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Susan Jung

Shop 222, The Galleria,  9 Queen's Road Central
Tel: 2526 8798
Open: noon-midnight
Cuisine: Cantonese.
Price: About HK$400 per person without drinks and before adding the service change, but it would be easy to spend more - much more.
Ambience: It's an elegant, art deco-style  room lined with mirrors and dark wood panels. From the ceiling hang slow-moving fans and chandeliers that shed just the right amount of light. The tables were mostly filled on a weeknight but the restaurant was quiet, save the occasional  sound of a cocktail being shaken by the bartender. There are several private rooms for larger groups.
Pros: Servers were attentive, discreet and changed our plates frequently. They were also thoughtful: several of the dishes are three pieces to an order, but they added an extra so the four diners at my table could each have one (the prices were adjusted accordingly). The menu  has a diverse mix of seasonal dishes, comfort food and  luxury items.
Cons: Some of the food could use more seasoning. Cantonese food is traditionally subtle, but a couple of our dishes were bland. Oven-baked cod fillet with Peking scallions (HK$238) was cooked perfectly so the fish had moist, large flakes, but the flavour was dull. Rice noodles came with beautifully crisp river shrimp (HK$168) but we needed to add a splash of soy sauce to perk up the flavour.
Recommended dishes: The two starters we ordered were excellent. Roast honey-grilled barbecue pork (HK$148) was succulent and so delicious we were tempted to order another portion, while the chicken with sesame sauce and chilli oil (HK$108) was tender and subtly spicy.  My friend described the duck - covered with light, delicate taro and deep-fried (HK$188 for half) - as being as moist and tender as confit (duck slowly poached in duck fat). Wok-fried papaya with  honey beans and fresh lily bulbs (HK$128) was an unusual mix of ingredients and textures. The dessert menu has some traditional and inventive offerings,  including chewy sesame dumplings  (tong yuen) filled with sesame paste and rolled  in soya bean 'dust' (HK$36 for three) and light, chewy rice flour rolls with strawberry puree (HK$36, above).
What else? Island Tang is owned by David Tang, founder of Shanghai Tang and The China Club.



Island Tang