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2019-07-17
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Quick squiz: New on the block, still a hidden gem. A friend noticed its new opening and we decided to visit for a weekday lunch. Food was top notch and its obvious they've made an effort. Same goes for service. It's also apparent that they have considered their decor to match their overall theme, exuding a classic elegance exceeding the quality you might have expected in a modern interpretation popping up in this lane.More about the Restaurant: Restaurant wasn't particularly full when we arrived
New on the block, still a hidden gem. A friend noticed its new opening and we decided to visit for a weekday lunch. Food was top notch and its obvious they've made an effort. Same goes for service. It's also apparent that they have considered their decor to match their overall theme, exuding a classic elegance exceeding the quality you might have expected in a modern interpretation popping up in this lane.
More about the Restaurant:
Restaurant wasn't particularly full when we arrived shortly before 1pm. But then again, it's still very new to the extent that the flower placards are still at the entrance and it does not even have an Openrice page as of this writing.
Onto the food... we were a table of 2, ordered 5 dishes and were extremely satisfyingly full afterwards. All were carefully put together. While all of the dimsum were good, the highlight was the sliced goose.
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Pan-fried conpoy turnip cake ($33)
This was pan-fried nicely - a slight crisp to the surface with good turnip content but not too overwhelming. One of the better turnip cakes you'd have and a warming reminder of the new year delicacy. Recommended.
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Steamed vegetarian "eight treasures" dumplings ($33)
A dimsum classic. Supple dumpling skin wraps around an exciting mix of vegetable texture inside make this a welcoming dish. Recommended.
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Steamed egg white and crab meat dumplings ($42)
This was a recommended dish in their menu and thought we'd give it a try. the overall texture was soft and supple - perhaps a little too much that it was sometimes hard to tell the difference between the dumpling skin and the contents. Taste was good. Can be improved by having the crab meat appear as strands so that it can be distinguished while in the mouth. Consider it.
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Rice flour rolls filled with crispy seafood roll ($59)
Maxims (and I'm sure other places) offer something similar. The portion to this is smaller than Maxims. It's more intricately made. The crispy batter layered between the rice flour and the seafood roll is finer (thinner) than Maxims, as is the rice flour, making this dish feel like a more intricate and hand-crafted version of Maxims iteration. Recommended.
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Sliced goose ($199)
Very generous portions, well laid out The meat was warm, moist and tender with a hint of cinnamon powder sprinkled on top. I have not had a sliced goose dish so caringly prepared in a very long while. The tofu underneath was smooth and rich on flavour, albeit a little soft. Highly recommended.
Tea ($18 per person)
This felt a little steep but it's a staple and hard to be missed. Aroma of the barley teabag was good and lasted throughout the whole meal.
Restaurant was playing some popular classic Cantonese tunes in the background, completing the experience. Unfortunately the music appeared to be an afterthought as it was playing through what appeared to be a set of Bluetooth speakers placed in a corner. There was also quite a bit of background noise making it not the most quiet of places, a little unsettling, but far from being of any concern when it comes to conversation.
Service was polite, attentive and well thought through. For example, they poured the soy sauce on both sides of the plate of the crispy rice flour roll, rather than directly on top. They cleared the table promptly of finished dishes and added water to the pot efficiently. It was a nice touch to remind us to have the food while hot when they serve each dish.
My only real gripe to service is the lack of any napkins (wet or dry) as is typically the case in Hong Kong, which I was told were being sold for $5 a pack. I declined as I've always found it absurd for restaurants not to provide napkins. This would be fine in a 'char chan teng' environment, but I would certainly expect more at this price point. To their credit, they did bring over a box of tissues and allowed us to take a couple from it.
All in all, it's obvious they've placed a lot of thought into it - from the decor, music and service to the food. I'd be eager to come back to try out more of their other options. In honesty, it's not easy to find something like this in modern Hong Kong. Hopefully they'll have free napkins soon...
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