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2024-11-28
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When this restaurant first started many years ago, it is exclusive for members. Riding on friends I was able to visit a few times to experience its authentic and delicious Zhejiang cuisine. Nowadays it is open to public, but you will probably need to be a member in order to book a private room. With the hairy crab in season, today we come to Wanchai Lockhart Road to see whether they keep up to the high standards after all these years.The décor and setting have not changed much, neat and tidy, of
When this restaurant first started many years ago, it is exclusive for members. Riding on friends I was able to visit a few times to experience its authentic and delicious Zhejiang cuisine. Nowadays it is open to public, but you will probably need to be a member in order to book a private room. With the hairy crab in season, today we come to Wanchai Lockhart Road to see whether they keep up to the high standards after all these years.
The décor and setting have not changed much, neat and tidy, offering traditional and familiar ambience of circular tables with white tablecloth, and the use of celebratory colours like red and gold in the design. On a wall there is a backdrop which indicates this year is the Thirteen Anniversary of the restaurant. Time really flies as it did not feel so long ago when I first came here.
We start with some appetizers, including Smoked Egg 煙燻蛋 ($26 each). The egg has a runny yolk, with the smoky flavours infused well into the egg white, very delicious and not overly salty. Very good.
The second appetizer is Jelly Fish with Spring Onion 蔥油海蜇頭 ($190). The jellyfish has a crunchy texture, having cleaned and soaked thoroughly so there is no weird taste, but full of the nice flavours of the marinade. The drizzle of the spring onion oil further adds to the fragrance, with the cucumber pieces underneath helps to freshen and balance the palate. Very good also.
Next comes Fried River Shrimps 清炒河蝦仁 ($300). The river shrimps are quite big in size, cooked perfectly to maintain its sweet taste while keeping the meat tender and smooth. Adding a bit of vinegar helps to bring forward the umami of the shrimps. Pure joy and wonder. Highly recommend.
Obviously, we cannot miss the seasonal hairy crab dishes and decide to pick Crab Meat with Tofu 蟹粉豆腐 ($650). The orange paste of mixed crab meat and roes are simply unstoppable, with great flavours. The tofu is soft and delicate, but its milder taste actually helps to highlight the crab meat even further. We share a bowl of rice and in no time, I finish everything. Must try.
A dish that we did not eat often in last few years is Sauteed Eels with Chives 韭黃鱔糊 ($250). The eel, chives, and beansprouts are all cut to almost equal length, with the thick sauce delicious in taste. I like how the dish does not feel excessively oily, again testimony to the skills of the chef in handling the cooking temperature and time to perfection. Very good.
We also have Xiao Long Bao 灌湯小籠包 ($64) for dim sum, with each of the dumpling filled with delicious soup, and the thin dough also scoring high marks. The minced pork is not too fatty and seasoned well. Very good.
For dessert we have Assorted Dumplings with Wine and Sweet Osmanthus 桂花酒釀雙丸 ($50), which includes both the small dumplings without fillings and the larger ones with black sesame. The soup is fragrant, and slightly sweetened making it elegant and healthy. The dumplings have chewy dough with a nice bite. Another good one.
Overall, the restaurant stays true to my fond memories, continue to keep up to its high-quality standards. Service is nice with the friendly staff who do not try to oversell. The bill on the night is $1,666 without any service charge. Very reasonable. If you want to enjoy good Zhejiang cuisine this is where I would highly recommend.
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