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2013-07-09
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Knowing that Cepage was wrapping up their operations in Hong Kong during the last week of June, Mr. C and his friends organized a dinner gathering to enjoy a final meal there before bidding farewell to this one starred establishment. Reserved for a Wednesday evening, the restaurant was surprisingly full on a weekday with most tables and their two private rooms being occupied. I guess we were not the only ones wanting to pay final fond sentiments to Cepage.Only two set menus were available to cho
Only two set menus were available to choose from that evening and we all selected the Menu Epicurean. However, since Mr. C is not particularly fond of anago and I was wanting to change my dessert, we asked the servers if we could make some swaps with the Menu Decouverte which they graciously agreed to.
A lovely looking bread basket was proffered for our selection with four varieties to choose from. Mini baguettes, sun-dried tomato focaccia, miso brioche and sourdough slices. The tomato focaccia seemed to be the favourite, tart, juicy tomato on a crispy herb oil infused dough, while the chewiness of the baguettes was pleasing. I know Mr. E certainly liked his baguettes since he had more than six of them!
The evening began with a trio of appetizers all featuring Caviar. We were advised to start with the pasta and then gradually work our way towards the left. The signature bundle of angel hair pasta tossed with truffle oil was beautifully presented. Al dente strands of thin pasta carrying a wonderful truffle fragrance was subtly savoury from the delicate brininess of the caviar. Just like before, it was an absolute pleasure to eat. If I had to pick a dish that I would miss most from here it would certainly be this! In the middle was a thick stalk of white asparagus with its tough outer skin peeled off revealing its tender inside. Juicy with a mild flavour, it was perfect in showing off the stronger taste of the caviar. A geometric pattern of marquise cut potato was the last appetiser. Spread with a thin layer of cream, the potatoes were nicely soft and like the asparagus, the slightly bland flavour of the vegetable was ideal with the caviar.
Our second appetiser was smoked anago with foie gras. When it was placed in front of me I was stunned at how big a portion of foie gras they served... Pan-seared to a gorgeous tone of dark caramel, it was a little firm, but the center still retained a melty softness. So rich and decadent, I was only able to eat half before surrendering the rest to Mr. C. As for the anago, it tasted more like a lovely smoked ham than fish which was unusual yet strangely pleasant. And to relieve the heaviness of the appetiser, the accompanying cup of ginger broth did just that.
Mr. C's replacement dish was pan-seared scallops. His favourite~ Two plump looking scallops with an accompanying dipping sauce. Looked really good and definitely a much lighter dish when compared to ours
A covered dish when lifted revealed a single langoustine ravioli with Parmesan foam, showered with a generous shaving of black truffles. Bouncy langoustine meat paired nicely with the creamy Parmesean foam, and to me, truffles just made the dish that little bit more special
Amadai with lobster in broth was next~ I adore amadai~ no fishiness at all and it was pan-fried until each scale was gorgeously crunchy It was a little tricky trying to maneuver the lobster meat out of its shell, but the sweetness of the lobster made it all worth the trouble in the end. Such a pretty dish, everything so artfully arranged and the colours of the ingredients just went really well together~
As we were waiting for our final savoury dish, the servers pushed out their signature roast chicken as a surprise from the chef. Thank you~ Served gueridon style, it was just as good as when I had it last time. Roasted beautifully, the chicken was tender and juicy whether it was meat from the breast or thigh and the skin retained a slight crisp. The potatoes deserve a special mention, soft and mushy with a crispy edge, they were delicious from being roasted with the drippings of the chicken. So so good...
And then our actual main dish was served. There was a choice between roasted quail and hide beef and I picked the quail. Stuffed with foie gras it was roasted and laid on top of a bed of ratatouille. The quail had a welcome gamy flavour while the stuffing of foie gras added a richness to the overall dish. If I was not so full from the chicken beforehand, I would have enjoyed this dish even more.
I did not try the hide beef, but it looked highly appetising as well. Cooked to a pink medium Mr C did say it was tender with a nice beefy flavour.
And for desserts~ The original dessert was a small cup of chilled Alphonso mango pudding with exotic sorbet. I had a small spoonful of this and it tasted exactly like a Mango Weiss bars, which essentially is a bar of ice block/cream where two-thirds is mango sorbet while the remaining one-third is iced cream. For me, I opted to change it for their chocolate souffle~ Tall, dark and handsome fluffy, it was sinfully rich and just so chocolaty... an absolute chocoholics dream dessert! Paired with a small bowl of Tahitian vanilla bean ice-cream, this really made my night
But it did not end there...Extra desserts from chef~ Dark chocolate tart and a huge cherry clafoutis! Even though I was so full already, I could not resist sampling both. The chocolate tart made my inner chocoholic do a happy dance~ lusciously smooth and bittersweet ganache on a crisp shortcrust pastry.. so good! While the cherry clafoutis was something totally different altogether. It had a texture similar to baked custard, quite eggy, but not overly sweet and packed full of cherries. Pleasant, but really filling.
And so it concluded. A wonderful evening, great company and lovely food. Farewell Cepage, you will be missed~
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