Hong Kong Eat List

EAT LIST
Where to eat the next time you are in Hong Kong

Published on Manila Bulletin Lifestyle, July 2, 2015


In my iPhone notes I keep a catalog of my favorite restaurants in the cities I frequent. My Hong Kong list has remained the same over the last year (Mott 32, Ronin, Liberty Private Works, Lung King Heen, Tate, Carbone…) until the past weekend when I flew to the gastronomic capital of Asia for a quick trip with the parents. I happily added three new restaurants to the precious list.

You see, my folks are not huge fans of western food, especially those that look like miniature artworks on a plate. Their idea of a good meal consists of roasted meats (plenty of them and preferably served with innards), braised abalone, sea cucumber, shad fish, and a thick almond cream with egg white for dessert. So when I announced that we will be celebrating Father’s Day at Serge et le Phoque, disappointment was written all over their faces.

Serge et le Phoque

The French restaurant was located right beside the Wanchai Market. We walked past it a couple of times before we finally found the entrance (tip: look for the row of colorful chairs). Mom kind of freaked out when she was told the restroom was outside at the parking lot next door, but as soon as we were seated and served the first dish of crispy white bait with seaweed flakes, I knew I made the right decision. Chef Frédéric Peneau, formerly of Le Chateaubriand, and Chef Christophe Pelé, formerly of La Bigarrade in Paris, served a fun and unpretentious 7-course menu starting with a frozen ceviche of oyster with coconut milk and fresh raspberry, followed by tasty frog legs in tamarind sauce. It was my first time to have yellowtail sashimi with peanuts and fresh peach, and what a revelation! 

Yellowtail sashimi, peach, peanuts, sea grape, black garlic, squid ink

Grilled scallop was served on a velvety cauliflower puree and sprinkled with matcha powder, the almost-raw-the-way-I-like-it mackerel was complemented with smoked eggplant topped with seaweed and sesame seeds, and my favorite course, the pigeon, was cooked so masterfully with its skin all crisped up yet its meat remained red, moist and tender. The gamey bird was served with blackberries and in a pool of sauce made with its own liver. Killer. 

French pigeon, beetroot, blackberry, pigeon liver sauce

Serge et le Phoque surprised us dish after dish after dish, but nothing could have prepared me for the desserts. The unassuming pot of lemon cream blew me away. It was the lightest in texture, like clouds, but packed a punch of tangy, citrusy, milky flavors. The painfully plain-looking chocolate tart was the smoothest, deepest dark chocolate dessert, and it was playfully sprinkled with you’d never guess - kiamoy crumbles!!! It was a perfect meal from start to finish, and my only complaint was the kitchen forgot my request to write a Happy Father’s Day greeting on the dessert, although I could see from my dad’s face and bulging stomach that he had a fantastic one.

Dark chocolate tart 

The next day I brought the parents to have something they both love – Cantonese cuisine. Seventh Son Restaurant is the successful attempt by the seventh son (surprise, surprise!) of the famous Fook Lam Moon family to branch out on his own.

Seventh Son Restaurant

It was comforting to be back in a traditional chinese restaurant setting with tasteful, no-frills interiors and good old charsiu – no iberico pork or ultra chic bathrooms, which I both adore, by the way. We enjoyed barbecued pork and a plate of honey glazed chicken liver before we moved on to two of the most exquisite dimsum dishes I’ve had in a while - steamed fish tripe and steamed tofu skin roll stuffed with roast duck and vegetables.

Steamed tofu skin roll stuffed with roast duck and vegetables

The goose web was cooked expertly with Japanese tofu and crisp vegetables in a rich and tasty thick brown sauce. The signature stuffed crab was pregnant with generous chunks of crab meat sautéed with sweet onions. 

Stuffed crab

I drooled over other tables’ orders of whole suckling pigs and made a mental note to come back with a bigger group, there was only so much three people with huge appetites could eat. Our desserts of malay sponge cake, almond cream with egg white, and walnut soup were among the best we’ve had. Every dish at Seventh Son was carefully prepared, the ingredients fresh, and the service exemplary. The parents were delighted. So was I.

Suckling pig

Yat Lok’s roast goose proved to be the biggest surprise of the trip. I wasn’t expecting much from the tiny Hong Kong style eatery. We arrived before noon and were seated immediately.

Colorful chopsticks at Yat Lok and my HK style milk tea

Sexy roast geese hung from the open kitchen, and beside it were buckets of used plastic spoons and chopsticks ready for dishwashing. If you do not mind this view, hurried service, cramped and communal seating, a meal at Yat Lok is a must.

Sexy geese

 My roast goose and charsiu rice combo

I don’t care if you order it with rice or noodles, just order the drumstick, not the breast part, not the chasiu nor roast pork, just the roast goose leg with skin that glistens, and meat that is flavorful and succulent and almost falls off the bone. Go early to avoid the queue that was forming when we left with happy bellies at half past noon.

Yat Lok at 12:30pm

Serge et le Phoque is located at 3 Wanchai Road, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 5465 2000.

Seventh Son is at the 5th and 6th floors of Kwan Chart Tower, 6 Tonnochy Road, Wanchai. Tel: +852 2892 2888.

Yat Lok is at 34-36 Stanley Street, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 2524 3882.

From Spain with Love

 

Published on Manila Bulletin Lifestyle, May 14, 2015

From Spain with Love

Chef Andoni Aduriz brings his Michelin-starred cooking skills to Manila with a one-night-only dinner at Gallery Vask, together with Chef Chele Gonzalez

 

Perhaps the biggest regret I had during my recent trip to Spain was not to being able to dine at Mugaritz in San Sebastian. The two-Michelin star, the sixth best restaurant in the world was closed for business the time I was there.

So imagine my euphoria when I learned that Andoni Aduriz of Mugaritz himself was doing a one-night only four-hands dinner at Gallery Vask with Chele Gonzalez, one of my favorite chefs in Manila. Ayayay. If something is meant for you, you need not travel halfway around the world to look for it, because the kitchen from halfway across the globe will come to you! Thanks, of course, to Madrid Fusion Manila.

 

Chef Chele Gonzalez of Gallery Vask enjoying a cocktail before dinner service

 

 

Chefs Andoni Aduriz and Julieta Caruso in Gallery Vask kitchen

 

 

So you see, Chef Andoni Luis Aduriz and I, we were really meant to be.

I had been giddy with excitement ever since I listened to him speak at the International Gastronomy Congress at SMX last April 25. I was enamored by his wisdom, humility and great sense of humor. Incidentally, his talk and Chele’s were the ones I truly enjoyed the most. Andoni inspired the audience by his simple but genuine pieces of advice, which apply not only in the kitchen but also in every aspect of our lives: Practice until it becomes a habit. Always question yourself. Have ambitious goals, dream big, aim high – real high – and work hard. Have passion. Be eager to learn and be consistent. Be sincere and honest. Amen!!! And our dear Chele, he warmed every Filipino heart out there with stories about his travels around the Philippines, where he found not only ingredients and techniques, but people, relationships, and farmers who have become his friends. This Spanish-by-blood, Filipino-by-heart chef champions our local ingredients and strives to bring our local cuisine up the next level. Andoni and Chele are both giants in their fields, and what a dream come true to be able to sit down and let my palate be pampered by the tandem!

 

 

Dining Room

 

 

As soon as we were comfortably settled in our seats, they served us stones.

  

Edible Stones

 

Yes, on a bed of sand laid smooth gray rocks that were to be eaten with our bare hands, instructed the jolly darling of a manager Jose Ramon who flew in all the way from Spain with the Mugaritz team.

 

Mugaritz Manager Jose Ramon instructing us to eat with our hands

 

 

One bite revealed a pleasant surprise - underneath the edible clay was a perfectly cooked potato!
Andoni’s playfulness garnered oohs and ahhs across the room.

 

 

Next came Chele’s take on the isaw, a popular Filipino street food of intestines on stick. He used shrimp paste cooked over charcoal in lieu of offal to recreate this local delicacy. Nothing was what they seemed at this dinner. Each of the eighteen courses was a process of discovery and wonder.

  

Shrimp Isaw

 

 

The “Belly of the Monk” macaron was an impeccable balance of sweet and salty. Foie gras cream sandwiched between two cookies made with… wait for it… pig’s blood! This could give the famous French macaron brands a run for their money.

 

"Belly of the Monk" Macaron

 

 

My favorite of Andoni’s dishes, however, had to be the kokotxa. The throat of cod was served in two different textures, a soft and gelatinous slice in between thin and crisp kokotxa crackers. As with all the courses that came before, our server asked us to grab a whole piece and eat with our hands.

 

Cultural Textures
(Several layers of dressed kokotxas)

 

 

Sayote Escabeche

 

 

I devoured the next dish, layers of torched pork belly on toast, with abandon – crumbs everywhere the table and oil trickling down my chin, but I had no care. The fat glistened enticingly at me and I showed it no mercy.

 

Course Bite of Torched Pork Belly and Fresh Herbs

 

  

The plate that blew me away was the tiradito by Chele. How a simple yellowfin tuna kinilaw topped with arosep seaweed could taste so exquisite left me in complete awe. Every bite was fresh and bright and left me wanting more. 

 

Tiradito

 

 

Equally incredible was the buro, a humble Filipino dish that Chele elevated into a whole new level. The maya-maya was perfectly moist and tender, its skin savory and crunchy, and the fermented rice as flavorful as could be. It was pure joy to see the Spanish man at our table polish off every last bit of it.

 

Buro

 

 

Then there were oysters covered in sayote and okra seeds, sea urchin and beer clams in foie gras powder, crab with vegetable mucilage, shredded cochinillo in a sour broth made with the magical alibangbang leaf, wagyu beef with herb sauce and lime, and a mound of caviar for the lucky winner of the guessing game!

 

 

Aklan

 

 

Beer Urchin

 

 

Threads of Crab with Vegetable Mucilage, Macadamias and Pink Peppercorns

 

 

Guessing Game

 

 

Revealing the number

 

 

8 is the correct answer!

 

 

A generous mound of caviar awarded to the winner

 

 

Thank you, Angelo, for sharing your prize!

 

 

My milk cream on toast topped with caviar

 

 

Binulo 

 

 

 The Cow and the Grass

 

 

The creamy taho was a real delight. I normally buy this soy dessert off the streets and drink it from paper cups. Having it in a test tube that evening, its silky tofu made with goat’s milk and topped with muscovado tapioca and ginger perfume, made my heart soar.

 

Taho

 

 

Pingol Bato

 

 

Stracciatella

 

 

Sungka 

 

 

What these geniuses do is simply extraordinary. Every little detail is meticulously planned, every sense of every diner engaged throughout the meal. Andoni and Chele understand that eating is not anymore just about the food. It is also about emotions, memories, surprises, interaction, and magic. And this magical four-hands dinner at Gallery Vask is an experience I will remember for years and years.

 

 

Unforgettable moment sandwiched between Chefs Chele Gonzalez
and Andoni Aduriz

 

 

Stephanie Zubiri, Jean Salonga-Fernando, Pamela Cortez, Cheryl Tiu and Carlo Calma 

 

 

Mugaritz Website

Vask Facebook Page