Tim Ho Wan, Hong Kong

We were lucky enough to visit the original Mong Kok site of this Michelin starred dim sum eatery last October.  Due to soaring rents they have since been forced to relate to West Kowloon.  Having been forewarned of the queues in the morning we arrived at tea time around 3 in the afternoon and managed to secure a walk in after waiting for 30 minutes.

With its billing as the world’s cheapest Michelin starred meal status and endless blogs and reviews in tabloids the clientele seemed to be almost all tourists.  With barely enough room for eighteen covers the restaurant was a no frills affair.  We had already decided on what we wanted to order whilst in the queue via the paper dim sum menu.

The dish that I was anticipating most was the baked char sui buns which have received endless praise from all and sparked many imitations.  I was giddy with excitement when they arrived and they sure delivered, freshly baked and hot with just the right amount sweetness on the exterior.  The bun melted in the mouth and the BBQ pork added the savouriness to top it off.  Just typing this makes me want to jump back on a plane to Hong Kong just for these buns alone. 

Other dishes we ordered included, fried turnip cake, quail egg shui mais, char sui cheong fun, eggplant with pork filling, glutinous rice in lotus leaf, prawn har gaus, steamed black bean ribs, beef balls and to finish crysn jelly.  To be honest whilst being perfectly edible and better than what we have in the likes of Tai Pan in the North West the rest of the dim sum we ordered was not as mind blowing as I was expecting.  Still I would happily have this any day to satisfy my dim sum fix, maybe the baked pork buns just outshone everything else.

Upon asking for the bill all of the above amounted to $240 Hong Kong dollars which is roughly about £20 for 3 people which is amazing value.  The core ethos of Tim Ho Wan I’m told by a local is that it wants to serve quality food which is accessible to the common folk in Hong Kong and it succeeds.  A victim of its own success perhaps with landlords trying to cash in on their fame and locals struggling to secure seats due to the overwhelming demand for spaces.  Even if they decided to raise prices the demand levels would no doubt remain the same but I commend them for sticking to their ethos and choosing to move the original site to keep low prices rather than cave in to the ever increasingly greedy Hong Kong estate owners.

Whisk, Hong Kong

One of the delights of Hong Kong is the choice of Sunday brunch buffet offerings in the many hotels and restaurants.  When visiting buffets back home I think of the likes of Red Hot, Tops, Cosmo and the endless Chinese buffet joints, however hotel buffets are on another level if not planet, although you pay extra for the privilege. However coupled with unlimited drinks packages it ends up great value, although this depends if you eat and drink enough to make it worth it!  One brunch spot that caught our attention was Whisk based in The Mira, a 5 star hotel in the Tsim Sha Tsui area. There were rumours this is where Edward Snowden hid out during his recent exodus to Hong Kong.

Having booked some half a year in advance we were allocated a table in the middle of the main dining area.  Entertainment included a live DJ playing chilled tunes in keeping with the relaxing atmosphere and a magician who went around the tables, although not ours!  To be fair we were too busy eating and trying to get our monies worth anyway!

For £60 per person this included the semi buffet brunch and an unlimited alcoholic drinks package including set cocktails, wine and Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Vintage Brut champagne.  A non-alcoholic package was also available for a lower price.  The way the semi buffet worked was that appetisers and starters were in a traditional buffet style being self-service and the middle and main courses being from a choice on the menu.  Drinks were constantly topped up by the attentive waiters.

We didn’t need a second invitation to help ourselves to appetisers and starters and I went straight for the seafood section.  Mrs Nom was in awe of all the food and the desserts in particular, taking the opportunity to take some snaps of the different food stations.  The cold seafood selection included lobster, oysters, clams, crab meat and salmon.  I was like a kid in a sweet shop and stocked up on lobster and oysters.  This would be the first of many plates of starters.  We noticed a caviar station next to the seafood and tried this next.  Not being a caviar connoisseur I’m not sure what type it was but we were living the life and lapping it up, there were blinis and condiments to go with the various types of caviar.

The middle course consisted of either a gourmet egg with parmesan foam or scrambled eggs.  We choose the gourmet egg but this turned out to be quite disappointing, probably mainly due to all of the other options on offer.  Other food stations included salad with a twist, with the watermelon medley being the highlight, along with small servings of other savoury items, from memory this included crayfish and chicken mousse type dishes.  The food stations also extended to outside in the garden where grilled tiger prawns and suckling pig was on offer.  This turned out to be the highlight with the prawns being massive and sweet, the pork was also delightful. 

By now, some 4-5 plates in we were beginning to feel the pace and ordered our main courses.  I went for the veal steak and Mrs Nom chose the pork chop.  The main courses were bland compared to what we had before.  The pork chop come with a gigantic potato wedge that was the same size and seemed out of place, in comparison my veal steak come with greens only.  With her mind set on dessert Mrs Nom left most of the main leaving me to finish the pork chop and leaving the potato.

Mrs Nom had already snapped her way through the dessert station and was excited to fill her boots.  By now about two and a half hours had flown by and we were advised that the dessert bar would only be open for half an hour longer.  Being quite full we stocked a plate each, selecting as many different types that had caught our fancy.  The various cakes, parfaits, jellies were a fitting way to end the meal.  We had probably ten glasses of champagne between us along with a couple of cocktails, with the white sangria being the standout.  There was a scenic seating area in the garden that we had noticed earlier and asked for a top up before relaxing in the sun stuffed as a pig.  If only every Sunday could be like this, caviar and champagne, I could get used to this.

MO Bar, Hong Kong

Our second visit to The Landmark Mandarin Oriental in Central, Hong Kong, was to try the afternoon tea at the ground floor based MO Bar.  Mrs Nom was disappointed that we had just missed the Marc Jacobs themed tea set and even more so after our visit there has been a Jimmy Choo edition with stiletto shaped treats!

The theme during our visit was inspired by Apivita’s honey based products, a Greek health and beauty brand I’m told, not that I know any different.  Having only frequented afternoon tea a handful of times in Manchester and Liverpool I wasn’t really expecting much other than sandwiches, scones, cakes and tea.  However with this being the Mandarin Oriental they don’t tend to do things less than special.  Our prior visit to 2 Michelin Starred Amber based in their hotel being an example.

The clientele was a mixture of tourists, businessmen and gossiping housewives passing time (we could tell by the two whispering aunties next to us).  The service was attentive and efficient as expected from the hotel.  One thing I like about afternoon tea is that you are left to get on with it when the tea set is delivered for a relaxing time rather than being watched like a hawk and feeling uneasy.

I’m never sure what order afternoon tea is supposed to be served, but I always prefer the savouries before the scones then pastries last.  We were served the scones first from the stand and swapped for the savouries which caught a few glances.  The first plate was a delight and different to usual finger sandwiches which are a bit boring.  In order of the picture below we had Mediterranean quiche, black olive focaccia, tomato confit & feta cheese shavings, goats cheese pie with green apple, pine nuts and honey, pitta hummus and olive caviar and Greek flatbread with grilled chicken and tzatziki. All were perfectly enjoyable with the exception of the pitta which was a bit on the hard side.

We moved on to the scones and they were still warm, probably answers my question above as to why the scones are served first.  There was a selection of raison and plain scones served with clotted cream and a choice of strawberry and grape jam.  The scones were light and buttery and dainty in size but adequate, leaving room for the desserts.

The desserts from the left in the picture below were panna cotta honey and red fruits with strawberry jelly, pistachio and honey macaroon, lemon tarte and honey meringue, blueberry financier and strawberry tartar tomato and ouzo.  The standout treat being the striped panna cotta and jelly.

It will take something special to top this afternoon tea, cucumber, ham and cheese sandwiches just won’t cut it anymore, neither will eclairs and brownies.  I can sense myself turning snobbish, won’t last long though as the equivalent in London is something approaching £50 per head.  We paid just a touch less than £20 each for the Apivita tea set, extraordinary value.  To top it off we were each given a sample beauty set which included hand cream and a couple packets of royal jelly and aloe serum.

Australia Dairy Company, Hong Kong

Amongst the fine dining, dim sum, ramen, sushi, seafood that we enjoyed in Hong Kong it maybe strange that perhaps near the very top of our favourite was a humble scrambled egg.  One of the cheapest and most satisfying eats during our holiday to the culinary mecca.  To top it off we patiently queued twenty minutes for our dose of the silky, fluffy egg, twice.  It was so good it was the only place we revisited during our stay.

No matter what time of day there seems to be a queue out of the door at Australia Diary Company in the Jordan district.  Not somewhere to linger around with it being a café the queue is fast moving, in part to the efficiency and famous ‘don’t outstay your welcome’ attitude of the staff.  Before our visit I read about the pushiness and rudeness of the café staff.  What we encountered was milder than the descriptions; perhaps others caught them on a bad day.  We were surprised when we were finally seated that our server even kindly gave us another chair for Mrs Nom to put her bag on.  Not what we were expecting, bearing in mind the cramped seating and in and out nature of the eatery.  We shared a four table with two randomers as is the norm in Hong Kong due to the high footfall and lack of space.

Not being familiar with the menu we wanted to order scrambled egg on toast and macaroni in a pork soup base with char sui.  We tried to order it separately and the server informed us it was cheaper as part of the tea set which everyone seemed to be having.  Despite us obviously being non locals this was again a nice touch as some joints are out to fleece the tourists.

Our food literally arrived in 30 seconds, which in other circumstances would have sent us running back out the door.  However we had heard too many good things and it made sense when everyone was ordering the same thing, the production line was well oiled.  The macaroni in a pork soup was comforting and reminded me of something my mum used to make, the char sui added some interest whilst not being blown away.  The showstopper was the scrambled egg on lightly toasted thick white bread.  The egg was fluffy, cooked just right and the buttered soft toasted bread was perfect.  I would have this every day for breakfast if I could.



Apologies for the lack of pictures, we were too busy trying to scoff it down!

The tea set for about the equivalent of £3.50 included a hot drink which the order is taken part way through the meal.  I ordered a milky tea, Hong Kong style with condensed milk and Mrs Nom had an iced version, which is an ideal drink as a reprieve against the hot and humid Hong Kong weather.  We were finishing up our drinks when I first noted the customary ‘gentle’ persuasion to give up our seats by the passing waiters.  Never directly asking us to leave I heard a few indirect comments such as ‘are you planning to stay for dinner as well?’ and ‘what do you think this is, a coffee shop?’.  It was quite humorous and it was clear the waiters were well versed in making the subtle comments without being offensive. 

Sensing our 20 minutes were up we made our way to the cashier to pay, the servers write a number on a piece of paper which you give to the cashier indicating the total amount to pay.  Time is money I guess and at such low prices constant table turnover is key.  I wonder if such service and behaviour would be tolerated here in the UK or would the customer service be berated so much by fellow bloggers that they would soon be out of business.  But for me, for the scrambled eggs and unbeatable value alone I’d tolerate a lot worse before it would put me off.

Amber, Hong Kong

One of the highlights of our trip to Hong Kong last year was a visit to 2 Michelin starred Amber based in The Landmark Mandarin Oriental within the Central district.  Amber is the highest Hong Kong entry within the San Pellegrino 2013 list at 36th, at the time of our visit it was 44th on the 2012 listing.  We made a reservation some half a year in advance for the weekend wine lunch menu which featured 6 courses with wine pairings for a very reasonable price of approximately £70 when converted from Hong Kong dollars.

The interior was plush as one would expect being situated in a Mandarin Oriental hotel.  An elegant chime arrangement hanged from the high ceiling.  The menu featured a starter, middle and main course with three choices for each course followed by three set desserts.

After selecting our choices the sommelier poured us our aperitif of Champagne which was included as part of the wine flight.  This was followed by the trio of amuse bouche of foie gras lollipops, vol au vent filled with dungeress crab  and cumin and lastly fried pork croquett.  The foie gras lollipop was indulgent and smooth with a beetroot coating on the outside, this was the best of the trio although the vol au vent and croquette were also very nice. 

I chose the mackerel for the first course which was a delight but cannot recall what Mrs Nom chose (picture included below). 

For the middle course Mrs Nom chose the Tasmanian salmon and I selected the duck foie gras ravioli in a veloute of Hokkaido corn.  The veloute was packed flavour with the rich, sweet corn and the foie gras was second to the corn on this occasion.  Every time I have corn on the cob I think of the veloute, a simple but memorable dish.  From the bit that I tried of the salmon it was well cooked and the accompanying foam was well received.

For the main course I chose the Iberian pork which was fantastically cooked and Mrs Nom chose the lamb shoulder which was very tender and the meat melted in the mouth.

The first dessert was a refreshing assemble of berries with a balsamic jelly, this helped cleanse the palate for the remaining desserts.

This was followed by a chestnut ice cream with spaghetti shaped chestnut cream on a layer of biscuits (my memory is bad so forgive me for the lack of detail).  It reminded me of Il Forno in Liverpool where I was intrigued and first ordered a spaghetti ice cream only to be disappointed when it soon melted into a big splodge.  This however was much more refined with the emphasis on the chestnut and reminded me of chestnut based cakes.

The last dessert was my favourite, a bar of 64% tainori chocolate with milk sorbet on a bed of lemon jelly.  The dessert was well balanced with the jelly cutting through the sweetness of the chocolate.  We ended the meal with coffee and petite fours served in a novel sliding multi-tier tin.

I enjoyed the wine pairings with each dish and the glasses were on the generous side.   So much so that Mrs Nom was struggling to keep up but I gladly helped her to finish off the wines.  We noted on the next table that a couple did not appear to be wine drinkers and the table was laden with full glasses of wine from each course.  Perhaps there for the food experience or fellow bloggers as they had a Canon with a huge lens on the table, whilst we make do with our trusty iPhone.

This was our first visit to a 2 star restaurant and it certainly met our expectations in terms of the food and service which was efficient and well oiled, in addition to being extremely good value.  I wanted to try the sea urchin dish from the a la carte but opted against it due to the price, however I have since found out that it is now offered as a choice on the wine lunch at a smaller supplement.  Maybe one day when we revisit Hong Kong, although there are plenty of other restaurants that are high on our to do list which we didn’t manage to cram in!

Liberty Private Works, Hong Kong

We visited Hong Kong last October and this will be the first post from our trip and was also our favourite ‘Western’ meal in Hong Kong.  Liberty Private Work is situated in Central, the main business district of Hong Kong.   Its main appeal is the open kitchen type arrangement with patrons being sat around the open kitchen and being able to observe the cooking and preparation of each dish.  The executive chef, Vicky Cheng, devises and serves an 8 course menu each night.

On arrival we were part of the last group of 6 diners for the night, the restaurant does 18 covers with staggered start times from 7.30-8.30pm.  We were sat towards the end of one side of the open kitchen towards the stove.  Mrs Nom was concerned that it may get a bit hot and cause discomfort due to her contact lenses but it didn’t prove too bad in the end.

The amuse bouche was a chicken liver parfait arranged in squares with various accompaniments including fried brioche, fig, almond jelly napoleon and chicken skin. This was a nice start to the meal with various taste variations with a delightfully intense parfait.

The first course was one of the signature dishes, tuna, sea urchin, espelette and rice.  Whilst serving each course either Chef Vicky or one of his brigade would explain the dish.  The dish come with a frozen grape on the left and a frozen longan on the right.  Chef explained that the frozen grape was to refresh the palate for the tuna tartare and the longan was to cleanse the palette at the end from the kick of the espelette.   The flavours worked well with the espelette elevating the tuna and sea urchin and the crispy rice gave the dish a different texture.

The presentation of the next dish was exquisite, described as shellfish, chorizo, tomato and yuzu on the menu.  This turned out to be tiger prawns, clams on a bed of yuzu jelly.  The sweet jelly complemented the fresh seafood.

We noticed the introduction of sardine tins in the work area and quickly worked out why with the next dish of mackerel with ratatouille and fennel.  Served on smoking branches for effect.  Of the courses so far which were well balanced this was probably the weakest with the ratatouille overpowering the other ingredients.

The next dish was another signature dish of egg, truffle, parmesan and caviar.  Inside the ravioli contained spinach and ricotta and the egg yolk which oozed out into the sauce. The creamy parmesan and truffle sauce was a delight although a little rich, but this didn’t stop me from mopping it up with a freshly baked bread roll supplied halfway through the course.

By this point Mrs Nom was getting rather full and the next dish was her least favourite of the night.  Maybe something to do with the fact that it was rabbit (in her eyes a fluffy cute pet), pancetta, chestnut and brussel sprouts (food hell for Mrs Nom).  To me, this was welcome with it being the first meat of the night.  The rabbit was well cooked although the dish seemed plain and missing the wow factors of the previous courses.

With Mrs Nom well and truly stuffed I ended up eating my own and two thirds of the final savoury dish of the night, sirloin beef and ox tongue with porcini mushrooms, foie gras and onions.  The sirloin seemed a bit tough and chewy but the ox tongue was delectable, full of deep beefy flavours.

Next up were the desserts and it’s a wonder how theres always room for dessert with women.  All the components of the dish reminded me of a pina colada due to the flavours.  I noticed that all the plates prepared by Chef were unique unlike the previous courses but each remained stylish.  The pineapple and coconut powder created was joyful alongside the olive oil sorbet.

The last dessert was Chefs take on peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  Whilst looking nothing like it that I can remember from my childhood the taste sensations were very much there.  For a while I felt I was twenty years younger.

After the gastronomic feast we were presented with small treats in the form of freshly baked madeleines.

A truly memorable meal and reasonably priced for the quality at approximately £230 for two including the wine pairing.  We were the last ones remaining due to us being the last sitting and all in all the experience lasted about 3 hours.  We even got the opportunity to talk to Chef Vicky at the end of the night who seemed very nice and was keen for our feedback.  He told us he has worked in Toronto and New York before Hong Kong.  A quick look on the website later showed that Chef has worked at the renowned Daniel in New York which he didn’t mention which shows how humble he was.  A definite return the next time we are in Hong Kong. 

http://www.libertypw.com/

26^th Floor
11 Stanley Street
Central
Hong Kong