[Review 3340] Great tempura again @ 丸亀製麵 Marugame Seimen

05/05/2014
丸亀製麵  Marugame Seimen
尖沙咀彌敦道63號iSQUARE國際廣場6樓609號舖
Shop 609, 6/F, iSQUARE, 63 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/great-tempura-again-e2361415

I was so glad I had a tasting nearby or I would not have gone in for some tempura.
On this visit, they had huge long strips of squid which was not there last time and the quality of the tempura was good because they were freshly fried for the busy session to come.
I only had the squid and the egg because I don't like their udon.
Soy sauce with grated ginger and spring onions was self service from the condiments counter.

They also have forks and spoons for children.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Tempura egg:
Again, another perfect egg with a runny yolk centre!!


It was simply delicous with the soy sauce complimented by the light crispy tempura coating.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Squid:



The squid was so satisfying because it was such a big piece and the coating was light and the squid inside was soft.
I should have dipped it in the egg yolk above and it would have tasted amazing.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

I would love to come here more often but the design of this mall is really crap because the escalators are randomly located.

◎ⓢⓤⓟⓔⓡⓢⓤⓟⓔⓡⓖⓘⓡⓛ◎
Price: $24

[Review 3339] Purple sweet potato icecream @ 甜品工房 The Dessert Kitchen

04/05/2014
甜品工房 The Dessert Kitchen
尖沙咀厚福街12-12A號地下
G/F, 12-12A Hau Fook Street, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/purple-sweet-potato-icecream-e2361345

TRIED THIS BEFORE THE GROUP BUY DEAL WHICH WAS WHY I COULD DINE IN.

To be honest, this desserterie has been opened for a long time but non of their desserts captivated me until now.

Currently in HK, there are about 10 shops that do nitrogen icecream.

The most successful one is Lab Made which was later copied by Tutti melon, and now this dessert place has it too.
The others ones are served in high end restarants such as AVA Splash.

Previously I have attempted to try Tutti melon but they ran out of nitrogen which was such a joke.

Anyway, at Dessert Expert, I was lucky because they had two flavours I wanted to try which are rotated fortnightly.
[Flavours that they had: black sesame and tofu, caramel pudding, white peach, dark chocolate, Okinawa brown sugar, purple sweet potato, cherry tomato and yoghurt and sweetcorn with lava salt.]

[at the time I dined, I did not know there was a special offer on Yahoo which was $20 for two scoops making nitrogen icecream DIRT CHEAP.
http://hk.deals.yahoo.com/hong-kong/offer/148353

I paid $70 for two scoops on this visit.
Compared to Labmade, it is so much cheaper so lets find out about the quality.

As with all nitrogen foods there is a risk of oesophagus burns like the teen girl who loses stomach after drinking liquid nitrogen cocktail in the UK.
So far there are no reported cases in Hong Kong yet.

It appears that they were using Nitrogen to make the icecream before the group buying offer but when I went during the group buying redemption period they just scooped the icecream from somewhere!!
 0 讚好

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
purple sweet potato:

It was really nice with a piece of dried sweet potato and sweet potato puree on top.
The sweet potato cracker was chewy and not crispy and the sweet potato puree was velvety but tasted artificial.
Anyway, the icecream was good because it was not too sweet but I did not like the artificial sweet potato taste which ruined it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
cherry tomato and yoghurt:

Surprisingly this was delicious by Hong Kong Standards because most places make savoury items taste sweet.
I went to Ice Cream Gallery for their savoury icecreams but they turned out to be sweet and disappointing.
This flavour was really nice and tasted how I expected it to be.
It was garnished with sundried tomatoes and croutons which reminded me of tomato flavoured icecream soup.
I loved the taste, it was savoury with a hint of tangyness from the tomato which matched perfectly with the yoghurt.
The croutons and sundried tomatoes went well with this flavour because they were related and you could associate it with Italian food or even tomato soup.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Photos of the desserterie:

Bird's eye custard
 0 讚好

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
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Price: $70

[Review 3338] Sweet potato icecream @ Lab Made 分子雪糕專門店

04/05/2014
Lab Made 分子雪糕專門店 (已結業)
Lab Made Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream Laboratory
尖沙咀彌敦道132號美麗華商場地下G42號舖
Shop G42, G/F., Miramar Shopping Centre, 132 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/sweet-potato-icecream-e2361292

Went to the TST branch to get the Anna Sui flavour and the shop was plastered all over with Anna Sui.
The aprons and icecream machinery were also plastered with Anna Sui too.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Anna sui:

I was surprised it did not taste as good as I expected because I had a crappy Sweet potato nitrogen icecream at Dessert Kitchen and it had a stronger sweet potato flavour with real sweet potato puree in it.
In got a bit too sweet towards the end and I did not like the pieces of savoury potato crisps in the icecream.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
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Price: $44

[Review 3337] Common Room reunion @ Common Room

04/05/2014
Common Room
中環和安里8-13號和安樓1樓
1/F, Wo On Building, 8-13 Wo On Lane, Central
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/common-room-reunion-e2361290

At school, I have always been curious of the Teachers room, the only room that pupils could not enter so when we got our common room it felt really special.
It was a place just for 5th year pupils at secondary school.
Whilst it was exciting progressing on to the 5th year, at the same time I was dreading it because it was the last year of school before heading off to college and not everyone attends college so you don't see them anymore.
Thanks to Mjqueen7e for inviting me to The Common Room which reminded me of school.
It was a lovely gathering environment for drinks and food.
The small twisting flight of stairs at the entrance was interesting.
Anyway, here was what we tried:
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Pulled pork poutine:
 0 讚好

Melted chedder cheese and bbq sauce.
Addictive fries topped with delicious gravy and bbq sauce with melted cheese, and the pulled pork makes it satisfying.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Chicken lollipops:
 0 讚好

Coated with maple syrup.
Irresistible chicken lollipops with a crispy coating enhanced by the maple syrup and sweet sauce.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Charred sweet corn salad:
 0 讚好

This was simple and delicious, nachos topped with corn, purple onions and diced tomatoes flavoured with spices.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Flatbread:

caramelized onions, wild mushrooms, goats cheese and truffle.
This was a bit like pizza and a bit like crackers topped with delicious goats cheese on top with fragrant truffle and sweet caramelized onions and earthy mushrooms.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Portobello mushroom sliders:
 0 讚好

gruyere, caramelized onions and avocado.
These sliders were cute and I loved the way the mushroom was bigger than the bun.
It was really satisfying and meaty but not heavy because it was just a juicy mushroom in the middle with melted gruyere cheese and guacamole.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
WAGYU FOIE GRAS SLIDERS:
Caramelized onions, arugula and balsamic reduction.
 0 讚好

These cute burgers were meaty and paired nicely with the balsamic reduction which made it more appetizing.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Classic mac and cheese:
Buffalo mozzarella, gruyere, parmesan, gouda topped with breadcrumbs.

The macaroni was a little too heavy for my liking.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Lobster linguine:
Spicy fresh half lobster in tomato sauce.

The pasta was al-dente but the tomato sauce was too spicy.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Lobster Risotto:
Lobster chunks, cream, garlic and white sauce

This was similar to the above but with delicious creamy risotto beneath it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
For drinks I had the LEMON LIME BITTER which was quite acidic at first but after the ice melted it was really refreshing with the food.

[Review 3336] Shanghai food feast @ 上海婆婆336 Shanghai Po Po 336

04/05/2014
上海婆婆336  Shanghai Po Po 336
尖沙咀彌敦道63號iSQUARE國際廣場6樓605-606號舖
Shop 605-606, 6/F, iSQUARE, 63 Nathon Road, Tsim Sha Tsui

ttps://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/shanghai-food-feast-e2361289

Previously tried Shanghai Po Po 336 and admittedly the other branches are not as good and they do not offer as much variety as this branch.

Here was what we tried
*** means highly recommended
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Wuxi crispy eel:
 0 讚好

Sweet and sour pork lovers will like this because the eel is crispy with a delicious complementing sweet and sour sauce.
The eel was boneless too.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Black fungus in special sauce:
 0 讚好

The black fungus was slightly sweet with tones of wasabi in it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Drunken chicken in iced huadiao wine:
 0 讚好

I loved this because the wine was frozen and served as crushed ice on top of the chicken with more wine beneath the chicken.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Smoked eggs:
 0 讚好

Perfectly smoked with lovely runny yolks.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Fried string beans with olive and minced pork:
 0 讚好

Nicely fried string beans with olives that gave it flavour.
There is also another dish with string beans and salted egg too.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Salted pork, bamboo shoots and beancurd soup:
 0 讚好

The soup had a strong soy bean taste but I found it a tad too salty.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Stir fried beef cubes with pistachio nuts and asparagus:
 0 讚好

This was interesting because of the pistachio nuts, but it was nice.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Crispy prawns in salted egg yolk coating:
 0 讚好

Huge crispy prawns in delicious crunchy salted egg coating.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Steamed pork dumplings:


The pork dumplings were delicious with the vinegar which balanced out the oilyness.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Sweet and sour fish with pinenuts:
 0 讚好

The fish was nicely done coming off boneless and crispy with the sweet and sour sauce was just right.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Stir fried veal with wild chilis:
I didn't realize this dish was that spicy!!
People who love chilis with a real proper kick, this is the one!!
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Video of the huge xiaolongbao:
***Steamed jumbo xiaolongbau!!!!!

I have always wanted to try this but couldn't find it in Hong Kong.
They used to do it at JieSheng in MK but I never got round to trying it because there is no where to sit.


The soup dumpling was huge and I asked for a straw to have it the way you see on TV.

The soup was at the right temperature so I did not burn my mouth.

After drinking the broth, I tore apart the dumpling skin and dipped it in the vinegar which made it even more appetizing.
The minced pork inside was the same size as the ones in the normal sized ones so the jumbo version will not stuff you up.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Spring onion pancakes:

The pancakes were nice for dipping the strong sauces.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Salted egg fried rice:

Each grain of rice was covered in delicious crushed egg yolk giving it that lovely golden colour.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Shanghai special chili wontons:

These innocent looking wontons were delicious but extremely spicy with a fragrant Sichuan peppercorn taste.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Fried pumpkin cake:

The pumpkin cakes were nice and crisp on the outside and chewy in the middle filled with lovely red bean puree.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Red beans and banana souffle balls:

The souffle balls were nicely done, filled with red bean puree and mushy banana.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
***Mini dumplings in rice wine and osmanthus with mixed fruits:

These little mochi dumplings were lovely in the rice wine and osmanthus soup because it was not too sweet.
The texture of the mochi dumplings were nice and chewy, but I would probably order the non fruit version because it was just canned fruit.
I would prefer fresh strawberries or blueberries instead of canned fruit.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Photos of the restaurant:


★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★