Managed to pull a few long lunches in the month of November and the first one was at Roganic. This is one restaurant that I felt I should have visited more often so I was glad for the opportunity to sit down and check out their new tasting menu on a busy afternoon.
This time we were presented the "long" tasting menu which they usually only served during dinner service, and by long I meant there's no less than 12 different courses (including the optional add-on course) served over the course of 3 hours. Over the aperitif of choice served from a cart - champagne was what I opted for but they also offered a couple interesting non-alcoholic drinks made in-house - we began with a few canape bites. I remembered having this delicate tartlet with salmon roes and charred onions before with the paper-thin shell made with potato and seaweed, and it's still my favorite this time with the refreshing flavor. Also enjoyed the rich truffle pudding served with Berkswell cheese grated on top - that paired well with the champagne poured.
A lot of places offered this wagyu beef-sea urchin combination, but I like the addition of puffed buckwheat and lobster sauce in this version for a hint of smokiness and some nice textures in this variations of steak tartare. I also loved the scallop, from Hokkaido and perfectly seared, served on a bed of diced squids (from local waters), peas, seasonal white asparagus in a creamy sauce with a hint of acidity and lovage oil.
The addictive soda bread with cultured butter served as a good intermezzo course, before we dived into more dishes, including the hearty dish of steamed mussel custard topped with beef tendons and trout roes, and the sauteed local oyster mushrooms with crispy Jerusalem artichoke slices, stout reduction and whipped ragstone emulsion underneath.
Main courses came in a pair, first the piece of butter-poached grouper fillet with sweet corn garnishes and roasted shrimp sauce, then the more complex dish of slow-cooked pork belly with “sandy carrot” on the side with fermented local honey also featured. The dessert line-up was another bright spot, which included the refreshing perilla ice-cream as palate cleanser and the beautifully plated caramelized apple tart.
The long lunch also meant a few glasses being poured. After the champagne, we went from a mineral-rich Greek white, then through France (Alsace), Italy (Trentino-Alto Adige) back to France with an excellent Burgundy white, and finished with a Rosso di Montalcino which definitely has a fuller body than I expected and went well with the pork main dish.
This is one satisfying lunch tasting indeed and one that made the busy work week worthwhile.
More photos here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/g4gary/albums/72177720303740943
When? November 8 2022
Where? Roganic, UG/F 08, Sino Plaza, 255 Gloucester Road, Causeway Bay
Menu Highlights? Roasted Hokkaido Scallop with Local Squid, Peas and Mr Lins White Asparagus
Drinks?
Champagne Larmandier-Bernier “Latitude” Extra Brut NV
2020 Kir Yianni Assyrtiko “The North”, Macedonia, Greece
2020 Domaine Valentin Zusslin “Les Chapelles” Riesling, Alsace, France
2020 Foradori Fontanasanta Manzoni Bianco Vigneti delle Dolomiti IGT, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy
2019 Vincent Dureuil-Janthial Rully Blanc, Bourgogne, France
2018 Gorelli Rosso di Montalcino, Italy
Web: www.roganic.com.hk
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