Table-side service adds element of theatre to Hong Kong dining

Nobody goes to Hugo's to be trendy. When the Hyatt Regency reopened in 2009, it re-established its flagship Western restaurant, Hugo's, with a menu and service style instantly recognisable to anybody who dined there 30 or 40 years ago.

A big part of the restaurant's appeal was the table-side preparation of classical dishes such as steak tartare, lobster bisque and bombe Alaska. All were reintroduced, along with other old favourites.

They have proved a hit with both returning regulars and younger diners with traditional tastes.

In the original Hugo's heyday, at-the-table service was seen as a mark of sophistication. Other top restaurants of the era such as The Mandarin Grill and Amigo also made a feature of it, but by the end of the 20th century it had come to seem old-fashioned. Many of the heavy, rich dishes that lent themselves best to that service style were out of sync with the vogue for lighter, supposedly healthier, fare. One by one, the restaurants retired the carts.

But some restaurants may now be thinking of dusting them off. Tray or trolley service is coming back into vogue. Some diners, it seems, prefer meat and potatoes to artfully presented drizzles on slate.

At Carbone in LKF Tower several of the most popular dishes are prepared at the table or presented to the diner for inspection in raw form before being taken back to the kitchen to be cooked.