News bites
Hong Kong's oldest Western bakery, Ali Oli, has opened its latest cafe in Kwun Tong on the second floor of One Pacific Centre, next to APM at the Kwun Tong MTR.
BREAD TO SAVOUR
Hong Kong's oldest Western bakery, Ali Oli, has opened its latest cafe in Kwun Tong on the second floor of One Pacific Centre, next to APM at the Kwun Tong MTR. The bakery and cafe serves handmade, preservative-free bread, cakes and savouries and a range of coffees, teas and juices for diners and takeaway. Its highlights include savoury pies, quiche, sandwiches and salads, and sweets such as macarons, cookies, muffins, cupcakes and cheesecakes. The new cafe serves breakfast, lunch and afternoon tea.
Ali Oli has been baking bread and cakes in its flagship store in Sai Kung since 1986. Tel: 2792 2655
DIM SUM WITH A TWIST
This autumn, Yue at City Garden Hotel in North Point offers a menu of dim sum with a modern twist. Traditional dim sum ingredients mixed with modern cooking techniques have produced innovative interpretations of dishes such as steamed scallop and pork siu mai with mushroom, steamed giant grouper and shrimp dumplings with ginger - this dish is created to look like a fish and consists of minced grouper, shrimp, carrots and zucchini. For vegetarians, the steamed bamboo fungus dumplings with assorted mushrooms is a healthy treat. For dessert, chilled sago soup with osmanthus jelly is refreshing. Tel: 2806 4918
SPOTLIGHT ON TAPAS
If you haven't caught the show yet, don't miss Theatre of Tapas at Zafran on Wyndham Street, with interactive dining from Sunday through Thursday each week. Chef Pedro Samper tailors a menu of traditional and modern tapas from fresh ingredients based on diners' preferences and cooks the dishes in front of them. Hard-to-find ingredients are sourced from Spain's Basque country such as cod kokotxas. This off-menu approach is complimented by insights and stories from the chef of his childhood in San Sebastian in the Basque region. Diners can state their preferred price of HK$500, HK$800 and HK$1,000, but there is only room for a handful of guests nightly. Tel: 2116 8855
TRIBUTE TO TOMATOES
Tosca at The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong is celebrating the humble tomato this month in its "All about Tomato" menu. From an amuse bouche of 24ct gold tomato to a dessert of cheesecake with tomato jelly, chef Pino Lavarra has sourced 10 varieties of tomato from southern Italy. Starters of tomato-coated buffalo mozzarella and a cold tomato strawberry soup are followed by mains such as stuffed gnocchi with tomato seed jam. Menus range from four to six courses at HK$1,280 to HK$1680. Tel 2263 2270
FAVOURITES TO SAVOUR
The latest neighbourhood eatery in Kennedy Town, Kinsale, is named after a seaside town in County Cork that owner Cathal Keily enjoyed visiting as a youth. The town, often referred to as the gourmet capital of Ireland, is a popular family destination, and it is hoped Kinsale restaurant will emulate that success with a mid-priced menu packed with comfort food favourites such as slow-braised baby pork ribs, shrimp cocktail the old-fashioned way, crab cakes and maple- and chilli-glazed chicken wings. Keily is the man behind popular Central outlets Solas, Kila, Rúla Búla and Rayne. Tel: 2796 6004
EAT ALL YOU WANT
This month sees the return of the all-you-can-eat dim sum menu at Dim Sum Bar in Tsim Sha Tsui's Gateway Arcade, Harbour City. There are more than 40 traditional Cantonese gourmet favourites on the menu, including steamed shrimp dumplings, baked barbecue pork cream buns, and desserts of baked egg tart with bird's nest and chille roselle, and coconut pudding with osmanthus. New items include chicken rolls with enoki and lily flower. The menu is available after 6pm, Mondays to Thursdays, until October 30, with an offer of buy three get one free. Tel: 2175 3100
SEVEN OF THE BEST
For two nights only, chef de cuisine Julien Royer from JAAN at Swissôel The Stamford, Singapore will present a seven-course dinner menu of seasonal ingredients at The Principal, as part of its guest chef programme. Known for his innovative take on modern French cuisine, his restaurant is 100th on list and 17th on . He will be here on September 10 and 11, featuring the beetroot collection, miso trout with Kagoshima pork, kabu and parsley, and hay-roasted Bresse pigeon with corn, bread and licorice. Tel: 2563 3444
WEEKEND TREAT
Weekend brunch at Watermark has become more tantalising with a sumptuous seafood station featuring tiger prawns, Canadian sea whelks, Alaskan queen crab legs, New Zealand mussels and seasonal rock oysters freshly-shucked. The buffet showcases live cooking stations such as the egg corner; a carving station offering beef sirloin with demi-glace and Dijon mustard; and dessert options that include crêpes with ice cream and fresh fruits. Watermark is at Central Pier 7, with brunch from 11am to 3pm. Tel: 2167 7251
