Over the Monday blues at Chesa

Wanting a good, casual meal to cheer us up over the Monday blues under such erratic weather, we swung by Chesa at The Peninsula last week. It almost seems like the restaurant didn't change a bit for as long as we remember, with the same dark decor, wooden wall and ceiling resembling an Alpine chalet, with almost the same menu featuring classic Swiss dishes. We felt that's just the refuge we needed to chill and relax.

Countertop Fine Dining at Wagyu Takumi

Wagyu Takumi was one of the restaurants in town that I have always wanted to try but never came around to, so this time we made a conscious effort to come check it out as part of the birthday celebration for my wife. The restaurant is part of the restaurant complex which also houses Gin Sai and Rozan in a quiet Wanchai neighborhood, with a rather discreet entrance located on the side street.

Celebrating Le French GourMay

When it comes to a place to chill after work, or for a casual late evening nightcap without loading up for a full-blown meal, Caprice Bar is certainly the one on top of our "to-go" list. Not so much of "the best kept secret" anymore, as it's often packed, this place at the Four Seasons offered consistent snack and small bites in a luxurious yet cozy environment, while turning down a notch from the formal dining experience at the proper restaurant next door. Of course, needless to say it also offered one of the best cheese selections in town - something we always order every time we are there.

Opening Frenzy: Nakamura Tokichi

In Hong Kong, there are restaurant openings and then there are THE restaurant openings, and the recent launch of Nakamura Tokichi (中村藤吉) definitely belonged to the latter category. Rarely have I seen such a frenzy building up for any new place, other than in the days and weeks prior to the official opening of the first overseas outpost of this 150-year-old, Kyoto-based tea maker/lounge last week. All the social media outlets have been swamped with posts from those who had a chance for a sneak preview, the press was all over it, and in the first few days its operations, many waited in line for hours to get in, some started early in the morning in order to score a table or to order one of the limited menu items.

Steak and Cocktail Night

Last week I was treated to a steak dinner with cocktail pairings at Morton's at Sheraton in TST. I know, steakhouses sounded like something of an item only in yester-year, where my parents' generation would go for a big celebration of some sort, but to me, there is still this special charm about dining in a classic, American-style steakhouse, completed with clubby decor, leather booths, slow, jazzy music in the background, generous portion of food, and gracious service.

Another Saturday afternoon at Caprice

A few weeks ago we had the pleasure of eating at Caprice again on a Saturday afternoon with just the two of us this time (as opposed to a bigger group that we had a couple months ago). We picked this date out of random when we booked our table a few weeks ago, but timing turned out to be perfect as Chef Fabrice just introduced the new seasonal menu a few days before, coupled with the great weather and clear sky we got to enjoy seeing as we settled at our table by the window overlooking the West Kowloon skyline.

Crossover at Yardbird



We were at Yardbird just this past weekend in one of their rare Sunday afternoon openings to try out an one-day-only special menu prepared by chef/owner Matt and the visiting Korean-American chef Corey Lee.

Taking a "bao" - First Time at Little Bao

We thought we were probably the last people to visit Little Bao after all the hypes and words around town (both positive and negative ones), but we finally did it for the first time on an early Saturday evening. It's been almost 2 years since Chef May Chow set off the "bao" frenzy with her little outpost in Soho, not counting her experimental (but hugely successful) pop-up at the Island East Markets earlier. Since then, this no-reservation, counter-only restaurant with less than 15 seats has become one of the most sought-after dining spot, with waiting lines seen every day from 6pm til who-know-when, which was something that has put us off from going earlier.

A late-spring dinner at Summer Palace

On a Thursday evening of one uneventful week in late April we went to Summer Palace at Island Shangri-la for a casual family dinner, which was also an early birthday celebration for mom. It's been ages since I last came - definitely in terms of years, not months - and first time for dinner, so to me this is as good as trying a new place.