Chaat It Out

It did take some twist of my friend G’s arm to get a last-minute booking at the ever popular Chaat at Rosewood Hong Kong in Tsimshatsui. And even with that what we got is a table booking at 3pm – certainly not a complaint but that made it another late lunch/early dinner for us on a Sunday afternoon. 

“When we were still able to eat out at night” was my answer when the service staff asked when was my last visit, and not much has changed in terms of their menu since then (it's late June last year – just FYI) But I did want to check out some different dishes from last time so we ended up having a mix of those I tried, and a few that I haven’t. With the generous portion of their food and only the two of us eating we did our best in picking as many dishes as we could finish. 

We started with a pair of “Small Plates”, which were nothing but small. The Raj Kachori was beautifully plated with great flavor to show forth. Potatoes, lentils and other spices were cooked and filled in a deep-fried kachori dough, with pomegranate and chutney served on top and on the side respectively. Just the right touch of heat but super delicious. The Bhel Puri was nice too, except the taste of the scallops were buried along with loads of ingredients served on top, including crispy puffed rice, peanuts and tamarind. It made great bar snack though, I reckon, with the crunchy textures and strong flavor.

We picked a couple of dishes from the Tandoori section. I thought the Paneer Tikka was slightly softer than what I remembered (I could be wrong about that) and definitely richer and spicier, especially with the sauce served on the side. I also loved the taste of the Burnt Chilli Chicken Tikka – not as hot as I anticipated but well marinated with the burnt bit on the outside, thought I thought the meat was a little too soft. I was expecting more of a bite. The beef short rib kebab was the comped dish the kitchen team sent us, and we were so glad they did. Could feel the meat’s tenderness when I put the fork in, and not only the texture was perfect, the taste was too, even without the yogurt dipping sauce on the side. Surely my favorite course this afternoon. 

We finished with the curry course. Went for a repeat of the Bengali Prawn Curry which I liked with the creamy texture and rather exotic flavor, with a few gigantic pieces of prawns with a bouncy texture. They also sent us a mini version of their Old Delhi Butter Chicken, which I thought worked well with the warm cheddar and chilli naan served alongside. Tempted with the dessert choices but decided to pass after all the savory dishes – I guess my glass of Mango Lassi counted as one. 

When? January 24 2021
Where? Chaat, 5/F Rosewood Hong Kong, Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsimshatsui, Kowloon
Menu Highlights? Beef Angus Beef Short Rib Kebab
Web: www.chaat.hk