My Paris Favourites

Many who don't follow my twitter or foursquare ask about my recent Paris experience in terms of food, here is a list of places I went to (or should have visited) during my stay which I like to recommend. I will update this list continuously as an excuse to visit Paris soon perhaps? :)  

The Queen's Diamond Jubilee - London (June 2012)

Like I said, the best camera is the one that's with you. I was quite serious when I said I will document (visually) my recent travels using just my iPhone instead of my DSLR. As promised, I carried just my iPhone in my jeans pocket during my recent visits to London & Paris. The results and overall experience turned out to be quite satisfying. Smartphone photography has its technically limitation but with enough practices, one can overcome them with different smartphone photography software as well as acquired skills. Let me share some of the images I took in London using my iPhone with post-processing applied using Snapseed, Instagram, Camera+ and TiltShiftGen.

Lufthansa LSG Sky Chef - Culinary Excellence in the Air: Behind the Scenes

Many of us had our fair share of rants on plane food, no matter what class you are travelling in. Common complaints are often related to the lack of flavours, the level of moisture of your rice or perhaps how tough your beef is. True that in some cases, the quality of the food varies a lot depending on the airlines and their respective catering services, however, I often feel that many passengers forget the fact that they are having their meals at 35,000 feet, inside a pressurized environment with humidity close to 10% or even lower. To prepare food at this high altitude is no easy task and more challenging than many would expect. I always know how the boiling point would reduce to around 80C at that altitude which affects the temperature of the food being consumed after the reheating process. However, my recent visits to one of the world's largest airline catering service providers Lufthansa's LSG Sky Chef facilities in Hong Kong turned out to be quite fruitful in learning more on the limitations as well as regulations of how food must be prepared for safe consumption at 35,000 feet.

Man Wah @ Mandarin Oriental (Hong Kong)

Time truly flies, it is the season for hairy crab once again! Instead of cooking myself this year, I kicked off the hairy crab fest at Man Wah (Mandarin Oriental). Truly an indulgence I may add. I was invited along with a few other fellow bloggers to attend the advance tasting for the special offering from 15 to 23 October during which the Crab Palace Restaurant in Shanghai will be visiting Man Wah, bringing a series of famous dishes including its famed Shanghai hairy crab. One of the special highlights will be the technical display of de-shelling crab in front of diners in three minutes! I do wonder how long it took them to master such a skill!

Mandarin Grill + Bar (Hong Kong)

Many restaurants and chefs nowadays have the tendency to categorize themselves in the different schools of ... gastronomy, be it molecular, avant-garde, traditional, new cuisines or something as extreme as emotional cuisines, they are all different styles of cooking aiming to put creativity into every-changing culinary experiences. It can be quite confusing indeed to imagine the cuisine by their name or category. At Mandarin Grill, the chef likes to call his cooking progressive gastronomy. So what sort of cooking is progressive gastronomy? It is difficult to describe in a few words but if I understand the concept correctly, it puts emphasis on presentation, a strong visual as well as direct stimulation of the 5 senses.

Domani Ristorante (Hong Kong)

Back in Toronto, there are two annual food events, one is the Summerlicous and one is the Winterlicious. For 2 entire weeks during a specific period, food lovers in the city can have the opportunity to satisfy their cravings for special tasting menus at some of the favorite restaurants in town at a much lower price than usual. The New York restaurant week offers similar "food festival" as well. Now Hong Kong is having its first week-long Springalicious food festival starting 27 April - 3 May. You can check out the Restaurant List and Menu <here>, do check often because the list is growing. When I was in Toronto quite a number of years ago, I attended a few featured Summerlicous / Winterlicious high-end restaurants which offer three-course prix fixe menus valued almost 50% discount compared with the usual menus. When the event first started, it was an immediate success but as the festivals carried onto their 2nd / 3rd year, things started to change in my opinion. A common issue experienced by many diners (including myself) was how the food quality and proportion seemed to be watered down along with the special price. When I first heard of this Springalicious event in Hong Kong, I admit I had the same concern and I clearly expressed that to the organizer during a tasting session which I was invited to. I have to say my concern is less relevant at this point because I realized I cannot quite compare this with what is being offered in Toronto for a number of reasons: (1) Springalicious covers more than just Western cuisines but a wider selection such as Japanese, Thai and Chinese; (2) the price discount is not extremely huge in comparison (~ 25% - 30% off) which sort of translates to more standard proportions and more of a reason to maintain food consistency for the participating restaurants; and (3) more than just for marketing purposes, this festival can let some chefs experiment with their creativity with special menus dedicated for it. Of course the above is yet to be seen or proven, but I think it has potential to be something interesting for many years to come in the Hong Kong food scene.

Man Wah @ Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong (Da Dong Beijing Roast Duck)

My experience at Da Dong Roast Duck in Beijing was rather disappointing. Presentation seemed to have been the priority over food quality at the outlet I visited. It wasn't cheap either in relative terms but just did not live up to the expectation or what I have been told. That was six months ago. Last Friday I was kindly invited by Mandarin Oriental along with fellow foodies Patricia from 素顏天使 (Sù Yán Tiān Shǐ), @EdenaLow, @yummymummyasia, @mochachocolata and Wilson from WOM to try the dishes of Da Dong once again. Mandarin Oriental has invited the Da Dong team from Beijing to host meals at the hotel's Man Wah Restaurant during the week of 11 - 17 April 2011. Was it better than my previous experience? Definitely but to be fair, the meal I had was somewhat tailored for us so do treat this as a preview of what's on the menu. I do hope the Da Dong team can proudly depart knowing that simple elegant presentation they did for their Mandarin Oriental visit trump extravagance back home by miles.

Gold by Harlan Goldstein ~ Revisited (Hong Kong)

I blogged about my lunch at Gold by Harlan Goldstein a long while ago and as promised I returned for dinner in celebration of H's birthday. How was the experience? I would definitely return because the food / menu was ... familiar in comparison with that of Tuscany by H under Harlan's management before his current venture into Gold by Harlan Goldstein. Oh by the way, service has improved especially with the pacing in between dishes. The few of us went a bit far with our limits by ordering two starters each followed by the main course and desserts of course!

Beijing Kitchen 滿堂彩 (Macau)

After my recent visit to Beijing Kitchen (滿堂彩) at Grand Hyatt Macau, it marked the end of my Hyatt's Peking Duck journey at three distinct locations across the Greater China region, namely, Sha Tin 18 (沙田18) at Hyatt Regency Hong Kong as well as Made in China (长安壹号) at Grand Hyatt Beijing. All 3 restaurants specializes in what we commonly known as Beijing cuisine 京菜 which is heavily influenced by Shandong cuisine 魯菜, the technically correct reference as to one of the Chinese Four or even Eight Regional Cuisines. I will leave this topic to a future post, for the time being I will focus on Peking duck. So in addition to the same cuisine specialization, all the 3 restaurants of different geographic locations have almost the SAME decor, same utensils and the identical semi-open kitchen design. Talk about uniformity and consistency ... except on the services aspects which I will shamelessly write about in details because I had two cups of coffee at 9pm and I am pretty awake now at 3:10am!

Kaiko Teppanyaki 鐵板燒‧海幸 (Hong Kong)

I just realized this is my first teppanyaki coverage in my blog. In other words, teppanyaki is apparently not something I frequent yet quite enjoyed mainly for the watching how the chef skillfully maneuver around the food in addition to the food itself of course. Based on my humble research (thank you wikipedia - apparently there are more details in the Japanese wiki for the same entry for those interested and know Japanese), tappanyaki was introduced around 1945 as a way to cook Westernized food on iron plate. However, this concept was poorly received among local Japanese yet greatly welcomed by foreigners and tourists mainly due to how diners can watch the chefs do their magic in front of them. I do think it is a main part of having teppanyaki, at least to me, but here at Kaiko Teppanyaki, there wasn't much of a show yet you will get a great view overlooking the Victoria Harbour Hong Kong. To be fair though, the chef we had was very friendly, initiated various chit chats and very attentive to our needs, more attentive than the wait staff to be honestly.

Va Bene (Hong Kong)

I have to be honest here and as mentioned I am yet to appreciate the love for truffles, any sort of truffles for that matter, white or black, winter or summer truffles. It is quite true that perhaps I don't have enough opportunities to enjoy them due to the apparently low supply of them hence the relatively exclusivity to consume. I was very honored to be invited by Va Bene for a media tasting for their soon to launch Winter Black Truffles menu. It was my very first of such event, I mean Media Luncheon. I guess the FEAST event / blogger gathering was of similar nature right? In any case, I took on this invitation mainly because the word truffles came up and this would be a good chance for me try more (and meet more people as the same time). I considered this tasting as a  Black Winter Truffle Appreciation session more or less a personal fulfillment of some sort. Some may question on the true representation of my meal due to the nature of my visit and it is a valid argument which I cannot dispute. Feel free to adjust your expectation accordingly but all I can say is that I enjoyed my visit for what it was and had the chance to broaden my culinary sense regarding truffles.

Gold by Harlan Goldstein (Hong Kong)

By posting my Gold by Harlan Goldstein entry at this time,  I am expected to be yelled at by H and S because we have been planning to come since early Dec 2010. What do I have to say about my rudeness? any excuses? Well, (1) it was brunch that I tried so our upcoming "Golden" dinner at the end of Jan 2011 is still on! (2) as a gentleman that I am (*wink wink*), I have to do a quality assurance to ensure the upcoming experience would be a wonderful one! It was the least I can do to test it out first. (3) I wasn't detoxing HAHA.  Hope H & S can forgive me for what I intended to do. Harlan Goldstein should be a fairly familiar name for many local foodies and his name has been associated with many restaurants in Hong Kong whether he likes it or not unfortunately. Therefore, I should take this opportunity to clarify that Gold by Harlan Goldstein is the only one in Hong Kong that is under his helm, all others bearing his name are simply ... not. I read somewhere that he even said that "The only place you'll find the real Harlan now is at my new venture, Gold by Harlan Goldstein." Quite a bold statement by that just shows his confidence I assume? The following phrase I saw in one of the hanging pictures at Gold further reinforced my assumption: "Why go for Silver when you can go for Gold."

The Mirror (Hong Kong)

A former apprentice to Alain Ducasse, Jeremy Biasiol is now the man behind The Mirror and I dare say it is quite an exciting restaurant which I would love to return soon if I can get a table that is. It is rather unfair to relate Jeremy with Alain Ducasse because he now has his own styles and approaches to traditional French cuisine. I think I can only say he was strongly inspired by Alain to become who he is right now. Looking at him behind the open kitchen in this rather homey and cozy setting, one can see his passion and dedication in cooking. He checks on his guests every now and then to control the pacing. I was observing him after my starter and he thought I was waiting impatiently so he looked at me and called onto the wait-staff by saying  快脆 (Faai3 ceoi3) in Cantonese which translates to "hurry up!" to serve us the mains. He even came out at the end of the night to chat with all guests and ask for comments and feedback. A very nice touch indeed!

Lobster Bar and Grill (Hong Kong)

Slurp! Slurp! and Slurp! ...  Such a simple word to describe my meal at Lobster Bar. Thanks to H who organized this dinner, I had the great pleasure to meet the person behind the food blog Slurp! which I got addicted to reading lately. The meal started with a long chat on food and related topics along with live Jazz from the band nearby which started around 8pm. I have been to the Lobster Bar quite a few times but only for drinks, it was my very first time to give their food a try. I have heard mixed reviews on this place but that did not deter me from trying myself. I really enjoyed the setting which was not overly pretentious (perhaps due to the slightly uncomfortable chairs) and the live band playing nearby. I should have ordered myself some whisky as well!

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)

Made In China 长安一号餐厅 (Beijing)

I came across an article somewhere talking about Peking Duck, particularly Sha Tin 18's Peking Duck inside Hyatt Regency Hong Kong. It reminds me of a much overdue review of my Beijing trip during early Oct 2010. Yes, it was a very crowded weekend due to China's National Day weekend but for the sake of gastronomic adventures and to get away from Hong Kong, such short trip was much needed!! Instead of going reporting my meal sequentially, let me jump the queue to the Peking Duck meal at Made in China  长安一号餐厅 in side Grand Hyatt Beijing which seriously reassemble that of Sha Tin 18 both in terms of decor and offerings. Sisters shops if you ask me!

Pied à Terre - Michelin 2** (London)

This post signifies a pleasant end of my week long stay here in London. We ended our trip with an exceptional meal at Pied à Terre, a Michelin 2** restaurant with Shane Osborne behind the kitchen. It was this meal that made me pondered a long while on the purpose and meaning of being starred by Michelin Guide. Is the star(s) for the restaurant? for the chef? or for diners? I have heard stories that some chefs strive to get an extra star by trying to achieve the so-called perfection in food and food presentation. In my opinion, what is perfect and great food presentation often translates to great food wastage. I have also heard stories that Michelin starred chefs overstressed themselves with the pressures in maintaining such starred standard years after years. The most notable and unfortunate example is Bernard Loiseau who killed himself due to the stress in maintaining the 3-star status its restaurant La Cute d'Or upheld for many years.

Gaucho (Piccadilly - London)

Specialized in Argentine Steak, Gaucho can be considered a well known popular joint among locals whenever they feel like quality steak at relatively reasonably price. Gaucho is a chained restaurant but definitely not those similar to Angus Steak House which is around every major intersections! I quite enjoyed the dimmed lit interior of Gaucho (Piccadilly - London) with hanging white lights and chairs + wallpaper  with black and white cow-skin patterns.

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)

Duecento Otto 208

When I first steped into Duecento Otto 208, I truly thought I was at the scene of Sex and the City, at a restaurant somewhere in New York city. Why? Well, the decor was hip and trendy with beautifully decorated wall-tiles, but the key was the people, the crowds that were present at 7pm on a weeknights. For the brief stay I was there, the place was frequented by model like females and males as well. I mean many of the girls were either in 4" heels and ultra tight pencil skirts or 3" heels and really short skirts! As for guys, many were in tight jeans and pointy leather shoes with tight shirts that somehow lost the few top buttons. Were these good distractions elements for the rustic atmosphere? It is really up to your personal preferences and mood perhaps?