Louise by Julien Royer at PMQ (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

If Ecriture was the most anticipated restaurant opening in Hong Kong last year, then this year's title has got to belong to recently opened Louise at PMQ. Taking over the space previously occupied by one of my favorite restaurant Aberdeen Street Social, Louise is a brainchild between JIA Group and Chef Julien Royer of Odette Singapore which has just been freshly crowned Asia's Best Restaurant earlier this year.



Renowned designer Andre Fu (who's behind the design of the new St Regis Hotel in Wanchai) has turned the space into a more intimate and cozy place highlighted by its colonial chic decor.



Unlike Odette, Louise is more of a casual bistro serving hearty traditional French fare with a modern twist.



The weekday set menu is not available on Saturdays and Sundays. Instead, they offer a short and sharp brunch menu with a section dedicated to eggs.



Homemade brioche ($28) - Starting things off for us was a basket of buttery homemade brioche, served with butter and raspberry jam. Perfect start for my little one who's a huge bread lover.



Ôra King salmon gravlax, warm potato, dill cream ($238) - I love fuller, thicker slices of smoked salmon and salmon gravlax so these are right up my alley.



What impress me the most about these gravlax is the fact that they weren't overly cured so the texture was still nice and moist. A terrific starter with the slightly lemony dill cream marrying well with the distinct salmon flavors.



Polmard beef tartare, French fries, salad ($258) - Made with prized beef from renowned French butcher Polmard, our tartare dish was presented the traditional way with a raw egg yolk atop. 



There were great depth of flavors coming from the aged Polmard beef, combining well with the garden green and pearl onion for a perfect, palate-pleasing finish.




Confit cod, white beans, chorizo, piquillos, mint ($348) - A beautifully plated dish with slices of confit cod fish sitting on a bed of diced chorizo, white beans, piquillos and mint, finished off with a trio of crispy chorizo wafer on top. Not an overly complicated dish but the interpretation was simply flawless.



Louise "Croaffle", whipped cream, maple syrup ($128) - A happy marriage between a flaky croissant and crispy waffle. This was served like a typical waffle with fresh strawberries, whipped cream and maple syrup. Not a bad way to wrap up this meal at all.



“Mama Royer” yogurt cake and ice-cream, confit lemon ($118) - Less successful was Mama Royer's yogurt cake with yogurt ice-cream and confit lemon. This really tasted like a typical French pound cake with a zesty glaze. A dish I could probably do without.



It's a truly impressive meal. Nothing really fancy, just some simple, hearty French dishes done right.

If there's a blemish from this meal, it's probably the fact that dishes like glazed Challans duck, pan-seared French veal sweetbread and Brittany dover sole “Meunière” were not on the brunch menu. I guess a return trip is a must.

Food Rating: 7/10
Price: $$$$
Address: G/F, JPC, PMQ, 35 Aberdeen Street, Central, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Central / Hong Kong Station
Tel: +852 2866-0300
Website: www.louise.hk