We had a few friends joining us for lunch at Caprice a few weekends ago, as we figured that would be the perfect opportunities to celebrate a few birthdays happening in May. We know we must have caused some headaches for the restaurant staff as they were scrambling to accommodate our big group (with the private room already booked by someone else) but at the end they managed to seat us all across two tables near to the kitchen area.
A few familiar faces were not on duty inside the kitchen on the day of our visit, but nonetheless we left it to the team to decide our menu. We did end up with a nice combination of old and new dishes. Starting our meal was a refreshing amuse-bouche course with white asparagus velouté with sea urchins and caviar. We caught the small window when white asparagus was in season and I love this simple combination of ingredients, with the umami flavor from the sea urchins and caviar working well with the clean, refreshing soup.
We then proceed to their signature Alaskan king crab dish, served with crustacean jelly and caviar. Seems like this has become a regular item on their menu, and having tried this a few times before and loved it, I ain’t going to complain for having this again. And seems like this time it was given an upgrade with the addition of picked lobster meat and gold foil on top.
My favorite course of the afternoon was the dover sole served with a “bouillabaisse-style” sauce. The fish was perfectly done with good bouncy texture, and the sauce has toned down on the citrus hint from the similar one I tried last month, and I thought it worked better with the fish this time. And our main course was duck this time, with slices of Challans duck breast seared and smoked, and served with green peas fricassee and dolce forte sauce. It’s served in tasting portion – unlike last time when three of us shared the whole duck – and it worked out just fine. The duck was a tad bit tough – more to do with the meat texture than cooking, and it wasn’t a big problem.
After the cheese course served in 2 wooden planks (one for cow milk cheese and one for sheep milk’s), we had a couple of desserts, including the lovely strawberry cream cake that Chef Vivien and his team prepared for us. (after I told him about the birthday celebration a few days ago). Love the taste of the seasonal strawberries – there’s nothing that brought the summer feeling more than this. We went for a couple bottles this time – the white one picked by Victor their sommelier and the red one I pulled from home. Full-bodied, good mineral and citrus flavor for the white works well with the few seafood courses. I was a bit worried about the bottle condition of the decade-old Barbaresco I brought, but turned out it has come to age beautifully. Floral nose, ripe cherry on the palate with some hint of tobacco and spices, and rounded tannin – perfect for the duck and I am glad we shared this with a few wine-loving friends.
When? May 11 2019
Where? Caprice, Level 6, Four Seasons Hong Kong, 8 Finance Street, Hong Kong
Menu Highlights? Atlantic Dover Sole "Bouillabaisse" style
Drinks?
2015 Domaine L'Ecu Cuvee Lux MMXV Chardonnay, Loire
2008 Falletto di Bruno Giacosa Asili Barbaresco DOCG
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