Tin Lung Heen 天龍軒 (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

My good friend, Agent-I is back in town and she brought some good news with her confirming that she would be moving back to Hong Kong sometime in 2017. That's very good news coz finally, I will get my partner in crime back for all these new restaurant openings in town.

Last time the two of us met up, it was about 2 months ago when I visited Singapore and she treated me to a very nice lunch at National Kitchen by Violet Oon, so I thought I should return the favor and pick one of my favorite restaurants in Hong Kong to treat her this time around. This would be my second visit to the two Michelin starred Tin Lung Heen (天龍軒) this month and I know I can count on them to deliver for me once again.



Baked barbecued pork and pineapple bun with crispy crust (酥皮焗叉燒菠蘿包) ($90) - One of the many signature dishes here and it never disappoints. The soft and crispy crust was very nice. Agent-I said the filling was good but tasted a little "funny".



Underneath the pillowy bun was a savory but slightly sweet filling of BBQ roast pork. That's pretty standard but what separated Tin Lung Heen's version with others was the pineapple compote which brought a bit of acidity to the table. It does taste a little "funny" with the added acidity but in a pretty good way.



Soup dumpling with fish maw and bamboo fungus in supreme stock (龍軒瑤柱花膠灌湯餃) ($115) - This has recently become my favorite dim sum here largely because of the flavorful broth. The generous portion of fish maw and bamboo fungus was more than welcome and I was glad I ordered this for the both of us.



Baked abalone puff with roasted goose and dried bonito (木魚燒鵝鮑魚酥) ($138) - The braised abalone and flaky puff were perfectly matched with a layer of finely diced roast goose. The rich abalone sauce was a nice touch and I love the dried bonito on top for a bit of contrasting bite and flavor. Very nice.



Steamed rice roll with bamboo fungus and assorted vegetables (竹笙羅漢上素腸粉) ($96) - Simple but very tasty. A lot of Chinese restaurants tried to add black truffle to this to make it more "premium" but I like it simple.



Fried rice with diced abalone, duck and shrimp wrapped in lotus leaf (鮑粒荷葉飯) ($99) - The only disappointment of the afternoon came from our fried rice. A lack of flavors coming from the lotus leaf made this a little one-dimensional.



I didn't book the table under my name (and through my usual source) so I didn't get the usual "royal treatment". So, just a standard sweet treat of cookies and Chinese puddings before we settled the bill.







Food Rating: 7.5/10
Price: $$$$
Address: 102/F, The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong, International Commerce Centre, 1 Austin Road West, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Kowloon
Tel: +852 2263-2270
Website: www.ritzcarlton.com/en/hotels/china/hong-kong/dining/tin-lung-heen