I thought it was a perfect excuse to turn up at Wing to celebrate a few birthdays in the month of May, and to put icing on a cake, figuratively speaking, they put us in the private room and our friends graced us with a few fine bottles.
This time we ended up with quite a number of new dishes and a particularly long menu prepared by Chef Vicky and his team. The Japanese Hotaru Ika (firefly squid) was among the first ingredient to arrive at our table as a cold appetizer to served with pickled yunnan green chilies and bull kelp. I had a few iteration of this dish each time prepared using a slight different ingredient but this is the best by far. The fresh, creamy texture from the squid which is only available for a short period of time every year worked perfectly well with the condiments with a refreshing kick. We doubled up on the sea umami flavor with the deep-fried oyster with salt and pepper – love the plump and juicy oyster matched well with the strong flavor from the deep-fried batter and seasoning. The raw crab was another beauty, flash frozen and pickled with vinegar and garlic, with lovely clean flavor.
The pair of steamed Red Flag Grouper 紅瓜子斑 fish was presented before being served in individual portion. The wild-caught fish came from the wet market in the morning and was of the perfect size – three-quarter catty (around 450g each), and perfectly cooked with the delicate meat accented with green onions, coriander, hot oil and sweet soy sauce specially mixed to enhance the flavor of the fish without overpowering it. Alaskan king crab is the signature dish here, and I always said the best part was the rice flour roll steamed, pan-fried and served with the sauce prepared with crab meat and chilies.
Then came the new dish that Chef Vicky presented. We all had spring rolls before but it’s my first time having sea cucumber as the filling, and the spring roll wrapper was done paper-thin and perfectly crispy – one could hear that clean crispy sound as the spring roll was carved in front of us. The dish was inspired by the Hokkien braised sea cucumber with scallion sauce but this is a milder version, less about the sauce but more about the fine bouncy texture of the sea cucumber contrasted with the crispy spring roll skin.
Another new dish I got to try this time was the sauteed white asparagus with house-made cured meat. In western cooking, this seasonal ingredient was usually paired with a creamy sauce and acidity, but here it was the salty meat that gave the dish a different kick and I also liked that combination of textures from the various ingredients. We thought we were done with the savory part of the menu with the rice casserole was served with cured meat and dried prawns, but then Chef Vicky brought us two extra dishes as “encore”, first the scrambled egg with the fish broth (made using the bits of bones and meat left from our steamed grouper dish earlier), and then Sichuan spicy lamb done using the Pyrennes milk-fed lambs with the most tender meat.
Went through a memorable flight of wines this evening, starting with the champagne, then an Alsace Riesling which I thought went perfectly well with the seafood courses, and finally the three Bordeaux, all of which at its prime condition. The 1991 Lafite may not come from the best year in terms of harvest, but the relatively light body and subtleness on palate worked just well with our dishes with hint of red fruits (cassis and red dates) and floral note. I could say the same with the 1995 Cheval Blanc, again not the one with the fullest body but the secondary flavor which developed with a brief decanting was very enjoyable. Good we left the Chateau Palmer towards the end, as we conclude on a high note with the punchy, ripe black fruit on the palate and a long, lingering finish.
And we ended with a fair share of desserts, including the cake we brought in for celebration, plus the sesame mochi dumpling which was my favorite. It has not been the best stretch of the year personally but for one evening, this is the rare highlight that we got to momentarily managed to enjoy.
More photos here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/g4gary/albums/72177720308105756
When? May 6 2023
Where? Wing, 29/F The Wellington, 198 Wellington Street, Central, Hong Kong
Menu Highlights? Japanese Firefly Squids with pickled Yunnan chilies and bull kelp
螢光魷魚配雲南皺皮椒及海茸
Drinks?
Champagne Pierre Pieters Cuvee de Reserve Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut
2017 F E Trimbach Riesling “Grand Cru Geisberg”
1991 Chateau Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac
1995 Chateau Cheval Blanc St Emilion Grand Cru
2009 Chateau Palmer, Margaux
Web: wingrestaurant.hk
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