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D.I.F. Cafe

Hung Kwong Building, 2A Tung Choi Street, Mongkok,

Tel:  2385 2899.

Open: noon-12:30am

After a  sweltering day of shopping in Mongkok, you might think it'd be impossible to find a restaurant that serves good food, isn't too loud or crowded and is reasonably priced.  Think again.

Hidden behind the busy Ladies' Market  is D.I.F. Cafe,  which serves fusion food - a combination of French, Japanese and Korean cuisine - that might once have seemed too upmarket for this area.

The quality is  much better than  the average Mongkok fare. The D.I.F. pan-fried foie gras ($78 for two pieces), Caesar salad with smoked duck and prawns ($68 or $34 if ordered with any rice or pasta dishes) and baked escargots with spinach and cheese ($38) are fine starters, no matter what area you're in.

The cream soup with salmon ($28) is a disappointment. It  tasted as if it came from a can. But getting the bread in a Chinese bamboo cage is cute.

On to the mains. The real surprise is the grilled lamb chop and salmon with angel hair in black truffle cream sauce ($78).  As out of place as it may seem, you can have a black truffle dish in Mongkok. The taste was wonderful,  with the angel hair absorbing  the sauce and the salmon heated just enough to retain its freshness. And  the dish was substantial enough to share.

The crab roe, squid and smoked salmon with rice in pumpkin sauce ($58) is another good main course. The sauce is slightly sweet, and once again, the portions are generous, with plenty of crab roe.

For dessert, we order creme brulee ($28), which offers a nice contrast between the  hot, crisp caramel layer and the cool,  creamy custard.

All in all, our one and only complaint is that the air-conditioning is turned up a bit  high for us to want to linger for  long.

Dinner for two with a vodka and pineapple drink ($30) was $392, which is quite a bargain.



D.I.F. Cafe