[Review 4069] Taiwanese CNY delights @ Check-In Taipei

07/02/2015
Check-In Taipei
中環蘇豪荷李活道27號地舖
G/F, 27 Hollywood Road, Soho, Central
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/taiwanese-cny-delights-e2423995

As well as HK, Taiwan celebrates CNY as well.
At Check in Taipei, they have come up with some festive dishes which I tried.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Wintermelon pudding drink:
Started off with the wintermelon pudding drink topped with tapioca pearls, at the bottom of the drink was a silky pudding.
It was sweet and fun to drink.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Crispy pork knuckles:

These bites were topped with soft stewed pork knuckles which were tasty and gelatinous.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Taiwanese bbq prawns:
 0 讚好

Next we had the bbq prawns which had a delicious mix of spices.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Braised pork nachos:
 0 讚好

Then we had the nachos which were surprisingly addictive because the braised pork tastes much better than beef because the sauce has a lovely mix of savoury goodness.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Chinese pepper pig ears:
 0 讚好

Although the Sichuan peppercorns were quite spicy, I really liked the crispy prawns crackers and the diced peppery pig ears and the piece of soft tofu beneath it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Chicken and waffles:
 0 讚好

These were similar to American chicken waffles but the chicken was crispy and it was coated with delicious Taiwanese spices complemented by the lovely sweet pineapple chunks in between.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Beef noodles:
 0 讚好

To finish off, we had noodles which were delicious wide strips of slippery noodles with frilly edges.
Each strand was tasty after it absorbed the meaty broth and the pieces of beef were soft and well marinated.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Panna cotta:
 0 讚好

The dessert was amazing because the Panna Cotta had pieces of pineapple in it and it tasted like heavenly clotted cream.
It was served with Taiwan's famous Sunny Hills pineapple cakes.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
I didn't drink any cocktails that night but the others had it and I thought the presentation and the names of the cocktails were fun.
I love Tai-Mei:
 0 讚好

Fly me to Taipei:
 0 讚好

Tea-ramisu:
 0 讚好

Yearning Taipei:
 0 讚好

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

[Review 4068] A Valentine’s Day Tale told at HMV Kafe @ HMV Kafe

07/02/2014
HMV Kafe
跑馬地成和道18號A地下
G/F., 18A Sing Woo Road, Happy Valley
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/a-valentines-day-tale-told-at-hmv-kafe-e2423993

Out of all the Valentines menus I have seen this year, the one at HMV Kafe seems romantic because it is laid out like a scene in one of Shakespeares plays.
It is divided into ACTS, INTERLUDE and the FINALE.

The set is priced at $1288 for two including tea or coffee. Here was the set that we had.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
ACT I
Enchanted Garden (Tagete flower)
 1 讚好

This was a beautiful array of vegetables on a bed of mushroom soil.
I just felt that the mushroom soil was not exciting enough because I couldn't quite taste the mushrooms. It could be improved by putting bacon bits to make it tastier.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Perfect Pair (Begonia flower)
 0 讚好

Next we had foie gras which was paired with vinegar pearls, the sharpness of the vinegar balanced the foie gras nicely.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Chamomile Pond (Chamomile)
 0 讚好

This was chicken consomme infused with Chamomile.
It was clear with a strong chicken taste.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Interlude
Light Curry Gelato (Borage flower)
 0 讚好

The curry icecream was a great kick to the tastebuds because the spices were alive and the potato foam on top was silky and viscous and which smoothed it all out.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
ACT II
Apples, Apples, Apples (Pansy)
 1 讚好

OR
Steak and Flowers (Nasturtium)

There is a choice of steak or salmon.
Steak is definitely the one to choose because the vibrant potato jelly layer is mesmerising.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Finalé
La Boulle de Chocolat (Lavender)
 1 讚好

When this is served, they pour hot chocolate on top which melts the top away exposing the blood orange flavoured panna cotta beneath it with Kirsch caviar pearls.
 0 讚好

The panna cotta was absolutely refreshing with a strong citrus flavour
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
After a lovely dinner, it was finished off with tea.
 1 讚好

To summarize, I was quite impressed by their creativity and the effort they put in creating a menu like that which surpasses an ordinary cafe.

[Review 4067] Seafood the American way @ The Captain's House

07/02/2015
The Captain's House
尖沙咀厚福街8號H8 18樓
18/F, H8, 8 Hau Fook Street, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/seafood-the-american-way-e2423992

Seafood the American way
2015-02-07  3416 瀏覽
Louisiana state is a place famous for Creole cuisine and seafood served in a bag is one of the famous items there.
At The Captain's House they serve seafood in a bag just like Louisiana and each diner gets a disposable apron to wear.
 0 讚好

Started with the Seafood platter on ice which had a good variety of fresh seafood.
 2 讚好

Then we had my favourite Hawaiian poke salad which were cubes of salmon mixed with soy sauce and onions.
Normally poke is made with tuna.
 0 讚好

For bites we had Fish taco served with tomato salsa, sour cream and guacamole.
 0 讚好

 0 讚好

The Escargots in mash were good because they were baked without the shells and the mash was buttery and velvety.
 0 讚好

Last but not least was the hot seafood bag, the moment everyone was waiting for!!
 0 讚好

There are three choices of sauces and we chose the Cajun and the lemon butter sauce.
The Cajun was a bit too spicy.
 0 讚好

The lemon butter sauce was really creamy with a fragrant butter taste that lingered on the seafood.

[Review 4066] 2015 Valentines series at 2/3 Dolci @2/3 Dolci

06/02/2015
2/3 Dolci
九龍塘達之路80號又一城G層S1號舖
Shop S1, G/F, Festival Walk, 80 Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon Tong
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/2015-valentines-series-at-2-3-dolci-e2423816

The Valentines cake collection has got bigger this year and there are two new drinks as well.
Tried the TI AMO which was raspberry and Tiramisu cake, it was creamy with a mix of Tiramisu layers and tart raspberries.
Then, I had the AMORE which was panna cotta and mousse infused from real lychee and rose tea leaves.
It was the perfect pairing of lychee and rose with a good balance because you could taste the fragrant lychee and the rose was not too strong.
To finish off I had the AURORA which was rose and lychee latte served with a lovely thick milk cap infused with fragrant rose and lychee.
Last but not least was the KISSES, a hot nutty hazelnut and chocolate drink.

[Review 4065] Italian food by M2* Ristorante San Domenico @ Cucina

06/02/2014
Cucina
尖沙咀廣東道3號海港城馬哥孛羅香港酒店6樓
6/F, Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel, Harbour City, 3 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/italian-food-by-m2-ristorante-san-domenico-e2423808

I was really lucky to have tried Italian dishes by Internationally renowned Italian Chef Valentino Marcattilii from the Michelin two-star Ristorante San Domenico.
As well as fine dishes, there was a beautiful view.
 0 讚好

Here was what I had:
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Buffalo cheese, steamed lobster, parmesan cookies, tomato water essence
 0 讚好

The starter was absolutely beautiful, the buffalo cheese was like soft curds which had a very cheesy taste paired with the Parmesan cookies.
To contrast it was springy lobster and tangy tomato sauce.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Home-made passatelli pasta, chicken consommé
 0 讚好

The soup was rich with a highly concentrated chicken taste and the pasta strands were soft and cheesy.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Egg stuffed ravioli, seasonal truffle
 0 讚好

The ravioli had a nice runny egg yolk in the middle surrounded by more ricotta cheese and Parmesan sauce which was perfect with bread.
 0 讚好

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Pan-seared sea bass, polenta, clams sauce, taggiasca olives
 0 讚好

Finished with fish which was on a bed of delicious creamy polenta mash and sauce.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
 0 讚好

For dessert, we had a rich velvety chocolate cake.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

[Review 4064] Romantic private dining at The Coterie @ The Coterie

06/02/2014
The Coterie
尖沙咀山林道50號俊僑商業中心9B號舖
Shop 9B, Charmhill Centre, 50 Hillwood Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/romantic-private-dining-at-the-coterie-e2423807

The Coterie took me by surprise because it was a wonderful secluded restaurant in TST and the food was fantastic paired with fine Christofle silverware.
We had the four course dinner.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Steamed egg with truffle:
 3 讚好

It was smooth steamed egg with truffle paste on top and it had some seasalt flakes to give it extra flavour.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Amuse bouche:The scallop

Seared scallop with tabbouleh salsa
 3 讚好

Next we had seared scallop which was chunky and slightly springy served with my favourite tabbouleh salsa.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

The foie gras:

Poached foie gras in port wine and pear reduction
 3 讚好

The foie gras was flawless paired with a sweet pear infused with port wine.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

The soup:

Calde verde with iberico chorizo and cep shavings
 4 讚好

Next we had the soup which I really liked because it had lots of green vegetables and the Chorizo was mildly spicy.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

The pork:

Roast iberico pork belly galantine, porcini mushroom and madeira jus
 5 讚好

For the mains, we were served pork belly which had a very springy texture just like pork neck meat.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

Tiramisu:
 4 讚好

The tiramisu was light and velvety and the cake was heavily soaked in alcohol.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
To summarize, this is a great place to bring someone special and for celebrities to hang out.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★