Soigne

Soigne looked more “industrial” than I imagined and I didn’t know what gave me such impression when I visited the restaurant for dinner one night, whether it was the location in the lower floor of an office building, the bright white lighting or the open kitchen with light color decor that felt like a lab, or the quiet dining room with furniture that looks more like corporate office.

The Perfect Repeat

I wasn’t planning to come to Tokyo in such quick succession but then when Chef Daniel suggested that I should come visit again during the Shanghainese hairy crab season after my meal in September and “you wouldn’t regret it,” I was like, sure, why not. And just as important was this time I came with the missus. Coming in for lunch this time and I found the dining room during day even more charming, with the mild sunlight beaming in from the window, and this time I got to sit at a table properly for the whole meal with our friends CXB and KC which happened to be in Tokyo and booked to eat there on the exact same day. 

Over the Moon (Again)

"It's actually my birthday today..." Chef Andre shared with us this in a timid manner as he dropped by our table at the beginning of the dinner at Sichuan Moon. Probably not exactly his choice but we are happy to spend the evening with him on this special day - hahaha.  

Ode to Seaweed

Complications due to COVID restrictions meant our February booking at Tate Dining Room got pushed not once but twice, first to April and then to June. We were supposed to try their "Ode to Seaweed" menu when the menu was first launched and turned out we were there on the last weekend before they moved onto the next theme for the summer. 

Beauty in the Details

I long admire the work of Chef Anne-Sophie Pic so we made plan to eat at her restaurant in London one afternoon. The restaurant was one of the dining outlets of Four Seasons London at Ten Trinity Square, a relatively new hotel converted from an old building (formerly of Port of London Authority built over a century ago). A quick 2-minute walk from the nearest Tube Station (Tower Hill) I was right in front of this gorgeous building with magnificent facade completed with huge columns and the stair entrance facing the River Thames.

Late Summer at Caprice

Four months on since Chef Guillaume settled at the kitchen of Caprice of Four Seasons Hong Kong we saw another change of menu with even more new dishes being introduced by the team, just as we were about to say goodbye to the long summer season in the beginning of September. Like last time when we were here a couple months ago, we left it entirely to him to decide on the menu for us and we had a blast with a series of delightful dishes.

The Good Old Restaurant, More New Dishes

"Let me know next time when you come over again so I can show you more new dishes" I don't think when Chef Gauillaume said that he expect I would come back so soon after my lunch at Caprice back in June. But here we are again for another lunch only a couple of weeks later, since CYY missed out the first one and she wanted to make up for it.

Macau Dimsum Part 2: Golden Flower

Of the many restaurants on my to-try list, Golden Flower has always been the elusive one for whatever reasons. But we worked around our itinerary a little bit this time to make sure we stopped by for lunch at the restaurant this time we were in town for the weekend.

Sneak Preview from the Kitchen

As our friend Fabrice is ready for his new post heading The Tasting Room in Macau after moving on from Caprice, we want to pay him a visit just to catch up, and CYY’s birthday in mid-May gave us the perfect excuse to spend a weekend in town as part of the celebration. So I let him know of our plan in advance and check whether the restaurant would be open then after being closed for the past few months for a makeover.

Caprice in the Autumn

Our plan for dinner at Caprice got pushed back a few times for various reasons but we finally made it in early October, just as we started feeling the end of the unbearably hot season is near. Over the last few months we were at the Caprice Bar more often savoring their wine and cheese selection, to wind down what has been a somewhat stressful time at work for both of us, but I thought a proper meal was in order at the formal dining room next door to check out some of Chef Fabrice’s new dishes for the season.

Family Dinner Up High

Tin Lung Heen is the first place that came to mind when we went for a weeknight family dinner. It was more than one year since I was last here, for one of their special tasting menus at the private room, and I always wanted to come back to check out their a la carte menu. Plus it's conveniently located midway between our homes, so logistics-wise it worked out just fine for everyone.

Caprice in the Summer

One subtle change to the weekend lunch menu at Caprice recently was the expansion of their set menu with additional choices (adding a separate soup section after the appetizers), and a new 4-course option for those wanting a more substantial meal than the usual 2-course or 3-course menu.

Celebration of sorts

Wifey wanna do a birthday celebration of sort in May so we organized a mini-gathering with a few friends for a long weekend lunch at our favorite restaurant. It's actually only our first time sitting down for a proper meal at the private room of Caprice tucked away towards the end of the dining room, with a long table in the middle, window in the front facing the harbor with glass cabinet on both sides displaying some of the fine antique porcelain pieces. It's especially spacious for just the nine of us. (room can sit twelve comfortably)

"Open The New Year" Meal

On the last day of our Chinese New Year long weekend, we had another stellar lunch at Caprice. We did something similar at around the same time last year with my brother, sis-in-law and our nephew, taking a recess from the traditional new year festivities with a leisurely lunch at a much slower pace. So we decided to do a repeat this year - this time with just us two.

Nin Chor Saam (年初三), or the third day of Chinese New Year was traditionally known as "Chek Hau" (赤口 which literally meant Red Mouth Day), during which many people often refrained from meeting friends and relatives as the day was thought to be prone to arguments. So it made perfect sense that we saved this day for a little "us" time at our favorite restaurant. And it was a particularly gorgeous day to be sitting by the window at this stunning dining room enjoying our long lunch with the clear skyline view across the harbor.

Canto Dinner with a View

After spending the whole Sunday afternoon at the spa upstairs at InterContinental Hong Kong, I guess it made sense to stay behind for a simple dinner at Yan Toh Heen, their award-winning Chinese restaurant in the basement, to wrap up the weekend. To be honest, it's been a long while since my last visit - if memories served me correctly the last time I was here the restaurant was still under renovation (like more than 2 years ago?) and definitely before they got the second Michelin star.

Settling for an Early Dinner

We were pulling our hair trying to figure out a place for an early dinner in Macau before heading back to Hong Kong Sunday night. On one hand we don't wanna settle for generic, food-court quality food, which was a dime a dozen in the casino complexes. On the other hand, with only an hour or so to spare, it would have been too much a rush trying to go through a proper, sit-down meal.

The Tasting Lunch by Galliot

After making two whistle stops in old town Macau for a classic cha chaan teng followed by a new artisan cafe in the morning, we hopped on a cab and headed to the City of Dreams complex in Taipa for our lunch reservation at The Tasting Room.

City of Dreams is one of the "newer" gaming complexes located in the reclaimed land off Macau now known as The Cotai Strip, with three top hotels, several floor of casino space, a large shopping mall and numerous dining outlets. Those who have been following the Michelin Guide keenly would notice they were one of the biggest winners in the current Hong Kong/Macau version of the book, with one new restaurant getting their first star, and two others got elevated into the two-star category, one of them being The Tasting Room. (we actually ended up trying all three restaurants over the weekend, more on that later)

Weekend Lunch and Pommes Souffle

I was not sure what Chef Fabrice thought when I actually took up his offer to teach me to cook in his kitchen, but I was pretty excited. A few months ago I was at his restaurant Caprice at the Four Seasons Hong Kong when a bowl of Pommes Souffle appeared as the side dish to our main course, and I was fascinated by the taste and texture.

Happy Birthday to Me

We often use the occasion of birthday celebrations as an excuse to check out any fancy new restaurant in town, but this time, we decided to go back to one of our favorites, the tried-and-true Caprice at the Four Seasons, to celebrate my own birthday.

Life has been quite hectic for both of us lately so the prospect of a slow and quiet dinner at a place we have been perfectly comfortable with was something that we eagerly anticipate. We were also excited to see what new dishes Chef Fabrice and the team would bring to us, as October came the time for the new menu to be introduced for the autumn game season.

Kaiseki Lunch at Gion Maruyama

We concluded our brief stay in Kyoto with lunch at a kaiseki restaurant called Gion Maruyama (祇園丸山), which came highly recommended by a few food loving friends of ours.

As we had a train to catch shortly after lunch, we did the unthinkable of dragging our suitcases cross the classy Hamamikoji-dori (花見小路通), a popular sightseeing street near Gion known for the common sight of geisha strolling past. There are actually two Maruyama restaurants, both owned by Chef Yoshio Maruyama and both awarded 2 Michelin stars, and the one we went was the honten, or the original branch, located just a couple blocks off Hamamikoji-dori inside an old traditional Japanese house.