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Charmaine Chan

3/F Elements, 1 Austin Road West, Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: 2196 8126
Open: noon-2.30pm, 6pm-10.30pm
Cuisine: Italian-Japanese fusion
Ambience: The decor is sophisticated and sparkly but conjures neither Italy nor Japan. The restaurant, which is Italian jeweller Damiani's  first food venture, displays necklaces and other jewellery and ornaments in brightly lit showcases set into the walls. The two levels can seat 200 diners. On the night we visited, the spacious upper floor - accommodating a D-shaped marble bar and wine cellar - was deserted, although the atmosphere downstairs was cosy.
Price: About HK$500 for a three-course meal without wine and before adding the service charge.
Pros: Attentive waiters who knew when to make their presence felt and when to keep in the background. Dishes looked enticing and portions were reasonable.  The restrooms are sleek and unusually spacious.
Cons: The view, of other restaurants and a forlorn-looking outdoor area, is a reminder that you are dining in a shopping centre. My guest and I also felt hemmed in, seated, as we were, between two larger tables.
Recommended dishes: Everything we ordered deserved a gold star. The borlotti bean  and matsutake  soup with rosemary (HK$88) was robust without being heavy, although we would have appreciated a few extra slices of the exquisite mushrooms (these were imported from the mainland). Our other starter, listed under the section of 'raw delicacies', was hamachi  with chilli, apple chive dressing and yuzu  foam (HK$158). The citrusy  tang of the froth complemented the delicate yellowtail sashimi. Another fusion success was the crispy skin amadai  (sea bream) with pancetta-wrapped Hokkaido scallops (above, HK$320). The seafood rested in arugula  potato puree and a shiso cream sauce, which had a hint of mint and basil thanks to the Japanese herb. Eastern flavours were missing from the lamb cutlets (HK$268), but that in no way detracted from the flavour, enhanced by fennel and Cerignola  olive puree. Green tea panna cotta (HK$78) was adorned with gold flakes and strawberries.
What else? The menu includes a salumi section: a choice of three meats (duck speck, pork and fennel salami, and imported Italian ham, for instance) costs HK$178. Executive chef Bryan Nagao -  a Japanese-Hawaiian who looks as though he might have just come from the beach - worked as a chef at The Peninsula's Felix  restaurant when he moved to Hong Kong 12 years ago, and was also at Kokage  in Wan Chai.



D. Diamond Restaurant & Bar