[Review 4415] The perfect summer evening at Gaia Ristorante @ Gaia Ristorante

23/06/2015
Gaia Ristorante
上環皇后大道中181號新紀元廣場低座地下
G/F, Grand Millennium Plaza, 181 Queen's Road,, Sheung Wan
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/the-perfect-summer-evening-at-gaia-ristorante-e2463397

At Gaia Ristorante, they are now serving Al Fresco Afternoon Tea from 3:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. everyday which costs HKD$198 and includes an item from the afternoon snack menu with a choice of house wine, cocktails, mocktails and soft drinks.

The location couldn’t be better in the heart of Central where everyone passes by so their food has to be top notch to stay there.

Most evenings that I walk past, it is always crowded with people having drinks.

The afternoon menu was quite good because they have roman style pizzas which is fit for two people.

For lucky people who get off work at 5:30, the afternoon tea is perfect for early dinner.

The inside of the restaurant is nice as well as the alfresco area outside.

Here is what we had:
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Pina colada:
 1 讚好

Started off with this cooling pina colada which was not too sweet with a balanced coconut and pineapple taste.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Spritz:
We also had the Spritz which is an Italian cocktail made of prosecco and a bitter.
This had a nice orange taste to it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Calamari fritti:
 1 讚好

This was delicately fried calamari served with three different mayonnaises: aioli, chili and squid ink.
The squid ink mayonnaise was the best.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Pizza Margherita:
This was a very thin pizza topped with mozzarella, basil leaves and tomato.
The pizza was big enough for two.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
For Maggio:
There were lots of things on this platter:
olives, walnut, sweet fig bread and mustard fruit.
Mustard fruit is candied fruit which is sweet and great with cheeses.

On the cheese platter was saffron cheese, pecorino, goats cheese, tomino and talegio.
My favourite was the tomino and pecorino because they were flavourful.
The fig bread was really nice and soft with lots of fig in it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
◎ⓢⓤⓟⓔⓡⓢⓤⓟⓔⓡⓖⓘⓡⓛ◎
The bill: $198 x 3

[Review 4414] Dining with chocolate @ Jean-Paul Hévin Boutique et Bar à Chocolat

22/06/2015
Jean-Paul Hévin Boutique et Bar à Chocolat
中環擺花街13號
13 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/dining-with-chocolate-e2462977

Before trying this 8 course meal, I thought Jean-Paul Hévin just did high teas and chocolates.
Each course had an element of chocolate in it.

The Eight course “Chocolate Tasting Journey” costs HK$380 and the 5-course “Initiation Menu” is priced at HK$250 served 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily which makes it an extra option for lunch in Central.

Here were the eight courses that I had:
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Cream of Peas and Mint, Cream Foam, and Cocoa Powder:
When this is served, they sprinkle the cocao powder infront of you.

It was a cooling pea and mint soup to start, perfect on a hot day.
The taste of delicate peas and mint went nicely with the chocolate smoothed out by the cream.
Beneath the glass, there are flowers to garnish which I took a picture for fun.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Pan-seared Scallop with Ivory Chocolate Butter:
This was a lovely scallop on top of sweet white chocolate butter.
The sugary sweetness of the chocolate went surprisingly well with the seared scallop.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Pan-fried Foie Gras with 75% Chocolate and Cocoa Bean:


I loved the contrast of the soft silky foie gras against the crispy crunch of the cocoa beans which gave it a lovely bitter nutty balance to it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Warm Green Asparagus, Hazelnut Oil Vinaigrette with Grated Domingo Chocolate:
They grate chocolate onto the asparagus which melts into fine tiny droplets.
The asparagus had a lovely nutty taste which was magnified by the hazelnut oil with hints of sweetness from the chocolate.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Roasted Cod Filet with Black Olive Crust, Saffron and extra-bitter Dark Chocolate Sauce:

The cod was beautifully done, it was flakey and moist flavoured by the crisp black olive crust which gave it a lovely aromatic saltiness balanced by the sweet tender spinach leaves.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Chicken Fillet with Ceps and Chocolate Praline:
This was the last savoury dish with a tender Chicken Fillet, crunchy Chocolate Praline and silky mash.
The silky mash and chicken were just divine.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Petits Fours:

Finished off with Petits Fours.
On the plate was a raspberry macaron and two square tablets.

Jean Paul Hévin’s signature Le Parisien Hot Chocolate.

This was definitely a sweet ending with JPH delights especially the hot chocolate that was rich with a strong cocoa taste.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
As well as the eight course, they also have lighter set lunches priced from HK$148 – HK$188 per person which includes a soup and salad starter, a main course of pasta, meat or seafood, finished with Jean-Paul Hévin’s Gâteau du Voyage Chocolate Cake Slice.
Le Parisien Hot Chocolate, coffee, or tea will be paired with the lunch set.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
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[Review 4413] Shoreditch in Hong Kong @ Shoreditch

22/06/2015
Shoreditch
西環堅尼地城吉席街18號地舖
G/F, 18 Catchick Street, Kennedy Town, Western District
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/shoreditch-in-hong-kong-e2462957


Shoreditch in Hong Kong
2015-06-22  2408 瀏覽
I was attracted by the name Shoreditch because Shoreditch is a hip town in East London where everything is happening.
At Shoreditch, they serve British fare with a modern twist.
I already had dinner before so I went for a soup and dessert but next time I am coming back for FISH AND CHIPS.
For desserts I was going to order two but the treacle tart was sold out.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Cullen Skink:
Cullen Skink is a Scottish soup made of smoked haddock, potatoes and onions.
It was a nice soup packed with flavour and a wonderful creamy texture but the consistency could have been thicker.
I loved the generous pieces of smoked haddock in the soup but they were quite salty which were perfect with the bread.
 1 讚好

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Rice Pudding $88:

This was rice pudding with rhubarb at the bottom covered with honeycomb vanilla pieces.

It was a nice matching of sweet honeycomb pieces on top and sour rhubarb in harmony with the creamy rice pudding.
The honeycomb was slightly bitter because of there was too much bicarbonate of soda but it was nice and chewy.
 2 讚好

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
◎ⓢⓤⓟⓔⓡⓢⓤⓟⓔⓡⓖⓘⓡⓛ◎
The bill: $1xx

[Review 4412] Jelly sweets @ Cova Pasticceria & Confetteria

22/06/2015
Cova Pasticceria & Confetteria
中環遮打道10號太子大廈1樓134-135號舖
Shop 134-135, 1/F, Prince's Building, 10 Chater Road, Central
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/jelly-sweets-e2462633

Thanks to a fellow foodie for getting me these because I didn't know that Cova had other confectionary products as well as chocolates.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
jelly sweets:
 0 讚好

There were different flavours, strawberry was my favourite because it was sugary with a natrual strawberry taste while the orange one had a strong orange peel taste.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

[Review 4411] Quick noodles for lazy buggers @ 張榮記蝦子麵廠

22/06/2015
張榮記蝦子麵廠
紅磡差館里3-5號金安大廈地下
G/F, Rammon Mansion, 3-5 Station Lane, Hung Hom
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/quick-noodles-for-lazy-buggers-e2462632

Thanks to Emily for getting me these noodles.
They are already flavoured so you just add boiling water which will make them go soft and ready to eat.
The porcini one was my favourite because it had strong bold mushroom flavours.

[Review 4410] Cars and Italian food @ Fiat Caffé

21/06/2015
Fiat Caffé
尖沙咀彌敦道132號美麗華廣場1期低層地下B131號舖
Shop B131, B1/F, Mira Place One, 132 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
https://www.openrice.com/zh/hongkong/review/cars-and-italian-food-e2462598

Kids will always be kids, they will rush over to cars and bright coloured objects.
 0 讚好

I was with some relatives at the MiraMall when my little cousin ran to the fiat car at the Fiat Caffe.
We dined there because it was a car themed restaurant.
 0 讚好

Fiat Caffe serves Italian food so here was what we had:
++++++++++++
Minestrone soup:
 0 讚好

The minestron soup was a bit different because it was thick with strong vegetable flavours with a nice tart tomato taste.
++++++++++++
Lobster bisque:
 0 讚好

The lobster bisque was strong and rich.
++++++++++++
Figs and ricotta cheese salad:
 0 讚好

 0 讚好

This was a light and sweet salad for summer.
 0 讚好

Beneath the rocket leaves were creamy ricotta cheese which tasted delicious with the grassy rocket leaves and sweet figs.
++++++++++++
Mushroom Ravioli with tomato sauce:
 0 讚好

These were crescent shaped ravioli filled with earthy mushroom paste in the middle paired with tangy tomato sauce.
++++++++++++
Lamb shank:
 0 讚好

These were two big lamb shanks on top of buttery mash in rich gravy but the lamb could have been softer.
++++++++++++
Kids meal:
For under 12s.

This was cute, the chicken nuggets and fries are served in a paper car and the portion is quite big as well because you get a pasta with it too.
It must have tasted nice because my cousin finished it within a flash.
 0 讚好

++++++++++++
Honey figs margarita:
 0 讚好

It was ruby red garnished with a sprig of mint on top.
The drink was really refreshing and not syrupy followed by the lovely fizzyness of the carbonated water and bits of sweet blended fig.
++++++++++++
Earl grey tea by The london tea company:
 0 讚好

The earl grey tea had a strong bergamot taste which was fragrant but not artificial.
++++++++++++