Melissa F

No 9 SBI Canteen aka Softbank (軟庫飯堂) is one of the most sought-after Chinese private kitchens in Hong Kong! Owned by prominent businessman Lawrence Yu, the restaurant is run by Chef Tak Chow who was the apprentice of the last household chef for Qing dynasty official Gong Taai Si (江太史) - renowned as a food lover and for his influence in the development of Cantonese cuisine as we know it today. It is nearly impossible to book unless you know someone who is connected. A fantastic meal with delicate flavors, highlights included the pan-fried bird’s nest, crystal prawn, stir-fried pig’s stomach tip, stewed duck soup with chenpi, and eight treasure duck.

Our menu:

海膽戈渣
琵琶燕窩盞
玻璃大蝦球
七彩炒肚尖
陳皮燉鴨湯
清蒸海老鼠斑
百寶炆大鴨
雲腿四寶蔬
沙嗲牛肉炒腸粉
蓮子蛋白杏仁茶
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No 9 SBI Canteen 軟庫飯堂
Central, Hong Kong
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An imaginative first meal in Paris at 1* @restaurant_at by Japanese Chef @atsushitanaka360. Not limited by any culinary category, the chef’s creations are a poetic mix of flavors and colors. The meal was full of surprises from beginning to end with many interesting dishes.

The first part of our menu:

- Leek / Beetroot
- Pine Tree / Sea Bream / Clams
- Veal / Pea / Watercress
- Red Tuna / Boshi / Rhubarb
- Oyster / Sorrel / Lovage
- Spider Crab / Carrots / Tonka
- Camouflage: Banka Trout / Juniper / Parsley
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1*, Restaurant A.T
Paris, France
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There’s a new restaurant in @islandshangrila and it’s a beautiful one by the hotel’s pool with inspirations from the natural surroundings of HK. The restaurant @mingpavilion.shangrila pays homage to the rich heritage of Hokkien cuisine and the evolution of it across Asia. Signature dishes include the Xiamen-style “popiah” (潤餅), Fujian-style Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, steamed mud crab with glutinous rice, and wok-fried Singapore noodles. Complimenting the food is a wide selection of artisanal Chinese tea curated by a Tea Mixologist!

Our menu:

STARTERS

閩南五香卷
Deep-fried Five-spice Pork Roll

廈門風味潤餅
Xiamen-Style “Popiah”

香酥脆蝦棗
Deep-fried Hand Chopped Prawn Roll

SOUP

鷄湯汆海蚌
Blanched Jumbo Surf Clams in Chicken Soup

FROM THE SEA

飄香紅鱘蟹糯米飯
Steamed Mud Crab with Glutinous Rice

香脆紧菜海蠣煎
Fried Oyster Pancake with Seaweed & Baby Leek

MINNAN SINGAPOREAN

廈門薑母鴨
Xiamen Ginger Duck

蒜蓉精選時蔬
Seasonal Greens with Garlic

RICE & NOODLES

新加坡炆海鮮福建麵
Wok-Fried Singapore Noodles with Seafood

DESSERT

花生湯配油炸鬼，手工黑麻糍
Traditional Peanut Sweet Soup with Homemade Black Sesame Mochi

金瓜手工芋泥
“Orh Nee” Sweet Taro Paste with Japanese Pumpkin
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Ming Pavilion 茗悅
Admiralty, Hong Kong
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Trying the new 6 course lunch menu at @mosuhongkong - a great deal at HK$1180 pp with an optional 3 glasses wine pairing at HK$680. Highlights included the refreshing perilla salad with abalone, the Korean-style “chawanmushi” pine nut custard, the cast iron pot rice with Hanwoo beef, and the velvety dashima (seaweed) cheesecake!

Our menu:

Small bites

🍷 Louis Roederer ‘Collection 244’

Perilla salad

Pine nut custard

🍷 Valle Reale, Trebbiano d’Abruzzo ‘Popoli’ 2018

Mackerel & Naeng-yi

Cast iron pot rice

🍷 Chateau d’Armailhac 2018

Small sweets
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Mosu
Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
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Back in HK in time to catch @rchaneton’s latest Unplugged series at @monorestaurant last week - this time with Asia’s Best Female Chef @chef.pam of @restaurant.potong in Bangkok! The exciting collaboration featured dishes that celebrated each chef’s cultural heritage, combining Chef Ricardo’s Venezuelan-Italian roots and Chef Pam’s progressive Thai-Chinese cuisine. There were many great dishes but my absolute favorite was the amazing pigeon with a caramelized skin!

Our menu:

Black Chicken Tart & Herbal Consommé
Cilantro / Honey / Chinese Herbs

Buri Ceviche
Anchan Leche de Tigre / Green Papaya

POTONG’S Pad Thai
Carabinero / Tofu / Pickled Radish

MONO-made Sourdough
Lemongrass / Eva Aguilera Arbequina Olive Oil

Scottish Scallop
Galangal Curry / Grasshoppers

Yin Yang Noodle
Morel Mushroom / Pork

Binchotan Grilled Turbot
Thai Basil Tortilla / Green Mango Xnipec

Plounéour-Menez Pigeon
Five-spice Rub / Tamarind Glazed Cucumber

Miyazaki Mango
Rice Chicha / Thai Chilli Tuile

Tangerine & Chocolate Bon Bon

Cantaloupe Pate de Fruit & White Chocolate
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Mono x Potong
Central, Hong Kong
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Last meal in Taipei this time was at @akin.taipei by Chef @kin.cooks who is originally from Hong Kong and also helms the 1* @longtail.taipei along with several other concepts! The menu here is inspired by the life experience of the chef - from his roots in HK to his culinary training in Shanghai, Paris, New York and Taiwan. As such, the dishes were very creative and unique with highlights such as the classic HK dim sum 蘿蔔絲酥餅 with sea urchin filling, the flavorful laksa chawanmushi, the beautiful crispy duck dry aged for 2 weeks, and the clever “cheese course” - blue cheese donut with mulberry and walnut!

Our menu:

White Asparagus, Fermented Strawberries, Osetra Caviar

Kuro Awabi, Chinese Chive, Liver Hollandaise

Bafun Uni, Calamansi, Shiso

Kegani, Chawanmushi, Laksa

Kinmedai, Olive, Pickled Ginger

Duck, Green Plum, Endive

Wagyu Char Siu, Black Garlic, Tomatillo Salsa

Blue Cheese Doughnut, Mulberry, Walnut

Rhubarb, Cherry Blossom, Sour Cream

Coffee, Chocolate, Mandarin

Custard Apple, Fermented Honey

Petit Four
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Akin 君尹
Taipei, Taiwan
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The main reason I was in Taipei this time was for the collaboration between @stkiyoshi of @orchid.no83 in Taipei and @sam_aisbett of @akunarestaurant in Saigon! The dynamic duo had worked together before for years at Quay in Sydney and Whitegrass in Singapore, so sparks were bound to fly between the two. The fun night weaved from Sato’s modern Japanese cuisine to Sam’s edgy rule-bending dishes which were complemented with a fantastic wine and sake pairing!

The menu:

HASSUN
shima aji, goma wagyu, ossetra kamo, shiitake

NAGASAKI OYSTER
sanbaizu, summer citrus, Kaviari caviar

MAGURO
horseradish, seaweed oil, smoked bubble tea

DRUNKEN DUCK
penshell clam, salted egg, ice lettuce

SHOKUPAN
kombu, aonori

CHAWANMUSHI
hokkaido uni, squid, corn

CROCODILE
broken rice porridge, shoyuzuke egg, coastal greens

FISH
hokkigai, sake kasu, bone broth

WAGYU
sour quinoa, pickled mustard leaf, fermented mushroom

MIKAN
gin, fromage blanc, yuzu

STRAWBERRY & MILK
verbena, galangal ice cream, dried milk

PETIT FOUR
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Orchid x Akuna
Taipei, Taiwan
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As we moved to the main dining room at @iristherestaurant, the menu continued its exploration into the ecosystem of the ocean with the use of oysters, scallops, and cuttlefish for the first two dishes. The restaurant has chosen not to use beef but instead opted for wild game and bird which have significantly lower CO₂ in order to meet the challenge of global warming. For the meat courses, we were served a tartar of grilled raw venison and a twist on Peking Duck with nordic ingredients, flavors, and techniques. Finally the desserts were a showcase of the nature in Norway - a fitting tribute to the beautiful mountain views that can be seen from the dining room.

The second part of our menu:

COASTAL HARMONY
Hand dived scallops, oysters, and weeds

WEEDS OF THE SEA
Norwegian cuttlefish, kelp, unripe strawberries, and lovage

CHANGE OF HEART
Tartar of venison, grilled leeks, and sourdough crumble

LUCKY DUCK
Duck from Holte Gård, asparagus, mussel, and pepper

SPRUCED UP
Crispy tart, brown butter, and Rossini Oscietra caviar

MALM & MELDER
Mascarpone, strawberry, chervil, and bird-cherry

“UT PÅ TUR ALDRI SUR”
Bon-bon chocolate, Choux au craquelin & Opera cake

Thank you @ani.kamadsen for this amazing experience!
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1*, Iris
Rosendal, Norway
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A delightful lunch at @longyuetw - a Cantonese restaurant helmed by Chef Kan Chit Ming whose impressive career spans 60 years and was previously the Executive Chef at Fook Lam Moon in HK. The chef was candid about the difficulties in replicating Cantonese classics in Taiwan due to limitations of ingredients such as Jinhua ham and poultry from China but even so, the technical skills displayed in the dishes here were high - favorites included the char siu, double-boiled fish maw soup, steamed crab with egg white, crispy chicken, and sweet & sour beef!

Our menu:

冰燒三層肉
Roasted Pork Belly

金蒜黑豚叉燒
Signature Barbecued Pork

黃金燒鵝
Roasted Goose

松茸鮮螺頭燉花膠
Double-boiled Matsutake Fish Maw with Sea Whelk

花雕蛋白蒸花蟹
Steamed Blue Swimmer Crab with Egg White and Hua Diao Wine

蔥油淋海上鮮
Steamed Sea Fish and White Radish with Scallions Sauce

手吊脆皮雞
Longyue’s Signature Crispy Chicken

咕咾和牛
Sweet and Sour Wagyu Beef

蝦乾芥蘭煲
Braised Dried Shrimp and Chinese Kale in Casserole

松露蛋白和牛炒飯
Wagyu Beef, Black Truffle and Egg White Fried Rice

豆沙芝麻球
Deep Fried Sesame Balls stuffed with Bean Paste

牛油果官燕
Braised Bird’s Nest with Avocado
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Longyue 朧粵
Taipei, Taiwan
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A superb first meal in Taipei last week at 2* @logy.tw by @ryogotahara_logy! Originally from Hokkaido, the chef had trained in Italy and worked at @restaurant_florilege as sous chef before launching Logy in 2018. The restaurant uses seasonal local ingredients to celebrate the diversity of Asia while staying true to its Japanese identity. It was my first time trying Logy and I was very impressed with its complex and well-constructed dishes - highlights included the white shrimp with shaoxing wine jelly & mango, “hot & cold” chawanmushi, smoked mackerel risotto, caramelized eel tempura, and camomile ice cream with white asparagus soup. The meal was made all the more special with the excellent wine pairing by @lu__kevin who was just named Asia’s Best Sommelier by @theworlds50best!

The menu:

Beetroot “Kimpira” / perilla / sesame

Shaoxing Wine Jelly / shrimp / mango

Soymilk Bavarois / caviar / tomato & yogurt whey

Tuna(Chutoro) / roselle jelly / basil & saffron ponzu

Chawanmushi / angelica ice cream / dried squid consommé

Hay Smoked Mackerel / fried glutinous rice with hazelnut / coffee & “Sababushi “ soup

Caramelized Eel Tempura / comte cheese & chocolate sauce / sour hot soup

Omiwagyu / Urui-Miso / wood ear mushrooms glazed with toasted soybeans powder

Sakura Ice Cream / chervil granita / herb liqueur syrup (Saint Antonio)

Sakura Mochi filled with lily root and amaretto flavor

Chamomile Ice Cream / white asparagus & lavender soup

Aiyu Jelly with carbonated coconut jelly
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2*, Logy
Taipei, Taiwan
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