The Main Attraction

A lucky few of us were given the opportunity to preview the tasting menu by visiting guest chef Daniel Calvert before his pop-up stint at MGM Cotai. I still haven't had a chance to visit Tokyo and to Chef Dan's restaurant Sezanne so this was as close as I got reminiscing the good old days and his wonderful cooking since he moved from Hong Kong. 

Antimo x Maxime

I wasn’t surprised the latest Tatler Dining Kitchen installment was sold out within hours – I was actually more surprised that I managed to read the announcement of the event at the right time and fetched two of the handful seats while still available. 

The great team of Tatler Dining Hong Kong has put together this series of one-off dining events featuring some of the best talents in town (or overseas) with special menu not normally available elsewhere. I have been to a few of those last year when they did that in an exclusive venue space in Central with all of them nothing short of memorable, and this time around, it’s held at Kin Food Hall, the casual dining space right in my hood, as if I need more reasons to visit again. 

The First Taste

Once in a blue moon I was lucky enough to be given a sneak preview of something before everyone else – this time it’s for the soon-to-be-launched Tatler Dining Kitchen series by chef Antimo Maria Merone at the brand new venue at HAUS on Queen’s Road Central. 

Young Chef's Pop-up Menu

We recently went back to visit PMQ Taste Kitchen to check out the latest pop-up menu from a local young chef. Biased as I might be, I always love this idea of restaurant incubator concept (managed by our friends J and C) that allows new chefs to test out new recipes and business ideas with full set-up and operational support, and we were always surprised (and impressed) from the few visits we made previously.

A Swiss Visitng Chef

We honestly had not heard of Chef Andre Jaeger and his (former) hotel-restaurant in Switzerland when our friends A and R asked us to join them for dinner when the chef dropped by Hong Kong for a quick stint – it’s certainly our fault for being ignorant, as I learned afterwards that Chef Andre has quite a reputation being in the forefront of contemporary Asian-inspired cuisine out of his family’s property Fischerzunft in Schaffhausen since the 1980’s and remained a prominent figure in the Swiss culinary scene even after his retirement a few years ago.

Dinner at an Art Exhibition

The neighborhood of Quarry Bay is hardly a foodie destination but recently we were there at two separate occasions within the same week for quite some interesting dining experience. Just a few days after the spectacular Great Farm Feast dinner held at a makeshift dining room on a footbridge, this time, it’s a special dinner held as part of the Beyond Fashion exhibition at the Artistree space in Taikoo Place.

Two in a Row

I haven’t made my way back to Tate Dining Room for years, and not since chef-owner Vicky Lau moved her restaurant to the current location on Hollywood Road in 2016. But when I finally did, I went not once but twice in the same week earlier this month.

Four-Hands Menu at Nicholini's

As I returned to Hong Kong on late Saturday afternoon after a “whirlwind staycation” in Macau, I headed straight to Nicholini’s of Conrad for a special dinner featuring a guest chef from Tuscany. Chef Gaetano Trovato of Arnolfo Ristorante in Northern Tuscany joined hands with Chef Riccardo Catarsi of Nicholini’s joined hands to present a special 6-course dinner menu, with both chefs taking turns in presenting each course.

Late Late Dinner

We made our displeasure known to the staff when we finally got our table some 30 minutes later than what we have originally booked for, an inexcusable mistake any restaurant could make no matter how good the food was, or how many times they said sorry for, or how many rounds of drinks they offered to compensate with. Not to mention we already made accommodations by taking a late seating (9pm) for our big group but turned out we weren’t seated until half past, and it was another 20 minutes before the first dish of the tasting menu arrived.

Eating Spree Continued...

My 3-day "non-stop eating spree" continued with a trip to Caprice for a special menu featuring two pairs of twins chefs - Jacques and Laurent Pourcel of Le Jardin des Sens in Montpellier and Chefs Mathias and Thomas Sühring of their namesake restaurant in Bangkok. We have been saying that it’s been a long while since we went for dinner at Caprice, and this unique collaboration menu gave us the perfect excuse to do so, on the second (and last) evening that it’s offered in early October.

Chef Vs (Paella) Pan

I did say it would be a long while before I will even consider doing the “chef gig” thing again since my “debut” at PMQ Taste Kitchen a few months ago. But when Chef Alex Fargas and his team approached me to be the guest chef for the weekend brunch menu at his restaurant La Paloma, it seems like a project having too much fun to say no to. The restaurant in Sai Ying Pun, with the promise of serving “Sexy Tapas”, has been doing this “Chef Vs Pan” series for a while, in which once a month one outside chef would come in to deliver his/her version of paella (using the giant 40-inch pan) and roast suckling pig as part of their weekend brunch menu.

Visiting Sushi Chef

"The name sounds familiar…" I told myself when I saw the online post about the pop-up dinner in town featuring chef from Ginza Sushi Aoki, and only after checking my picture album I realized I did visit the restaurant in Tokyo some years ago during one of my business trips. Obviously that meal didn’t leave much an impression for me (otherwise I would have recalled that easily) but I was happy to enjoy an evening at FUMI in Lan Kwai Fong where Chef Toshikatsu Aoki, second generation owner of his family namesake restaurant, showed off his skills and ingredients for 3 days only as the visiting chef.

Lunch with Fukuoka Ingredients

Recently I was at Whisk at The Mira for a Friday lunch featuring a special menu with ingredients coming from Fukuoka, working in conjunction with a guest chef from the region. There’s no lack of fresh ingredients from Kyushu and the nearby waters, especially the area surrounding Fukuoka in the north being the center of this southern-most main island of Japan, so I think Chef Oliver from Whisk and guest chef Yasuhiro Yamada from Fukuoka’s Hakata House restaurant has the easiest task of turning all these wonderful produce, meat and seafood into a fabulous tasting menu available at the restaurant for a limited time in March.

Basque Guest Chef

What a change it has been since the last time we experienced Chef Eneko Atxa's cooking at his flagship restaurant Azurmendi near Bilbao - when he only began to be on the radar of foodies around the world as a promising young Basque chef having just received his second Michelin star for his restaurant. We still remembered that meal as the highlight of our Catalan/Basque trip in the most beautiful setting. Now almost 7 years later, Azurmendi is on its fifth year holding on firmly to the most prestigious 3 Michelin stars, been voted one of the world's top 50, moved to a new location nearby, opened another Michelin-starred restaurant next door, and since then Chef Eneko's wings have spread as far as ventures in Phuket (now defunct), London and Tokyo.

Eight Countries, Eight Restaurants Later...

One Star House Party seems to be a fascinating concept - a group of culinary professionals would travel around the world and host pop-up dinners drawing inspiration from local cuisines and ingredients, then moved on to another country/town and did the same, like a nomad with a purpose. They started in Hong Kong one year ago, and 12 months later, after various stops and numerous stories to tell, came back to town for a 5-week engagement to host another series of pop-up dinner, showcasing their favorite dish in 8 different countries they hosted dinner at.

Rustic Alsatian Duet

I was at Brasserie on the Eighth at The Conrad last Friday for a pop-up dinner featuring the chef couple Cyril Bonnard and Marie Wucher from Hotel Le Parc in Alsace. With most French restaurants at the hotels around town mostly of the fine-dining style, Brasserie on the Eighth stood out to be something different, in a more casual, brasserie/bistro style but with the same level of seriousness about cooking and serving authentic French cuisine.

Meeting Curtis in Macau

We joined the troupe of friends in becoming huge fans of Chef Curtis Duffy ever since we watched the documentary film about him and his Chicago restaurant, Grace, which shot to worldwide fame since opening in 2012. We can't help but felt touched by his life story and fascinated by his cooking, now considered one of the best of our times.

Tosca x Cracco

I couldn't believe twice I walked by Chef Carlo Cracco's namesake restaurant in Milan in my previous trips and twice I didn't manage to walk in and pay a visit. After all Cracco is considered one of the top restaurants in town by the Michelin Guide (which gave it 2 stars) and Chef Cracco was highly-regarded for his avant-garde style, offering a twist using traditional ingredients with some of his innovative cooking techniques, not to mention his numerous cookbooks, TV appearances etc making him one of the best known Italian chefs.

Crossover at Test Kitchen

Test Kitchen is an admirable project founded by Vincent, providing an unique and exclusive culinary stage to link up visiting chefs and adventurous diners right in Hong Kong for a series of one-off dinner events regularly held. One particular event caught our eyes recently, featuring the cooking of Chef Victoria Eliasdóttir, an up-and-coming young chef from Dottir Restaurant in Berlin.

NYC Pop-up: Birds and Bubbles

I was at ISONO at PMQ a few Sundays ago for a special event to preview their summer menu in collaboration with Chef Sarah Simmons of Birds & Bubbles from New York City, featuring some of their signature dishes, including the fried chicken and champagne pairing (hence the name of the restaurant). I enjoyed the food so much that we decided to return a couple Sunday later, this time, to catch up with some friends over brunch.