Izakaya With a Bang

It seems like an oxymoron when they decided to name their Japanese Izakaya style restaurant “Silencio” (after a Latin jazz song apparently – just FYI), but then one might argue it’s somewhat appropriate given they do have a jazz band performing live at the dining room every evening. That’s just part of what made this new place in Lan Kwai Fong unique and fun as a place to hang out, eat and drink.

Stars Gala

It's highly unusual that I made a second trip to Macau in less than a week (more on that on the post later this month), but then this is for a highly unusual event. Michelin is celebrating its 10th Anniversary in Hong Kong/Macau this year with a grand gala dinner as part of the annual announcement event, this year held in Macau's City of Dreams complex and I was invited to attend.

Touring Middle East 11: Discovery by Accident

Machneyuda restaurant in Jerusalem checked every boxes of the type of place I would be dying to try - one specializes in local cuisine, with open kitchen, a creative team and menu which changes daily based on seasonal ingredients sourced from the market next door, not to mention it came highly recommended by just about every travel guide/website/reviews I managed to read before the trip.

Dinner at a Speakeasy Bar

A week after attending the pre-opening media preview of the new Employees Only Hong Kong at Lan Kwai Fong, I was given a second opportunity to try more of their food and drink, this time at a sit-down dinner. Monday was probably not the busiest night at Lan Kwai Fong (plus we started a bit early), but it was fairly packed when I walked in to the bar (and soon it was filled to the capacity as the night progressed and by the time we moved to our dinner table)

Newest on the Block

We kicked off the Easter long weekend with a visit to a new restaurant in Soho. We loved both the previous restaurants by Chef May Chow (of Little Bao and Second Draft), so we expected great things from Happy Paradise, her newest project not far away from the ever-popular Little Bao, one that shot her into fame with contemporary, playful twist to the traditional Chinese cooking.

Chinatown Style Dinner

Not in a thousand years would I have guessed dragon-i actually has a full dinner menu. With proper tableware set up and all for a traditional Chinese meal (in addition to other bar food and Japanese-style dishes). While during late night this place up on Wyndham, which for years have been the mecca of Hong Kong nightlife and the ultimate seen-and-be-seen venue, could get real lively, at dinner hour it was actually quiet and cozy – you can almost hear the pin dropped on the floor. That I didn't know before until I came over to eat recently. 

Tai Hang's Second Coming

Compared to Sai Ying Pun or Kennedy Town on the west side, the once trendy neighborhood of Tai Hang has been relatively quiet lately. But that was about to change for a second coming of sorts, with a few new buildings near completion and along with that, new restaurants and bars openings bringing the limelight back to this cozy area with a fine mix of old and new businesses.

Delicious Lesson Learned

I must declare I knew absolutely nothing about Indonesian cuisine. With such diversity because of race, religion and cultural backgrounds for this fourth most populated country in the world, there's simply way too much to learn, so I was particularly grateful for the opportunity to explore a bit more about Indonesian food (and in a sense, their culture) with a presentation by a culinary expert on this subject followed by dinner at Kaum, the restaurant at the newly-opened Potato Head Hong Kong in Sai Ying Pun.

Another Pop-up Bar at Landmark Mandarin

I hardly know anything of the latest in the dining and drinking scene in New York City these days, but I was told PDT (Please Don't Tell) is some big shot in East Village many considered to be the best speakeasy bar in town, if not the world. After a few stints of pop-up appearances around the world, they recently stopped by Hong Kong to take up a 3-week-long residence at MO Bar of Landmark Mandarin Oriental, and I went on one of the earlier evenings to check it out.

Eating and Drinking at a Popup Bar

Of course, there were numerous occasions that we are more than willing to go the distance to try out the best restaurants, cafes or bars in far away places, but it's also nice when some of them come to you instead, saving us all the hassles. A few days ago I was at MO Bar at Landmark Mandarin Oriental, checking out the food and drink at a popup by the visiting gang from Employees Only, a speakeasy-style bar/restaurant in New York City's West Village, which is now ranked one of the world's best.

Beer and Kushiyaki

We walked down the stairs feeling a bit tipsy from "Battle of the Brews", a beer tasting event organized by Beertopia, which featured some 30 craft beers from around the world with live music performance at The Space in Sheung Wan. With the effect of the malt and the hops and the alcohol kicked in, we felt like needing something to eat so my friend suggested this new Japanese Izakaya place near Lan Kwai Fong.

Another Monday Night - Ronin

I heard mixed comments regarding Ronin - some swore it's the best izakaya in town, some gave me the "meh" look when I mentioned we were going to try the restaurant, thinking it's overrated. Given that I actually waited long enough so I got a good share of comments before setting my foot into this place - I don't wanna waste my money (and time) on a lousy meal. Oh well, we finally went this past Monday, here's my verdict.

Night Out at Socialito

It's probably my prejudice (or more from past experience), but I always have this impression that places that are more for drinking don't serve decent food. So I didn't come with particularly high expectation before I set foot at Socialito - just another gimmicky place in LKF for people foolish enough to dine at a "to see and be seen" hip place, I thought.

An Invitation at Brickhouse

I was at Brickhouse recently for a dinner invitation to taste their new menu. It's been a while since I was last here so I was eager to try some of the newer items Chef Austin Fry has made. It's also good fun to meet up with old friends and new ones at the dinner table who shared the same passion in eating (and blogging about their experiences).