I was honoured to be invited to a tasting session held by OpenRice.
When I walked in the restaurant, I was greeted by a magnicient night view of Hong Kong.
We were given some bread to start of with, which was made by Sorriso, there was some sauce to accompany the bread .
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Bread made by Sorriso
Daily spcl sauce made with basil, pesto
The sauce that comes with the bread is different everyday, today's sauce was green made with pesto and basil.
It had the appearance of Mint Sauce, but tasted fragrant with some sweetness to it.
The pesto however was well balanced and did not over power the other flavours in the sauce which made it perfect as a sauce for bread.
The bread was fresh and soft too.
They previously made a sauce with beans which sounds good too, I wonder if it tastes like hommous.
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burrata mozzarella wiv tomato sorbetBurrata Mozzarella and Tomato Sherbet
水牛芝士配番茄雪芭 $148
Next on was the Burrata, since I am British, I assumed the sherbet was going to be a fizzy powder sweet that you use licquorice to dip as kids. But Sherbet is the American word for the British Sorbet.
Anyway I have always loved Burrata because of its creamy texture and the creamy runny centre inside.
It is usually paired with freshly sliced tomatoes however here it is served with tomato sorbet on top.
I really liked this concept because I can feel the texture of burrata with a hint of tomato.
If it was paired with fresh tomato I would have probably eaten them separately because the texture of the tomato is different from the burrata and when you are chewing the tomato it is distracting.
This appetizer was great because I was able to taste the creaminess and texture of the burrata infused with hints of tomato.
The sorbet was nicely done, not too sweet or tangy, and it gave the burrata a cool sensation.
The texture of the burrata was amazing, it was a bit like the egg whites of poached eggs but firmer with creamy cheese oozing out in your mouth.
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Tartar di Manzo
Tartar di Manzo:
Osceitra Caviar, Beef Tartar, Potato Puree and Porcini Mushroom Jus
It was the first time I tried Beef Tartar and I loved it, especially with porcini mushroom juice at the bottom and the pureed potato on top.
The chef here really has the skill of pairing the right textures together!
The smoothness of the potato puree and beef tartar was great together, yet it wouldn't be too bland because it was flavoured by the big pearls of caviar and porcini juice!
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Vitello Tonnato
Thin Sliced Veal Medallion and Tuna Sauce
薄切牛仔肉配吞拿魚汁$128
This is a well-known Italian cold appetizer, sliced veal covered with a creamy, mayonnaise-like sauce that has been flavored with tuna.
Tuna fish is puréed in a food processor with a some kind of mayonnaise which could be made of vegetable or olive oil and a variety of seasonings including anchovies, egg yolks, cayenne pepper, and lemon juice.
When it was presented, it was very summery and colourful, you could see the tuna sauce drizzled on the thinly sliced light pink veal topped with apricots, olives and their special green sauce. There was some condiments sprinkled on the plate as well, not sure if it was salt or sugar but it made the presentation really nice.
The tuna sauce was so velvety and creamy but you could still taste the fine tuna fibres in it.
The veal was really tender and melted in your mouth along with the tuna sauce, I would have thought I was just eating Tuna if I was blindfolded. An interesting pairing of fish and red meat, but saying that tuna is darker than most fishes.
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Zuppe Zucchine
Salmon and Zucchini Soup
三文魚zucchini瓜湯 $78
This was the first time I have had zucchini soup, it was jade in colour with cheese on top.
[zucchini are known as courgettes in the UK]
The cheese was made in a special way that it was like foam. The soup's texture was like thin pureed zucchini with pieces of salmon in it.
Overall the taste was light and appropriate and the piece of salmon was tender and wholesome, not broken up pieces of salmon.
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Zuppe de Pesce
Seafood Soup
海鮮湯 $108
This was a rich soup which I really liked, it had prawns, clams and mussels. It tasted like lobster bisque but not as thick.
The seafood in the soup was fresh too.
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Penne Arabiata
Penne and Spicy Tomato Olive Oil Sauce
長通粉配辣番茄汁 $118
Although it was the spiciest penne I have ever tasted, it was the best, their chili had been soaked in Olive oil so during the cooking process it gave out more flavour.
The penne was al-dente and the sauce was rich.
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Risotto Bruno
Risotto, Italian Porcini Mushroom and Gold Leaf
金箔意大利磨菇飯 $228
The gold leaf was so delicate and thin you could see it fluttering in the air!
The sauce for the risotto was so light yet it was packed with porchini aroma that the grains of rice were amazing to eat.
The grains of rice were individual and al dente and it was so delicious with the pieces of porcini mushrooms.
Surrounding the risotto was some potato puree too.
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Pizza Al Carpaccio
3mm thin pizza base
Margherita Pizza, Thin Sliced Raw Beef and Rocket
生牛肉披薩 $188
The pizza's here are really good, because the Chef does a light superthin pizza base.
The raw beef and rocket was good together. The rocket lettuce on this pizza was really tender it didnt have that bitter taste.
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Pizza Ai Funghi porcini
Margherita Pizza, Porcini Mushroom and Truffle Oil
意大利磨菇披薩 $158
Same as the previous pizza, the base was thin and excellent, there was lots of juicy porcini mushrooms and the truffle oil was strong, so I really enjoyed it. Funghi heaven!
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Chocolate Souffle and Vanilla Ice Cream:朱古力梳乎里 $68
There was dessicated coconut on top which turned crispy after it had been baked, I really liked it because the coconut taste made it different instead of just plain chocolate.
There were pieces of melted chocolate in it too.
With the souffle there was a scoop of ice-cream to go with it as well.
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Tiramisu:
The cocoa powder on the tiramisu was extremely velvety and fine and the rest was thick and creamy.
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杏仁沙巴翁 $68
This was my favourite as well as the souffle. Zabaglione is a dessert made with egg yolks, sugar, a sweet wine that has been whipped to incorporate a large amount of air. For this dessert it was flavoured with Almond, and it was so foamy and light, I loved it because the texture was runnier than meringue, just like a sauce. At the bottom of the glass there was lots of strawberries and blueberries.
I loved the concoction of berries and sugary sweet foamy zabaglione.
I have tried it two times before, and it tastes the best here! One place paired it with the wrong fruits such as melons and watermelons and it tasted like frothy gamey milk and the other place it was just a scoop of whipped cream!
Sabayon sauce and melons:
http://www.openrice.com/restaurant/commentdetail.htm?commentid=2056425
La Piazzetta's version of Zabaglione:
http://static2.openrice.com.hk/UserPhoto/photo/2/1YM/00DY6415A968EC07E919A0m.jpg
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Finally I would like to thank OpenRice for organizing this tasting event and the PR person who skillfully recommended the best items to eat and guilding us which dishes to start of with, from light to strong tastes.
I would also like to thank the OR editor for supplying the Chinese dish names.
Lastly I would like to wish Bruno and the team all the best and keep up with their excellent work and look forward to the white truffle and black truffle creation Bruno mentioned.
This place is definately filled with innovativity because the Chef makes the dishes with a special touch of creativity and Sorriso means SMILE and it surely did make me smile
.I have still not tried gastronomy but it felt as good as that.
Overall, all the dishes I tried were wonderful, on my next visit I am going to try the following dishes too.
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SSG's to try list:
-Truffle mashed potato
(I like mash and i like truffle!)
-Parpadelle with asparagus, artichoke and pesto mascarpone cheese sauce
-Lamb lasagne
(i want to try this because lasagne is usually made of beef or pork)
-Squid ink taglioline with smoked salmon, cod roe and vodka cream sauce!
(I like the luxurious combination of fine ingredients such as cod roe and vodka cream sauce)
-Gnocchi
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When I was leaving the restaurant, the roses on the corner were really pretty I had to take a picture.
I am not a person that likes flowers but I really liked the roses submerged in the water.
The colour of it was also nice too, light peach instead of the boring reds and pinks.
