Crab Encore

I considered this an extension to my earlier Shanghai trip when I headed over to The Murray before the National Day long weekend to check out the collaboration menu with the chef team from Shanghai's legendary Lao Ji Shi 老吉士 restaurant. 

Lao Ji Shi (also known as Old Jesse) with its original branch in the old Shanghai neighborhood has been one of the better known establishments for traditional Shanghainese cuisine. We last went a few years ago and was fabulous. For one week only (spanning over the long weekend), the team came over and worked with the culinary staff at The Murray for a series of special set menu available for lunch and dinner.

The lunch menu we tried featured more than a dozen dishes, including some of the better known dishes from their original menu in the Shanghai shop. We started with a few cold and warm appetizers in true Shanghainese style. The Salted Chicken might have been their more famous appetizer dish, but the Drunken Chicken they introduced this time was decent, with nice tender chicken marinated in rich Huadiao wine. The large river crab was steamed and soaked in aged Huadiao wine for days with the creamy, bright red roes on top for the decadent flavor. The Shanghainese "Smoked Fish" was my favorite - done less sweet but much more delicate. 

The river seafood soup served in a giant porcelain pot was in nice creamy color with shrimp, fish, crab and clams slow boiled with bamboo shoots for the rich but clean umami flavor. The "Opium Fishhead", so named because it's said to be "addictively good", was one of the most famous dish at Old Jesse. The giant carp fish head was slow braised in sweet soy marinate and scallions, and served whole entirely covered with burnt scallions on top for the impressive presentation and great flavor. 

We have just approached the traditional hairy crab season and right on time for their famous braised crab roes served with flat noodles. I have had plenty of those while in Shanghai just a couple of weeks ago but that didn't stop me from having another serving of this succulent dish, with this version milder but with the same creamy texture. 

The "Grandma-style" Braised Pork Belly was another signature dish, slow-braised in sweet soy gravy and served in a earthenware casserole. It's done on the firmer side but with nice flavor well-infused into the chunks of meat layered with fat. We finished with the classic Xiaolongbao, their signature stuffed red dates with glutinous rice, and the special savory pork mooncake that the team brought over from Shanghai to celebrate the moon festival with us. 

The rich Shanghainese Huadiao Wine (fermented with glutinous rice and wheat) was the classic pairing for Shanghainese cuisine and for this collaboration menu, the team brought over a few selection for us to taste, from the "basic" 10-years-old-aged one to the 25-years-old, which exhibited nice rounded texture and rich flavor, working well with some of the richer dishes. 

And the best news of all? The team will return later this month for another set of special menu - and with Hairy Crab season well underway by then, I am sure there will be more of the beloved crabs being featured. 

When? September 27 2023
Where? The Murray, 22 Cotton Tree Drive, Central, Hong Kong
Menu Highlights? Marinated Crab in Chinese Yellow Wine
Drinks?
Xianheng 10-years-old Huadiao 咸亨 雕皇10年陳花雕酒
Xianheng 20-years-old Huadiao咸亨 雕皇20年陳花雕酒
Xianheng 25-years-old Huadiao 咸亨 雕皇25年陳花雕酒
Xianheng 30-years-old Huadiao 咸亨 雕皇30年陳花雕酒
Web: www.niccolohotels.com/en/the-murray-hong-kong