Peter Verey

Came to Shanghai but had outstanding Cantonese food @102house_shanghai .

Originating from Foshan, the restaurant opened in Shanghai in 2021 and has allready obtained Michelin ⭐️ ⭐️ and a 40th ranking in Asia’s 50 best .

The only option is a seasonal set menu which last night ran to 21 dishes over 12 courses .

While most dishes were familiar to me and I have seen them on menus in HK or Macau , the quality of the execution was eye opening. In particular all the stir fry dishes were judged to the optimum level , with proteins and vegetables supremely tender , juicy and flavourful.

Photos attached represent some of my favourite courses .

Deep fried caul fat surrounded a jumble of oysters and mushrooms , the rough texture of the caul far wrapping gave terrific texture .

Pigeon and scallop was a stir fry combo that I haven’t encountered, the pigeon was juicy and slippery , the scallop supple and sweet .

Wok fried shrimp was served with Chinese onion and sweet peas , clean and fresh .

The Lobster with shrimp roe was one of the best examples of lobster cooking I have ever had , the meat just seperated from the shell and was juicy yet cooked thru .

Crispy chicken was deep fried but also deeply smoked for a great contrast .

Sweet and sour pork is the signature dish , the pork is pork belly and is crisp as glass, the fruit changes seasonally while it was pineapple on this occasion , other variations feature peach, ginger and strawberry.

A coral grouper was cooked with mild shrimp paste , ginger and tofu skin , fun dish to get messy with .

The final savoury course was were rice noodles in fish broth and geoduck , milky and cleansing .

Full menu in comments .. Less

When you go to Shanghai and while having lunch you find out that the chef from said restaurant will be in Macau next week 🤦‍♂️. ( Go check out the 4 hand dinner at Imperial Court April 26-28 )

But no regrets as was a delicious lunch @meetthebund.2019 .

Specialising in Fujian cuisine , loved the clarity of flavour in all the dishes .

Small Fujian surf clams were flavour packed with a chilli vinegar dressing , could happily slurp up dozens.

Chilled tofu skin with Celtuce was a super refreshing starter .

Angus beef was cooked with dry spices and mixed with a tangle of chilli threads and dried tangerine peel . Sweet and spicy ..

Miniature grouper was served 2 ways , first in a porridge that was so velvety , it really gave New England chowder vibes and was delicious .
Secondly the grouper was briefly scalded with hot oil and served atop a bed of seaweed , quality ingredient led cooking .

Finally a “mystery “ green veg stir fried with red pepper and garlic , great fragrance and the vegetable was perfectly set . Less

Onjaku is a Tabelog Gold restaurant located just outside of Shizuoka . They are privy to some of the best seafood available , and today the sweetness was certainly evident . While no individual dish was anything but satisfying , the overall menu composition would have perhaps benefited from a dish or two with more fat or a stronger garnish as the subtly sweet produce was a little monochromatic.

But let’s talk about the leek ! I think this is the best leek I have had in my life , somehow deep fried with a crisp casing that slightly separates from the vegetable, the leek itself was absurdly tender and sweet . I have had great leeks from the hands of Rene Redzepi, Magnus Nillsson and Sato Hideaki - but this dish blew me away .

Horse mackerel and deep fried gobo
Squid and choy sum blossom
Baby aji
Gurnard and bamboo
Spanish mackerel and squid
Leek
Langoustine
Shiitake with langoustine roe
Hairtail and kale , sancho pepper
Hokkaido Wagyu rump , cabbage , lotus root and squid Mochi
Bamboo and Wakame rice
Tamago donburi
Strawberry Less

Do not possess enough superlatives for this one . A 33 year old chef is creating absolute magic here , cannot fault the execution, the concept of dishes, the vibe , the service , all exemplary . There is a reason that Yamazaki is booked solid for the next 12 months .
(So joining @jtfoodcation may be the best way to secure the experience)
Would donate an organ to come back ….

Clean and sweet start with Hamaguri clam broth, and sweet early season Bamboo. A super simple dish but had great harmony .

Steamed Mochi rice , tempura of smelt and lily bulb with caviar . The caviar serves as the salt for the tempura . Balanced !

Shirako is chargrilled and is a pontoon in the midst of white miso broth with sweet daikon, and romanesco .

The best Eel of my life followed , charred brilliantly, mild in flavour , with spring vegetables in white miso paste

Kinmedai was indeed splendid , grilled aggressively on the coals , the end result was stupefying, shattering skin and mi cuit flesh . Paired with cabbage in chicken dashi .

Snow crab was bursting with oceanic sweetness, the sauce made from crab roe and sake . Stunning .

The body of the crab was turned into a croquette with Kuruma ebi , the prawn also turned into the sauce .

Duck was perfectly cooked and paired with a European style black garlic sauce , light but powerful.

Rice course was a highlight and despite the group being full, we pretty much all had seconds . Served with Mountain wasabi blossoms which received a good burst of wok Hei , herring roe and the perfect egg yolk .

Dessert was another case of ingenuity , chestnut skin is ground then infused in milk before being reduced and turned into the creamiest of gelato. The flesh is mashed and turned into brûlée . Less

The Tokyo trip really sprang into top gear at Sushi Arai last night . Tabelog gold rated and while I’m far from a sushi expert , this seems absolutely appropriate.

The quirky photo policy limits photos to Tuna only , and the Maguro was certainly a highlight , great mouthfeel , distinct aroma , absolutely filled the palate .

Other highlights included -

Hamaguri clam steamed in its juices and served with olive oil
Scallop , Oba leaf and Nori roll
Kujira - Whale - only my second time with whale and this was incredible . Using the tail muscle of Icelandic whale , the texture and perfect fat content ratio was memorable .
Ankimo and pickled watermelon - this was requested by my host , an off menu dish that Chef Arai hasn’t made for several years , but he was happy to oblige us .
Saba - Spanish mackerel - so different to the Australian species of this fish, richer yet somehow sharper and less buttery

Many thanks to @jtfoodcation and @chi.champagnefeast for making it all happen .

It’s going to be a great week !! Less

A glimpse of Kyoto Kaiseki in Tokyo . Miyasaka is Michelin starred and Tablelog silver , the food is understated, well curated and overall satisfying .

Highlight was the rice course , the rice was “niebana” freshly cooked, so over the course of 10 minutes it transformed from al dente to “perfect” to a little over as it rested in the claypot , the differences in flavour were also pronounced as time went on .

Each broth or dashi served thru the meal were also excellent .

Boiled soft cod roe and Bean curd skin With Wild vegetables in White miso soup

Tuna and Flounder with Homemade kelp soy sauce

Steamed crab dumplings with rice cake in clear soup

Steamed SHOGOIN radish and “Tajimaguro” beef shabushabu style

Niebana steamed rice, Pickled vegetables, Dried young sardines,
Tuna and fried Red bream with lemon soy sauce

TSUBAKI-MOCHI Less

There’s a lot of change in the F&B offerings @wynn.macau this year but it’s great to have Wing Lei celebrating 15 straight years at the Michelin 2 star level . It’s a blessing to have such a quality venue where you can pop in for a 40 minute lunch and be completely satisfied .

The Ha Gao looked pristine and tasted just as good .
The carp fish balls in fish broth are probably not everyone’s favourite as the dish is unapologetically fish forward but i very much enjoy it .
Layered bean curd skin with fish paste in soy soup was new to me and i will certainly order again .
While bean curd skin was also the carrier for a nice traditional melange of crab meat and matsutake , can’t fault .

Suckling pig and toast was sandwiched with mango and cucumber , this traditional suckling pig preparation almost tasted western and gave nostalgic Porchetta sandwich vibes which brought me back to many a farmers market .

Chilled abalone marinated in sake lees rounded out the lunch , the abalone was super tender and almost creamy . Less

Anan Saigon was the first and only restaurant in Vietnam to be bestowed with a Michelin Star last year ( has been joined by a handful more this year ) .

Chef Peter Cuong Franklin has a varied CV which includes Caprice in HK, Nahm in Bangkok and Alinea (Chicago ) . His tasting menu seeks to reinterpret classic Vietnamese dishes in a fine dining context which is a tall task . I find these type of concept menus are very difficult to pull off and they pigeon hole chefs into a corner rather than really allowing their creativity to shine and just cook !
However this was a fun interpretation with a mix of traditional and molecular techniques , which resulted in a largely successful meal even if the soul of these dishes were sometimes missing .

Best courses were the Caviar Banh Nhung - street waffle filled with smoked salmon mousse , salmon roe , caviar and crème fraiche . Haven’t had salmon dip for years and honestly this was just delicious .

Canh Chua river prawn had delicious sweet and sour soup alongside well grilled prawn , clam, prawn mousse and okra . Fresh and lively this dish really sang .

The Bun Cha Bourdain was an homage to both Bourdain and Obama who had the OG dish in Hanoi , this was a terrific one bite dish but would have preferred a larger format version .

Grilled Saigon pigeon was served with betel leaf , sticky turmeric rice and excellent sticky pigeon jus . This was a great French Vietnamese riff of a dish . Less

Was in the mood to go hit up the wine list at @grandlisboahotel and landed on a lovely Chassagne-Montrachet at around 40% below current retail price .

The food hit the mark as well , Chicken with pomelo is a dish I first had here when visiting Macau 9 years ago and i still love it . The chicken skin is fried until it’s bronzed and crisp, the flesh is marinated in pomelo juice and quickly braised . It is jumbled together with in season Thai pomelo and is a lovely savoury, sour , refreshing dish .

Winter melon is hollowed out and filled with chicken broth and seafood , you scrape at the melon with every bite , nourishing and tasty .

Spotted garoupa is stir fried with a punchy XO sauce , the show is almost stolen by the accompanying snap peas , perfectly cooked and bursting with flavour.

The classic white and black sesame pudding rounded out a successful visit . Less

After 2 weeks barely leaving the house and binging on the beauty of the 2024 Paris Olympics , it’s nice to return to normal routine and hop across the border for a chilled lunch .

Man Wah @mo_hkg has held a Michelin star for 16 years now , recently refurbished it’s a beautiful room with a great view of HK harbour .

A large Hokkaido scallop cooked medium well rather than the en vogue mi-cuit , held up very well to a punchy porcini mushroom sauce . It’s Yunnan mushroom season now and I think they are outstanding so I would have been happy with mushrooms playing a larger role here but it was an excellent dish .

M9 Australian Wagyu was served with a fresh and floral black pepper sauce , with lily bulbs the main garnish .

Prior to this , a duo of excellent dim sum , Har Gao was fashioned into the shape of an edamame pod and the shrimp was paired with edamame and green chilli . Very satisfying .

Mushroom and crab dumpling was also very moorish .

The small sample of the dim sum skills was excellent and I would return just to make a solid dent in the 14 varietal dim sum menu . Less