Pulled "Meat" Burger @ Mandarin Oriental (Hong Kong)

When it comes to technicality, pulled burgers are often referred as pulled-pork burgers commonly found in the Midwest of the States. As the name suggests, pork is often the main ingredient. However, with a touch of creativity, fundamental concepts can be modified into new creation. We often describe culinary as an adventure and it is, chef continuously think of new approaches to improve or create interesting dishes based on familiar items. Chef at Cafe Causette at the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong is preparing to offer a few of his versions of the familiar pulled "meat" burgers. No just pork anymore! As part the early bird tasting offer, between the 12 - 25 March 2012, you can try out the 5 mini Pulled "Meat" Burgers for a mere HKD88!! Cast your vote for your favourite flavor and the winning two (2) will be placed on the menu starting in April 2012!!! (don't worry, the final version will be full sized, not mini burgers!) ... Tried it already? Now cast your vote here > http://on.fb.me/zc0V2G 

Bettys Kitschen (Hong Kong)

There have been countless reviews and mentions of this new establishment by Alan Yau ever since it opened. Reviews and feedback so far have been mixed, many complained about the food, many raved about the food and its rather rare selection of French recipes. Some emphasized on Chef Largard's skills and creation while many were captivated by the venue and its decor, including staff's 1950's maid-like uniform. For those unfamiliar with Alan Yau, he is the mastermind behind the famous Wagamama, Hakkasan and the recently Michelin starred restaurant Yauatcha in London. Whenever I hear his name in association with any restaurant, the first thing that comes to my mind is exciting culinary marketing initiative followed by trending culinary creativity. Alan is a successful restaurateur as well as a remarkable entrepreneur when it comes to the F&B industry. Take Hakkasan for example, he not only popularizes Chinese cuisine in London but he took Chinese fine dining scene to a next new level. With that taken into consideration, when I step into Bettys Kitschen at IFC (Hong Kong), the thing that got my attention or interest was the overall execution of the whole concept which of course includes service, decor, menu, atmosphere and food. I wanted to see what took Alan so long to open his first restaurant concept in Hong Kong and what sort of dining trends he is going to set with his new venture.

Brat (Hong Kong)

I can be such a brat sometimes, perhaps it was the child within that makes me do foolish things at the wrong time, at the wrong place. It is often the learning process that matters right? My mom once said that I often play with my food when I was young and actually I still do but for a reason perhaps. At the newly opened hot dog shop Brat, I can't help but rearrange my food for the sake of the pictures. For those who know me well, I love hot dogs but in Hong Kong, it is quite difficult to find a good one indeed. I was quite excited to find familiar sausage names on the menu, namely, Italian and Gruyere sausages! So many I wanted to try!

Jamie's Italian (London)

It maybe a chained establishment but it is one that I wanted to try for a long time. I am not a big fan of Jamie but I certainly agree that he has a special charm that made him who he is now. I am yet to verify the truth to the following but someone told me that Jamie’s Italian is a truly equal opportunity employer of which it encourages the management to hire handicapped individuals as well as those who wish to turn a new leaf after recent release from correctional institutions. If that is the case I truly admire his responsibilities to the community while aiming to deliver a great dining experiences at reasonable cost. On this very evening, we went to the Canary Wharf outlet for an early dinner.

Frites - Belgium on Tap

Funny story. I ordered this Kwak beer because I found the name quite interesting on the menu and that was it. Apparently there is a story behind the name of this beer and how it was being served in this special funnel / glass. Half way through drinking from this funnel, the beer will start to flow through the narrow bottle neck with increased pressure pushing from the back towards the smaller opening, creating a crackling "quack quack" noise. Not only would it create such an unique noise, the liquid would start to flow in an accelerated pace without notice. If you aren't careful, prepare to wet your shirt! (unless your mouth is big enough to cover the whole opening while I seriously doubt!) How much truth is behind the story I am not certain but it did make the "quack" noise and I did wet my shirt! Argh ...

McSorley's Ale House

Many informed us that McSorley's Ale House is one of the best burger places in town but our experience tell us that it may not be exactly the case. It was by no means bad, perhaps we expected too much. A matter of expectation management I suppose. Therefore, it is very important to be as mutual as possible when visiting new restos in my opinion.

Blue Smoke Bar-B-Que

To sum up my review in one word for Blue Smoke B-B-Que, DRY! I am sure Mochachocolata Rita * and Gastronomous Anonymous would agree with me. A fairly new joint located in the heart of LKF, do come here with an empty stomach for some hearty food selection but remember to order some drinks to go along with their rather dry signature ribs.

Si Sun Fast Food 時新快餐店

When it comes to Hong Kong style burger, most people would point you to Si Sun Fast Food for its bargain hearty burger with homemade sauce and meat patty. For around HKD16 you get yourself a double cheese burger with fried egg! Do expect long queues and cramped seating arrangement on a first come first served basis. You can bring you own stool and sit outside if you like, no one is going to stop you.

Green Waffle Diner

There seems to be an increasing number restos in town offering hearty food items and Green Waffle Diner is one that I quite enjoyed. It was my second visit but it was a as enjoyable as my first. During my first visit I commented on some of the items and I wanted to check up on the improvements if any. The Fried Chicken and Waffle was indeed an unlikely combo I find them quite ... matching! The owner did improve on the marination of the chicken and this time the meat was more flavorful. It was the fact that they make an effort to improve on the food based on customer's feedback (valid feedback of course). The waffle was airy and crisp, a simple sprinkle of icing was all it needed in my opinion.

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.

Simplylife (Revisited)

My last visit here was about a month ago for Sunday brunch, this evening I was here for a Sunday dinner before a movie. I just wanted something simple but simple does not translate to something quick or without certain quality preferences; I guess it has to do with the attitude towards it. A bowl of instant noodles with a cup of HK-style milk tea at one of those old school restaurants (cha charn teng 茶餐廳.). A meal similar to that experienced by Gigi - Between Coffee is something I do consider a simple yet satisfying meal.

Although this place is called Simplylife, the items they offer are not that simple indeed. Items on the dinner menu were like those from fine dining establishments whereby all ingredients were listed out. I guess it was nice to know what exact ingredients they used but when you just want something simple like a bacon cheeseburger, the details just make things more confusing in my own opinion.



Their Ginger Ale is something I order every single time because it is good! It actually has a real ginger in there which give the ale a kick in terms of ginger flavor. A highly recommended drink if you like gingery flavors.



I quite enjoyed their Caesar Salad which came with a few slices of soft boiled eggs. The sauce was not overly strong and just the right amount of it as well. More cheese would be nice.



My friend ordered the Angus Prime Beef Burger with cheddar cheese and crispy back bacon. Apparently they don't serve with spicy fries on default anymore (at least at this location), it has to be specified. Hello Spicy Fries, I love you! :) ... The beef patty was a bit overcooked but very beefy in flavors. Bacon was not as crispy as hoped but with very rich bacon flavor which went well with both the cheese and the beef!



As for me, I ordered Seared Salmon with Chickpea cake, carrot ginger juice and herb salad. It was overcooked, not what I was being told by staff that it would be cooked at medium. The chickpea cake basically soaked up all the carrot ginger sauce over the course of the meal and the cake became pretty soggy and overly rich in terms of flavors from the sauce. Overall it was alright, a fairly healthy dish I would say.



Likes

• Great Service
• Spicy Fries!!
• Ginger Ale - the piece of ginger make the world of differences!

Dislikes

• Salmon a bit overcooked
• Beef patty overcooked
• I don't like the fact that the chickpea cake soaked up all the sauce!

Avg Spending: HKD 100 - 200 per person

Simplylife: Bread and Wine
Shop 1081, IFC Mall
Central, Hong Kong
Tel: 852 2234 7356
http://www.maxims.com.hk/tc/main.asp


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BLT Burger

There is no other way but to eat burger with both your hands! Remember that! Ohhh, did I ever mention that a hearty burger should go with either a very cold pint of beer or even better, a thick & creamy milkshake! Strawberry Milkshake has won the battle this time!

For more pictures and details on my visit to BLT Burger, check out my review on CNNgo.

Avg Spending: HKD 100 - 200 per person

BLT Burger

Shop 301, Level 3, Ocean Terminal, Harbour City,

17 Canton Road, TST

Tel: 2730 2338

http://www.bltburger.com/

Triple O's by White Spot

This entry is inspired by Mochachocolata Rita's recent venture to Duke's Burger and Jin's latest entry on McDonald's. Strongly influenced by their mouth-watering experiences, I was craving for burgers as well!! As I passed by Triple O's at Harbour City after my XMAS CD shopping spree, I went straight towards to counter without much hesitation. Instead of a meaty burger, I opted for the fish!!

(1) Fish Burger
The fish fillet was thick and the battered layer was crispy. The inside was moist and flaky, wonderful indeed. There were plenty of cooked onion and tartar sauce as well. So how would I review? Well, I was licking most of my fingers at the end so to from the phrase from KFC, it was "finger lickin' good"! (what I regret the most was that I SHOULD HAVE ORDERED THE MILKSHAKE!!!)

Likes:

• Fish Fillet was thick, crispy out the outside and moist + flaky in the inside

Dislikes

• the heated bun was a bit too soft (maybe I was grabbing it too hard?)

Avg Spending: Below HKD 100 per person

Triple O's by White Spot
#3001-DB, Level 3, Citysuper
Harbour City, Canton Road, TST, Kowloon
Tel: 852 2387 7000
http://www.tripleos.hk/



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Main St. Deli

I missed my chance of having dinner here several weeks ago because I was sick. I have been thinking about it ever since and I just have to come here sooner or later, preferably sooner of course. Without much hesitation when my friend asked me out for dinner, I picked this place to make it up. The layout of this place looked so-what of a typical NYC Deli but the hanging Chandeliers and leather-like padded chairs made the place an upscale one.



(1) Original Matzoh Ball (also known as Matzah Ball)
I ordered this soup because I had no idea what it was. As informed, it contained a boiled dough in the shape of a ball and placed into the chicken soup. Interesting I thought and the presentation certainly surprised me for sure! The huge "boiled dough" ball was placed in the middle of the soup as informed. The Matzoh Ball was rather tasteless, but it was nice and comforting when consumed together with the slightly salty chicken soup. The texture was smooth and soft which reminded me of the Indian dessert Gulab Jamun.



(2) The Ultimate 54 Burgers
My friend ordered this huge burger which consisted of lettuce, tomatoes, mushroom, bacon, fried egg, Swiss and Cheddar Cheese. The one item that attracted me the most was the fried egg, made me droll for sure! Among the many choices of side dishes, my friend picked the "Potato Bricks" which looked very filling indeed.



(3) Wagyu Ruben (choices of 25cm, 50cm, 75cm & 100cm)
(Wagyu pastrami, corned beef, turkey, sauerkraut and melted Swiss Cheese on crispy baguette served with creamy coleslaw and chunky potato salad.) I loved the presentation, particularly the measurement label on the wooden plate / tray. With the various kinds of meats stacked it was rather difficult to distinguish the individual flavors of the meats. The 25cm sandwich must be enjoyed by experiencing the combined flavors of the various meats. It was the intensity of the different flavors that really made the world of differences to me. Although the meats were not as juicy or tender as I hoped, a quick dip into the cheese sauce and a sip of beer along the way compensated such short-fall; at least to me.



When the sandwich was served, it came with a steak knife but it was rather difficult to eat this way; it was too civilized! Hence I use my hands which was the best way in my opinion! It might not be the most hygienic gesture but there was no other ways more satisfying than licking melted cheese off your fingers. To quote from KFC, "finger lickin' good." The fries were disappointing though, they were soggy, very soggy.

Likes:

• Very comfortable atmosphere and great service!
• Wagyu Ruben - wonderful indeed. More cheese would be nice!
• Original Matzoh Ball - an interesting item to try.

Dislikes:

• Fries -very soggy!
• Fries / Potatoes bricks cost extra, even for the burger dish

Avg. Spending: HKD 200 - 300 per person

Main St. Deli
Lower lobby level,
Langham Hotel, 8 Peking Road, TST
Tel: 2375 1133
http://hongkong.langhamhotels.com/en/restaurants/main_st_deli.htm


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The Press Room (Revisited)

I never really enjoyed having a one-day holiday in the middle of the week because the feeling is more devastating than weekends. Within 24 hours, one has to return to work, the feeling is definitely worst than a normal 48 hours weekend, which is already not enough! It was 1 Oct 2009, and the best activity to cheer myself on such a holiday was to find something comforting for brunch. I have been to the Brunch Club a bit too often lately so I opted for The Press Room for a nice and relaxing brunch with a friend.



To my surprise, The Press Room looked slightly different, especially the entrance and the previous seafood bar area. After an apparent renovation, a new seafood bar has been constructed at the entrance with its old location replaced by a beverages / alcohol bar. It is obvious that they want to push their seafood items and one of their new offerings include freshly baked / prepared whole fish which can be selected from the seafood bar. Grilled Whole Red Snapper sounds good to me !! The red snapper is for another night, for brunch on this gloomy afternoon, we went for something more suited for this time of day.



(1) Blueberries Pancakes
Pancake? It should be named Fat Pancake or Over-sized Pancake because of its thickness. It was so thick but for a reason I suppose. Only with this thickness can the chunks of blueberries be able to hide inside the pancake. Also, the texture of the pancake was more like a slice of loaf cake, rather firm and dry. It really tasted like slice of loaf cake if it weren't for the syrup. A disappointing dish. (o yes, the bacon was alright, crisp and dry, not greasy as well.)



(2) Corned Beef Hash with poached egg
A highly recommended dish by my friend and it was definitely worth trying. The poached egg was prepared just right with plenty of egg yolk flooding out when the poach was punctured. It really looked like a little poach. As for the hash itself, the texture was starchy with a crisp but firm outer layer. The beef flavor was rich and the diced potatoes and minced carrots inside gave the hash an added variation of flavors on every bite. I think there were traces or slight hints of tomato (and its skin) in the hash but I wasn't certain. Overall a wonderful brunch item.

(3) Press Room Fries

How can one visit The Press Room without ordering its fries, it is a must in my opinion. I have talked about its fries over and over again in many of my reviews and I will never get tired of mentioning it again because it is one of best I tried so far in Hong Kong. The one we ordered was freshly fried and it was crispy with a relatively hollow center and it was not too greasy with a slightly chewy outer layer to it. Thumbs up again! My friend and I were literally fighting over the last piece !!

Likes:

• Fries, Fries and more Fries
• Slightly renovated but maintained the relaxing atmosphere and bistro decor from before.
• Corned Beef Hash - very starchy and rich in beef flavor, a very decent dish

Dislikes:

• Pancake - taste like loaf cake, too thick and dry
• Can be quite noisy when full house

Avg Spending: HKD 100 - 200 per person

The Press Room
108 Hollywood Road, SoHo
Tel: 2525 3444
http://www.thepressroom.com.hk/


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The Press Room

I have been talking about this place for a long while, especially on the topic of French fries. On this Monday night, it was my day off and after watching the movie UP (what a great movie), my friend and I decided to come here for a relaxing dinner. This place brings back many memories, actually not so pleasant memories now that I think about it. It has nothing to do with food quality, it was something personal. One should look forward into the future instead of circling in the past asking why continuously. Anyhow, enough with the personal reflection here. We arrived at around 8:30pm but it was almost full, on a Monday night! I was surprised but it is a good thing I guess. (O yeah, a note worth mentioning, they are having a Free Flowing Wine Night every Monday!)



On the way to the main dining area, one would pass by the little oyster bar at the corner. Again I was still shocked at the number of people here on a Monday night! The atmosphere is soft and mild but it was rather noisy that night; then again, this place is called the Press Room which is suppose to be noisy right? While ordering, I asked for some free flowing wine to start it off.




(1) Oysters Selection
With the little oyster bar hiding in the corner, I cannot help myself but to order a few to try. On the menu there was a oyster platter selection but BEWARE, the selection of oysters under the platter option was very limited. To stay away from the limited choices (which we both dislike), we ordered 2 other kinds, a la carte style. We order Angel from Scotland and Fine de Claire from France. The Angel was very salty, way more salty than our expectation especially form a Scottish oyster. Fine de Claire, on the other hand, was way better. It was salty but not in the same sense as Angel because it was rich in oyster flavor to start off with and slowly brought out the sweet and bitter aftertaste. We both liked the Fine de Claire better.

(2) Baked Sea Snails
I liked the presentation very much, simple while elegant. The snails were placed on top of a pile of sea salt. (I wonder why it is called Sea Snails because it looked like Sea Whelk to me.) The flavor was good especially with "a bit" of the sea salt. I said "a bit" because if you tip the balance and got yourself a spoonful of the sea salt in your mouth, prepare to drink a lot of water because the sea salt used was very salty that it can dehydrate soon after. However, with the right amount, it went really well with the sea snails.



(3) Baby Chicken
I am not sure if I mention it before but in my opinion, chicken is a very difficult dish to master or to prepare in a restaurant because it is very easy to overcook it. The ability to prepare a good chicken dish, be it roasted or grilled, gives you a fair idea of the skills of the chef in that restaurant. I would not give the dish being served a thumbs up review not because the chicken quality was bad, it was actually tender throughout and relatively juicy even for the breast area; but it was the flavor of the herbs and spices used that I was rather disappointed. Most of the flavors were on the skin layer so if you are not a "chicken skin eater", you would not get much of a taste out of this dish. I eat chicken skin, so by ensuring my every bite of chicken has a small piece of skin to go along with it, it was a very decent dish.



(4) Daube De Boeuf (with Wagyu Beef Cheek)
Based on my understanding, it is a very difficult French dish to prepare because it requires long cooking time and skills. (at least that is my understanding) It was because of the difficulties in preparing this dish that I insisted on ordering it. The sauce was great, very rich but tasty in my opinion. The mash potatoes were good as well with strong butter flavor. While the Waygu Beef Cheek was very tender and soft that it almost required no chewing at all. (of course not to the point of melting in your mouth like some A5 Grade Wagyu steak but very soft indeed) However, while it was soft and tender, there seemed to be no beef taste to it at all. Is that how the beef cheek tastes like or lacked of it? humm ...



(5) French Fries
We ordered two sets because one was just not enough!!! The fries at this place is so far one of the best I have tried in Hong Kong. They remained crisp even after leaving it at room temperature for 10 or 15 minutes. The texture of the fries is one of the key elements I like to mention because although individual fries were sliced up from one single potato, they were not overly filling with a relative hallow interior. Flavor wise, only traces of salt was found, letting the rich potato flavor for my taste bud to enjoy. Thumbs up!

Likes:

• Great decor, atmosphere and ambiance
• French Fries
• Baked Sea Snails

Dislikes:

• A bit noisy (+ slight echoing effect when full house)
  
• Limited selection of oyster for the platter option
• lack of beef taste from the Wagyu beef cheek (is it suppose to taste like this? humm)

Avg Spending: HKD 300 - 500 per person

The Press Room
108 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan
Tel: 2525 3444
http://www.thepressroom.com.hk/

798 Unit & Co

I can't recall the last time I was here, maybe over a year ago or so. All I remembered was that I have not been back ever since for various reasons. Tonight, two friends and I decided to pay this place a visit. The decor of this restaurant (which applies to its TST outlet as well) carries a French Bistro style with a very soft and mild ambiance. The tile floor along with chalk board menu adds an extra touch of the authenticity to the whole atmosphere. What I found interesting was the choice of songs playing in the background. For example, 98 Degrees and Backstreet Boys ! These songs certain brought back some memories indeed.



(1) Salad of smoked trout, brie, mango & baby greens
A very refreshing salad especially with the diced mango on top. The tofu like rectangular looking thing was the brie and in terms of texture and flavors, it was rather ... humm ... interesting when eating it together with the mango. The same applies when eating the mango with the smoked trout. In my opinion, there was too much of a contrast in flavors when eating the so-called main ingredients together.



(2) Manila Clams
(in white wines, cream & parley sauce) The sauce was great, not too creamy and very rich in flavor. A lot of places tend to pour too much white wine during the making of the sauce, causing it overly strong with the wine flavor. Thumbs up on the sauce. However, the clams were a bit disappointing for me. For the few that I tried, they were not very fresh based on my experiences with seafood, both raw and cooked.



(3) Baked Portobella mushroom
Contrary to my expectation, nothing special about this dish. The flavor of the mushroom was a bit too salty and texture wise it very dry; definitely over-baked. Thumbs down. Very disappointing.



(4) Slow-baked oxtail risotto
Flavors were rich and it was great. The shredded oxtail were soft and tender. However, the risotto was overcooked. While it was creamy, the texture of the rice was too soft and lacked the chewy texture to it. Also, it was slightly too salty.



(5) Oven Roasted Long Bone Beef Short Ribs
Wow. When it was served, we all shouted "wow" together because it was huge! It was close to 48oz at least. Now I know why the words "Long Bone" were there on the menu. What a Ironic name tough, Long Bone ... Short Ribs ! Good that we were sharing this otherwise there was just no ways any one of us can finish it. We ordered it medium and medium it was. It was well roasted and the salt & spices were applied very evenly as well. Even the outer layer of the short ribs remained relatively tender after being roasted for a while. A well prepared dish and we all enjoyed it very much. A note of caution, in order to cut through this short ribs, prepare to use a lot of energy because I think it took me more effort than to cut a turkey!



(6) French Fries
Fries were freshly prepared and it came in a tin can similar to the Press Room. It came with ketchup and some gravy which was a nice touch. If they can be lighter on the salt it would be even better. I liked it but not as much as those from the Press Room. I personally prefer thinner fries. Potato wedge, on the other hand, is another story because I don't consider them fries. Wedges are Wedges !



(7) Mango-passion fruit & coconut trifle
An interesting dessert with Honey-Lemongrass sorbet on top. I really liked the sorbet because I like lemongrass and the sorbet has a very rich flavor of it as well. The jello-like texture of the orange and white layers were of mango and passion fruits flavors respectively. I could not really taste the coconut, likely due to the rich mango flavor. Together with the honey lemongrass sorbet, it was a very refreshing dessert on such a hot summer night.



(8) Creme brulee
It was surprisingly well prepared. Not too rich with the vanilla flavor and not too thick / creamy with its texture. The caramelized layer on top was evenly done and was crisp through out the whole dish. Not bad at all.

Likes:

• Decor / Atmosphere
• Oven Roasted Long Bone Beef Short Ribs - HUGE but Delicious !

Dislikes:

• Salad of smoked trout, brie, mango & baby greens (the contrast in flavors was rather too great for me)
• Slow-baked oxtail risotto (a bit too salty and overcooked risotto)
• Baked Portobella mushroom (too dry and salty again)

Avg Spending: HKD 200 - 300 per person

798 Unit & Co
Shop 1203, 12/F, Food Forum, Times Square,
1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay
Tel: 2506 0611