up the steps on Pottinger Street and was in need of a cool drink anyway.
But
I Caramba! doesn't simply have margarita on the menu ... it has a menu
of margaritas. Seven in total starting at Margarita of the Month (you'll
need to ask what flavour they have this month) at $48 per glass or $192
for a pitcher. Top of the range is the Ultimate Margarita which is made
from Herradura Anejo tequila and Grand Marnier. I plumped for an Extreme
Margarita ($76 glass/$345 pitcher) which is just as luxurious but made
with a reposado tequila. The difference is the age and the type of wood
that the tequila was aged in. Connoiseurs would probably like to note
that altogether the menu offers 26 different tequilas.
For one of the worlds great cuisines, Mexican restaurants are still something of a rarity in Hong Kong. I Caramba! was one of the first, indeed it was one of the first restaurants to open its doors in the Soho area, way back in 1993. I ordered a plate of mixed mushroom quesadillas ($59) to keep me going while I took my time over the rest of the menu.
I should have taken more time over that first margarita. Already I could hear the infamous "wall of flame" starting to sing to me and I had a strange desire to don the sombrero that takes pride of place on the bar. Fortunately I resisted the temptation to wear the sombrero but the wall wasn't to be denied. The wall of flame is a huge collection of chilli sauces. I didn't count them but I would guess there were about 50 or 60 altogether, and before long I had half a dozen of them on my table, some of them with names you wouldn't want to repeat in polite society.
The
quesadillas, toasted tortillas served with jack cheese, salsa, guacamole
and sour cream, arrived and were a perfect match for Blairs Heat, a Jalapeno
sauce which had a sharp, fresh taste. It was hot, but not so hot that
it overwhelmed the food, which was fresh and tasty even without the addition
of the sauces. Towards the end of the course I tried two other sauces
that I had singled out. Maddogs Liquid Fire which is made from jalapenos,
bird eye chillies with molasses which give it quite a sweet taste. Scrumptious
combustion according to the label. The other was called 911 Hot Sauce,
helpfully named after the telephone number for the emergency services
in the US where it was made. This was much hotter, the Scotch Bonnet peppers
very much in evidence.
To follow I'd ordered Las Fajitas with Snapper ($148). This comes as a sizzling plate of onions and bell peppers with the grilled snapper on top and served warm tortillas in which to wrap them. I gave my taste buds a chance to recover a little during the course and enjoyed it with only the salsa, guacomole and sour cream dips that come with it. But I did save a little bit. There were still two chili sauces that I wanted to try and I had saved them to the very end.
The Hottest F***ing Sauce is a combination of habaneros, scotch bonnets and African oleoresin which is a pepper extract. Even hotter than that is Da Bomb Ground Zero. In fact Da Bomb claims to be the hottest chili sauce on the planet according to the Scoville Scale. The Scoville scale was invented in 1912 by Wilbur Scoville, to measure the heat in chillies. To give you an idea, the average bottle of Tabasco sauce has a Scoville rating of around 5,000. The Scoville rating of Da Bomb Ground Zero is a staggering 234,000! But what does it taste like? I honestly don't know but it did combine very well with the margarita that was sent in to quench it.
After that, a pause was required before dessert - itÕs worth remembering that even for seasoned chili addicts these sauces need treating with respect.
For dessert I ordered fresh lime cheesecake ($48), rounded off with a mexican coffee and leaned back in my chair with a contented smile as the other customers perused the wall of flame.
9 June 2004
India Today
India Today is at 26 Elgin Street, right next door to I Caramba. Don't be put off by the locked gate - simply rub your chin and put on a "lost" look and the genie will magically appear to guide you in and up to the first floor. There you will find a cosy little restaurant with a modern tropical feel. The walls are painted yellow and orange, decorated cushions are scattered around the seats, lanterns provide illumination and a coconut palm is sprouting in the corner. The restaurant has recently changed owners and the new ones were very attentive and keen to make sure we had an enjoyable evening. We ordered a cold beer (Carlsberg on draught) each and buried our noses in the menu.
The beer arrived along with a small bowl of chillies. They were a short fat variety, I don't know the name. The manager explained that they were sliced open and filled with salt and yogurt, dried in the sun and finally deep fried and cooled. Nibbling them creates little explosions of flavour on the palate and left me in no doubt at all that, if they were able to make these in sufficient quantity, they would have one of the most successful bar snacks ever ... that is, successful from the point of selling large amounts of cold beer thanks to the combination of the salt and the heat from the chilli.
All our favourite starters - onion bhajis, samosas and pakoras - are on the menu, but we decided to try the Murgh Chat ($42) and the Bhindi Rajasthani ($38). The murgh was small boneless tandoori chicken pieces rubbed with chat masala and served in a "salad" with coriander and green chillies. The Bhindi Rajasthani is okra fried in a deliciously light and crispy batter and served with a yoghurt dip.
From the tandoori menu we had considered ordering the Tandoori Kaliyan, a mixed platter of dishes from the tandoor, but there were only two of us and at ($178) we decided it was way more than we could eat. Instead we ordered boti kebab ($82) - young and tender pieces of lamb marinated in a spice-laced yoghurt and served on a sizzling plate, and cooked to perfection.
At this point the naans, two plain and one garlic, and our two remaining dishes arrived. From the vegetarian section we'd ordered Baingan Hydrabadi ($62). This is mild eggplant curry cooked in peanuts and sesame seeds. It was a very pleasant dish but on this evening it was facing some unfair competition. Our other dish was the Malabar Machli Curry ($78). The main ingredients of this curry are coconut and mackerel. The distinct flavours of each combine well to make a very memorable dish indeed. It is a mild curry, the sweetness of the coconut provides a startling, but very agreeable, contrast to the strong flavour of the mackerel. The only drawback was that it tended to overshadow the Baingan Hydrabadi. Next time I think I would choose something a little spicier to pair it with.
After a respectable pause we concluded the meal with that old standby, Gulab Jamun, balls of milk powder fried until golden and soaked in a sweet saffron syrup, followed with masala tea.
23 June 2004
Isola Bar and Grill
This
restaurant is really dramatic at night with huge glass windows giving
an uninterrupted view of the Kowloon skyline. You can even sit outdoors
on the terrace, but as the temperatures had plummeted, we elected to stay
indoors. It is a modern, spacious restaurant and usually very busy so
it is advisable to book.
The drinks and bread basket were served promptly. The bread was so-so, but the spread - redolent with the fresh taste of celeriac was delicious.
We had ordered one starter from the regular menu - mozzarella baked in walnut bread, and one from the specials - yellowtail carpaccio with olives and citrus dressing. The mozzarella was fabulous - steaming hot and chewy, the texture and flavours contrasting well with the crisp, light, walnut bread and balsamico drizzled on the plate.
My carpaccio was wonderful too - the dressing was a masterful blend of fruity olive oil and sharp citrus. There was pile of olives and what appeared to be potato cubes, served on the side. The potatoes were crunchy and rather raw, but what the hell, they tasted good so I cleaned the plate.
By this time we were feeling very well disposed towards Isola, and looking forward to the main course. Again, I had chosen from the specials - hand pulled pasta (reminiscent of spaetzle) with prawns and broccoli, whilst my dining companion had gone for a menu option.Sadly, neither choice lived up to the promise of the starters - especially the Italian sausage with roasted potatoes and oven dried tomato.
We should have guessed really. We'd asked the waiter about the sausage, and he'd dodged the questions repeatedly with 'name, rank and serial number' doggedness, only offering, "yes, it's a popular choice," to every question, which we later came to realise probably meant, "yes, people choose it all the time - but never more than once".
The sausage was very salty, and uninteresting, the roast potatoes were sad, white, soggy, chip-shaped affairs, and the dried tomatoes - well, they were just cherry tomatoes wilted in an oven.
The pasta was better - the sauce was flavourful and the prawns were fresh. Again it had been salted with a heavy hand, and this diner felt that the flavour was too overwhelmingly 'lobster bisque' - not bad in itself, but not as advertised and rather too overpowering.
Coffee and tea were served with the goats-milk ricotta tart - baked cheesecake by another name. The taste was good, but the texture was dry and powdery, and the 'caramel sauce' it was supposed to come with was a joke. There were only 4 fine lines of sauce drizzled on the plate. We could hardly see it, let alone taste it.
So what of other things? Ambience was good, but we felt the service was lacking. Every server should have tasted all the dishes and be able to talk about them - truthfully. Offering things like pepper should be automatic, and petit fours should come with the coffee, not 15 minutes afterwards. Also small things - using torn menu covers (plastic) - in my case, also encrusted with dried food, and using chipped crockery, is holding Isola back from becoming the 5 star restaurant it clearly aspires to.
Dinner for two, with two glasses of wine, a bottle of mineral water and coffee and tea, came to $1,111.
January 2005
Istanbul Express
I stopped in for a quick bite at the Istanbul Express the other evening. At first it looks like just a hole in the wall kebab counter but it opens out at the back where there are a number of tables.
These are decorated with cheery blue and white table cloths. The walls are trimmed and trimmed with coloured tiles. It's simple but very pleasing none the less, you almost feel that this could be any street corner cafe in Istanbul.
The food? Well kebabs are sold on street corners all over the world.
This branch of Istanbul Express is on Lockhart Road and, given that kebabs are an excellent late night snack when you've been out a a beer or three, I would say it is a great location.
We were there quite early but already the restaurant was bustling. We got a table on the back wall and read the menu. Or tried to. It is a very lively menu with pictures of most things and lots of small type in a script font. It looks very attractive but it is a pain to read.
I suspect most people just point at the picture of the dish they want to order but for menu junkies like me, who have to read every last word before coming to a decision, it slows things down a little. It would probably be an even greater handicap later in the evening.
But we got there in the end. We ordered a plate of falafel ($40) to share for starter. My friend ordered lamb steak and chips ($60), I went for the Iskender kebab ($75). Iskender, by the way, was what the Persians used to call Alexander the Great. Apparently this was his favourite food.
Mane was made with beef and lamb with a delicious tomato sauce and Greek yoghurt topping on a bed of pitta.
It would be hard to say that these are better than anywhere else but they are certainly just as good as any you could find elsewhere. You can make or break a kebab by the amount of dressing you put on it and that is entirely in you hands.
I had added small amount of mint dressing on the falafel, the Iskender didn't need any further dressing. My friend slathered his chips with just about everything he could find and wolfed them down. At the end we both agreed that it had "hit the spot" and that it was "just what we needed".
A look of contentment spread across his face as I made my way through a Sultea ($30), a traditional Turkish rice pudding.
"D'you fancy a beer or two before you head off?", he enquired.
"Or three?" I grinned
Istanbul Express
G/F 66 Lockhart Road
Wanchai
Tel. 2865 0066
F-1 G/F Rose mansion
1 Hart Avenue
Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel. 2369 6234
G/F 34A Lock Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel. 2311 8814
Ivan the Kozak
The quest for hearty fare on a cold day took us to Ivan the Kozak, a Russian/Ukrainian restaurant on Cochrane Street under the escalator. If you are walking down from Wyndham Street it is on the right. A large statue of a Kozak marks the little lane that leads to the entrance.
There were four of us but the restaurant wasn't crowded and we were offered a choice of tables. We took a cosy looking table at the back with a nice little sofa running along one side.
The restaurant has a quaint, gingerbread house in the forest, feel which made me think of those old East European fairy tales - many of which seem to feature a little house in the forest. We settled ourselves in and studied the menu.
There is a lot of travel information in the back of the menu but there are still plenty of dishes to choose from in the front. Though it has to be said, it could be a little better organised. There are starters, soups and main dishes where you might expect them but then there is a page of Ukrainian dishes which also includes starters and main courses. For people like me, who enjoy wallowing in the menu, this is not a problem but for others it might be a little confusing.
Nevertheless
we placed our order and included in it was a bottle of Egri Bikaver
or Bulls Blood. This is a full bodied red wine from Hungary and
how it came to be named is quite an amusing little tale.
Back in 1552 the Eger fortress was being attacked and the defenders were heavily outnumbered. To prepare for the onslaught, and perhaps to numb the pain, they tucked in to the local red wine spilling it all over their beards in their eagerness to get sloshed. When the attackers saw these men hurtling towards them with red wine all down their fronts, they assumed the locals had been drinking bull's blood, and they fled in horror.
We were much more genteel about it.
Shortly after the wine the starters arrived. We had ordered Pelmeni ($58), which is Russian dumplings with minced pork and sour cream. Deruni Minskie ($54), Ukrainian pan fried potato cakes. Neptune ($33) is a spicy seafood soup with potato, carrots and onions and Blinchiki ($40).
For me the potato cakes were the standout item here but the dumplings and the blinchiki were not that far behind. I wouldn't have been disappointed with any of them.
These starters are all quite large and filling and unless you have a big appetite you might wish to consider sharing.
Our main courses included the Plov ($139) which was listed as lamb fillet with spicy rice. Myasnie Gulubsky ($109) was cabbage stuffed with pork and savoury vegetables. The Shashlik is Baranini ($137) is grilled lamb chops served with a tangy sauce, red cabbage, pickled gherkins and roast potatoes and finally Bukufay ($129) which was pan fried chicken fillet.
The food had taken a while to prepare but when it was served silence fell. The bukufay came with some peas in mayonnaise which seemed a rather odd addition but was otherwise well received. The shashlik was good. The stuffed cabbage got a tentative nod of approval despite being somewhat drowned in a creamy tomato sauce. The Plov didn't quite live up to expectation, being chunks of lamb rather than a fillet.
All the portions were very filling and again sharing might have been a better option.
I was the only one willing to take on a dessert. I settled on the blini with pear jam ($48).
Teas and coffees were served after which we made our way, suitably fortified, into the cold night air
Ivan the Kozak
LG/F 46-48 Cochrane Street
Central
Tel: 2851 1193
Jack's Terrazza
I
love the Autumn, the humidity drops, the days are bright and sunny and
ones thoughts turn to al fresco dining. Hong Kong is not blessed with
a huge range of options for eating out doors, the city just wasn't designed
for it. But in the last few years things have improved considerably.
One little area that has flourished is along the first floor walkway outside the Causeway Centre in Wanchai. So the other evening I ambled along to look for a spot to sit and watch the world go by.
I found it at Jack's Terrazza Ristorante, behind the two barrels that mark the perimeter of Jack's territory, and partially hidden by a tall conical shaped jar of pasta and a couple of ornamental lights that were perched on top.
The walkway is decorated with pot plants and ornamental street lights and these, along with a gentle breeze that was blowing in off the harbour, conspired to make me forget that just a few yards behind me the traffic was snarled up waiting to get through the cross-harbour tunnel and that the Sun Hung Kai Centre was towering over head. Life, for me at least, was changing down a gear. I buried my nose in the menu.
There is plenty to choose from including a wide variety of pasta and pizza options and they also have a range of popular snacks including onion rings, calamari and Nachos.
I did seriously consider the poached prawns in garlic with black pepper ($68) for a starter but in the end I just couldn't resist the Lumache Alla Terrazza - snails with white wine, artichokes, black olives and garlic butter. It was a good choice. The snails were soft and tender and came in a delicious tomato sauce. To accompany them I ordered a glass of Chilean Chardonay ($50).
For the main course I'd ordered a whole, pan fried, New Zealand sole ($138). It was fresh and succulent and came with roast potatoes and garden vegetables which comprised broccoli, cauliflower and carrots, and lime butter. Again it had been a difficult choice with grilled beef tenderloin with prosciutto and gruyere ($148) came a close second.
There was no shortage of people passing by. Some hurrying home form a long day at work, others wandering more casually, weighing up their dining options. The staff of Jack's Terrazza were greeting all of them, hoping to entice them in for dinner. They were doing a good job, the restaurant was already about fifty percent full and it was still quite early. Me I was about ninety percent full but I wasn't going anywhere until after desert.
Guava sorbet was on the menu. I've had many different types of sorbet in the past but guava was a new one to me. It was perhaps not as sharp as other sorbets but it still made a pleasant desert and I soon polished off the two generous scoops.
Coffee rounded the meal off but before cramming myself into a taxi for
my own journey home I decided to go for a stroll around the front of the
Convention Centre.
October 2004
Jaspa's
I've
had lunch in Jaspas on Staunton Street a couple of times, but whenever
I've been past at dinner time it has always seemed quite busy. When I
passed by the other evening there was not a soul inside. Maybe because
it was raining, maybe because it was still early, whatever the reason,
I saw it as a golden opportunity and dived inside.
Lunches, by default, are usually hurried events, but I had been impressed on my previous visits, so I was looking forward to taking just a little more time. I ordered a beer and buried my nose in the menu. Jaspas offers a broad range of international favourites. It's not difficult to understand why the place is popular, there is something there for just about everyone.
For my starter I was rather tempted by the goats cheese in filo pastry parcels ($80), but in the end I was more tempted by the lobster nachos ($95). Now I suspected this was going to be a large dish and it was. The nachos were piled high, with loads of melted cheese and generously slathered with sour cream, guacamole and salsa.
My only complaint was that they had used cheese flavoured nachos rather than plain and, whilst I like the flavoured ones well enough in this setting, I felt that they were in competition with, rather than complementing, the other flavours. But they did complement the beer very well indeed and I was soon onto my second pint.
For the main course, Caribbean chicken ($110) had won out over the rack of lamb ($150). I think the notion of a Jamaican style jerk chicken was hovering in the back of my mind but it was not to be. In fact it was rather a straightforward chicken filet with peppers, eggplants and other vegetables. Nevertheless it was well prepared and presented, and I was quite happy to eat it.
There were no surprises on the dessert menu - I finished off with cheesecake and a coffee.
Did Jaspas disappoint? Well maybe, just a little, but I am very picky. The food is definitely not bad. If you are going out with a crowd from the office and need to cater for a wide range of taste buds then this is just the place. But don't expect too many surprises, Jaspas strength is in the reassuring familiarity of the dishes it serves.
Jaspas, 28/30 Staunton Street, Soho, Hong Kong
Jojo Indian Cuisine
Jojo's is one of Hong Kong's best known and longest surviving Indian restaurants. Old timers will remember the original premises that opened way back in 1985 on Johnston Road. Back then it was called Jojo's Mess and was hugely popular, especially at lunch times when it was really difficult to get a table if you hadn't booked in advance.
That was closed and the site redeveloped. The restaurant eventually reopened in Lockhart Road with a new name, Jojo's Indian Cuisine, and brighter decor, It has been there for about three years and I'm happy to say that the food is as good as ever.
They serve a dinner buffet on Mondays and Wednesdays which I didn't know about so I went along the other evening to check it out.
The cost is $148 with house beer included. I'm not sure what house beer is, I opted for a Kingfisher which was $35 extra.
There were really no surprises regarding the food. There was a good selection to choose from and I diligently made my way along the line of shiny stainless steel serving trays. But I knew before I'd even begun that I was never going to be able to sample everything.
As with all buffet I try never to cram too much onto my plate at any one time, I much prefer to make more journeys. After poppadoms and beer I got down to business with onion baji, a samosa and some eggplant salad.
There was some background wallpaper music playing, it was inoffensive but I couldn't really say much more for it. I tried to remember what music had played in the old place but all I could remember were sizzling plates of chicken tike whizzing past my ears as they were delivered to their respective tables.
Chicken tikka was next up for me too. Along with the familiar tikka there was also a chicken tikka malai. This is cooked the same way but with a rich and creamy marinade. There was also lamb shank tikka and whilst the chicken was wonderful it was the lamb that stole my heart. I went back for seconds.
The curries are divided into meat and vegetarian. There were two lamb options and two chicken. There were also four vegetarian options including a rather delicious dal and aloo gobi.
There is also pilau rice for those that want it but I always find that nan is quite sufficient for mopping purposes.
By the time I'd worked my way through all that I had just enough space left for a couple of gulab jamun and a bite of watermelon. Wanchai has changed much over the past twenty-five years but the quality of Jojo's food has remained consistent.
Jojo Indian Cuisine
2/F David House
37-39 Lockhart Road
Wanchai
Tel 2527 2776
August 2006
King Ludwig's Beerhall
Chek Chue is the Cantonese name for Stanley, it means red pillar and, according to one story, it was named thus after the dead stump of a cotton tree that was in the area. In another story it means Place of Thieves, or Chak Chu in the Hakka dialect, who named it thus because the waters were infested with pirates. When the British took over and built a fort there it was called Stanley after Lord Edward Geoffrey Smith Stanley who was Secretary of State for War and the Colonies at the time.
These
days it is best known for it's market and the string of pubs and restaurants
that line the beach front. At the end of this line is the Stanley Plaza
to the right and Murray House to the left. Murray House was originally
built in Central in 1840 but dismantled in 1982 and reassembled in Stanley
in 1998.
After being home to the British army, the Japanese army and the Rating and Valuation department it now houses two restaurants and two pubs. The pubs, King Ludwigs Beer Hall and Widlfire are on the top floor.
It was King Ludwig that commisioned the famous Bavarian castle Neuschwanstein which can be seen in Disneylands, jig-saw puzzles, and on biscuit tin lids the world over. Given those indignities he would probably breathe a sigh of relief to learn that a beer hall in his honour is housed in a 150 year old British colonial building in southern China.
And he would certainly have been impressed by the range of imported German beers on offer there - four draught, King Luwigs Bavarian, Veltins, a wheat beer called Masel's Weiss and Lowenbrau plus six bottled. They also have about a dozen flavours of Schnapps to choose from. We watched the moon rise over Stanley Bay with a litre of Bavarian and the aroma of roasting Raclette cheese.
King Ludwigs has a full menu of German-style dishes which includes a gallery of sausages with no less than eight varieties and for those that can't make their mind up the menu includes an option to enjoy a taste of all of them. If you're not in the mood for sausages the Roast Pork Knuckle is also a very popular dish.
King Ludwigs Beerhall opens at midday on weeks days, 11.00am on weekends and closes at midnight weekdays, 01.00am Fridays and Saturdays.
22 March 2004
Kiyotaki
Guest review
It was once right in the middle of Staunton Street right by the escalator, but is now hidden in a corner along Gough Street in Noho because of the skyrocketing rentals. So now, it is overshadowed by the long queues outside a beef noodle restaurant and an open-air traditional Hong Kong 'Daipaidong'. However, Kiyotaki's very own reputation of fresh sashimi and tasty yakitori has made its own mark in this increasingly hip and trendy area.
As you step in, the staff is always ready to greet you with a loud 'Irashaiimase'. The lighting is fairly dim but bright enough to see your food, and the restaurant is cosy enough for talks, or even secluded enough to let you fight with your partner. Big groups are welcome too, and the owner has even added a LCD TV for 'dining-alone' clients who want to catch up on their soaps. If you are lucky, you will see local celebrities here.
The restaurant seems to be aiming to maintain a homey feel despite the higher prices.
Yes, the food is expensive, but which good Japanese restaurant isn't? The sashimi platter is always worth the HKD160 or HKD220 because there is a wide variety of seafood and fish, plus its always fresh. And the chef will always recommend the fresh sashimi of the day. There is a long list of barbecued skewers to choose from, with prices starting from HKD20. There are also the traditional nimono (Japanese home-cooked and boiled food), rice dishes including sushi, onigiri, ochazuke and Japanese noodles like udon and soba. The food is authentic and fit for anyone who feels like a real Japanese feast.
Besides the normal Sake (cold or hot or masu sake), the restaurant has Ichiiko Sochu and clients can choose to order by glass or by bottle (which you can keep for your next visit). A glass of Sochu mix costs about HKD70 and a bottle costs HKD300. Ordering a bottle will, of course, make more sense.
My boyfriend and I always start off with a sashimi platter, followed by a skewer platter, and a grilled cod fish, salmon head, beef with baby mushrooms, or fried vegetables. Our favourite skewers include beef tongue which is barbecued with Japanese spices, ginkyo nuts which goes well with drinks, and sea prawns which cost HKD40 (a bargain compared to other expensive Japanese restaurants) and nicely done of course.
It is not so much about cost, it is more about what type of Japanese food you want to find. If you are desperate for real authentic Japanese food, then this is the place. The best thing is the place can only accommodate about 20 or so patrons, so it would never be too crowded and rowdy. Just be prepared to spend at least HKD500 for food and drinks (not including bottle orders) for two persons..
G/F 13 Gough Street
Central
Hong Kong
Tel 2877 1772
La Fleur
The St Francis Yard and Star Street area may be a little out of the way but whenever I go over there I usually find something new and interesting. I find myself wondering if the area could evolve into a new Soho. Certainly those old lanes have lots of character and the lack of traffic would make it ideal for al fresco dining. And indeed the number of restaurants is on the increase.
On this last visit I found a bar and two restaurants that I hadn't seen before. One of them, a Japanese restaurant had only been open a matter of days. I decided it might be a little unfair to write about them so soon after opening so I wandered round the corner to La Fleur.
This, as the name suggests, is a small French restaurant. The decor is simple but pleasing wood panelling against plain white walls with paintings on the wall.
The menu offers a selection of familiar dishes but this time I decided to give one of the set dinners a try. There were several options at different price points. I chose a three course option at $215. And I also ordered a glass of Chilean Chardonnay to go with it.
The Chardonnay arrived promptly along with the bread basket. I was feeling quite hungry so I laid into the bread with enthusiasm. Bread so often gets overlooked, but these baguettes were good. Crisp on the outside, warm and soft inside. Fortunately the first course arrived before I was able to spoil my appetite.
This was escargot baked in a rich garlic butter and served with creamed potato. The snails were soft and tender and lived up to expectation admirably but they were piping hot when served, I had to wait a few moments for them to cool.
The second course was wild mushroom soup. It was pleasant enough and the waiter did replenish my supply of baguettes but, I have to confess, I find it hard to get enthusiastic about soup. The exception being French onion soup and I neglected to check if that was on the a la carte menu. Though I'm sure it probably was.
The main course was grilled tenderloin with pan fried goose liver served with green beans, broccoli, potato and carrot. Again, the course lived up to expectation. The goose liver was a generous portion. Almost in danger of being too generous as its rich flavour could have overwhelmed the beef.
The meal was good and good value as well. The only disappointment was dessert. The menu offered a choice of three but only the creme brulee was available. I'm more inclined to put that down to my bad luck on the night. In all other areas the service was efficient and prompt.
As I left I walked past St Francis Yard again. It was a cool damp evening but it wasn't hard to imagine how it could look on balmy evening with tables and chairs, the chatter of diners and the smell of good food in the air.
La Fleur
G/F St. Francis Yard
Wanchai
Hong Kong
2866 7337
La Pampa
Pampa is a "quechua" word, the language of the Incas of South America. It means "open space" and is typified by the grasslands of Argentina, upon which arguably the worlds finest beef cattle ruminate. I don't know if it is the grass, the air or the incredible blueness of the Argentine skies that makes the beef special, but the country exports around 260 tons of prime beef a year. Fortunately, some of it finds it's way to a small restaurant called La Pampa in Staunton Street, and the other evening I made my way up the escalator to graze.
The
restaurant is simply but tastefully decorated with a countryside feel
to it and, since I was the first customer of the evening, I had the waitress
all to myself. Starters was a tough choice there were sausage options
and meat pie options that I fancied but in the end I plumped for the grilled
provoleta cheese with olive oil and herbs ($78). While that was being
prepared I was treated to some mini kebabs - cubes of beef on a cocktail
stick, with pieces of onion and pepper.
The provoleta cheese is not a dish for people with small appetites. About the size of a small pizza and lounging in an ocean of olive oil and oregano, it was indeed delicious, but I thought it was going to finish me off for the evening. Definitely one for sharing next time.
Fortunately there was a respectable pause between that and the main event and I was able to rally my resources. The last time I had Argentine steak had been in a small restaurant in Buenos Aires several years ago. It was there that I first heard the music of the legendary composer Astor Piazzolla. Probably a little too esoteric for most Hong Kong diners but the pop music playing at La Pampa was interspersed with both Andean folk music and, what sounded to to my uninformed ear, a quite modern tango singer.
The main course was grilled tenderloin. After some hesitation I'd ordered the smaller of the two options, a 225g p