The Traveling Foodies

Hong Kong: Mask of Si Chuen & Beijing

2012-02-05T02:56:00.000-08:00

Sichuan and Pekinese food. Although the place seems to cater mostly to tourists, the food is quite good (I'd say, on a par with Modern China). Be warned that it is also often quite spicy.

Decor aims to attract the tourists

Xio Long Bao; thin skin, good broth. Gei Ho!

Beef in hot chili sauce. Beef was very good but oh so spicy.

Sauteed eggplants. Very nice.

HKD $486 for two with a $58 drink.

No 33 Tsim Sha Tsui East Station, Tsim Sha Tsui
尖沙咀尖東站地面33號舖

Hong Kong: Hachiouji Japanese Food

2012-01-21T01:12:00.000-08:00

Hachiouji offers decent quality fresh fish at a price that is not too outrageous. By opposition, across the street, there's Sushi One which dishes out cheap but disgusting food. There are thousands of Japanese restaurants in Hong Kong, I'd say most of them bad unfortunately. Hachiouji, while not spectacular, is worth checking-out if you are in the area.

Hachiouji
G/F, Honytex Building,
22 Ashley Road,
Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: 3622 2753

Hong Kong: Wildfire in Tai Kok Tsui

2012-01-19T01:02:00.000-08:00

Never been to Wildfire and since there's one close to where we live, we decided that today was as good as any days to try it out. The place itself is nice and comfortable but the menu and food are quite ordinary. A bit more expensive than Simply Life but about the same target diners I would say. Although food at Simply life is better.
All in all, I'd give it a pass as there are better options.

Seafood gumbo HKD $65

Wildfire house salad. What's with all the meat? $85

Wild mushroom ravioli Not bad but the sauce could have been a bit more flavorful. $148

Angel hair with crab meat. That was not very good.
Tasted a bit like the crab was coming out of a can. $145

HKD $615 for two, with service and two glasses of Salandia Shiraz.

Wildfire
Shop G73A-B, G/F, Olympian City 2
Kowloon, Hong Kong
tel: 2740-4822

Hong Kong: Snake soup place

2012-01-11T06:35:00.000-08:00

Se Wong To 蛇王濤蛇店
Mini bus 12 and 3 stop right by this place

We had snake soup, which was pretty good. But I am not expert. I think it was just the second time I had snake soup. Anyhow, for the neophytes: it is not gross (unlike tripes), it has the texture of chicken but not its taste and is quite pleasant on a cold night.

seeya seeya.

The snake stew. Quite satisfying.
Sorry for the bad Blackberry picture.

Hong Kong: Desserts in Tai Kok Tsui

2012-01-09T06:05:00.000-08:00

Tai Kok Tsui is gentrifying (I never fully understood why gentrification would be a bad thing) and there's a bunch of new restaurants and dessert place that are opening at a fast pace.

Mega Eight Dessert
Right by Mini-bus stop #3 on Chung Wui Street
Decent and inexpensive Chinese desserts. It won't blow your mind but it won't empty your wallet.

Warm almond soup. True to form.

Mango sago in mango juice. Can't go wrong.

一半一半甜品屋
Fifty Fifty Dessert House
Shop B, G/F, Tai Fu Building, 20 Tai Tsun Street, Tai Kok Tsui
Again here, inexpensive and not bad at all. A notch above Mega Eight.
Chinese and western style desserts. May tells me the coffee was terrible though (better at McDonalds)

Bread-pudding HKD $32. Was OK, nothing earth shattering .

Pumkin creme brulee HKD $28. Was quite decent.

Black and White
Unit B&D, 88-102 Ivy Street, Tai Kok Tsui
Certainly pricey, with most dessert being in the $55-$70 range. However, this is "la creme de la creme" of dessert place. Probably some of the best desserts I have had in Hong Kong. I sure hope they attract a following outside the area because I can't imagine the surrounding areas paying the price of a full meal for dessert quite yet. It would be said if they had to move. Wishing them the best. We were certainly happy customers! So, please go!

Da place!

Latte, May approved. HKD $28

Chocolate world frozen yogurt, with a happy tummy in the back.
Smooth, with an actual yogurt taste. Decadent chocolate topping. HKD $48

Iced Tiramisu. The coffee is separate and in shaved ice form.
However, the chocolate is overpowering the rest. HKD $68

Straberry lemon tart. Ever so slight tartness and pleasing berry and lemon flavors .
Very, very nice. HKD $68

Hong Kong: La Tasca

2012-01-07T04:37:00.000-08:00

Felt like tapas tonight and since Uno Mas is no more, we decided to try something else.
All and all not bad. Certainly not amazing tapas but it does the job and is not too expensive. And on a Friday night, no booking required, which was good.
(We didn't have the S95 with us so crappy pictures are due to the Blackberry)

Frittata

Nachos

Bruschetta

Squid

La Tasca
G/F., 8 Hanoi Road,, Tsim Sha Tsui
2723-1072

Nusa Dua, Bali: Bumbu Bali

2011-12-25T17:05:00.000-08:00

The best local food was kept for our last night in Bali it seems. Bumbu Bali is a Balinese cooking school and a restaurant. We had a great meal. The satayed meat were juicy and flavorful, the flavors were bold and rich. Cooking was not overdone like we experienced at other Balinese restaurants. A nice experience all around. However, might be a good thing to reserve ahead as the place tends to be packed.
Actually, if I went to Nusa Dua again, I think I'd take some cooking lessons from them.

The kitchen

Sate Campur, Kenus Mebase Bali, Nasi Goreng Veg

Aneka Hidangan 76.5k IDR

Total for two with 164k IDR worth of drinks: 597.74k IDR.

Bumbu Bali Restaurant and Cooking school
Jalan Pratama, Tanjung Benoa
Nusa Dua 80363
Bali, Indonesia

Nusa Dua, Bali: Sakala

2011-12-24T16:33:00.000-08:00

(Sorry for the poor picture color quality but the LED/Neon/whatever lighting at Sakala didn't make the food looks its best)

Sakala is currently a wine tasting/restaurant/night club close to the tip of the Nusa Dua peninsula. I was told that next year, a Hotel would also be tacked-on to the ensemble.
This was by far the best meal we had in Bali. Comes, of course, with a price and it is not much inspired by local cooking (although it does use some local ingredients). But hey, when the food is sublime, not complaining is allowed.
And it is. Expat Quebecois chef Frederic Boulay cooked-up a fabulous Christmas eve dinner that left us very happy... and very full! As a bonus, we had a chance to chat with him a little bit.

Definitely Michelin guide material. Highly recommended!

Dining room is on one side of a very nice pool.

Oyster

Various bread in funky wooden bread-box

Foie-gras rougie experience from Lande region in France. We usually prefer our foie-gras poiellé (pan-seared) but this was really good foie gras and it was very, very nice.

Grilled prawn with crushed fennel salad and passion fruit emulsion scented with vanilla.
Perfectly cooked prawns with a nice crunch from the fennel and the slightly sweet touch of the fruit rounded up the flavors. Yum!

Butternut squash bisque served with lobster and portabella mushroom, balsamic reduction, cappuccino way.
Here, the foam really adds to the experience; titillating your taste-buds before you get the bold flavors of squash, mushrooms and the reduction.

Beef consommé with smoked duck, young vegetables, chicken & truffle stuffing.

Grilled blue eyed Tuna steak, asparagus and dry tomato risotto, red wine vinaigrette with olive, capers, heart of palm and sweet peppers.
Here, the layering of flavors hit you palate in succulent successions, like waves on the Balinese beaches. My favorite dish of the night.

Wagyu beef tenderloin served with garlic & potato croquette, snow peas, spinach, mixed mushrooms and port cream sauce. Need we say more?

Ooooh, cheeeese! Sakala really didn't skimp on variety and quantity here. This could have been a main course on its own. We were already stuffed at this point.

Some Quebecois-inspired Christmas logs. So rich and sweet!

Chocolate cones

Christmas dinner: 800k IDR x 2
Water: 25k IDR x 2
Balinese Cabernet Sauvignon: 80k IDR x 2. The grapes are from Australian, wine making is done in Bali. Not all that great. We'll have to give Bali another 10 years. But never fear, there's a wide selection of wine at Sakala.

Executive Chef: Frederic Boulay
Tel: +62 361 774 499
JL. Pratama 88,
Tanjung Benoa
Nusa Dua, BALI 80363
Indonesia
http://www.sakalabali.com/

Nusa Dua, Bali: Ulam

2011-12-22T01:44:00.000-08:00

I don't mind paying a lot for food; if the quality is there, it's worth the extra dollars. But I hate paying for bad food, regardless of price. Ulam fits in the second category. I thought that that food was mediocre to fair and the price and environment were geared towards tourists (the restaurant was empty until a tour bus showed up and poured about 30 hungry Koreans). The day before, we had snacks at a local dive and the food was pretty much the same level of quality, yet half the price.

Some average tasting soup.

Seafood basket. The fish was grossly overcooked.

Shalots and red peppers sauce. Quite spicy but nice.

Various satay skewers. Satay sauce was good but the skewers were all dry.

Desert crepe. Was actually ok.

Total for two with drinks, service and taxes: 241,3356 IDR

Ulam Balinese seafood restaurant
Jalan Pratama No. 88 Nusa Dua

Ubud, Bali - Warung Babi Guling

2011-12-22T01:04:00.000-08:00

Litterally; pig turning.

Spit roasted suckling pig. Quite good, juicy meat. With spicy green peppers sauce.

Guests sit on the floor.

This was 50k IDR.

Yeah, the sauce was indeed as spicy as it looked...

P.S. Teddy, our driver, got the same server of pork for half the price since he's a local. Go figure.

Bali - Conrad Nusa Dua - Eight Degrees South

2011-12-21T17:28:00.000-08:00

Our x-mas vacation is in Bali this year. First time for either of us. We had a great time. Is Bali ever hot and humid though...

Bread with salsa, butter and tapennade

Salad Caprese. 110k IDR
The buffalo mozz was really good.

Grouper fillet, castelluccio lentils with spicy chorizo,
cream of lemon grass with saffron threads 290k IRD
Dish was ok but I thought that the flavors didn't come together harmoniously.

Opakapaka fish with black Hawaian salt fricassee of scampi meat with dried fish 315k IRD
Scampi was really really good. Fish a bit overcooked.

Taboule. Was not cooked long enough so the grains were a bit crunchy.

All in all, this restaurant comes at a premium due to its beach/hotel location. A premium that didn't translate in amazing food. For over USD $50 a person, a was expecting better.

Dinner for two + drinks + Service charge + Taxes + "Community donation": 1,062,700 IDR
Eight Degrees South @ Conrad Bali Nusa Dua

Hong Kong: Greyhound Café

2011-12-04T08:50:00.000-08:00

Replacing Pizza Express, Greyhound Cafe offers urban Thai fares in the IFC mall.
They don't really have a lunch menu so it can make for a pricey lunch. But food is good.

Some blue drink (Passion Fashion). It just makes for an interesting picture!

Pad Thai. Really good. Probably one of the better Pad Thai I had. Prawns are cooked nicely, it's not smothered in a sweet ketchup sauce like we have experienced at other places, and the balance between all the ingredients is good.
HKD $108

Tom Yum Soup. Fine but on the pricey side for a soup HKD $108

Greyhound Café
(Shop 1082, Podium 1, IFC Mall, 8 Finance St., Central, 2383-1133

Hong Kong: The best grocery chocolate pudding

2011-12-01T05:26:00.001-08:00

We're investigating grocery store bought chocolate puddings.

City Super:

GU, $68/3 ($22.67 each), 7/10

Nestle Mousse Dark Chocolate, $11, 7.5/10

Mamie Nova, 18$, 7.5/10

La Fermiere Creme Gourmande, 26$, 5/10

Sojasun Plaisir Chocolat, $8, 5/10

Domaine du Bignon, $12, 4/10

Taste:

Essential Waitrose Chocolate Mousse, 6.5/10, $37.90/6 ($6.32 each)

Wellcome:

Yogo, $8, 3.5/10

Mamie Nova, Sojasun Plaisir Chocolat, La Fermiere

Yogo Chocolat, Waitrose Essence Chocolat

Nestle La Mousse Dark Chocolate, Domaine du Bignon, GU

Hong Kong: Happyfisherman Restaurant 漁民樂

2011-11-29T17:11:00.000-08:00

Hong Kong is seen as an expensive place to live. Actually, it is not but for one thing; housing.
Everything else is really up to you; you can dress cheap, get cheap entertainment, travel for cheap... and eat for cheap.

The Happy Fisherman offers inexpensive food, in large quantity and it is quite good! (and good for you, for the health-minded)

Take a load of this: you get one fish-dumpling soupy dish, vegetables, 2 fish, and 2 big bowls of noodles in fish soup for HKD $118. The broth has a rich taste, the fish are fleshy and cooked nicely. The bones are easy to manage (very important for me!). We have become regulars!

Fish dumplings and tofu in fish broth

Tomato and udon noodles in fish soup. Broth is tasty.

Glorious fish! Perfect for two.

G/F, 35 Chung Wui Street, Tai Kwok Tsui

Hong Kong: King's Lodge

2011-11-28T17:01:00.000-08:00

Beef and spring onions. Ok-la!

Xia Long Bao. Skin too thick, broth is ok. There are much better alternatives for Xia Long Bao in Hong Kong.

Snow peas tips.

Spicy fish. Very spicy.

Overall, I was not super impressed by King's Lodge. It's not bad but not worth a detour at the same time.
For two, six dishes plus drinks: HKD $362

King's Lodge
Shop UG98
Olympian City 3, Kowloon

Hong Kong: Shalom Grill

2011-11-24T16:24:00.001-08:00

We were watching Curb your Enthusiasm and wondered if there was ethnic Israeli food in Hong Kong that we could try. We openriced and found Shalom Grill.

I guess to each his own but we the plethora of good and inexpensive restaurants in Hong Kong, I can't see why someone would go back to Shalom Grill. Two words; expensive and bad.

I can understand that Kosher meals are not easy to come by in Hong Kong but if I were Jewish, I think I'd just go on a long fast.

I guess we should have done a bit of research beforehand because we were hoping for more ethnic Israeli food and that's not the place for it (the waiter recommended beef Stroganoff and spring rolls as Israeli food? I don't think so)

Expensive for the level of food quality and ingredients.

The mixed appetizers was OK at best. Note that the only thing that is mixed are the dipping sauces.

Chicken skewers were nothing to rave about... but edible nonetheless.

The mixed grill had the worst possible cut of beef and worst taste I ever had in my life; chewy, bland, and 50% of it was a huge chunk of lard. Chicken slab was about 1 micron thick (read: dry).

Now, over $400 for this is highway robbery.

Will not go back.

That's your fault Larry David! :-)

Hong Kong: The great Tai Kok Tsui croissant hunt!

2011-11-19T18:57:00.001-08:00

There a tons of bakeries/cake shops in Hong Kong and generally, they are pretty good. However, they usually can't bake a good baguette (none of them can) and croissants are hit and miss.

So, in the hope to find the best croissant for my significant other's weekends' breakfasts, I went to many of the shops within a 15 minutes walk radius and did a single-blind tasting experiment with May as the guinea pig and Minou as the overall supervisor of this highly scientific process.

I did have pictures of all the croissants but, mmm, the guinea pig erased them from the camera so, I'll try to get them and post them some other time. In the meantime, here's a picture of the supervisor-in-fur, err, in-chief.

Minou, Supervisor-in-fur
(note that we didn't let him have any croissant)

So, single-blind, for the non-scientifically inclined, is a process by which the testee doesn't know the details about what he/she is testing (in this case, May didn't know which croissant came from which bakery and there was no way for her to know) while the tester knows (I did).

The results are listed by overall quality from best to worst:

1. Das Gute's croissant: Appearance 100%, Taste 83%, Texture 66%, Overall 75% Cost: 8$
2. St-Honoré's croissant: Appearance 83%, Taste 66%, Texture 66%, Overall 66% Cost: 4.2$
3. (tie) Simply Life's croissant: Appearance 33%, Taste 33%, Texture 50%, Overall 41% Cost: 9$
3. (tie) Taste's chocolate croissant: Appearance 66%, Taste 33%, Texture 50%, Overall 41% Cost: 9$
5. (tie) Wellcome's croissant: Appearance 33%, Taste 33%, Texture 33%, Overall 33% Cost: 15.5$ (for a pack of 4. So $3.88 per)
5. (tie) Taste's mini-croissant: Appearance 33%, Taste 33%, Texture 33%, Overall 33% Cost: 4$ (it is tiny so, you'd need two to get the same amount of croissant as the other ones. $8 for the equivalent)
6. Pacific Coffee's croissant: Appearance 66%, Taste 50%, Texture 0%, Overall 17% Cost: 14$

Das Gute's win the award of best overall Tai Kok Tsui croissant (until we find another spot). St-Hononé has the best ratio of price to quality (and is in our building while Das Gute is a 15 minutes walk so, it may show up on breakfast more often!). Pacific Coffee's is an all-around disaster.

2011-12-04 Addition: I grabbed a croissant at Pret-a-manger and although it is not anywhere close to where we live, it is by far the best croissant we have had in Hong Komg up to now. Flaky outside with brioche-style warm and moist inside. Da best I tell ya.
Appearance 100%, Taste 95%, Texture 90%, Overall 95% Cost: 14$

Pret's croissant. The best.

Hong Kong: Cinecitta in Tai Kok Tsui

2011-11-19T07:30:00.000-08:00

This branch of the Cosmo Hotel chain opened last year in Tai Kok Tsui. Then, I went to check their second floor restaurant as it is very close to where we live and I figured that if it were any good, that would be a good thing for us. Unfortunately, food then was terrible.
So, when May recently told me that the restaurant changed and was now Cinecitta, I figured "Yeah, same crap, new name", until I realized that it was actually the real deal Cinecitta from Star street in Wanchai that moved to Tai Kok Tsui! Probably another victim of the crazy rents on the island, it does turn out great for us as it is literally 5 minutes walk from our apartment.

We decided to go visit in short order. Glad we did as the waiter confirmed that the whole staff of Cinecitta, chef and al, moved to the new location. And it shows; food is good, pasta are fresh made every afternoon. Decent wine selection.

The setting

Artichokes, roman style. HKD $108

Caprese salad. The buffalo mozzarella is very good; velvety and soft. Nice bold drizzle of basil couli. HKD $108

Long gnochetti amatriciana. Freshly made pasta make a huge difference. HKD $128

Osso Bucco, nice and tender veal, as it should, complemented by a flavorful sauce and a side of cheese rissoto which was also quite good. HKD $248

Thin apple tart. Dessert were a bit of a downer for us compared to the rest of the meal.
I would have liked more apples on my tart. HKD $48

Tiramisu. Decent rendition in terms of texture and ingredients but too strong on coffee. HKD $58

My main concern is that Cinecitta may be a bit too expensive for the neighbourhood.
I wish them the best and hope that the Hotel's guests and the locals will try it out.
Ok, here is where I reach out to the island peeps; come to Cinecitta! Go shopping at Elements, then keep going one stop to Olympian MTR station to finish the night at Cinecitta. Or go see a movie at the broadway at Olympian, it's much cheaper than on the island (HKD $55, less 10% if you have one of the major credit cards)

Cinecitta
2/F Cosmo Hotel Mongkok
88 Tai Kok Tsui Road
Tel: 2529 0199

Hong Kong: Papi's

2011-10-29T20:20:00.000-07:00

One of the characteristics of the Hong Kong food scene is how quickly and suddenly restaurants open and close. Mostly due to the insane rent prices, even busy restaurants will close because they just can't afford their rent. Uno Mas, which was quite good, suffered the rent hike faith.

Papi's is new but who knows how long it will last. We wish it good luck because it is reasonably priced and quite good. Fresh produces make the difference here. Among others, olives that are NOT out of a can. Yay!

Olives. Imported from Italy, not from a can! HK $38

Ratatouille. Bold flavors. Yum. $68

Rolled omlette with Gorgonzola. May would have preferred it warm, I thought it was quite good. $58

Marinated fresh squid. $88

Sauted clams. Low-point. Clams were way overcooked which made them overly chewy. $168

Sauted spinash and potatoes. $58

Tuscan sausages and Cannellini beans. $98

Traditional Tuscan pudding. Sort of an Italian trifle. I thought this was really good. I wouldn't mind getting the recipe. $58

Papi's
Public Square (podium)
Elements Mall
Kowloon MTR station

Hong Kong: Spoon by Alain Ducasse

2011-10-20T19:25:00.000-07:00

May and I have been together for 13 years, married for 8. We used that opportunity to try Spoon by Alain Ducasse. I had high expectations and Spoon fell somewhat short. While the food was all quite good, it is also quite expensive (HKD $4000 for the two of us, before the Premier card discount of 15%-20%). Tasting menu for May was HKD $1,388 + $688 wine pairing (we didn't think the pairing was all that great) I preferred The French Window which, to me, was a notch better and also less expensive.

I also thought that the service could have been tweaked a little bit (please, don't come ask if we are ready to order if the menus are still open. That's the basic etiquette; open menu, we're still deciding, closed menu, come take our order. Oh, yeah, while we're at it... cutlery lined-up on the plate; we're done. Cutlery resting on the side of the plate, we're still eating)

Views of the harbour are quite amazing.

Amuses-bouche

Bread was good. On the right was a brioche that was light and fluffy.

Marinated sea scallops, seasonal vegetables with truffle condiments HKD $310. There was about a total of half a scallop on that dish. Sorry but the price charged is outrageous. Was tasty but it didn't blow my mind... only my wallet.

Cep mushrrom and lobster light velouté

Bresse chicken and foie gras paté en croute.

Pan-seared sea scallops, endive-orange. Quite good.

Filet of venison, fruits and vegetables, pepper sauce. Satisfying. Honest dish. Pricey.

Veal tenderloin, Choisy-style.

Some macaroons.

Monte-Carlo chocolate palet with gold leaf.

Spoon by Alain Ducasse
Intercontinental Hotel
18 Salisbury Road, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Entourage

2011-10-02T22:32:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, food is good, could even be great, but the ambiance or service of a restaurant is what makes you say you may not go back.
That is sort of what we experienced at Entourage. I called for reservation but no-one picked-up. I left the booking information and my phone number. The recorded message was stating that we would be called back. They didn't. We showed up and while the restaurant was mostly empty, we were seated next to the other 4 people in the restaurant instead of at a more comfortable spot with banquette seating. May asked to move. The guy said that he didn't really want to seat us there in case some group of 4 would show-up. But, there were plenty of room for a group of 4 pretty much everywhere in the restaurant. May was peeved.
Then the same maitre D' sort of came a few times to ask if we were ready to order, which made us feel rushed. Remember, 4 people in a restaurant that probably seat 40.
Then the music was sort of an eclectic mix of pop not too conducive to eating and more appropriate jazz pieces.
At one point, the staff decided to close the windows, which is fine, but didn't turn down the AC, which made the place really chilly.
It's sad because my main course, I thought, was amazing; the yellow-fin tuna was seared just perfectly, with nice condiment of tomatoes and peppers. Two big pieces of tune. Really, really great. Just like the finest steak without the guilt! May's steak was OK but suffered from being Australian beef. Ok, we may be prejudiced but sorry, Australian beef doesn't even come close to U.S. or Alberta beef.

Anyhow, I think I may want to go back just for a Tuna hit-and-run but the overall experience at La Marmitte was much better.

Salad of feta cheese and grilled eggplant. Eggplants had a nice smokey flavor. Very enjoyable.

Vol-au-vent of crayfish with lobster sauce. This one was smelling so nice but such a disappointment as the crayfish was chewy and the sauce just not enough to save the dish.

Grilled yellow-fin tuna, virgin sauce. This was, for lack of better words, out of this world. Loved it.

The beef. Australian should learn from us Canadians, eh? Same sides as for my tuna, a bit strange.

Apple almond tart & ice cream. Was ok.

Entourage
1-5 Elgin Street
SOHO, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
2559 8281

Hong Kong: The Swiss Chalet

2011-09-29T07:20:00.000-07:00

May has had a craving for cheese fondue for a while and it just happens that I was also in the mood for an orgy of cheese. We reserved at The Swiss Chalet and and orgy of cheese it was! The fondue pot for two is huge. Add everything to dip in and that's a gigantic meal.

Now, Max Liechti, the chef/proprietor shows his roots with great flair; the fondue is really good. I remember enjoying cheese fondue but always finding it too rich in white wine. Not at Swiss Chalet; the wine just perfumes the fondue without overpower it. Very very nice.

Highly recommended!

For two, with an appetizer (White asparagus which were quite good HKD $138) and 1/3 liter of Swiss red:
HKD $840, including 10% service charge.

The Swiss Chalet
G/F, 12-14 Hart Avenue, Tsim Sha Tsui
Kowloon, Hong Kong
2191 9197

Toronto: The Chef's House - restaurant ran by students of George Brown Culinary School

2011-09-18T02:09:00.001-07:00

The Chef's House - a cooking school by George Brown College

Watermelon and Feta Cheese Salad

Pheasant

Strawberry Shorkcake

Toronto: Dinner at the Distillery District

2011-09-18T02:08:00.003-07:00

Toronto: Mill Street BrewPub @ the Distillery District

2011-09-18T02:08:00.001-07:00

Mill Street BrewPub

Lobster Melt

Steak and Kidney Pie

Montreal: Chez ma maman!

2011-09-07T06:58:00.000-07:00

Dinner at my mom's place. Invitation only! May had requested the pumpkin bisque weeks before we left Hong Kong for Canada. My mom has been cooking up a storm... Results at the end of 3 weeks? I gain 10 pounds and May, well, you can ask her...

Pumpkin bisque

Tarte aux tomates

Apple pie/strudel

Montreal: T

2011-09-06T21:41:00.000-07:00

The same way F is the little brother of Feirrera, 'T' is Toque's. However, T is proportionally cheaper than F.
However, we got the same great food and service was also very good. Very relaxing ambiance. Inside the restaurant is virtually identical to F. Comparison stops here however as the menu is quite different. French bistro vs Portuguese bistro food.

Side salad CDN $7. Nice and crisp.

Coquille St-Jacques CDN$24. This was really, really good. Nice pieces of fresh seafood. A well-executed classic piece.

Bavette de boeuf CDN$20.

Blueberry tart. CDN $8. I thought this was the low-point; a bit too basic in taste and rendition.

Brasserie T!
www.brasserie-t.com
1425 Jeanne Mance
H2X-2J4
514-282-0808

Baie St-Paul: Bouquet Express Eco bistro

2011-09-05T07:58:00.000-07:00

Family weekend in Baie St-Paul. Quaint little town. Great views of the St-Lawrence river. Fun time.

We had a nice lunch at Bouquet Express on the main tourist street. Was quite good.

Salmon tartare CDN $19


Croque Monsieur CDN $11

39 St Jean Baptiste, BAIE-ST-PAUL, QC G3Z 1M3

418-240-3444

Montreal: F Bar

2011-09-03T17:06:00.000-07:00

F bar is the little brother of Ferreira Cafe, which both May and I like very much. Turns out that F bar keeps the same level of great food in its Quartier des Spectacles address. Service needs a bit of tweaking as we had to wait 20 minutes despite having made a reservation. But all in all, the food was great and the ambiance relaxed. Great fish. Gotta have the fish!

Mohito

Algarvia salad with grilled sardines

Mixed greens $7

Fresh cod, sardine parmentier, egg/herb sauce, fennel $23

Lamb burger, cucumber yogurt mint, sumac onions, fries/salad $18

Red snapper, fish of the day $24

Creamy chocolate, star anise/brioche, wild blackberry ice cream $10

For 3, with wine: CDN $179
F Bar
1485 Rue Jeanne-Mance
Montreal
Quebec
(514) 289-4558

Montreal: Marche Jean Talon

2011-09-03T07:53:00.000-07:00

We go every time we go to Montreal... Hong Kong's wet markets are just not the same experience!

Montreal: Rotisserie Laurier by Gordon Ramsay

2011-09-01T03:38:00.000-07:00

Rotisserie Laurier has been a staple restaurant for roasted chicken lovers in Montreal since 1936. Gordon Ramsay recently partnered with a local investor to bring the old shine back on the place.

We had not actually been there pre-Ramsay so we can't really compare the before and after. However, what I can say is that the rustic, no-frills, comfort food is great and locals, as well as visitors, will thoroughly enjoy.

Now, if you are in Montreal for just a few hours, are low on the dough but want an amazing lunch, Olive & Gourmando still wins the prize over Laurier.

Pot of dill pickles. Have one... or three!

1/4 BBQ chicken. Tasty, with fresh-made coleslaw. The sauce is out of this world good. CDN $14

Roasted chicken sandwich. Was nice. CDN $13

Hello Dolly. Nice crunch. $4

Bread Pudding. That was just OK.

Rotisserie Laurier

381 Ave Laurier Ouest

Montreal, Quebec

(514) 273-3671

Hong Kong: Le Marron

2011-08-07T20:17:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Auntie 3, we discovered Le Marron, a private kitchen in
Causeway bay. Now, if private kitchen conjures images of a cramp, badly lit and bland space, you couldn't be more wrong. A lot of attention has been put into the decor and you feel transported to one of Paris' arrondissement. It's not all that cramped either; over 30 diners can sit comfortably.

I thought that the food was just fabulous; cooked perfectly, very rich in taste and plated with creativity. It is a bit pricey with main courses in the $200-$300 range (and they charge for bread) but definitely worth it.

Seafood ice mountain

Grilled boneless Angus short-ribs mille feuille style with Perigueux sauce.

Pan seared black-cod

Grand Marnier Hot Souffle $50

Le Marron (Private Kitchen)

Booking :		booking@marron.com.hk

Telephone :		(852) 2881 6662

Fax :		(852) 2882 3826

Address :		12/F, Ying Kong Mansion 2 – 6 Yee Wo Street Causeway Bay Hong Kong

Hong Kong: ToTT's Grill

2011-08-07T10:00:00.000-07:00

For May's birthday week, we went to a bunch of places, one of them ToTT's at The Escelsior and tried out their brunch. View is very nice and there's decent variety. However, the food quality is not up to par with The Garden at Conrad. If you have a deep discount at ToTT's, it's not a bad place, with live music. Otherwise, I'd says stick to other venues where food is the centerpiece rather than the view.

34th floor so, quite a view.

Foie-gras was not properly de-veined (a bit bitter) and was missing something sweet to go with it.

Champagne brunch option.

Rack of lamb.

Frittata. Was OK.

Eggs Benedict. Good rendition and eggs were cooked perfectly.

Grilled meat platter

Risotta. Not very good.

Tiramisu. Decent rendition.

HKD $668 per person for Champagne brunch, $488 for regular brunch, before the 15% discount.
ToTT's @ The Excelsior (34th floor)
281 Gloucester Road
Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Berliner

2011-08-05T07:26:00.000-07:00

We are pretty excited about those two eateries coming within walking distance of our flat; first is Simply Life , which will guarantee Eggs Benedict proximity for our Sundays. The second is Berliner. Both are in the podium of the brand new Sino built Hermitage development. I have to admit that I was quite surprised that a restaurant offering German food would open its doors in what is mostly a 99.9% Chinese community. I would have thought that sauerkraut is an acquired taste. But, whatever the reason, I'm happy with it.

So, we went to check it out and were happy with the food (although the sauerkraut was just OK, but we've been spoiled in getting some of the best sauerkraut there is cooked by my Alsace-Lorraine born father)
Now, service was not all that great, except for the token Gweilo waiter (manager?) who was awesome. Berliner just opened so we'll let them work out the kinks.

Here's the rundown:

There isn't much in terms of vegetables on the menu and I was a little apprehensive about the asparagus but they turned-out very good; they were big but tasty and cooked nicely.

Pig's knuckles. That thing can feed 3 but, there were two of us... and more dishes... Quite tender. Just too much food!

Sausage platter with potatoes and sauerkraut. Good sausages.

True to form apple strudel. Quite decent. Nice presentation too.

Way too much food for 2, HKD $477

Berliner
G18 G/F Olympian City 3
1 Hoi Wang Road,
Tai Kok Tsui, Kowloon
Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Le Soleil @ The Royal Garden Hotel

2011-07-24T16:57:00.000-07:00

One of the perks of a credit card; an occasional discount at some restaurants.
We heard good things about Le Soleil at The Royal Garden Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui.
Quite happy with it; food is decent and the ambiance is very relaxing. It is a nice change from the typically loud talking, cutlery banging Chinese food joints where we usually have weekday supper.

Dinner for 2, with MasterCard 15% rebate: HKD $670

Le Soleil, 3/F, The Royal Garden, 69 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

Hong Kong: Bricklane

2011-07-24T04:44:00.000-07:00

New breakfast spot in Tsim Sha Tsui. Food is quite good. Ambiance is relaxed. Coffee is good (May approved). Sorry for the crappy pictures, we forgot the S95, had to rely on the crappy berry phone camera.

Eggs Benedict; quite good. Better sauce than 18 grams according to May

Omelet; could use a bit more seasoning.

Bread pudding. A miss. Not "bready" enough. More like a flan.

HKD $400 for 3.
G/F, 2 Blenheim Avenue, Tsim Sha Tsui

Hong Kong: Gold

2011-07-19T04:18:00.000-07:00

For our 8th year anniversary, Gold in LKF.

Quite good, Harlan Goldstein on the premise to ensure quality. A great evening.

Comfortable and cozy.

Gold's interpretation of Caprese salad; with tomato sauce. Nice mozz, nice flavors.

Scallop Carpaccio. Yum!

Pasta with mushrooms. Shaved truffles. Very fragrant and rich, bold taste.

Wild boar pasta with egg.

Tiramisu. Probably the best I had in Hong Kong. Except for my own (not bragging, mine is lighter because the egg yokes/mascarpone is folder into the egg whites, not mixed)

Pleasant outdoor setup if not too hot.

For 2:
Food HKD $960
Wine $366

GOLD
2/F LKF Tower
33 Wyndham Street
Central, Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Al Molo

2011-07-16T22:11:00.001-07:00

Tried Al Molo on the cruise pier in Tsim Sha Tsui.

I suspect that the Michelin starred chef Michael White just lent his name to this place. Many things wrong with this place, starting with the service which was rushed taking the plates out as soon as we had taken the last bite (now, slowdown guys, this is a European-style joint where dinner is expected to last 3 hours), waiters that obviously do not know much about the dishes they serve. Plating is weak. And the food is just OK, not terrible, not extraordinary, just OK (with the exception of the truffle pasta May had which was great).

Bread. Too crunchy to go well with Olive oil. Not very tasty. Waiter seemed to be baffled when we asked for a little bit of balsamic vinegar.


Caprese salad; tomato wasn't all the great. Didn't have this great refreshing taste that a Caprese salad usually have.		HKD $128

Pasta Garganelli; pasta quils, prosciutto, basil and mozzarella. Now, that was very tasty. Well done but for the plating which was a bit too rustic. HKD $178

Spigola: Seabass , artichokes, pine nuts, roasted peppers. $258. Not bad but just not good enough. Reference for Seabass? Fererra in Montreal. Now, that's a sea-bass!


Torta della Nonna. Well, Nonna is not going to be all that impressed with that one... No subtle, not particularly appetizing. A lazily made dessert. HKD $88.

HKD $923 for two, with 2 glasses of wine + Cafe latte
Al Molo
Cruise pier, Tsim Sha Tsui.

Hong Kong: Kings n Cream

2011-07-12T22:03:00.000-07:00

Now, that place you have to try and patronize frequently. It would be a shame if it would go away.

Don't know if you have ever tried the crappy pseudo-ice-cream that is served by the Mister Softee vans? Softee's ice-cream taste like shortening. Quite disgusting.
Kings n Cream would be at the exact opposite of the spectrum; one can taste the richness of texture and flavor of their product which is, I am told, home-made.

That is definitely the best ice-cream I have had in Hong Kong.

(As you walk there, don't be too disconcerted by the fake-guns shop; you are in the right area...)

Kings n Cream
Shop G23,
1 Kwong Wah Street,
Mong Kok

Hong Kong: Buono Italiano

2011-07-12T21:37:00.000-07:00

I think I have mentioned it before but I view the statement that Hong Kong is a multicultural city largely as a myth... Unless mainland-Chinese are seen as another culture. The fact is, in Hong Kong as a whole, there's only about 4% of the population that is non-Chinese (let's leave the maids out of this as they don't really factor in the argument), probably less than 1% non-Asian. And most of that non-Chinese population lives/works in very specific areas (HK Island, West-Kowloon, Disco Bay, etc...).

In Kowloon, where we live, on last count, I believe there's less than 0.5% of the population that's non-Chinese. Compound that with the fact that the median income is about HKD $10,000/month, this gives you a mono-culture with relatively low-income levels. In that context, the restaurant goers are mostly price sensitive and mostly exposed to Asian fare.

Having lived in truly multicultural cities (Ottawa, Montreal) got me exposed and craving for a wide variety of food from all around the world. Not that it is impossible in Hong Kong, but it is typically on the pricey side to go to restaurants for anything but Chinese food.

So, I am using this roundabout way as a background to express my delight when some inexpensive and decent non-Chinese place opens up in my neighbourhood.

I'd say that Buono Italiano is such a place. Tucked behind the stalls selling all sorts of junk in Mong Kok's ladies' market (Tung Choi street), Buono offers a good variety of dishes in a casual environment, at a reasonable price.

Finding the place is a bit of a challenge; it's hidden behind the stalls.

Seared tuna salad. Nicely done.

Pasta with clams. Quite nice as well.

Penne in tomato sauce. Pasta were a bit too chewy (should have cooked for an extra 2 minutes) but the sauce, fortunately, was not sweet, like many pseudo-Italian do in Hong Kong.

HKD $246 for two, with wine.
Buono Italiano
10 Tung Choi Street,
Mong Kok, Kowloon

Hong Kong: Casa Lisboa

2011-07-02T22:05:00.000-07:00

I'm really of two minds about our experience at Casa Lisboa; there was excellence neighboring mediocre. Let's go through our Saturday night at Casa Lisboa.

First thing that rang and alarm bell was when I asked for tap water, as I hate to pay for fancy bottled water that is basically the same thing. Nope, we were told they "don't do that". Ok, well, bring us some overpriced still water then.
Then, comes the bread with various spreads and a plate of olives. Now, come-on, a Mediterranean restaurant which serves canned olives? And some of the worst canned olives at that. Not impressed. The Sangria? Over-sweetened and cool-aid-ish. Much better at Uno Mas or El Pomposo.

We ordered the Octopus salad which, again, came with canned olives. And the octopus was OK at best. So, another miss. That really doesn't bode well for the night. The waitresses also look like they'd rather be somewhere else, which doesn't help the ambiance.

Ok, so in comes the roasted suckling pig. Excellent: tender flesh, crispy skin on a bed a flavored rice. Very, very good. So, we're happy about that and we forgive the previous mishaps. But then comes the Stuffed Quail with port reduction. The quail is dry while the stuffing is OK, the port reduction is flavorless and seems to have been reduced out of the plate. I left my happy place again.

So, at that point, I'm a bit confused. But anyway, there's desert, which may picks.

Glorious pick as the Serradurra is really, really good. It's a vanilla whipped cream desert with a cookie dusting. Some kind of Macanese Tiramisu.

So, you see my dilemma? Will we go back? I don't know. A bit like digging for a treasure in a minefield.

The canned olives. $35 water

The octopus salad, with complements of canned olives. $85

Entertainers. Seemed a bit bored.

Most excellent roasted pig. $260

Quail with port reduction. $200

Serradura (sawdust). $70

Total for two with a jug of Sangria ($210 wasted dollars), Coffee, water and service: HKD $984.50

Casa Lisboa
8/F LKF Tower
55 D'Aguilar Street
Central, Hong Kong

Hong Kong: 18 Grams

2011-07-02T21:31:00.000-07:00

May and I were looking for a simple place to have a decent, western-style breakfast somewhere in Kowloon, but we woke up a little late. We ended-up at iSquare, at Carpaccio Pasta Pizza Vino which had what looked like an OK brunch. It wasn't; coffee was terrible (watered down latte according to my wife), food wasn't good.

We read about a new spot in Mong Kok called 18 Grams and decided to give it a try the next day.

Very satisfied with the outcome: food was quite good. My wife tells me the coffee was also quite good. Price is decent. Eggs Benedict and Croque Madame were good.

Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be a lot of places in Kowloon that can do the basic western breakfast right and at a decent price. 18 Grams pulls it off nicely.

18 Grams
Shop B04, B/F, Gala Place, 56 Dundas Street, Mong Kok

Cafe latte

Croque-madamme

Eggs Benedict

Mango mousse

Hong Kong: Fine Pasta

2011-05-28T21:14:00.001-07:00

New Restaurant in Mong Kok. God knows it's hard to find good pasta in Hong Kong that's not either too sweet nor too expensive. Fine Pasta definitely fills this niche; not too pricey, yet good, honest pasta dishes.

My only request for this to be perfect would be for the establishment to make its own pasta, made to order. Maybe a little be more complicated but would be unique in HK. Fine Pasta could just charge a premium for fresh pasta (i.e. fresh pasta, add $15).

Dinner for two; Salad, two pasta dishes, HKD $268.
Fine Pasta
Shop F, G/F
Wah Fat mansion
1M-1T Tung Choi Street (market street, hidden behind tons of stalls)
MongKok,
Kowloon

Hong Kong: Betty's Kitschen

2011-05-21T20:35:00.001-07:00

Betty's Kitschen (notice the "witty" play on words there?) just opened at the IFC mall (where Harlan's use to be).
Checked ity out for Saturday brunch. It's all good but missing the brunch staples such as eggs benedict. Overall, good food but Simply Life is pretty much at the same food-quality level for brunch but is slightly cheaper.

Nice ambiance.

French toasts with black cherry compote.

Full English; eggs, smoky black pudding, Toulouse sausage, bacon and tomatoes.

Ahi Tuna salad.

Decor enriched with basil plants. I love basil.

Large Latte: $40
Betty's Full English Breakfast $196
French Toast $88
Red Ahi Tuna Salad $118

UKD $488.40 with gratuities.

Hong Kong: La Marmite

2011-05-15T16:10:00.000-07:00

After our terrible brunch experience of the morning at La Joia, we were a little bit apprehensive of the dinner.

But La Marmite turned out to be excellent. From the typical bistro experience it offers (lively and affordable) to the excellent food it serves (earthy, bold and delicious), we were very happy foodies at the end of the night.

If one focuses on main course, dishes are not much more expensive than, say, Simply Life, but the quality is up a notch.It's great to have a true French bistro in Hong Kong in a sea of expensive nouvelle-cuisine offering.

Highly recommended.

Smoked salmon and caper rillette, sour dough toast and salad. Bold flavors, perfect execution.

Yellow chicken and cray fish pie, glazed asparagus with nantua sauce and green olives. The cray fish and chicken are nice complements and the puff pastry was just the right thickness, yet not too doughy. Very good.

Thyme crusted rack of lamb, potato mousseline with black olive and Tomates Provencale. Very good rendition of traditional French cuisine.

HKD $891with a drink, 2 glasses of wine and dessert.
La Marmite
44 Stauntun Street
SOHO, Central
Hong Kong
2803 7808

Hong Kong: La Joia for brunch,

2011-05-14T15:45:00.000-07:00

We went to La Joia (Elements Mall) a few times for dinner and late lunch and it was quite good.

We went for Brunch yesterday and that was terrible. First, it was not a brunch (no breakfast items). It was not good at all (overcooked Tuna, canned olives tasted like they've been in the can too long, poor variety), too expensive ($500+ for two).

Avoid and go to a better brunch option...

Some home cooked meal...

2011-05-09T18:31:00.000-07:00

Salmon Tartare 'a la JC' with roasted red bell peppers.

Minou

2011-05-09T17:25:00.000-07:00

Hong Kong: Chez Patrick

2011-05-02T21:05:00.000-07:00

Springalicious in Hong Kong; bunch of restaurants, reduced price fixed menu.
Trying out Chez Patrick in Central.
Decent food but suffer the comparison with others though. It's hard to find a niche between the entry-level and the high-end. At HKD $1,151 for two on a reduced priced fixed menu (with a glass of wine), Chez Patrick is too expensive to be considered entry-level and doesn't compete food wise with the likes of French Window or Petrus. So, we'd probably not go back.
My suggestion; bring down the prices, tone the menu down to be more French-Bistro and you'll get a niche with no all that many players in HK.

www.chezpatrick.hk/

Hong Kong: Uno Mas

2011-05-01T20:50:00.000-07:00

El Pomposo is a Tapas place close to where we live. So, that's our default restaurant for Spanish food. Now, we just discovered Uno Mas, which is a notch better. Farther away but better... mmm, time will tell whether it becomes our new tapas hangout.

Da kitchann.

Da Meenew...

Da Escalivada (not da bomb)

Da crow-kettes...

Da tortilla de Patatas

Da prawns...

Da chorizo con red booze!

Da seared tuna...

Da calamari (nam!)

Da vegetable rice...

Da chicks...

HKD $1,600 for 5, with one bottle of wine and a pitcher of Sangria.
Uno Mas
2/F, 54-62 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Homei in Sheung WanCheesake (US style, not Japanese style)

2011-05-01T20:42:00.000-07:00

HoMei (trans: Good Taste)

In Sheung Wan, while doing a little tour of the area.
Friendly cafe with a cat underlying theme. Nice place to have a coffee and a sandwich if you are passing through.

Cheesake (US style)

Fresh ingredients will always do the trick.

http://www.openrice.com/english/restaurant/sr2.htm?shopid=49876

Hong Kong - Mamoz

2011-04-30T18:33:00.000-07:00

We were watching Dolce Vitae on TVB Pearl and they were promoting Mamoz, a new bar/fancy dim sum in Causeway Bay. Right away, the decor and setting got me interested (and took my mind away from the overly rehearsed and stiff delivery of the Dolce Vitae hosts. The producers of the show should just let them improvise. Would be nicer to watch.... anyhow, I digress...)

So, long weekend, we go check it out.

All-in-all, the drinks are great, the food is OK, the views are nice and the ambiance is quite relaxing. There isn't enough incentive for us to go back for the food on its own. But we'd go back for a drink at night, when there's a bit more people.

Cucumber Mint Fizz. The drinks are quite good. Worth going to Mamoz for.

Penne with shrimps in basil and garlic sauce. Was missing something. I'd have pushed further on the garlic and basil to make it more fragrant and embolden the taste. Or added a little bit of lemon juice, or hot sauce, to spike it up.

Steamed Vegetable dumplings (good), Steamed Angus Beef Balls (OK, but the Angus makes this classic Cantonese dish lose a little bit of its local flavor), Black Pearl Rice Dumpling with Gold Flakes (all sizzle and no steak; tasted bland)

Da View. Note that there was only another couple in the space. But, it was also 2pm.

4 "tapas" (Dim Sum + pasta), one drink + gratuities: HKD $260
Mamoz
27-28/F, Cubus
1 Hoi Ping Road
Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Busy Suzie

2011-04-23T03:29:00.000-07:00

Long easter weekend. We went to Ocean Park during the day. I feel like a treat for supper and we've been wanting to try Busy Suzie for a while. We head to 1881 Heritage and take a seat at the bar, where the action is. Japanese Robatayaki is essentially barbeque. In Suzie's case, the chefs are kneeling in front of us. Can't imagine how painful that would be after a few hours.
Anyhow, doesn't seem to impact the food because it was great. Very fresh produce make a huge difference and at Busy Suzie, freshness is clearly an imperative.

I liked everything about it: the decor, lighting, food pacing, cooking, ingredients. May can attest that I have never been much of a seafood person but when faced with amazingly fresh products served well, I will joyfully indulge.

Octopus carpaccio with wasabi (that was reaaally good), and Japanese beans.

Sashimi. Yum.

Soup in a teapot

Tempura. Light an tasty.

Scallops and mushrooms. Scallops tiny bit overcooked.
We will overlook that fact granted the greatness of everything else.

Seabass; nice and crispy exterior. My favorite fish.

I don't usually care too much for lobster but this was just great. Tasty, perfectly cooked, flavorful.

Udon.

At HK $888 for two, with 2 glasses of Champagne, I thought it was a pretty good deal.
Highly recommended.
Busy Suzie, 1881 Heritage, Tsuim Sha Tsui, Kowloon

Hong Kong: Asian Twist

2011-04-23T02:36:00.000-07:00

Laksa and Beef Curry

As I work in Central, I often go by Asian Twist at lunch time. Most often, it is packed with people, which lead me to suggest to May that we give it a try during our Easter holiday for casual lunch.

Well, I'll be damned if I know why this place gets packed. Certainly not for the food! The beef in the curry beef was hard as rock. The laksa was OK at best. May was disappointed that coffee was brought to her pre-sweetened. The decor is cheerful but that's not enough of a redeeming quality for that establishment.

Much better local options are available. I suggest you avoid it. Still trying to figure what the Twist is by the way.

Asian Twist
Shop 2017, 2/F, International Finance Centre Mall, 1 Harbour View Street, Central

Hong Kong: 晶輝飯店 (Crystal splendor something or other)

2011-04-22T02:53:00.000-07:00

One little hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Tai Kok Tsui that is getting rave reviews from the locals.

The chicken hot pot was OK but we've had better. I thought that the chicken came in already a bit too cooked, which made it tough. Broth was good however. Not a dish that would make me want to come back but nothing to be ashamed about either.

The squid dish, which is supposed to be a house, specialty, was a big miss for me. I was expecting fresh squid but it was preserved squid with cashews (which were just fine). I'm sorry but that squid tasted like cow. And I don't mean it tasted like beef... no, it literally tasted like cow. If you have been close to a farm, there's this characteristic cow smell that is hard to define but immediately recognizable once you smelled it. Well, that was it. Ain't going to order that dish again.

On the other hand, the eel and rice dish was quite something; very flavorful and subtle. Eel was nicely cooked. Really enjoyable.

All-in-all, you sure can't beat the price (can't remember the exact amount, I think it was under HK $175) and the quality of the eel-rice made us want to come back to try their other dishes in hope to find another gem of the same kind.

晶輝飯店
31-33 Kok Cheung Street

Hong Kong: Barolo

2011-04-17T03:17:00.000-07:00

After our bad experience with Habibi, we wanted to try another North-African restaurant... which was closed on Sunday. Never fear, we were close to Hollywood road and decided to give Barolo a try.

I enjoyed the ambiance. The food was a bit uneven; Tuna tartare was good but no great surprise taste wise. My rack of lamb was quite good but May's steak was a bit flavorless. Deserts were not just not up to par and you could get something similar at any cake shop.

Tuna tartare

Lamb

Spinach

Tiramisu

I think that Barolo needs to step up their game food wise or risk being shoved aside by the tons of excellent restaurants that are popping-up in the neighborhood.

Total for two wityh 2 glasses of wine, coffee, desserts: HK $808

G/F, 30 Hollywood Road, SOHO, Central

Hong Kong: Din Tai Fung

2011-04-14T02:25:00.000-07:00

Xia Long Bao is a Shanghaiese delicacy. It is a pork and soup-filled dumpling. Interestingly enough, Din Tai Fung has Taiwanese origins.

Thin and flexible, yet not chewy skin makes Din Tai Fung's Xia Long Bao quite good. Is it worth it's 2010 Michelin Guide's star? I'll let you be the judge. For sure, we found it very good and reasonably priced, which is a killer combo in my book. The rest of the food is also quite pleasant. I was telling me that it was one of the rare times I tasted Chinese food which had successive layers of flavors.

We'll be back.

The star; the Xiao Long Bao

Din Tai Fung:
Shop 130, 3/F, Silvercord, 30 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Habibi Cafe

2011-04-12T02:26:00.000-07:00

So there was this feature on North-African restaurants in HK Magazine and since multi-ethnic is something we love to try, we picked Habibi Cafe as the closest target to go to on a week night.

We had the Humus, fried Halloumi, falafel, some couscous and Samak Dakka.
Don't know if the chef was sleepy on that night but the food was bland, weakly presented and overall, not all that interesting.

We'll try the other venues for that type of food enxt time.

Total HK $407 for two.
112-114 Welington Street

Hong Kong: Orchard Garden Cafe & Restaurant

2011-03-27T01:51:00.000-07:00

Right by the movie theater at Olympian 2 shopping Centre, Orchard Garden Cafe & Restaurant is supposed to be a Japanese/Western restaurant. It definitely offers a mix of food, some Western, some Asian. The end result is entirely palatable and not too expensive. So, for quick bite before or after a movie, I'm quite satisfied with it. Quite a drink variety although I never tried them.
Some good dessert choices as well.

Baked Avocado, Shrimps & Scallops with Rice

Mango Crepe

http://www.cinema.com.hk/orchardgarden/eng/index.php
Shop 102, Level 1, Olympian City 2, West Kowloon

Hong Kong - Classified

2011-02-28T06:21:00.000-08:00

Classified in Saikung. Was quite good.

Eggs Benedict

Garden salad

Cheese, Tuna and Tomato Panini

Baked Camembert

Hong Kong - Petrus

2011-02-19T17:31:00.000-08:00

We decided to delay our Valentine's day special supper to the weekend after Valentine's day to avoid the "sucker markup" that would have been tacked-on to our bill shall we have gone on the 14th.

I wanted to surprise May so I didn't tell her which restaurant it was but I dropped a few clues. Anyhow, we both thought that Petrus was very good. On a par with French Window @ IFC. Difference is in the decor; where French Window is resolutely modern, Petrus is gilded traditional. It reminded May of Paul Bocuse's restaurant in Lyon a little bit (a bit more understated though).
As May pointed out, Petrus got the service right; pacing of the dishes was perfect with the staff giving us ample time to talk and enjoy our time between each dishes. Quite unlike most Hong Kong restaurant where they'll remove the plate as one takes his last bite.

Nice view. We were there from 19:30 to about 11pm to, we got to see the 'Symphony of Lights' from up above.

Amuse bouches; mushroom "sandwich" (very good) and cheese puffs (ok)

Periwinkles in Champagne jelly with caviar, sea urchin bavarois and crispy seaweed. Was too fishy-tasting for me.May enjoyed it very much.

Hakodate (Japan) calamari served cooked and raw, roast almond praline with saffron oil, black jus of skid ink. This was a spectacular dish as far as I'm concerned; the ever slightly crispy outside of the roasted calamari not only looked nice, it tasted amazing. And the raw calamari had pleasant taste and texture.

Black truffle and crispy potato tart.

Double-boiled oxtail consommé infused with Tie guan yin tea, smoked bone marrow ravioli. Very good and not too salty, as consommé often are.

Sologne venison fillet, Swiss chard and wood mushroom with cinnamon. Again here, excellent combination of layered flavors of which each note is both subtle and complementary.

6 variety of salts. All very salty! ;-)

Stilton cheese on a bed of caramelised onions and malt.

Paris-Brest

Victoria pineapple ravioli.

8th course Petrus set menu for2, with one Kir Royal, one bottle of water and half a bottle of Barolo Ciabot, HKD $4,000
Petrus. 56th floor
Island Shangri-La
Pacific Place
Supreme Court Road
Central, Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Tango. Argentinian Steak House

2011-02-04T20:21:00.000-08:00

Tango is a new Argentinian Steak House restaurant in Central. It is very comfortable, reasonably priced and the food is really good. They have and open kitchen with a wood burning barbeque on which the chef skillfully cooks various pieces of meat to perfection. I really enjoy the place.

Gotta be a meat lover though as, as you can see, that's a lot of meat!

Nice salad of various kind of tomatoes; colorful, fragrant, fresh and tasty.

Roasted peppers and potatoes.

The Gaucho platter (for 2 but 3 can eat on that baby); Short ribs, fillet and skirt: $475

Very tender and flavorful.

Nice ambiance.

1/F, 77 Wyndham Street

Central, Hong Kong

T: 2525 5808

www.diningconcepts.com.hk

Hong Kong: Sawadee Thai

2011-01-23T20:19:00.000-08:00

Evening out with May's cello peeps.

I enjoy Thai food quite a bit; it's bolder than Cantonese food, with strong and varied flavors.

Tom Yum soup. Yummy (pun intended)

Various fried stuff.

Green curry. Love that stuff.

Crab. Loved the sauce.

8/F Chuang's London Plaza
219 Nathan Road, Kowloon
tel: 2735 3638

Hong Kong: May & friends make cake

2011-01-23T20:17:00.000-08:00

A little departure from the restaurant entries. May and friends are making chocolate cake...

The end product was most excellent.

Tiffany hard at work.

"Yeah, I kow what I'm doing"

"Uh, you mean... I can't eat it now?"

"It's easier than playing the cello."

The master-baker in his kitchen.

Accident waiting to happen.

May's contribution to the cake making day.

My contribution to the cake making day. :-)

Singapore: Hawker's Food Centres and Iggy's

2010-12-24T16:39:00.000-08:00

We were off to Singapore for Christmas and of course, we wanted to sample the local cuisine, as well as the best that Singapore has to offer (or so says the Miele Guide anyway). Overall, Singapore reminded me of Toronto for some reason. Maybe it was the flatness of the land, or the wide roads, or the business district that empties at night, not quite sure... I would import a few things from Singapore to Hong Kong if I could; true multiculturalism (as opposed to Hong Kong's self-segregated 4% non-Chinese population), politeness & etiquette (face it Hong Kongers, you have no manners), clean-air.

Anyhow, I digress. Back to the food...

First hawker's food market we visited, Lau Pa Sat, right in the business district.

The char kway teow we tried at Lai Heng char kway teow; fried rice noodles, cockles, bean sprouts. Meh, not expensive but, well, not all that great either. Kinda tasted "brown" to me.

...we then tried some satays. Kinda on the dry side. Had better...

Ok, now, 3rd time lucky right? Some Hainaneise chicken? Not bad, the chicken was ok and the rice nice and fragrant. But again, the big deal is the cheap price rather than the taste. Overall, we were quite disappointed with the food there (3 different stalls)

We went to the Raffles Hotel for a quick visit...

... in Singapore, we just had to try a Singapore Sling at its birth place.

Now, this was honestly the single most disgusting drink I ever had in my life. It's not even your typical cold-medicine tasting fruity drink but a rather nasty tasting concoction that reminded me of some 5th grade chemistry experiment gone wrong.

I wouldn't brag about it... but then again, maybe that's what Singapore Sling are supposed to taste like. Never had one before. Yuck. Just thinking about it gives me the shivers.

We stayed at the Mandarin Oriental. Great location and the morning buffet, including in our package, was amazing. Great variety, great taste, bellies full for the day.

328 Katong Laksa. They have a few outlets in Singapore. I had to try their Laksa; I love Laksa. It was OK. The one at Singapore Restaurant in Ottawa (Canada) is better! Go figure.

We had planned this night to Iggy's for a while; being ranked one of the top 50 in the world (#28 on 2010's http://www.theworlds50best.com) got our attention. First in Asia according to Miele's Guide. Food was very good, no question about that. However, 28th in the world? I don't know. My experience at Lucas Carton in Paris, L'Atelier Joel Robuchon in Vegas (not the HK one!), Jean-Georges in New York, and Ferrera in Montreal were better: more layers in the flavors, better combination of tastes. Don't get me wrong though; this is definitely world-class eating.

Amuse-bouche of flavored butter ice-cream.

Foie-gras lollipops.

Iggy's lair...

Kohada fish; tomato, clementine peel, mango, quinoa, beet. Simple, fresh. The clementine peel is genius; not sour, perfect complement.

Fresh mini-baguettes. I had... 3...

Hokkaido scallop; bacon, celery, granny smith. What's with the foam? That's the bacon! Molecular cuisine; funky but it didn't add anything to the taste. All fluff if you want my opinion (pun intended).

Needle fish; garlic, dill, shallot. Bit bland.

Raviolo; duck, yam, egg. Quite good.

Wagyu strip loin; baby leeks, radish, rosemary. Very good. Although I think the Kobe beef we had in Tokyo was a bit better.

Vacherin Mont D'Or; Yukon gold potato, mache. Cheese!

Iggy's pop; strawberry, vin cotto, gorgonzola. Meh.

Winter; chestnut, coconut, coffee, lemon. Meh.
All-in-all, I'd like to go again on a non-Christmas day. I liked the food but I wanted to love it. Might be that the expectations were too high.

May in tea-heaven at TWG Tea in Ion Orchard's mall. Worth a detour for tea-lovers. You can sit and have high-tea.

We were curious; tons of ice-cream stands selling little bricks of ice cream wrapped in bread. Bottom line? It was ordinary bread and ordinary ice-cream. Oh well, it was still ice cream and 28 degrees out.

Another food centre, another try at Hainanese chicken. Better this time but maybe we should have tried the expensive Hainanese at Chatter Box. We were left a bit underwhelmed with the famous Singaporean poultry dish.

Iggy's Christmas Gastronomic Menu Dinner
Gastronomic Menu                               2 x $250
Kir Royal                                             1 x $28
Glass Torbreck Wood Cutter Shiraz     2 x $21
Glass Iggy's Reserve Pinot Noir            2 x $37
Aqua Panna                                         1 x $13
Earl Grey Fortune Tea                          1 x $10

Total: SG $785.06 with 10% service charge and 7% GST.

Macau: Ju Pah Bao & Fernando

2010-12-11T01:30:00.000-08:00

We got free tickets to see Zaia at the Venetian in Macau. We therefore planned a little weekend outing; ferry in the morning and back the same day. Little walking around, some fried pork chop in a bread bun from a few vendors (May had the "bowl of fun", various inside parts of various hopefully dead animals) which are one of Macau's specialities. Hard to find a good one these days though.

The evening was spent at Fernando's, in Coloane, by the beach which we didn't see cause it was already night by the time we were there. Food was great an well worth the detour for the best Portuguese meal we had in Macau. Chicken grilled on the barbecue was very nice. We liked it better than Club Militare.

Fernando's unassuming front entry.

Restaurante Fernando,
fernandr@macau.ctm.net
Praia de Hac Sa, No 9
Coloane

Macau

Hong Kong: Khyber Pass

2010-12-05T01:20:00.000-08:00

Most excellent Indian/Pakistani food. A bit pricey however for lunch.

Entrance is easy to miss

Very simple decor.

Good food.

Our lunch $174 for two. Mango lassies seems to be what numpeed the addition though.

Khyber Pass. 7th floor

Chungking Mansions

Tsim Sha Tsui

Hong Kong: Cafe de Paris

2010-11-18T05:48:00.000-08:00

Last night for my mother in Hong Kong before she heads back to Montreal.

We wanted to go to somewhere nice enough where we could chat and have good food in an environment that eases her back to western life. And we also wanted to try out Cafe de Paris which seemed to be more affordable than La Terrase (also in Soho).

The ambiance is perfectly recreated French bistro with dark wood panelling, mirrors and the whole deal. Food was ok. I was hoping for a bit better when they claim to have the best steak frites east of Paris.
Was a nice evening nonetheless but I'd say, if you want to blow $500 per person on a bistro-type meal, BLT Steak is better.

True French bistro decor.

Not food related at all but I love this picture of the two most important women in my life.

Bread and rillette. Very good.

French onion soup. Good.

Salad Nicoise. Good.

Escargots. Good but quite small.

Frites et moules. Fine.

Steak frites. That was ok.

Da fish. Meh.

Apple pie with green apple sherbet. Too fancy; I would have preferred a nice traditional Brittany-style apple pie.

Mango crepe with Grand Marnier sabayon.

HKD $1402 for 3, including wine (after 10% rebate)
Cafe de Paris
23 Elgin, SOHO, Central

Hong Kong: Spring Deer restaurant

2010-11-15T07:18:00.000-08:00

Supposed to be THE place for Peking Duck. Peking Duck was indeed very good. The rest was OK. I thought that the Xia Long Bao weren't m,uch to write home about actually.

But hey, 4 people, ate like pigs, for HKD $638 dollars? I ain't complaining!

Those are windpipes. No kidding. Not bad actually.

Xiao Long Bao


The Peking Duck

Spring Deer Restaurant

1/F 42-46 Mody Road

Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon

Hong Kong: Hoi Tin Garden

2010-11-14T06:02:00.000-08:00

If you come visit Hong Kong, you must try the seafood restaurants of Tuen Mun or Sai Kung (Sai Kung being more touristy, and pricier): you get to choose your live seafood, pay for it, and it then gets delivered to the restaurant where they will cook it for you. Can't get much fresher than that.

Buy your live seafood.

Tons of choice but you have to know what you want!

Dao Miu (Pea shoots)

Fish fillet and broccoli.

Razor clam in black bean sauce (love that stuff).

Another clam with glass noodle.

Big shrimp with blue flesh.

Abalone.

Hoi Tin Garden will prepare the seafood the traditional Cantonese way (that's a note for the foreigners who might have trouble with fish heads and such). Service was really slow but the food was great.
$524 for 3 people and we had way too much food.

5 Sam Shing St, Tuen Mun, Hong Kong
www.hoitingarden.biz.com.hk
www.hoitingarden.biz.com.