We managed to squeeze one more fine meal before CYY flew out. We made a few bookings at The Chairman at the beginning of the year and this is our last one with a table for 4 people in a Saturday afternoon, less than 12 hours before the flight took off.
Picking the menu is always a challenge with so many dishes we would like to try, but this time we worked out a good combination of old and new dishes - by new I meant dishes that we have never tried before. But we still started with a few familiar ones. The marinated baby squid was unusually big this time hence better texture, and I love the marinate with a strong hint of sichuan peppercorns. The charsiu was served with a dab of steamed rice on the side and a splash of soy sauce - good as usual, and would have been even better if they served with a fried egg sunny-side up on top like those cha chaan teng version.
I haven't tried a steamed fish here for a while so I requested one this time. The humpback grouper was lightly cured overnight and steamed with dried mandarin peel and lard on top. It's said to be the most classic way of preparing steamed fish and with distinct umami flavor and the fish perfectly done. And the Slipper Lobsters was as good as ever, good firm texture with the hearty and flavorful rice broth plus a few drops of the aromatic (and umami-rich) prawn oil on top.
We skipped the steamed crab this time and opted for one done baked with sichuan peppercorns in a salt dome. The fresh peppercorns, as opposed to the more common dried one, had a more delicate aroma and less of a kick and worked well with the flower crab. I thought it worked as good as their signature steamed crab with Chinese yellow wine and didn't regret a bit we made the switch this time.
Poached vegetables in fish broth was the only dish I had problem with - there's a slight bitter taste from the choi-sum which pointed to the quality of the ingredient more so than the cooking. Nonetheless they should have spotted it. But the claypot rice that followed was awesome with the braised pork belly and pickled mustard green on top, and clam broth was poured in to the claypot to turn the crispy rice bits into a porridge, and last but not least of course, their dessert trio with the mungbean cake being my favorite sweet.
I was a bit worried about the condition of an old bottle of Brunello that I wanted to share with our friends, but it turned out to be okay after a brief decanting. Always a bit of gamble picking up a bottle of certain age but relieved it's still drinkable. Medium bodied, somewhat faded but still got some good red fruits, hint of leather and rounded tannins. The other bottle was a rare champagne, a small production of the 2000 vintage made using purely chardonnay on old vines. Medium bodied with hint of brioche, ripe lemons, almonds, and good acidity.
Until next time, whenever that might be.
More photos here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/g4gary/albums/72177720300065315
When? June 11 2022
Where? The Chairman, 18 Kau U Fong, Central, Hong Kong
Menu Highlights? Flower Crab baked with Szechuan Pepper and Sea Salt
Drinks?
2000 Champagne Thienot La Vigne Aux Gamins Blanc de Blancs Brut
1983 Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino DOCG
Web: www.thechairmangroup.com
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