This is a compilation of several visits, and I was initially going to just post it as a pictorial, but decided to write a little something, for FINDS is being relocated to the Luxe Manor in TST very soon!
Bread Basket – Reasonably good baguette, the other, which was a homemade brown bread sweetened with raisins had a really weird burnt taste which none of my friends appreciated.
Salmon Skewers($38/1) – Considering the size of these skewers, $38 is definitely not cheap, but they were grilled so well – the brown marks gave for a crispy texture from the Maillard reaction. The orange sauce is a thousand island sauce, and the other (yellow-green) is a lemon-something sauce which none of us were fans of. 7.5/10
Zucchini Skewers ($28/2) were not bad on my first visit, but on the second the skin was bitter – this often happens when the skin is not scrubbed well enough before grilling, or if the zucchini was bruised/bad. The sauces were pesto and salsa for this one. 6/10
Salmon and Shrimp Balls ($88) is from their ‘Scapas’ menu – it doesn’t have a very attractive name, but I can assure you these are a must-order especially if you just want nibbles! The ‘balls’ were essentially minced shrimp and salmon paste coated in a very thin bread-crumb layer and deep fried. The ingredients were very fresh, and the outside was crunchy. I liked them plain, but there’s a thousand island sauce accompanying them which was also tasty. 9/10
Cross-section of the salmon/shrimp balls
Smoked Salmon Salad ($98) was a generous portion (they have an even larger one as ‘main’ for almost double the price but we were here to taste!), and the smoked salmon is house-smoked, very different from the gravlax (semi-translucent smoked salmon) I usually come across. I think it should be called ‘crumbled salmon’ to be less confusing, as it was fully cooked. Anyway, the mix of greens (mesclun, purple cabbage) were fresh, and the creamy dressing (a Swedish mustard-dill sauce) was tasty, and they didn’t over-dress the greens in any way. 8/10
Asparagus and morels risotto ($168) is the only vegetarian dish on the menu, and arrives as a stunning plate of food. The menu description mentions a ‘truffle-poached egg’, but ours (on two occasions) was just a simple poached egg without any taste or scent of truffles – it was perfectly poached and definitely even better when broken on top of the rice. Surrounding the risotto and poached egg are white and green asparagus with some pan-fried wild morels in a light shallot confit vinaigrette with pink peppercorns. Peppercorns would’ve been better if they were ground rather than whole or half pieces, but peppercorns aside, the whole dish was really tasty although incredibly filling! No sides and no appetizer or dessert needed if you want to finish this one! The risotto was cooked to a soft –to-al dente texture, so a bit less time on the stove would’ve been better for me, but then again my dining partner thought it was the right texture. One of the better risottos I’ve had, the rice was seasoned very well and there was a hint of butter which didn’t over-whelm the dish either – would recommend this! 8/10
Blackened Sea Bass ($218) was another main I ordered. It is cooked by pan-frying it in really hot oil to achieve a crispy (black) skin, and the other side is more gently pan-fried till it is done. On the plate was a cauliflower puree and some roasted fava beans and cauliflower. The sea bass fillet was very well cooked, and was moist and soft, reminding me of a rosemary grilled sea bass I had at Dot Cod… The seasoning on this fish could have been more balanced as the skin had parts that were really salty and other parts which were quite bland. Also, the plate could have used more sauce (‘Vierge’) as I couldn’t really identify the taste of it and my sea bass needed some seasoning! 6.5/10
Dessert Trio ($98) – was disappointing for me. On the plate was their DAIM parfait brownie, a small square of Baileys cheesecake and a slice of a lemon tart with a red berry sauce. The Baileys cheesecake had a strong taste of Baileys, definitely true to the name, but I thought the texture of the cheesecake was way too dense and could be slightly lighter and creamier. The lemon tart with stewed rhubarb had a soggy base, but base aside, eaten with the berry sauce on the side gave a nice tart and sweet flavour. The DAIM parfait was a tiny piece of brownie-like cookie with some mousse, caramel, chocolate and a nougat which definitely tasted like a DAIM candy but could’ve improved in terms of appearance and textures – the mousse was almost liquid and the cookie didn’t taste chewy/soft or crunchy/hard….weird for me. Nonetheless I also think this dessert trio platter was a worsened version than say, ordering one dessert which would’ve been served as a whole dessert therefore could’ve taste more ‘fresh’. 5/10
Earl Grey Martini from the Molecular Mixology drinks menu...
Food: ♥♥♥
Service: ♥♥♥
Price: $$$-$$$$
Finds
2/F, LKF Tower, 33 Wyndham Street,
Central, Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2522 9318
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