Talk of the Town
Caprice (6/F, Four Seasons Hong Kong, 8 Finance St., Central, 3196-8860) has enlisted a charming guest chef to cook up a veritable French feast between November 13 and November 17 during both lunch and dinner services. Michel Roux Sr. is a 28-year three-Michelin-star veteran from Bray, England, where he has been winning the hearts of diners at his idyllic Waterside Inn. Over the years, The Waterside Inn has become so popular that the restaurant has had to build rooms to accommodate overnight guests who’ve travelled far and wide just to get a taste of Roux’s tasty dishes. But Hongkongers will get to skip the pilgrimage and go straight to the food with a five-course lunch menu ($1,560) that includes sea trout tartare and sole fillet, or the five- ($1,880) to eight-course ($2,390) dinner tasting menus that come with everything from pan-fried foie gras and lamb roulade to crab salad and lobster. A la carte options for lunch are also available. I hear Roux and Caprice’s resident chef Vincent Thierry are getting along very well in the kitchen, and that there’s no ego-bruising between the two star-studded figures. Phew. I’ve done a tasting and still vividly remember the sweet, melt-in-your-mouth foie gras terrine stuffed with chicken breast and paired with two bricks of brioche that had been baked to perfection. If you want to do some sampling for yourself, call NOW to book a seat.
Popular Hong Kong Cricket Club-owned seafood restaurant
Dot Cod (
B4/F, Prince’s Building, 10 Chater Rd., Central, 2810-6988) has emerged from its revamp to continue serving loyal diners fresh renditions of the daily catch. Having never been there before the revamp, I can only say that they’ve made good use of this basement space, keeping things white and bright inside so one doesn’t feel too claustrophobic. I went to a tasting on a Wednesday afternoon and the place was packed, which speaks volumes about the popularity of chef
Jeffrey LeBon’s dishes. LeBon, from Boston, is a whiz at both Asian and western flavors, and his very diverse menu consists of classics such as fish and chips (which, sadly, I didn’t get to try) to exotic Singaporean-style curried lobsters. Not that the buttery fillet of lemon sole we had wasn’t any good—it was delicious as any fresh seafood with a bit of seasoning would be—but surprisingly, I was more blown away by the fragrant flavors of the sweet chili-based lobster and by the firm-fleshed steamed barramundi with ginger and soy sauce (although I usually expect fish done this way to be softer in texture). It’s not only the mains that stand out here: US and French oysters from the oyster bar and tuna tartare, grilled diver scallops, crab salad, smoked eel and kingfish ceviche for appetizers are all available, too.
You have a couple days left to sign up for Bacchanalia (www.facebook.com/bacchanaliabrunch, [email protected]), a Singapore-originated brunch spectacular that will make its debut in Hong Kong at Gaia (G/F, Grand Millennium Plaza, 181 Queen’s Rd. Central), taking place this Saturday, October 27 from 12:30pm all the way to 6pm. From what I gather, there will be lots of yummy antipasti, mains and desserts served at the beginning of the event, and when everyone’s had their tummy filled, sponsor Moet & Chandon will then bust out their bottles while local and Singaporean DJs spin tunes to jazz things up. Lots of eating, lots or drinking and lots of music—sounds like the ideal way to spend a Saturday afternoon.
