[Review 3562] All you can eat Japanese food @ 金田日式放題 Kaneda Japanese Restaurant

03/08/2014
金田日式放題 Kaneda Japanese Restaurant
尖沙咀寶勒巷3-7A萬事昌廣場3樓302室
Room 302, 3/F, Multifield Plaza, 3-7A Prat Avenue, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/all-you-can-eat-japanese-food-e2381796

Kaneda has been in operation for at least ten years because when I went to hong kong for holidays, the locals would take me there.
There are no reviews by me at this branch because I did not write reviews back then, however when they started a second branch in Wanchai I reviewed that one.
It is good that they have new items compared to ten years ago and the ordering sheets are in a better format.
Here was what we had:

The fried section had a nice variety of choices including cheese mochi, potato wedges and oyster cutlets.
 0 讚好

There was seafood tempura and vegetable tempura as well.
 0 讚好

 0 讚好

In the sushi section, the seared salmon was my favourite and the soft shell avocado rolls.
 1 讚好

 1 讚好

There were handrolls too which we did not try.

For sashimi, the abalone slices, tuna is also worth trying because they were fresh and tasty.
 1 讚好

Then we tried the cooked items.
 0 讚好

The stir fried vegetables had a nice hint of freshly cracked black pepper.
 1 讚好

 0 讚好

For salads, there was tofu, duck salad and burdock.

 0 讚好


For carbs, I had the soba noodles which were refreshing.

For dessert, they have mochi icecream which comes in various flavours.

They also have fruit sorbets as well.

 1 讚好

Mondays to Thursday are cheaper so these are the days to come!!!

[Review 3561] A colourful and nourishing dinner @ Azure Restaurant Slash Bar

03/08/2014
Azure Restaurant Slash Bar
中環中環蘭桂坊雲咸街33號隆堡蘭桂坊酒店29-30樓
29-30/F, Hotel LKF by Rhombus, 33 Wyndham Street, Lan Kwai Fong， Central, Central
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/a-colourful-and-nourishing-dinner-e2381719

Met up with a BBC to have dinner here and found out that it was Azure Restaurant Slash Bar's 8th anniversary hence the special menu.
The menu is colourful and artistic because they have invited street artists and local artists to celebrate on the day.
It is a 4 course set dinner at $588 per person which is served from now until 30th September 2014.
For celebration drinks, there are lots of choices all paired with Absolut Vodka.

My friend has the Absolut pineapple Martini which had Absolut vodka, syrup, fresh pineapple garnished with pineapple.
As a tea lover, I had the Rose Bowl which had earl grey tea in it.
It was made with Absolut citron, earl grey tea, lemon juice, raspberry syrup and garnished with a strawberry sliced like a rose.

I loved this drink because you could taste the earl grey tea as well as the raspberry.
Started off with bread which was warm, crusty and soft inside.
It was paired with a delicious trio of butters.
From left to right: herbs, truffle and tomato.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Started off with the Compostelle ceviche which is Citrus marinated Hokkaido scallop with chilled tomato tea.
This was light to start off with.
Beneath the scallops was tangy cooling tomato tea.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Then came the Big Apple which was soup.
There was finely chopped celery and radish slices in the bowl and the soup is poured in front of you.

I was really looking forward to this soup because it is healthy and therapeutic!
Apple and celery cannot go wrong.
The soup was made with Granny Smith green apples which are slightly tart hence the addition of some sweet apples. It was like drinking warm apple puree with crunchy bits of celery.
Surprisingly, the soup was rather filling and light because it does no contain any cream, nor was it too sweet or sour.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

For the mains, there was a choice of salmon, quinoa (vegetarian) or tenderloin.
I felt that salmon and Quinoa were the best choices.

Norwegian sea:
Sous vous salmon, ink rice cracker, lemon gel, shiso and plum juice
 0 讚好

There was no hesitation choosing the sous vous salmon because when it is cooked that way it brings the best taste of salmon.
 0 讚好

As expected, the salmon was so soft and silky that it melts in your mouth and the shiso and plum juice beneath it gave it a pretty colour beneath it as well as a complementing zesty taste to it.
On top of the salmon it was garnished with a black squid ink rice cracker which was tasty as well.

Green pleasure
Quinoa, roasted vegetables, radish, walnuts And Greek yoghurt
 0 讚好

The presentation of this was beautiful with quinoa either side.
I tried some of the Quinoa and it was soft and tasty.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Bubbles time
Champagne strawberry macaron
 0 讚好

Finished off with a fun dessert, it was a glass of strawberry foam which was bubbly and viscous made with strawberries and champagne.
 1 讚好

The ganache in the macaron was infused with champagne.
I loved the macaron because you could really taste the champagne in the chewy ganache.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

I was impressed from the beginning to end, everything was colourful, simple, delicious and healthy.
It was my third time here and I still love it!
Definitely a great girls night out!

[Review 3560]Exclusive cucumber gelato flavour by XTC @ XTC Gelato

03/08/2014
XTC Gelato
尖沙咀天星碼頭KP-01號舖
Shop KP 01, Star Ferry, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/exclusive-cucumber-gelato-flavour-by-xtc-e2381365

Attended the launch of Dettol's all day fresh cucumber bodywash where you can get free cucumber gelato exclusively by XTC if you download the 「All Day Fresh」app to make a movie and share it on Facebook.
The nifty app is quite cool because it has Priscilla Wong in the background of the video where you can pretend to interactive with her.
The gelato booth will be outside the world trade centre between 12pm to 8pm on the 3rd of August.
If you miss the booth, you can simply share the video on Facebook and get a coupon for the gelato.

I tried the cucumber gelato and it was refreshing and cooling with real pieces of cucumber in it.
The sweetness was just right.

[Review 3559] The King of Soy beans in San Po Kong @ 豆漿大王 Soyabeans King

02/08/2014
豆漿大王  Soyabeans King
新蒲崗大有街34號新科技廣場地下9號舖
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/the-king-of-soy-beans-in-san-po-kong-e2381311

I rarely go to this stretch of Kowloon but discovered this place after dining at Antoshimo.
This place is surprisingly close to the Mikiki mall.
On the walls, there are product shots of the food which is extremely helpful.
The menu has English too!

Started off with my favourite Savoury soybean soup.
It was loaded with spring onions, fried dough stick slices and dried shrimps which gave it lots of flavour and you could also smell and taste the sesame oil.
Then I had the spicy minced meat with noodles.

Personally I found it too spicy for my tastebuds.
There is a choice of cellophane noodles (mungbean noodles) to go with the mince.
Cellophane noodles would definitely taste better.

To sooth my tastebuds, I had the grounded sweetcorn soup which was mildly sweet with lots of grounded sweetcorn in it.
Tried these glutinous rice balls which are clumps of glutinous rice shaped into balls, panfried and then sprinkled with meat floss.

They were nice and filling.
[Please note that they are not served during peak hours ie 12-2pm]

For desserts, there are quite a few to choose from.
I tried the ginger milk dessert which had a strong ginger taste without being too sweet.
The sweet dumplings in soymilk were also good.
Last but not least, the most delicious item in the restaurant which is not served from 12-2pm!!

These are super delicious fluffy and soft steamed Chinese buns with finely grounded meat and preserved vegetables in the middle which are similar to those Taiwanese Guo Baos but costing a mere $10 for 2!!!!!!

The grounded pork was panfried giving a crispy texture loaded with gentle spices and a cumin kick!!
Definitely an item that must be tried if you go at the right time.
If I come here again, I am going to try the steamed rice in lotus leaves with juicy spare ribs!

[Review 3558] Needs improvement @ 皇朝點心專門店 (已結業)

01/08/2014
皇朝點心專門店 (已結業)
旺角廣華街1號仁安大廈地下1號舖
Shop 1, G/F, Yan on Building, 1 Kwong Wah Street, Mong Kok
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/needs-improvement-e2381209

Tried this new dim sum shop on Kwong Wah Street.
As usual, you are given compulsory tea that is charged.
The Jasmine tea tasted nice which was ok.
 The tables are laid out like such with orders placed behind the seat.

The rice with spare ribs and chicken claws were too salty and oily, and it was annoying that I only got one claw and the rest were fatty pork pieces.
I also had the cow's stomach which was too sweet!
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[Review 3557] Out of place @ Dolci Sogni

01/08/2014
Dolci Sogni
灣仔莊士敦道104號地下E舖
Shop E, G/F, 104 Johnston Street, Wan Chai
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/out-of-place-e2381068

Dolci Sogni opened ages ago but it did not stand out on that street because the front of this shop is black and inside it is black as well.

It is strange because on that street, the rest of the eateries are local cha chaan tengs, noodle shops and places for affordable local grub so this boutique style joint seemed out of place on a shabby street.
Personally, I think they could be in a better location such as Causeway Bay or Central.

Tried their pistachio nitrogen icecream.
I found the icecream too sweet and it tasted powdery with a strange aftertaste which I believe is the PreGel pannacreama they are using.
I will probably come back and try their savoury items.

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The bill: $43