Jaa Kitchen

LG/F, 61-63 Hollywood Road Sheung Wan
Tel: 2545 5988
Open: Monday-Saturday 11.45am-10.45pm (last order)
Cuisine: European

Price: about HK$300 for a three-course dinner excluding drinks and service charge.

Ambience: the restaurant seats fewer than 25, including the counter seating at the bar, so the setting is cosy. It would be difficult to have an intimate chat.

Pros: the service. There was only one server, but he was friendly, observant and obviously proud of the food. The one-page menu (with specials written on the mirrors) was brief yet tempting.

Cons: my guest's shrimp bisque (HK$78) didn't taste much of shrimp.

Recommended dishes: Myanmese soft-shell crab with corn (HK$88) didn't need its fried bitter gourd garnish, but I liked everything else about it: the fried crab was not battered but was crunchy, and its slight oiliness went well with the sweet, crisp corn. Oven-roasted chicken leg (HK$165), stuffed with a scant mixture of semi-dried tomatoes, olives and chilli jam, was slightly overcooked but well-flavoured, and the tender zucchini fries and sauteed okra really made the dish. Wagyu burger with manchego cheese, onion jam, chorizo ketchup and sweet potato fries (HK$145) was a thick, well-seasoned patty. My guest loved the rhubarb crumble with ginger and cinnamon custard (HK$78) and nearly licked the plate clean, but I preferred the chocolate 'berried treasure' bar (HK$80), which was moist with large chunks of dried fruit.

What else? The entrance isn't actually on Hollywood Road; it's down a small alley parallel to the street. Starting from June 3, it'll be open Sundays from 1pm-10pm.