Tudy's Tasca Portuguesa
Fare A tasca is the Portuguese equivalent of an English pub or a Spanish tapas bar, where beverages are accompanied by small platters of food. This is possibly the only restaurant in Hong Kong serving primarily Portuguese tapas.
Ambience An eclectically-themed hole-in-the-wall: baroque lamp shades vie with an 'artistic' jumble of photos from the motherland. The effect is kept slick by the use of dark wood panelling around the bar, and whitewashed walls. A few outdoor seats will be popular on low-humidity days.
Cost Dishes start at HK$36 for a bowl of olives and go up to about HK$200 for a large platter of grilled salt cod.
Who to bring A couple of friends who'll appreciate a twist on the regular dinner and drink; a second date - the food should provide plenty of conversation fodder even if everything else looks bleak; and oenophiles - the range of little known Portuguese pours will open many eyes.
Turn-ons Service is impeccable - friendly but not overbearing, on the ball but humble enough to ask for opinions. Almost every dish is delicious, and different from what you might order at a Spanish tapas bar. The sauteed prawns are fresh and flavoursome, with a deliciously pungent garlic sauce (one to avoid on a date). The pica-pau, pork cubes and sausage with pickles, is a fascinating blend of native meats tempered by mildly vinegared vegetables. The bacalhao frito com batatas fritos, a curious yet addictive combination of salt cod and fried matchstick potatoes, is messy comfort food.
Turn-offs Only two problems here, and the biggest, ironically, is the size - the restaurant, which seats 18, and the tables are both tiny, with scarcely enough space for more than a couple of dishes at a time. The other is the music, a bizarre mix of Bollywood-tinged trip-hop and fado on Speed.
Drinks A vast choice of sparkling, slightly sparkling, white and red Portuguese wines, with many by the glass; six choices from Germany and South America by the bottle; a huge selection of ports.
31 Ship Street, Wan Chai, 25200045
