Bayfare Social at Rosewood Hong Kong (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

Located on the fifth floor of Rosewood Hong Kong Victoria Dockside, Bayfare Social is a new gastronomic concept that combines Spanish culinary traditions with an Asian twist. I like the comments from a number of online reviews with one headline describing the experience as “5-star hotel dining without breaking the bank”. That sounds like something I’m definitely interested in.

I did a very stupid (and rare) thing this morning by not going for an online booking so with social distancing in full swing at every single restaurant in town, we had to wait a good 45 minutes (50% capacity maximum). Thankfully, this lunch was well worth the long waiting time.

There were a lot of things that caught our watchful eyes apart for the affordable prices. For me, my first wow came from the decorations. It was an inspiration from a grand food hall. Think the Harrod’s food hall without the crowd.

I decided to do a quick tour of the place. Apart from Chaat (Indian restaurant) and Henry (Steakhouse), there are also different stations around serving specialty dishes.

A seafood section serving seafood ceviche and tapas...

 

Paella freshly made from the frying pan…

 

And a small terrace area just outside Chaat with a very peaceful view of the harbour.   

Kale salad ($115) – When I finally wrapped up my tour, a couple of our dishes have already been served. I couldn’t wait to get started and I’m going to start with something healthy first.

First up, a detox salad with kale, brussels sprout, charred broccolini, avocado, ricotta and crushed pistachio. Not a bad way to kick off the meal.

 

Rigatoni ($125) – Little nugget’s dish with a rich and cheesy Alfredo sauce, served with parma ham, mushroom and peas. Simple but pretty tasty.

 

Paella of the day ($160) – The large portion serves 3 to 4 people according to our server but I was a little skeptic considering the very generous price. Turns out she was right. This came with prawns and pork, while the rice was a little soupy. Not bad (I haven’t had Spanish paella for a long time!).

 

Rotisserie chicken ($160) – We had to wait a while for this to come but it was worth it. The roasted chicken was really tender and the hint of rosemary was a real nice icing on the cake. I love the bell peppers too. The texture was a little funny, likely done with some dehydration technique.

 

I ordered a vanilla milkshake to share with my little one. After my parade of milkshakes at Five Guys and Shake Shack last week, I can’t say I’m impressed with this one at all. Way too foamy for me.

 

Everyone was too full for dessert so we quickly settled the bill and let little guy start working on his toys downstairs.

Food Rating: 6/10
Price: $$$
Address: 5/F Rosewood Hong Kong, Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: East Tsim Sha Tsui / Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: +852 3891-8732
Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 6:00pm daily