Tiffany Restaurant 名寶石餐廳 (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

We've had a lot of paper talks on this but finally, mom's getting a small-scale renovation work done at her place. After meeting up with the contractor to go through the details of work on-site, we had all the paperwork signed and the ball officially got rolling at this point. For me, it's one less monkey off my back.

While mom's busy getting prepared with the upcoming renovation, it was time for me to venture back to office. I made a quick stop for lunch and Tiffany Restaurant (名寶石餐廳) was the undisputed choice thanks to its proximity to the MTR station.

Every time I come back to Tiffany, it always brings back a lot of memories. Memories of me dining with dad and mom sharing a few plates together. For some reason, I don't remember my sister joining us on these occasions but then again, it's been so long ago that part of my memories were already blurred.

Decades have passed and not surprisingly, there were changes to a few things here (thankfully, not too much), and that included the recipe of their seafood chowder which used to be full of ingredients.

My parents used to always order food for me and I was never allowed to eat deep-fried stuff cuz it's supposingly "not healthy". But at my age now, who cares about eating healthy anymore! 😜 OK, once awhile, we are allowed to let our guard down.

It was a very very quick lunch. I had to hit the ground running again cuz there are lots to be done at work this afternoon.

Food Rating: 5/10
Price: $$$
Address: 148 Prince Edward Road West, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Prince Edward
Tel: +852 2381-1516

Opening Hours: 8:00am - 11:30pm daily

Caprice (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

There are still two more days before little nugget finishes his exams but Jelloman decided that she had enough as his personal tutor already. So, the plan was to leave little guy in the capable hands of the grandies while the two of us head out for some quality time. I was again entrusted with the task of finding ourselves a place for lunch. Not taking the duty lightly, I rang up the folks at Caprice and was rather surprised to learn that they still had one last table available.

After enjoying a buttery sesame roll, our amuse bouche was already waiting on deck.

Hidden underneath the refreshing potato espuma and fresh chives was an array of ingredients including salmon and lemon butter. A pretty nice way to whet our appetite.

Classic Pâté en Croûte, marinated pear – This reminded me that winter is just around the corner. There are many interpretations of pâté en croûte in France but what we were having here this afternoon came from a more traditional recipe by using duck meat, foie gras and duck consomme jelly as stuffing. Some crushed pistachio under the pastry provided us with some extra bite.

The marinated pear chutney and sliced pear delivered a nice touch of fruity sweetness and spicy edge to the dish.

My Hot and cold onion soup – I had this when I was enjoying their degustation menu last year. Warm onion soup was poured onto the bed of caramelized shallots with parmesan chips and onion ice-cream floating atop. A play on the contrasting temperature of course. I had to finish taking my photos real quick cuz the onion ice-cream was melting right before my eyes. This wasn’t bad.

Wild sea bass, saffron – Wild sea bass from Brittany topped with crispy puff rice and a touch of mango coulis, was matched with potatoes, dill and a rich saffron sauce. A very nice match for the mild flavored sea bass fillet. I love the quenelle of tomato purée with minced meat on the side too, giving the fish some strong savory notes and much-needed spicy kick.

Chicken stew, wild mushrooms, foie gras – The stewed chicken was held up nicely like a sphere by a sheet of spinach and chicken skin (almost like the skin of a ravioli).

It was complemented nicely by the different textures of wild mushrooms and an aromatic sauce made with foie gras helped to tie everything together neatly (though a little heavy).

Roast pigeon, foie gras tart, pear, coffee – Jelloman had the restaurant’s signature pigeon which was again roasted to absolute perfection. The super tender and perfectly rosé flesh was finished off elegantly with a touch of coffee. The dish was decorated beautifully with a triangular foie gras tart and pear on the side.

My chicken stew wasn’t bad but I’ll give the edge to the roast pigeon as the better main dish of the afternoon.

Classic Mont Blanc, lyokan, yuzu – They said classic Mont Blanc and I thought for the most part, it was traditional thanks to the usual ingredients of meringue, sponge and chestnut cream. The part that I didn’t totally like was the yuzu and dry candied lyokan taking away the intense sweetness of the dessert with its zesty, citrusy flavors. I am an old school guy when it comes to Mont Blanc so it’s supposed to be predominantly sweet.

Tea was next.

The mignardises were white chocolate ball with coconut, praline chocolate and raspberry tart.
Jelloman seems to be delighted with this meal and why not, she has yet to come back this year. 

Now that we are done with our indulgence, it was time to go back home and face the music. Two more days of exams to go and I’ll be (psychologically) ready for Christmas.

Food Rating: 8/10
Price: $$$$
Address: 6/F, 8 Finance Street, Four Seasons Hotel, Central, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Hong Kong Station
Tel: +852 3196-8860
Website: www.fourseasons.com/hongkong/dining/restaurants/caprice
Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 2:30pm, 6:30pm - 10:30pm daily

S. Pellegrino Asia's 50 Best Restaurants: 49th (2023)

Mon Kee Cafe 旺記冰室 Tsim Sha Tsui (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★★☆

Spending last week in Beijing reminded me how much I missed the local food here. So, ever since I returned from the trip, I have never stopped eating local food. And whenever I saw a cha chaan teng, I just couldn't fight the urge of sneaking in for a quick bite. Of course, I won't turn down the opportunity to visit Mon Kee Cafe (旺記冰室) on a lazy Monday.

The tea was pretty strong this afternoon but hey, I needed the extra caffeine to stay awake anyways.

This was what I came in for, their silky scrambled eggs made with eggs from Hokkaido and it was tossed with barbecued pork and fresh chives. Gotta love the sweet soy too. A very good combination to go with the steamed rice.

The ratings are a little generous today cuz I am in the mood for hearty local food. Man, it's going to take a while for me to "come back to normal" again.

Food Rating: 6/10
Price: $$$
Address: G/F, Kowloon Centre, 29-39 Ashley Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: +852 2617-2616
Opening Hours: 7:00am - 10:00pm daily

Myung Ga Korean Restaurant iSquare (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★★☆☆

Little nugget is grounded for the next little while with major assessments coming up in a week.

But that also means Me Time for daddy. I got to enjoy all the free time in the world this weekend. To make the most of it, I met up with my hair stylist to get my hair done this morning and afterwards, I swung by Myung Ga Korean Restaurant at iSquare for a quick Korean meal.

Things got rolling with four condiments including my favorite braised black beans and kimchi.

It was followed by my usual main dish of beef short ribs. The soy sauce was a little light today but the beef was tender enough. Wow, can't remember when was my last visit to this favorite Korean restaurant of mine. I bet it's probably more than a year ago at least.

 

Food Rating: 5/10
Price: $$$
Address: Shop 2702, 27/F iSquare, 63 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Closest Metro Station: Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel: +852 2369-1177

Opening Hours: 12:00pm - 3:00pm, 6:00pm - 11:00pm daily

Le Rêveur at Flower Market (Hong Kong, CHINA) ★★☆☆☆

After getting back from Beijing late last night, I slept in a bit in the morning before going to see how mom's doing at her home. But first thing first, it was time to grab a late lunch near Flower Market, just a stone's throw from her place.

Le Rêveur at Flower Market touted as a French café cum restaurant was a place that entered my radar screen right around the start of the pandemic. I read a lot of good things about its ambience and food but never had the chance to experience it personally. Almost three years later, I am finally here.

Garden green salad – I was debating between having the soup or salad but ended up taking the healthy route (since I had way too many roast duck and lamb last week). A little surprised with the way they served it up. It almost felt like that the leaves and tomatoes came straight out of the fridge.

New Zealand king salmon fillet, eggplant lentils salad, Turkish egg and Greek yogurt – The sous vide king salmon wasn't bad but they've got the cold salad with eggplant, lentils and rocket leaves which tasted as bland as the previous garden green. If I was the chef who was tasked with designing the menu here, I would make sure that there were varieties, even in the side dishes. Perhaps some grilled green beans and potatoes that came piping hot with the salmon? That would be a nice contrast to the stone cold garden green.



Parisian-style hot chocolate – I didn't bother to order dessert but did however have the Parisian hot chocolate.

I was given some warm milk to pour into the chocolate. This was fine but all that work didn't translate into a nice thick French-style hot chocolate like the one served in French cafés (Angelina?).

Expectation was high after I read all the raving reviews over the course of the past three years but I guess people just decided to give it very high marks simply because French cafés/restaurants were so rare to find near Flower Market.

Food Rating: 4.5/10

Price: $$$$

Address: Shop B, G/F, Welland Court, 244-246 Fa Yuen Street, Prince Edward, Hong Kong

Closest Metro Station: Prince Edward

Tel: +852 9881-4170

Opening Hours: 9:00am - 9:00pm (Sun - Tue, Thu), 9:00am - 10:00pm (Fri - Sat)

Shake Shack Livat 荟聚购物中心店 (Beijing, CHINA) ★★☆☆☆

Life comes full circle for me today; on the last evening of our Beijing trip, I am coming back to Livat (荟聚购物中心), the same shopping mall we visited on our first night.

I have a few missions to accomplish tonight. First and foremost, I will be hunting for a gift for my little nugget, then some souvenirs for family and friends, and last but not least, I will be enjoying my last supper in Beijing. A lot to accomplish in very little time. 

I needed a break in action to catch my breath and I saw the perfect opportunity to do so at Shake Shack. 

This branch of Shake Shack is located on the ground floor of Livat across from the Lego store.

Hutong Hawthorn Milkshake (冰糖葫同) – Something to get me occupied during my break. The Beijing exclusive shake is made with frozen vanilla custard and hawthorn berry purée and lime juice.

This is supposed to be sweet and sour at the same time and I could easily taste the acidity from the hawthorn berries and lime juice, but there wasn't much sweetness there to back it up.

Mission finally accomplished!!! Little one should be happy with this.....

That's pretty much a wrap for our Beijing tour. Tomorrow, we have another early meeting and then we'll be off to the airport. Let's hope there won't be any delays with our scheduled flight. Knocking on wood......

Food Rating: 4.5/10

Price: ¥¥¥

Address: Shop F26, Level 1 Livat Beijing, 15 Xinning Street, Daxing District, Beijing, China

Closest Metro Station: Xihongmen (西红门)

Opening Hours: 10:00am - 10:00pm daily

Il Ristorante Niko Romito at Bulgari Hotel Beijing (Beijing, CHINA) ★★★★☆

Finally, I decided not to test my ailing back at The Great Wall under extreme weather conditions this morning. Instead, with no planning what-so-ever, I went on a nostalgic journey back to Chaoyang district (朝陽區), the central business district of the national’s capital. If there’s ever a theme to this journey, it was meant to revisit and reflect on my past when I was still living out of a suitcase as a youngster.

This journey ended up taking me a little further than I thought. After numerous stops to catch my breath, I found myself walking past Liangmaqiao station (亮馬橋站). This is probably where I want to be if I decide to splurge on a big meal in Beijing, as it was right in the middle of several upscale hotels including Four Seasons, Kempinski and Westin. But I already had my sights set on the elegant Bulgari Hotel Beijing at this point.

The Bulgari Hotel Beijing first opened doors in the heart of the embassy district back in 2017.

Hidden behind the ground floor lobby was the hotel's bar and lounge but as lunch hour quietly approached, my focus was solely on their signature restaurant Il Ristorante Niko Romito.

No stranger to celebrated chef Niko Romito's cuisine thanks to my visit to his three-Michelin-starred flagship Ristorante Reale in 2014, I was naturally a little curious about the decorated Italian chef's venture here, which has garnered a Michelin star for five straight years.

Not surprisingly, the dining room was stylishly decorated with contemporary furniture from some of Italy's most renowned designers.

It provided the perfect ambience for a relaxing meal with a sense of warmth and comfort.

Lunch started off brilliantly with a small cup of vegetable soup as my amuse. This was prepared by squeezing the juice out of the tomatoes with no extra water added, finishing off with a touch of extra virgin olive oil and champagne. The clean flavors of tomatoes came through beautifully.

Next up was the collection of bread including grissini breadsticks with chestnut honey, sourdough bread loaf with potato and some flour crisps. This was reasonably good.

Langoustine, potato espuma, black truffle – That brings us to my first starter (I was supposed to have one starter only but more on that later).

Beautifully cooked langoustine topped by crispy potato flakes and shaved black truffles from Yunnan, was served on a pool of potato espuma. I like the lightness of the potato foam allowing the natural flavors of the langoustine to shine but I probably won’t mind some lovely acidity added to the dish. It would bring out the sweetness of the langoustine even more.

Ravioli, potato, chives – It was supposed to be time for my main dish but the guys here were kind enough to offer me an extra dish of homemade ravioli.

The ravioli stuffed with delicately tender potatoes was superbly cooked with patches of caviar and fresh chives sprinkled on top to add to the flavors. The lemon butter provided a nice lemony finish for the pasta.

Guangzhou chicken, potato, onion, olive, capers – My main dish was braised chicken fillet from Guangzhou served with chicken jus (prepared using different parts of the chicken from head to tail). This came with various degree of acidity thanks to the supporting cast of pickled onion, olive, capers and lemon.

A small salad helped to offset the richness of the dish.

Hazelnut, salted caramel – Dessert was an inspiration from the famous Ferrero Rocher chocolate. This was not the first kitchen to tackle the idea of making something reminiscent of the legendary Italian chocolate.

The centre of hazelbut mousse with salted caramel underneath the hazelnut chocolate crust. Could have added its own twist but love this~

Some sweet treats including a mini bomboloni, a crunchy pear with orange and cinnamon and a cup of lemon water to wrap things up.

This is in par with the philosophy behind Chef Romito's contemporary Italian cooking. I think it's modern yet classic. Something to look forward to on my next trip to Beijing.

Food Rating: 7/10

Price: ¥¥¥¥

Address: Building 2 Courtyard, 8 Xinyuan South Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, China

北京市 朝阳区新源南路8号院2号楼

Closest Metro Station: Liangmaqiao (亮馬橋站)

Tel: +86 10-8555-8555

Opening Hours: 11:30am - 2:30pm, 6:00pm - 10:00pm daily

My first Tiananmen Square flag-raising ceremony

The last time I woke up this early in the morning, it was the day my little nugget was born.

I have to admit, it wasn't easy getting out of bed, especially when it was -5°C outside.

We left our hotel at 5am sharp and thanks to the non-existing road traffic, our shuttle bus quickly arrived at the city centre well before 6am. Then, we slowly marched towards Tiananmen Square as a group. The actual time for the flag-raising ceremony varies daily as they try to keep it consistent with the local sunrise time. Today, the ceremonial time was projected at 6:59am.

After spending some time for both group and individual photos, the blue morning sky emerges. It was time for everyone to get set behind the fences and quietly waited for the guards to come out with the flag.

At this point, the national anthem began to sound signaling the start to the flag-raising ceremony.

Everyone was standing solemnly while the flag was being raised. This was quite an experience.

Soon after the ceremony, my colleagues gathered together to return to the shuttle bus for the next journey, The Great Wall but for me who's battling my back issues, I had another journey to embark on. An unknown journey with the destination(s) yet to be determined.

At 7:05am, I decided to take a slow and deliberate walk to Wangfujing (王府井), a place I knew fairly well from my previous trips to Beijing.

Not surprisingly, nothing was open this early except for a McDonald's next to Hilton Beijing Wangfujing, a hotel Jelloman and I stayed at during our last trip to Beijing back in 2013.

It was time for me to sit down and plan out my itinerary for the remainder of the day.

Here's my breakfast this morning. Scrambled eggs, ham and hash brown all wrapped under a Chinese pancake and I washed it down with a cup of steaming hot soy milk. You gotta love the local twist. 

I decided to take a walk down memory lane after breakfast. First up, it was a walking tour of Chaoyang district in Beijing (北京市朝阳区). I remembered losing a ton of leg hair here some 20 years ago when I was still with a certain US-based system integrator. Wow, that brought back memories.

This was when another journey suddenly popped up in my mind (a culinary journey) and I immediately brought out my phone for a couple of quick calls. Stay tuned.