Where to eat in Hong Kong: 8 restaurants and bars offering new culinary delights in April

Who’s ready to eat their way through Hong Kong? We are. New openings: Sushi Zo and Gishiki Lounge Two concept restaurants, Sushi Zo and Gishiki Lounge, are opening this month at Tai Kwun Centre for Heritage and Arts – the former Central Police Station, in Hollywood Road. Sushi Zo, an omakase dining concept with branches located in Los Angeles, Bangkok, New York and Tokyo, will soon be adding Hong Kong to its growing list of successes. Vegans and vegetarians, rejoice – new app ‘soo where to eat’ has you covered in Hong Kong Only two sittings will be open per day, with the number of diners capped at 14 people. The 18-dish omakase experience, which features seasonal dishes, is set at HK$2,500 per person. Gishiki Lounge, which adjoins Sushi Zo, is a cocktail lounge heavily influenced by a Japanese myth of the Hannya. Hannya is a character used in traditional Noh theatre representing scorned women turned into a devious-looking, inhumane form. Drinking bubble tea: what’s in it, and how can you cut back on all the calories? The lounge will have 18 drinks are on the menu, including cocktails made from flavoured ice blocks resembling Hannya masks. Gishiki Lounge will also provide drinks for Sushi Zo. Opens: April Address: 01-LG103, LG1, Block 01, Tai Kwun, 10 Hollywood Road, Central Tel: To be confirmed The Peninsula Hong Kong’s ‘Springalicious’ afternoon tea It’s time to spring into spring in style – and The Peninsula Hong Kong has stepped up to the challenge. The new afternoon tea set, designed by François Delaire, the hotel’s executive pastry chef, and Andy Cheng, chef de cuisine of The Lobby, conjures up zesty flavours that bring to mind thoughts of the warmer season. The Kardashians love it, so does Mick Jagger – tea and its amazing health benefits Highlights, now available from 2pm to 6pm, include both sweet and savoury bites, including Financier with chocolate Chantilly, sakura and raspberry cake, dill-marinated cucumber sandwiches, and crab and vegetable choux pastry. Price: HK$398 (US$50) for one person, HK$718 for two people Dates: now to May 31 Address: The Lobby, G/F, The Peninsula Hong Kong, 22 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui Tel: 2696 6772 Jocelyn Herland guest chefs at Rech by Alain Ducasse Jocelyn Herland, executive chef at Hôtel Le Meurice in Paris, will be flying to Hong Kong to join the Rech by Alain Ducasse for a series of “April in Paris” dinners from April 9 to 11. The five-course menu brings to Hong Kong signature dishes from the two Michelin-starred le Meurice Alain Ducasse restaurant at Hôtel Le Meurice. Eat like a local in Bangkok: take your pick from red ant eggs to deep-fried duck beaks Highlights include line-caught sea bass on scales, green peas and rhubarb, and roasted beef with iodised condiment and bordelaise reduction. Both are signature dishes of Herland, who worked with Alain Ducasse for more than 22 years and is known for his attention to detail. Price: HK$1,688 per person, with an additional HK$688 for wine pairing Dates: April 9-11 Address: Lobby level, InterContinental Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui Tel: 2313 2323 Pierre Gagnaire back at Pierre The legend returns to Hong Kong this month. French chef Pierre Gagnaire will be teaming up with the Hong Kong staff to showcase a seven-course menu featuring the restaurant’s signature dishes, including those from the past. Highlights include several preparations of Langoustines (from 1997) and John Dory rockfish soup with coulis de piquillos and effrayées herbs (from 1984). Eat like a local in Niseko: 5 new restaurants to look out for in 2019 The night will end on a sweet note with desserts from Gagnaire’s other current restaurants in London, Tokyo, Da Nang, La Rochelle and his newly-opened Piero restaurant in Paris. Price: HK$1,988 per person Dates: April 10-15 Address: 25/F, Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong, 5 Connaught Road Central, Central Tel: 2825 4001 Arbor x Hommage four hands collaboration View this post on Instagram Hirame inspiration @arborhk #arborhk #spring #squid #hirame #inspiration #workinprogress #cheflife #chefstalk #chefsofinstagram #hongkong #hqueens A post shared by Eric Räty (@eric.raty) on Mar 27, 2019 at 3:47am PDT Noboru Arai, chef and owner of two Michelin-starred restaurant Hommage, will be joining Eric Räty of Arbor restaurant, in Central, this month for a special four-hands degustation menu exploring the flavours of Japanese and European cuisine. The two chefs are known for focusing on modern cuisine with a refined edge. Arai is known for his take on balancing Japanese cuisine with French elements, while Räty has a reputation for creating seasonal dishes that feature a modern twist. Price: HK$2,888 per person for nine-course dinner, HK$1,288 per person for four-course lunch Dates: April 11-13 Address: 25/F, H Queen’s, 80 Queen’s Road Central, Central Tel: 3185 8388 Koji Kimura and Shuji Niitome at Ozone Sushi master Koji Kimura and tempura artisan Shuji Niitome will be in Hong Kong this month for a pop-up event at Ozone. From April 12 to 14, the two chefs will be serving an omakase sushi and tempura lunch and dinner, as well as a four-hands collaboration dinner on April 13. A complimentary glass of Veuve Clicquot vintage 2008 is also included. Koji is known for his signature “aged sushi”, made with fish that he has aged using a dry-ageing process. During this process, the natural enzymes of the fish are activated, which brings out the hidden umami flavours that would otherwise have been missed when using fresh fish. Shuji has gained a reputation for creating light-as-air tempura – a feat he achieves by frying ingredients in a batter made of flour, chilled to minus 60 degrees Celsius (minus 76 degrees Fahrenheit). Prices: HK$2,288 per person for tempura lunch and HK$2,688 for sushi lunch; HK$2,888 per person for tempura dinner and HK$3,288 per person for sushi dinner; HK$3,888 per person for the four-hands dinner Dates: April 12-14 Address: 118/F, The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong, International Commerce Centre Tel: 2263 2270 VEA x Paste four-hands collaboration Vicky Cheng, executive chef and partner of one Michelin-starred VEA Restaurant and Lounge, in Central, will team up with Bongkoch “Bee” Satongun, chef and co-owner of Bangkok’s one Michelin-starred Paste, at the end of the month. They will present an eight-course dinner menu showcasing one another’s culinary talents. Wine and cocktail pairings, the latter concocted by executive mixologist Antonio Lai, will also be available Satongun, who was named Asia’s Best Female Chef 2018, is known for her passion for bringing Thai cuisine to the forefront of the food and beverage scene. Some of her signature dishes include “Watermelon” (made with ground salmon, fried shallots and roasted galangal powder), and smoky Southern yellow curry (made with Australian spanner crab, hummingbird flowers, Thai samphire and turmeric). Price: HK$2,180 Dates: April 25-26 Address: 29 & 30/F, The Wellington, 198 Wellington Street, Central Tel: 2711 8639 Want more stories like this? Sign up here. Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter