An-tico Enoteca & Pizzeria (Hong Kong)

Stepping inside An-tico reminded me of NYC, the lofty atmosphere, the subway tiles, the high ceiling and the 1920’s style custom light fixtures made me feel right at home. It is rare for a Hong Kong restaurant to have such a huge space but all of WindyCity's restaurants especially the notable Dan Ryan's and Amaroni’s outlets in Hong Kong have huge space. An interesting observation is how all of Windy City's Hong Kong establishments are situated inside malls / venues that have a cinema. I wonder what was the logic or business decision behind that. Anyhow, thanks Barbra and her company for treating me to this meal and I do wish her to have a great trip to Guam in October!

Thai Liang Zhi Thai Restaurant 泰娘子泰國餐廳 (Hong Kong)

One thing I realized after my many meals since I started this food blog is the need to step out of the box named "laziness" when it comes to food and try not to surrender to the tempting words of "convenience." I have been a victim of such many times and I am trying to get rid of this bad habits of mine when it comes to a pleasant meal. I am not talking about spending the efforts or money to get myself a fancy meal, I am referring to all sorts of meals, cheap or expensive meals can be equally enjoyable or equally regretful. I had a chance to review a newly opened Thai Restaurant for Timeout Hong Kong and it was another great example of how not to be lazy when you are searching for a decent meal, travel the extra mile please, at least you can leave the restaurant filling slightly satisfied. Check out the review <here>. 

BO-LO'GNE ~ ボローニャ ~ TST Outlet (Hong Kong)

We all know how prices for basic commodities like flour, corn, sugar and wheat are sky rocketing over the past few years, but when it comes to a simple loaf of bread, can one justify it at a price of over HKD100? Perhaps. BO-LO'GNE ボローニャ which specialized in Japanese Danish Bread proves that it is beyond valid to do so, to a certain extend in my opinion. Soon after BO-LO'GNE (please don't ask me how to pronounce it because I am clueless as a ... goldfish on this one) first opened its tiny Hong Kong shop somewhere in SoHo, Central, the words have been out and to have a loaf of Danish Bread, expect a few days of advance order. Hungry enthusiasts were willing to wait because they understand the craftsmanship and skills required to bake each loaf of Japanese Danish Bread. So what exactly is Danish Bread? Simply put, it is a loaf of bread which has 81 layers after folding again and again and again. Note that those are basically layers of dough and butter, a lot of butter, hence the mouth watering melting sensation on each and every bite.

Celestial Court Chinese Restaurant 天寶閣中餐廳 (Hong Kong)

After my recent quest for suckling pig at the Kimberley Hotel, not only did I dream about it in a delicious way, I kept on thinking of returning soon. We named the little pig "Pepe the Piggy" for those interested to know and we were all looking forward to name another piggy asap! Some of my friends returned soon after and met "Kimmy the Piggy". While I am still planning for a return visit, I had the honor the meet "Cici the stuffed Piggy" at Celestial Court. It was a short encounter but a much needed one for me to realize how much I miss Pepe the Piggy.

Kimberley Chinese Restaurant 君怡閣中菜廳 (Hong Kong)

Slurp! Yeah, I overused this word recently but that is the most appropriate word to describe my experience at Kimberley Chinese Restaurant 君怡閣中菜廳.  Perhaps "Oh Slurp"would be more fitting? It was a foodies gathering with Mochachocolata Rita, TomEatsJenCook (+ the great coverage of the meal as well), HK Epicurus, @Supercharz, @Stegersaurus and @DimSumDiva. Not only did we enjoy the meal, we left with smiles and a few extra inches of waistline! This place has been awarded Bib Gourmands with Michelin 1* (thanks to Peech for pointing it out, a careless mistake on my part) but honestly not much of a meaning to me other than another ... reference from yet another food guide. Even when I am writing about it, I am thinking about the thin, crispy skin of the roasted piggy! Not just another piggy but Roasted Suckling Pig Stuffed with Sticky Rice (金陵乳豬)! Okay, I am way ahead of myself here! Let me start from the beginning!

Tiffany's Christmas Fair (Hong Kong)

The Circle of Giving, A Legacy of Light

Ruth Carter Stapleton once said "Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most." While it is very true, I think Dale Evans described it even more straight forward by saying "Christmas, my child, is love in action." Love is not to be given but shared, love is not only to be shared with your loved ones but with those in need of your love. I am very honored once again to be invited back by Tiffany & Co. for their Christmas Fair in partnership with Mother's Choice, held at the 1881 Heritage in Hong Kong. A few weeks ago, it was Breakfast at Tiffany and this time it was Christmas Fair Tiffany which I absolutely loved because the festive activities during the evening made me feel like a kid once again! Yes it is not always the food that makes me act feel like a kid, stuff like decorating gingerbread man or making snow globe can easily do the trick!

Sushi Hiro (Hong Kong)

Many crave for sushi or sashimi regularly, I crave for both at least once every two weeks. Sushi Hiro is one of the few Japanese places which I would return regularly when I feel like indulging myself in the land of sashimi without using any brain power in regards to ordering. Why? They offer plenty of set diners and most of them are multi-courses as well. My friend and I each ordered a set and our dishes were basically mixed up since we were sharing so please considered the following items to be the combined sets.

Harlan's @ The One

Last year I had a very memorable experience at The Parlour @ Hullett House TST and won my top spot in my Afternoon Tea No More 2009 award. This year before the end of it, I found the establishment that qualified for the Afternoon Tea No More 2010 --- Harlan's @ The One TST.  First of all, I was attracted to here because of the Jo Malone Afternoon Tea set as promoted. I heard about it from many friends as well asking me to give it a try. It sounded interesting enough right? If I am from Jo Malone, I would expect my business partner to help promote this special offering as well, however, guess what, I have to request for the special menu and what was funny was that .... well, let me pull it as follows: 

Jason: "Hi, I would like to check out the Jo Malone Afternoon Tea set menu." 

Staff: "Jo Malone?" 

Jason: "Yeah, the perfumes, fragrances, candles ... "

Staff: " [pauses] Oh, I think I know what you are referring too, wait a moment please ... " 

Great job! I would be fairly pissed if I am from Jo Malone. 

(P.S. - based on my knowledge, Harlan @ The One is no longer run by Harlan Goldstein himself even though the name remains. Harlan Goldstein can now be found at the recently opened Gold by Harlan Goldstein @ LKF, Central, Hong Kong)

Whisk - Sunday Brunch

Sumptuous is often the word being used to describe Sunday Brunches and I could not agree more. I enjoy Sunday Brunches because I believe that after a week long work week, we all deserve a little break during the weekend, to enjoy good food with great company. Here at Whisk, they started offering Sunday Brunch recently with free-flowing Louis Roederer champagne as well. Unfortunately, unlikes other hotel establishments, there is not option to opt-out the champagne if I recall correctly. I have been to the Whisk a few times before but mostly for dinner and I enjoyed my stay the last few times. My favorites include the Suckling Pig (Signature dish) and the Apple Crisp (at least the original version being served in the baking pan, they have changed the serving methods and portion recently unfortunately)

Carpaccio

Carpaccio is another venture from DiVino Group which operates Spasso Italian at Harbour City and the Divno Wine Bar in Central. Situated in the new iSquare shopping mall, the resto is quite easy to find if once you figured out which escalator of the the many to take from the street floor! If you feel lost finding your way in this shopping mall, don't panic, you are not alone.

MisoCool

Cool name, but no so cool with it comes to food in my opinion. I mean it was alright, unexciting and boring? description too strong? It was rather boring when it comes to the food but had a great time chatting with friends. The decor at its K11 Mall outlet was trendy and contemporary with what I considered funky paintings and fixtures in this semi-open venue without walls.

Sun Kee 新記餐廳

It was a Cheesy day, a Cheesy Friday to be exact, a yummy one as well! Thanks to Mochachocolata Rita, I was lucky enough to be invited to this Cheesy night event! How cheesy? This resto hiding inside an old building in TST is known for its cheese instant noodles. A neighborhood kind of a joint with tables tightly packed together; expect to share a table with strangers or perhaps pretty girls and handsome guys if you are luck. There are several variations and being the hungry me, I ordered the one with almost everything! Deep fried pork chops, chicken wings and fried eggs!

Kraze Burgers

Don't expect great privacy because Kraze Burgers is situated in the middle of the level and basically without any walls or windows, just like an open area. Well, no that there is anything wrong with it, quite the contrary actually because I liked the environment, the casual atmosphere which us perfect for a burger joint in my opinion.

Wah Heung Yuen 華香園 / Tak Fat Beef Ball 德發牛肉丸

I was bored on a Sunday afternoon and took my camera for a little adventure.Not really an adventure per se but wandered around the TST area in search of meaningful moments to capture. In order to proceed, I needed energy hence food! I pass by the Hai Phong Road quite often but I never knew that there is an Dai Pai Dong 大牌檔 / cooked food stall within this semi-abandoned wet market. Call me ignorant if you may but I just didn't know it existed. As you approach the end of the wet market area, the surrounding starts to get noisy and you start smelling the aroma of deep fried items. At the end of the pathway, the staff of various food stalls would (over)-welcome you, inviting you to their outlets.

Hugo's (希戈餐廳)

It has been more than 2 years since it closed its door for relocation from the demolished Hyatt Regency to its current new location inside the new Hyatt Regency hotel next to K11 mall in TST. Hugo's to me is part of Hong Kong's dining history along with Amigo, Gaddi's, Louis's Steak House or perhaps Tai Ping Koon as well. Established since 1958, it was famous not only for its food but its wooden medieval decor with shields, swords and armor handing on its walls. During my last visit before it closed 2 years ago, one of the most memorable thing about this place was a hanging sign that stated something similar to the following: "No non-smoking seats are available." How masculine it was but no longer the case with the smoking ban in effect. Apparently many things were no longer the same as well, quite unfortunate indeed.

Wildfire @ Elements

Movie in an hour and we were hungry so without much thinking we dropped by Wildfire at Elements. It has been a long while since I return to this establishment as in Wildfire for pizza / dinner. The venue was pretty open with one side opened to the mall. This open-window approach seemed to be a common design for many of the restaurant in this mall. It claims to be making traditional woodstone pizza but what exactly does it mean? Based on my humble knowledge, in Hong Kong and many countries, it is against the law to use real wood / logs to oven-bake pizza because of the resulting smoke I suppose. Therefore, many places use gas-powered woodstone oven instead. Gas-Powered Woodstone pizza is as traditional as one can get in Hong Kong. I think this is worth noting.

My friend ordered the Wildfire Seafood Gumbo soup and it certainly looked interesting with a little crayfish on top. It was alright, flavors were slightly too intense for my personal liking but my friend seemed to enjoy it.

Spinach and Apple Salad was very refreshing, a light enough dish that reminded me how much I need to go on a diet soon!

Wildfire came up with a special pizza in celebration of the year of the Tiger. It consisted of tiger prawns, mozzarella, cheddar, yellow bell peppers, artichokes, coriander, Chinese spinach, roasted cashew nuts and spring onions. Interesting combination of ingredients and I expected a rather strong flavors from it; but oh my, the flavors were very weak, even the tomato sauce was light. The crust was alright, texture was decent and it was the thin type I like but a bit soggy in the center-bottom, making it rather ... flimsy? Not sure if that is the right word ... HAHA.

Oh yeah, almost forgot. Check out their menu, it was rather hard to read because of the thick plastic in between!

From Life as a Bon Vivant

Alright, this review officially falls under the BORING category! ... HAHA

Likes:

• Comfortable seating perhaps?
  

Dislikes:

• Very weak flavors for the pizza (the special pizza in celebration for the year of the Tiger)
  
• I know I am too picky but check out the menu, it is rather difficult to read because of the plastic sheet in between the

Avg Spending: HKD 100 - 200 per person

Wildfire
Shop 1005-6, L1/F, Elements,
1 Austin Road West, TST
Tel: 2196 8099
http://www.igors.com/


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Xia Mian Guan 夏麵館

Usually when I pass by this noodle place in the Elements mall, all I see is a long line up. I hate lining up in general so usually I would end up somewhere else within the mall. My mom and I were here pretty early this evening and it was certainly an interesting scene to find the place half only 80% full! We took the chance and gave it a try. Worth the long line up? hummm ... yes and no in my opinion. I think one of the reasons why there is always a line up is because of the lack of choices within this mall, the lack of restaurants that offer food within this price range. Simple as that I think.

The bench seats were open style meaning people walking by can literally look at your food very closely. I would not be very comfortable with that especially when there are no windows separating the restaurants and the mall.

The Xaio Long Bao was surprising well made both its presentation and the thickness of the outer skin. Traceable amount of meat juice was inside and had to be careful when eating. Only if the flavors can be stronger than it would be wonderful.

From my many years of ordering the Braised Dry Bean Curd and Black Fungus in Brown Sauce, it should be served cold as a cold appetizer. Am I incorrect with this assumption? (especially when the item was under COLD APPETIZER? Anyhow, if I did not mention it before, it was served very warm! It wasn't bad but it being warm was just different in terms of flavors and texture in my opinion.

Nothing overly exciting about the Baby Cabbage in Soup, only wish it can be smaller in size because it was pretty hard to eat them without making a mess.

The soup from the Stewed Noodle Soup with Yellow Fish was very rich and intense which I liked very much. Out of curiosity I asked the staff what type of soup it was and she told me it was pure pork bone soup, just richer. However, I honestly tasted a very strong traces of fish flavors from the soup. Perhaps pork bone soup with fish? The noodle was on the softer side as it should be for this type of stewed noodles. A special thanks to my mom who held up the noodles for me!

My mom ordered the Noodle Soup with Deep Fried Pork Rib and the types of noodles and soup were quite different from mine of course. Didn't try it but I did realize that the the noodles were pre-cut (see the middle). I think they should ask when placing order whether we like it cut or not because some do prefer to slurp up noodles.

We also ordered Deep Fried Sliced Sole in Sweet and Sour Sauce and yes it was sour indeed! The fish itself was good just the sauce wasn't my cup of tea.

I don't about you but I am not a big fan of these type of wooden spoon. It looked cool but rather hard to clean and won't last long I think. Ummm ... and the color ... hummm

Likes:

• Xaio Long Bao - pretty decent with enough meat juice inside.
• Stewed Noodle Soup with Yellow Fish - the soup was good, rich and intense in terms of flavors. Still trying to sort out what type of soup it was, fish or pork? or both?

Dislikes:

• Braised Dry Bean Curd and Black Fungus in Brown Sauce - served warm??? I thought it should be served cold as described on the menu?
• Noodles pre-cut without asking
• The wooden spoon ... umm, just my own personal thing ...
  

Avg Spending: HKD 100 - 200 per person

Xia Mian Guan 夏麵館
1079-82 L1/F, Elements,
1 Austin Road West, TST
Tel: 2196 8121


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Romankan Yokohama 浪漫館橫浜

When it comes to tonkastsu in Hong Kong, the first resto that comes to my mind has to be Tonkichi Tonkatsu Seafood and it is only natural for me to compared with each other. Since there were quite a number of buzz within the foodie community on this establishment within the new iSquare in TST area, I decided to give it a try. After being lost 3 times in this iSqaure mall, my brother and I finally arrived at this place.



Nothing really special about the place, the decor was rather boring in my opinion. What I do want to mention was their table arrangement. Again this is NO PLACE for SECRET ladies and gentlemen, considered your conversations being overheard! The table on the far end was SO CLOSELY PACKED that an accidental SQUIRT of LEMON JUICE MIGHT LAND ON the TABLE TOP 2 TABLES APART. Even Kate Moss might have trouble squeezing herself in between the two tables!



Similar to Tonkichi Tonkatsu Seafood, we were provided a bowl of sesame and a wooden grinder to make out own sauce. This was the fun part where I can play with my food! The aroma from the mashed sesame was wonderful, better than Tonkichi if you as me. The sauce on the other hand was quite strong both in flavors and aroma.




I ordered the Supreme Deep Fried Breaded King Prawns and Pork Fillet Set. While the batter was good, crunchy and not-overly-greasy, the meat was too dry and rather tough. I miss the tender and juicy version from Tonkichi Tonkatsu Seafood. The cabbages somehow tastes ... too raw if that can be possible. The vegetable flavors were too strong and the dressing provided was overly sour. I was hoping to find more than one type of dressing for the shredded cabbages but very disappointed to find none. Disappointing indeed.



My brother ordered the Curry Set but the Pork Fillet was again too dry. Japanese curry is known for its mildness or perhaps hints of sweetness to the curry but according to my brother, there were no hints of sweetness. Oh well, maybe I should have tried it to experience it myself. Perhaps next time because I do want to give this place a second try during non-peak hours so seating arrangement would be at least more comfortable.



Tonkichi Tonkatsu Seafood is still my favorite so far but I will return soon to try again during non-peak hours.

Likes:

• Very good batter
• Very efficient services but perhaps too efficient at times in terms of speed (ie: feel like being rushed)
  

Dislikes

• The meat slightly too dry
• Overly packed seating arrangement

Avg Spending: HKD 100 - 200 per person

Romankan Yokohama 浪漫館橫浜
Shop 603, 6/F, iSquare,
63 Nathan Road, TST
Tel: +852 2369 0788


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Spring Deer 鹿鳴春飯店

2 weeks or 14 days or half a month ... that is how long most people have to book in advance in to dine here. Was it worth the 2 weeks wait? Perhaps 3 - 4 days would be more reasonable in my opinion. Anyways, this is one of the few remaining old-school Chinese restaurants in town and it is famous for its Peking Duck. It is also one of the favorites among tourists as well because you will find it being recommended in many travel books / guides. Now here is the million dollar question, if it requires weeks in advance booking, exactly when did the many tourists presence on this particular evening book their table? (did the guide book placed on their tables recommended them to book before they departure from their homeland?) hummm ... I should have asked ...

Based on the decor, I suspected that it remained pretty much the same over the last 2 (or 3) decades. We arrived around 8:30pm and it was full house with staff rushing back and forth. Dinner this evening was in celebration of my friend's birthday and he did most of the ordering as well so I was there to enjoy. Worth noting that most of the dishes come in 3 different sizes, Small - Med - Large. As mentioned in my SML post, the idea of offering different dish size was nothing new, it was there long before I was even born.

The first dish to arrive was the Saute Sliced Mutton with Spring Onion. It looked quite plain and unexciting but the flavors were rich and I ordered some rice immediately!

Saute Pig's Windpipe with Coriander was the next dish. Windpipe? Yes, this was the first time I tried it and I love it! The texture was chewy yet bouncy, toothy and carry a certain "bite" to it. Again I am in lost of words when describing the texture of "爽" in Chinese. Anyhow, with the strong flavors of coriander, the dish was quite a refreshing starter.

Of course we ordered the Peking Duck and here they offer Peking Duck - 3 Ways! The first was the traditional way of sliced skin with Chinese pancakes. It was fun watching the chef preparing our Peking duck!

The duck slices here included quite a large portion of meat and the duck was quite fatty as you can see from the fatty layer in between. It was alright, the skin was not overly crisp as expected but the meat was quite tender indeed. Flavor was fair but no surprises.

As mentioned before in my Dong Lai Shun post, one of the key factors for a good Peking duck (at least in my own opinion) is the pancake. There are quite a few style of pancakes and the one being offered here was the really thick one which I am not a big fan of. So thick that I thought I was having a pita wrap!

The Peking Duck 2nd dish was the common Lettuce Wrap with Minced Duck. Why did I focus on the lettuce? Because I was too lazy to move the dishes around for the picture. It was alright, no surprises to be honest.

The Peking Duck 3rd dish was the surprising dish or should I say soup. The remaining duck was chopped into pieces to make this soup. Not that there were much duck flavor to the soup but it was quite comforting to drink.

The simple pea sprouts in broth dish was good, not overly salty like many would prepare them.

Sizzling Shad was something new to me as well. Shad is a very rare breed apparently and is considered a delicacy in many of the coastal cities in China. One of the unique characteristics of the Shad is ....

... believe it or not, their bones and the sheer amount of them!! Every part of the Shad consisted this trident like bones and one had to be VERY careful when eating it. Did I mention there were just so many bones everywhere??? Flavor wise it was great, the sauce carried hints of acidity and went really well with the tender meat as well. Once again, be very careful!

Something I need to mention at this point: (1) The pacing of the dishes were quite ... fast, many dishes arrived at once and the whole table was full of food that we are rushing to finish! (2) When getting the bill, the server announced the amount of the receipt out loud as he approaches the table ... I really dislike this approach but have to take into account that it is one of the common practices of old-school restos in Hong Kong; but still, I hope they would change this habit.

Would I come back for their Peking duck? yes but only if I can book a table 3 days in advance. A 2 weeks advance booking for their Peking Duck might not worth the wait especially when I often have sudden cravings for Peking Duck.

Likes:

• Saute Pig's Windpipe with Coriander - love the bouncy, toothy texture!
  
• Sizzling Shad - while it consisted of way too many trident like bones, the sauce was delicious with the meat.

Dislikes:

• Pacing of dishes were quite ... fast
• Chinese pancakes for Peking Duck was too thick!

Avg Spending: HKD 200 - 300 per person

Spring Deer 鹿鳴春飯店
1/F, 42 Mody Road, TST
Tel: 2366 4012


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