Restaurant review: Gensui in Causeway Bay – Japanese set menu surprises
A delicious appetiser course of tomato sorbet with mozzarella cheese, torn basil leaf, tender octopus pieces and a smooth white asparagus pudding is the highlight of an eight-course omakase
The L Square building in Causeway Bay has a United Nations of restaurants: there’s Malaysian, French, Italian, Chinese, and even one that specialises in desserts. Gensui is one of the newest restaurants in the building.
When I called to book, the manager said they serve only an eight-course omakase at night, and that the meal was HK$980 per person.
We liked most of the meal; it wasn’t the most exciting omakase dinner we’ve had, but there were a couple of highlights.
My favourite dish was the creative, beautiful and delicious appetiser course. A clear bowl held a refreshing tomato sorbet with mozzarella cheese, torn basil leaf, tender octopus pieces and a smooth white asparagus pudding; to the side of the bowl was wild asparagus and a spear of grilled white asparagus with egg yolk sauce.
The sushi course was very nice, with a huge, sweet Botan ebi, golden-eye snapper, hokkigai and tuna tartare served on sushi rice with diced avocado and “soy bubbles”.
The next course was a mixed bag: the clam tempura – with clam meat and mushrooms fried in the clam shell – was disappointing, because the tempura batter in the shell was undercooked, soggy and heavy. The pan-fried amadai served alongside the clam was moist, and the edible scales were crunchy.
A4 Kagoshima beef, served medium-rare, was tender and fatty, and the portion size – three slices – was just right. Japanese rice with sakura ebi, on the other hand, was an enormous portion to serve two; we took more than half of it home with us.
We loved the light, refreshing dessert of delicately wobbly almond bean curd, and a chewy, sticky lotus root cake that came wrapped in hoba leaf.
Service, for the most part, was very good, but there was a long wait between some of the courses.
Gensui, 17/F The L Square, 459-461 Lockhart Road, Causeway Bay, tel: 2804 2004. HK$980 for an omakase dinner without drinks or the service charge
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