ORTO did not appear on my radar screen until most recently when I read an article by Mr. Stephen Ip, the former Secretary for Economic Development and Labour of Hong Kong. Mr. Ip, who is a politician turned restaurant critic, has always had the knack for finding great food wherever he goes and ORTO is just the latest hidden gem revealed in his personal blog.
It was my day-off today and I had the pleasure of meeting my buddy from Los Angeles to do some catching up. ORTO immediately came to mind.
We got a bit of a late start on our lunch (almost 2:30pm when we arrived!) but luckily our server wasted no time in bringing us our small nibbles.
My buddy had the vegetable soup with meatballs as his starter and he thought it was decent but unexciting (4/10).
Not that my rocket salad was any more exciting than his soup (4/10).
We both agreed that they could have impressed us more with the starters but let's hope for better results from our main courses.
Pasta is rumored to be one of the strong suit at this authentic Italian restaurant and my friend's spaghetti with mussels in white wine sauce and lemon zest ($158) definitely stole the spotlight. I thought it looked really good (6.5/10).
I had the Veal Saltimbocca served with mashed potatoes ($168), a dish quite popular in the Southern Switzerland and Italy.
Despite its rather unappealing presentation, it turned out to be quite a nice surprise. The contrasting textures of parma ham and sage wrapping around a thin slice of veal chop was surprisingly tantalizing (6/10).
Tiramisu was very disappointing. I thought the texture was fine but the taste was lacklustering (2/10).
Finally, tea was included in the lunch set.
Food Rating: 5/10
Price: $$$
Address: 3/F Stanley 11, 11 Stanley Street, Central, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Central
Tel: +852 2327-4884
Closest Metro Station: Central
Tel: +852 2327-4884
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