121 Peak Road, The Peak
Tel: 2849 1000
Having spent most of the week with an unsettled stomach, it is difficult to hold myself back from a rant. For the second time in a fortnight I have been served off seafood, this time by one of Hong Kong's so-called top restaurants.
Last week, I let the Bayside Brasserie off pretty lightly. Having served me an oyster on the turn, I gave it the benefit of the doubt because it is a relative newcomer and it can be difficult to pick a bad oyster. This week the offender is the Peak Lookout - and it should know better. Luckily, the smell from the mussels on its $550 seafood platter alerted me to the danger before I popped one in my mouth.
Even worse though, on both occasions, was that the only thing either establishment offered by way of an apology was to deliver replacements for the offending items. In the case of the Peak Lookout, this meant bringing out one mussel, then another and finally several, when a third rancid mollusc was discovered. I had guests visiting from Australia and I didn't want to ruin the afternoon by making a scene, believing the restaurant would do the right thing and offer us a sweetener to forgive its negligence. However, we didn't even get a complimentary biscuit, let alone a discount or personal apology from the manager. All in all it was an appalling indictment of the training of the staff and/or the management's attitude to its customers.
To be fair, the rest of the platter - with clams, oysters, yabbies, prawns and crab stacked high on a two-tiered, ice-filled stand - was excellent, as was an accompanying spinach salad ($95) and grilled asparagus ($94). But it was impossible to enjoy the meal. It has served as a warning to avoid seafood in summer, although restaurants should be able to serve it hygienically. Unfortunately, they are not.
