Located inside Festival Walk on Paterson Street, El Born is a casual tapas bar and restaurant with a modern vibe and we were keen to come and check this place out.
The interior of this new joint looks more or less the same as Numero 15 but has added a little more "industrial chic" to the mix.
But unlike the décor, the menu was nothing similar to Numero 15's although I could still find the usual suspects of paella, suckling pig and mini-burgers (but no ox tongue etc.).
I tried calling this place up one night in advance to secure a table but was distinctly told by the lady that they have a no-reservation policy here (only walk-ins). So when I stepped in here at 6pm, I was surprised to see all these empty tables with "Reserved" signs on them. Perhaps these reservations are for close friends, business partners etc. which are not open to the general public? I guess I would never find out.
After going thru the menu a number of times, we still had a little trouble deciding what to order so we had our server over to get his 2 cents' advice. I first asked about the crab meat spring roll to see if it's Asian style. Fair enough question I thought. But obviously he knew very little about his own menu (or perhaps he's not keen to serve us) so he decided to dodge my question. "Well, it's a very good one. Very tasty." he said.
Well, that didn't answer my question, did it? So I asked the very same question again. He kinda danced around the question again so instead of further testing my patience, I decided I would just order something else.
Deep fried calamari, aioli ($55)
The batter was very bland and so was the calamari itself. A touch of salt or spice would have done this dish some justice. Not a very good start.
Iberico ham croquette ($55)
I had this dish on a number of occasions in Numero 15 and it used to be one of my preferred starter there. This one was definitely not as good as Numero 15's but it's OK.
5-spice crispy wings ($55)
It's perhaps my own fault of ordering 3 deep fried snacks. Of course, if I were visiting a good restaurant with an attentive server, perhaps just perhaps he or she might remind me of such mistake but it wasn't the case here.
Anyways, the batter here was very thick making the texture a little dissatifying. Out of the 5 spices whatever they were, I could only taste spicy and nothing else. This dish just didn't work for me at all.
Prawns and Iberico pancetta linguini ($155)
This was the dish that prompted me to stop eating and went straight for the bill.
The taste was way too heavy and there was a very strong flavor of garlic but nothing more. On top of that, where was the Iberico pancetta? So we called the same male server who had taken our order over and asked him about the missing pancetta. I was polite in engaging him in the conversation but what I got was three words "Already in there!" (落左啦!). The tone was arrogant, despised and impatient (He just doesn't fucxxng care! Just don't bother him.). If he were working for Australia Dairy Company or a local cha chaan teng (traditional tea restaurant), that would have pretty much worked but the last time I checked, this is supposed to be a decent restaurant.
Of course if it was some 5 years ago, I would've asked to speak with his manager but as I've gotten older and wiser, I knew I would never ever visit this restaurant in my life again so I shared his same attitude (who cares!). Let's get the bill and get the heck out of here.
But getting back to my earlier question - could it be the fault of the kitchen missing out on a particular ingredient? Well, I guess I would never find out.
I felt sorry for our male server. Obviously he was in the wrong business and he should seriously reconsider his career in the hospitality industry because this kinda of attitude and EQ would get himself nowhere.
I've often said here that I was blessed to be living in Hong Kong where good food is never in short supply but this for one, was an outlier. And we all know about the imminent fate of restaurants with the combination of poor food (according to my taste buds) and horrible service.
Food Rating: 2/10
Price: $$$
Address: Flat 1E Vienna Mansion, 58-64 Paterson Street, Fashion Walk, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Causeway Bay
Tel: +852 2341-0380
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