Tin Lung Heen, Hong Kong (Two Michelin star, 2016)

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cantonese, dimsum, Hong kong, hong kong restaurant review, Michelin, tin lung heen, two michelin star

This restaurant is conveniently located in our hotel and has an excellent view. We had wanted to sit by the window and thought we secured a table by the window, but there was a miscommunication and we weren’t able to get a window seat.

Of course we weren’t too happy about that, as the whole point of us going to the restaurant is for dimsum with a view. However, the manager came over to explain, apologize and finally offer us a glass of champagne each and whatever dessert we wanted on the house. Pretty nice of them I thought, and it turned out well since there was absolutely no view that day due to the smog/fog that engulfed Hong Kong.

Century egg with preserved ginger in a puff pastry. Interesting dish, the ginger and century egg seemed to melt together in the pastry. I think I still prefer century eggs as is with slices of pink ginger to go with it.

Baked crab tarts with onion and cheese. This was one tasty morsel! The tart was buttery and flakey and everything a truly well made pastry should be. And how could one go wrong with onion and cheese in a tart?Polo char siew pao with barbecued Iberian pork. While the filling of barbecued Iberian pork didn’t give much to admire, the pastry was to die for! It had a delicate crusty exterior, slightly sweet, and crumbles charmingly upon biting into it. Coupled with the Iberian pork filling, this easily became my favourite dimsum dish of the day.Look at that perfection!

We also ordered the normal steamed char siew pao with barbecued Iberian pork, but without that delicious polo pao exterior, it was just another char siew pao for me….only fluffier.Xiao Long Bao. The skin on this is not as thin and delicate as the one at Marriott in KL, but the filling is much better. Good flavour and texture on the meat and a lovely soup.This was my dining partner’s favourite dish of the day. You can hardly see the siew mai here as the abalone and prawn outweighs the pork base, but the siew mai itself is large and substantial. It had a very satisfying mixture of marinated pork and some mushroom, and even eaten alone, it doesn’t disappoint. Now, add the luxurious topping of a perfectly cooked, crunchy prawn and a tender braised abalone – the humble siew mai then undergoes a delightful transformation. This is a basic dimsum elevated and improved by doing the basics right and pairing it with well cooked ingredients that complement it.Complimentary jelly and sesame biscuitsNo dimsum is complete without egg tarts!!! I loved the egg tarts! The pastry chef at Tin Lung Heen is excellent, seeing that all the pastries were stellar. Warm, buttery, flaky and fragrant – this describes all the pastries that we had that day. This egg tart was no different. I could have eaten a plateful of these tarts. Double boiled milk with birds nest in ginger. This was really good too, very good marriage of milk and ginger. The gelatinous birds nest also has a nice texture to it, and is neither stringy nor tough.

All in all a great meal and good experience. I must add that champagne also goes very well with dimsum!

Tin Lung Heen 天龍軒
102/F, The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong, International Commerce Centre, 1 Austin Road West, Tsim Sha Tsui (Kowloon MTR)
Tel: +852 2263 2270
restaurantreservation.hk@ritzcarlton.com
Opening Hours: 12:00pm – 2:30pm, 6:00pm – 10:30pm (Mon to Fri), 11:30am – 3:00pm, 6:00pm – 10:30pm (Sat to Sun)
Dress Code: No beach sandals, open toe shoes, sleeveless shirts and shorts for gentlemen

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RyuGin, Hong Kong (2 Michelin star, 2016)

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Hong kong, hong kong restaurant review, japanese, japanese restaurant review, Michelin, Michelin star, restaurant review, ryugin, two michelin star

This was my surprise birthday dinner! Since I had completely ruled out Japanese restaurants while researching for restaurants to try in Hong Kong (good Japanese food does not come cheap in Hong Kong), I was completely unprepared but pleasantly surprised when I was shown in to this restaurant. Despite the glamour of its two Michelin star status, the setting was simple, save for a great view, it being situated 101 floors up. It claims to offer traditional but unique kaiseki cuisine. Unique it was indeed! And yet it retained all the clean, seasonal and delicate aspects of traditional kaiseki that the Japanese pull off so well.

This is the first overseas branch of the Tokyo restaurant, which boasts a full spectrum of Michelin stars.

http://www.ryugin.com.hk/about_e.php

We weren’t given a choice on the food. Everyone had the tasting menu.

The tasting menu consisted of 10 dishes, which change according to season:-

1. Cold noodles topped with white shrimp, caviar, abalone and abalone liver sauce
2. Foie Gras flavoured with porto and wasanbon sugar served with fresh figs and sesame cream sauce
3. Charcoal grilled Alfonsino with matsutake mushroom in ichibandashi soup
4. Assortment of sashimi
5. Charcoal grilled Amadai brushed with Miso-yuan sauce
6. Cold Kegani crab egg custard with grated fresh apple vinegar
7. Wagyu beef shabu shabu, lotus root cake and onion ponzu sauce
8. Steamed rice topped with Ikura salmon roe
9. RyuGin Specialty -196 °C pear candy and 99 °C pear jam
10. Chestnut ice cream with roasted chestnut biscuits

We chose to have sake to go with our dinner and they presented us with a choice of sake cups which I thought rather lovely. Weakness for tableware.

Chilled sake this time.

First course: Cold noodles topped with white shrimp, caviar, abalone and abalone liver sauce

This to me was the star of the night! I’m not usually a fan of cold noodles but this blew me away. Something about the delicious salt brine of the caviar mixed with the sweet creaminess of the shrimp and dashi scented savouriness of the liver sauce coating those perfect cold noodles. The herbs, which I’m guessing is mitsuba, adds a heightened flavour to the dish and the abalone is cooked to a tender perfection. Now that I’ve tasted it, I’m wondering if I’ll ever be able to satisfy my newfound craving for it 😦

Mmmmm….Second course: Foie Gras flavoured with porto and wasanbon sugar served with fresh figs and sesame cream sauce.

I loved this as well, but it could be because I’m partial to foie gras. Popped the entire thing in my mouth. It tasted like peanut butter. Delicious but the foie gras to fig ratio could be better. The fig came dangerously close to overpowering the foie gras. Overall a nice mouthful (or two, the second is not pictured here).

Third Course: Charcoal grilled Alfonsino with matsutake mushroom in ichibandashi soup

Now this is what I’d expect from a top notch kaiseki restaurant. This is quintessentially kaiseki to me. The soup is clear, clean and yet flavourful. Ichiban dashi just refers to the basic stock that is used in most Japanese cuisine, made from katsuobashi (dried bonito flakes) and kombu (kelp). I had to look up the Alfonsino’s more familiar Japanese name, Kinme. It’s a type of sea bream, thus its taste is of a white-fleshed fish with enough fat to keep it tender but not as fatty as the cod. Well balanced fish cooked just right with a lovely charcoal aroma from the very slightly charred skin.

Fourth Course: Sashimi, standard offerings of hirame (I’m guessing here), akagai, hotate, ebi and saba sushi.

They’re all good and fresh, although special mention has to be made for the akagai and the saba sushi. I’ve not had the akagai cooked lightly like this before and I think it vastly improves its flavour and texture, making it easier to eat. The saba sushi is also done well, meticulously balancing the vinegar seasoning with the usually strong tasting fish. Absolutely nothing fishy about it, perfectly fatty and good use of seasoning.

Fifth Course: Charcoal grilled Amadai brushed with Miso-yuan sauce

All I can say is that the chef knows how to cook his fish well. Juicy and thinly glazed, it has none of the cloyingly sweet miso glaze I was dreading when I first saw the menu. I also liked that crisp that came along with it, it’s like a healthy ikan bilis cracker.

Sixth Course: Cold Kegani crab egg custard with grated fresh apple vinegar

This dish is your usual chawanmushi, except that its cold. The crab meat didn’t do much for me, and the orange stuff on top of the egg custard could be smoother. However I did like how it tasted of kaffir lime zest and juice, although it could have just been from the grated fresh apple vinegar. Interesting combination.

Seventh Course: Wagyu beef shabu shabu, lotus root cake and onion ponzu sauce.

I thought this was good! My dining partner said it could be more tender. If it were done yakiniku style, with the same sauce and garnish, I think it would be perfect. Needed a little boost to further melt the fat, but delicious otherwise. By this time I was too full to do justice to the lotus root cake, but I didn’t really fancy it much anyway after taking a small taste of it.

Eighth Course: Steamed rice topped with Ikura salmon roe

This is standard fare in kaiseki. The rice course comes out right at the end before dessert. While I’m not wowed by this course, I do love my ikura on warm fluffy rice rather than on cold, vinegared rice. Very satisfying and comforting along with the most delicious soup! The depth of flavour in this unassuming soup is unrivalled so far!

Ninth Course: the RyuGin Specialty -196 °C pear candy and 99 °C pear jam

It comes shaped as a beautiful, frozen pear which you tap and break into the insides before the waitress ladles the warm pear jam (which is more like poached pears) on top.

I love pear and I loved how the differing temperatures of the two components came together in a pleasing mixture to show off the pear ingredient. Very clever. My dining partner is harder to please though.

Tenth Course: Chestnut ice cream with roasted chestnut biscuits.

This tasted like chestnut ice cream, with chestnut shavings and roasted chestnuts cooked in some kind of alcohol. I loved this and would have finished the lot had I not been bursting at the seams. Dining partner didn’t seem to like it however. Not a fan of chestnut it seems (or the bill, since I didn’t pay for dinner hahahaha!!)

Conclusion, I really liked it! Fresh ingredients cooked well and on the mark, sometimes with a twist. The chef skirted with his cooking techniques, pushed boundaries and yet managed to execute the dishes with such finesse. The sake helped it all to come together I must say. And there’s nothing like an authentic Japanese meal to end a wonderful day.

I can’t speak for the value for money aspect of the dinner as I still do not know how much it cost. Ignorance is bliss.

Opening Hours / 12nn-3pm (Private Lunch Only) 6pm-9:30pm (Dinner Last Order)
Address / 101/F, ICC, 1 Austin Road West, Kowloon
Reservation Telephone no. / 2302 0222
Number of seats / 48 ( including 2 private rooms, 1 for 4 guests and 1 for 12 guests)
Parking / 4 hours Free Parking

Peking Garden Hong Kong (1 Michelin Star, 2016)

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1 star, Chinese restaurant, Hong kong, hong kong restaurant review, Michelin, Michelin star, Peking Garden, restaurant review

The Michelin Guide baffles me sometimes. I’ve eaten at Peking Garden before, and while I think it’s good, I’m not sure it warrants a Michelin star.

On my previous visit to Peking Garden earlier in the year, I tried some of the other dishes which I deemed to be pretty good. This time I came back to try their Peking duck dish, since I had a (rather expensive) hankering for it.

I managed to satisfy my craving, but I thought the duck tasted a little gamey. I’m usually not squeamish about meat having a bit of that taste of the wild but this was a tad over. Plus, I prefer my Peking duck skin crispy and devoid of the heavy extra fat that this one had.

Perhaps the meat could be more juicy and tender as well.

This crab roe noodle was excellent though! I loved the chewy springy of the noodles coated in crab roe with a dash of black vinegar. Its a novelty, and absolutely my kind of dish!

Total damage for the two dishes:- HKD 816.2

 

Located in: Alexandra Shopping Arcade

Address: Alexandra Shopping Arcade, 5-17 Ice House St, Central, Hong Kong

Phone:+852 2526 6456

Pan-fried Ham and cheese sandwich

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brunch, butter, emmental, gruyere, ham, ham and cheese, ham and cheese sandwich, mortadella ham, quick meals, Snack, truffle mortadella ham

There’s now a recipe for a simple ham and cheese? Blasphemous!!! So it may be easy to slap some ham and cheese between two slices of bread and call it a ham and cheese. Indeed the basic definition of this sandwich is fulfilled.

I just took it a step further that’s all, with the specific use of a certain type of ham, cheese, bread and other additional fillings (cravings of the day) to make it taste a little more special.

Above Left: Mushroom pie (updated recipe for this to come soon!) topped with puff pastry)

Bottom right: Sinfully crispy ham and cheese

So without further ado, here are the basic ingredients:-

1. Thick sliced bread – I used milk loaf as I love its softer crumb, delicate buttery flavour and large surface area. Large sandwiches make for a more impressive presentation
2. Sliced ham – I’m not so fond of the traditional Blackforest ham used in a ham and cheese, so I replaced it with Mortadella ham (I was lucky to have some Truffle Mortadella ham so I made this a truffle themed ham and cheese). This option is entirely up to you, you’d know best your ham of preference after all.
3. Salted butter for spreading
4. Cheese – I used a mix of Emmental cheese and Gruyere. Although I have to say the cheese didn’t melt very well. I might try grating cheddar cheese and using that instead next time
5. Optional – dijon mustard, truffle oil, truffles. I suggest you don’t mix mustard and truffle products though.

Preparations coming along. Cheese and butter at room temperature before use.

Butter one side of the bread generously. Get the butter into every nook and cranny and leave no surface unbuttered!

Flip the bread over and start to assemble your sandwich. If you’re not using truffle, spread some Dijon mustard onto the unbuttered side of the bread before layering your cheese on top.

Then add the ham, and more layers of cheese. As you can see below I’ve also added a couple slices of truffle and a little truffle oil before the final cheese layer. Yes, the picture is not the right way around. Oops.

Top with the final slice of bread, and butter the outer surface of the bread. Both sides of the sandwich have to be buttered as you will be pan frying it.

Place the sandwich in a frying pan large enough to fit it and turn the heat on very low. Slowly fry until the entire surface of the bread is an even dark golden brown. Then carefully flip the sandwich on its other side to fry the remaining side to the desired dark golden brown. Its got to be crispy but not burnt.

Once done, slide onto a serving plate, slice it up and serve!

Trust me when I say pan frying the sandwich makes a world of difference. It is not enough to toast the bread and butter it before assembling.

Quick and easy, yet it does look pretty presentable!