Review | Modern and classic dishes hit the spot at Somm in Central, in Amber’s old bar area

While Amber at the Landmark Mandarin Oriental hotel in Hong Kong’s Central business district has been receiving a lot of attention for its new menu of dairy-free and sustainable dishes, Somm, which occupies the space that once housed Amber’s bar area, opened without much fanfare.

Somm serves dishes that go well with wine and sake. My guest and I ordered the usual two starters, two mains and two desserts, but we were given a couple of extra dishes, and our drinks were comped, the sommelier having recognised me.

The menu is brief: four “bites”, five starters, four mains, three sides and five desserts. There was also a separate list featuring Australian black truffles.

We were comped two bites (which are more generously portioned than the name implies): a delicious, very refreshing dish of David Hervé boudeuse oysters with spiced tomato granite (HK$118), and kadafi-fried taiyouran egg with sour cream and smoked pike perch roe (HK$118). The latter had crisp pastry contrasting with a perfectly done, very runny egg.

Hokkaido scallop with razor clam, sea lettuce and kyuri condiment (HK$248) was cool and light, with the diced kyuri – Japanese cucumber – giving a subtle crunch. Sweet, meaty, succulent pieces of crab leg (HK$378) were paired with a salad of soft butter lettuce leaves and a pale green blob of ethereal lemon verbena mayonnaise.