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Lux Restaurant and Bar

UG/F California Tower

30-32 D'Aguilar Street, Central

Tel: 2868 9538

Open: noon-late (kitchen closed 3pm-6pm)

Balance: 1. an even distribution;  2. stability of body and mind; 3. harmony of design and proportion

Lan Kwai Fong newcomer Lux seems to have embraced balance as a philosophy.

This vast restaurant-cum-bar-cum-club has  succeeded with a formula that many have  tried but failed. It offers all the elements of a full night out - good  food, a stylish bar and dancing until late - without meshing them  into an indecipherable mess.

It has set a LKF benchmark for how to get  guests through the door and keep them there.

The success of this five-month-old  venture by Lan Kwai Fong  Entertainments, in the space  Cafe Des Artistes  once occupied (it has moved upstairs), can't simply be explained by its size. What could have been a cavernous meat market is, instead, an inviting spot, with its red hues, art deco-inspired  murals and cosy banquettes.

Before the tables are cleared  about 11.30pm, its 'contemporary Mediterranean' menu offers a good selection of straightforward dishes to share  through to  pricier selections from the grill.

The deep-fried squid with lemon aioli ($85) was a sign of the kitchen's approach - taking old favourites, giving them a  face-lift (in this case with a light batter and  accompaniments), but served without  a drum roll.

The Caesar salad ($95)  was equally simple, but made hearty by bruschetta with grilled vegetables and eggplant tapenade  on the side, while  wild mushroom pizza with fontina cheese, bacon and thyme ($115) on a super-thin crust, although light on topping, should be a summertime winner.

The bill - $523, including four glasses of wine - also seemed  on the light side, until we learned that all drinks (except bottles of wine, but including mineral water) are half price from 3pm-9pm. Now, that's nicely balanced.



Lux Restaurant and Bar