Iwate food journey and free flow Sake carnival

From now until 31st you can sample famous ingredients from Iwate in Japan.
As I have never been to Japan, I was really fortunate to taste them.

Quoted from the Press Release:Gonpachi will present the unique ingredients from Iwate, namely Wagyu, which is famous for its marbling and the melt-in-your-mouth texture; Platinum Pork that is specially tender and sweet due to the fact that the pigs are brought up drinking mineral water; Seasonal Oyster that is at its best from February to March; Plump and Sweet Scallop that is perfect either for sashimi, barbecue or to make tempura; “The Son of Iwate” rice that is particularly sweet and sticky; and lastly “Sunshine of Fuji” Honey Apple that is crunchy and juicy.

The restaurant has normal tables and Tatamis.
(Tatamis must be booked in advance.)

It was my first time experiencing the Tatami which was more comfortable than I imagined because it was modified so that you can either choose to sit cross legged or normally.

Here was what we tried:
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Iwate apple Caesar salad with crispy iwate pork belly:


Basically the egg is beaten and poured on the salad as a dressing.
It was tastier than it looks because the lettuce was crisp and sweet paired with the crispy Iwate pork belly that were deep fried and the slices of Iwate apples were really refreshing with the pork.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
I wate beef tenderloin tataki with sea urchi:

This was thinly sliced beef tenderloin with sea urchin in the middle laid on top of a shiso leaf.
Personally I like the beef and sea urchin separately but as a whole it was not my cup of tea because the shiso leaf and Japanese flowers had a really fragrant taste which is an acquired taste for me.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Deep fried iwate pork roulette with Apple and ume sauce:

I loved this because it was a thin roulette of pork coated in crispy breadcrumbs filled with generous apple and ume sauce in the middle.
The apple and ume sauce was lovely because it was not too sweet with a tangy note paired deliciously with the pork and crispy coating.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Live iwate scallop tempura with fried oba on shell:

The scallop was sweet and evenly coated in light tempura batter.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Spicy tofu hotpot with iwate pork belly and kimchi:

Luckily, the hotpot was not too spicy and we had it with delicious rice which is known as "The Son of Iwate".
I loved the rice and it made me hungrier so I had two bowls!!
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Char grilled iwate beef tenderloin with soy sauce sabayon and.wasab:


The beef was seriously delicious because it was soft, tender and juicy.
When the soy sauce sabayon was added, the saltiness and the beef taste were complimented perfectly.
There was also a side of kelp salt too, but the soy sauce sabayon stood out because the texture was just like lightly whipped meringue.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Char grilled iwate premium pork loin with yuzu pepper:

The pork loin had a springy texture which was slightly fat for my liking but after adding the yuzu pepper, it balanced the oily and fatty texture.
☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Soba pancakes with caramelized iwate apple and vanilla icecream:

The pancakes were delicious and here they use soba wheat to make the pancake!!
A lovely sweet treat that everyone is going to like.
Another pick would be the pumpkin and coconut dessert.

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Grapefruit Virgin mojito :

The drink was nice and sour.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
As well as food from Iwate, they are also doing a Hakkaisan Sake Carnival until 15th April.
The sake comes directly from the Hakkaisan brewery and it is free flow at HK$388 + 10%.
It features unlimited refills of Hakkaisan Honjozo, Hakkaisan Tokubetsu Junmai and Hakkisan Rice Shochu 25% over the whole course of meal.

That night there was a traditional Kagami-biraki ceremony “Kagami-biraki” literally translates as “Opening the mirror”.
Quoted from the Press Release:
In the context of sake, it refers to the opening of a cask of sake at a party or ceremony by a wooden hammer. After breaking the wooden top cover of the cask, brewers would traditionally fill up masus with sakes by using wooden ladles and share them with friends and onlookers. Brewery representatives will stay on premise throughout the evening to interact and mingle with guests, sharing their insights and understanding on Japanese sake and its many intricacies in a casual, personal, one-to-one manner.






★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Gonpachi：4/F, Lee Gardens One,
33 Hysan Avenue, Causeway Bay,
Hong Kong
Tel：2787 3688
Opening Hours：

11:30am-1:00am (Sunday to Thursday);
11:30am-2:00am (Friday to Saturday)

Garden spinach muffin from Starbucks

Starbucks serves the same food and drink at every branch, but to me it is just a place to kill time.

This time I dined at the Caine Road branch, with IPC Foodlab and Eric Kayser opposite.

It was lovely and relaxing at this branch.

I tried the garden spinach muffin which was a savoury muffin with young green spinach, broccolis, green beans and cheese.


The muffin was green because of the spinach.


I loved the taste of this muffin because it was truly savoury and cheesy with a peppery kick to it.
It was heated as well which brought out the lovely cheesy aroma.

New waffle craze at Tai Hang

The Pudding Nouveau is brought to you by the Lassana Group.


It is located in Tai Hing which is great news for people on the Hong Kong side because Tai Hang is such a nice place for gatherings with great restaurants nearby.
They serve a good variety of desserts.

There are savoury items as well.

During the weekends, they serve all day breakfasts.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Mushroom risotto:

The risotto can be cooked to your preference ie soft or al-dente.
It was rich but I would prefer an equal ratio of rice to mushrooms because there were more mushrooms than rice.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Parma ham with rosemary bread:


A simple rosemary panini which was lovely served warm and filled with lean ham, tomatoes and cucumber.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Mixed berry waffle:

Girls are going to love the waffles here because there is a wide selection and the portion is great for sharing.
The waffles were soft on the inside and crispy on the outside.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Vanilla milkshake:

I loved this thick vanilla milkshake because it was not too sweet with a strong vanilla and milk taste.
When you look closely at it, you will see lots of vanilla seeds in the drink.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Pudding trio:
Souffle, tiramisu and creme brulee

A fun trio of desserts to sample three things in one go.
The creme brulee was thick with a strong egg and vanilla taste, while the tiramisu was creamy and the souffle was light with a strong egg white taste.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Mighty leaf tea:

I love this brand of tea because it has loose leaves in the tea bag which give out a stronger and fragrant tea taste.
Earl Grey is highly recommended.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★

The Pudding Nouveau

G/F, 17A King Street, Tai Hang

Disappointing dinner sets at V Cuisine

After reading reviews on this place I had high expectations because the dim sums looked good.
The decor was quite nice but the surroundings were unbearable because the people dining there were so noisy and I don't understand why people gather there if the food is not good and why people don't mind having shouting contests that strain their voices and ending up with a hoarse voice at the end of the meal.

It was probably better choosing a la carte or dim sum because the items on the set menu were effortless to cook.



The crab claws were just springy and salty, it was rubbish compared to Dragon I's crab claw which had real crabmeat in it.

The soup was pathetic, it was just cornflour, water and soy sauce sauce with left over pieces of chicken.

I don't eat red bean dessert but the colour was just awful and weird.

The roast suckling pig was extremely fat and tasteless.


The chopsticks were difficult to use.

$200 spending spree at Maison Eric Kayser

Went to their opening earlier this year and was given a $200 gift voucher to spend at this branch on their bakery items or dine in.

Anyway, as this was a gift voucher, it is not applicable to tick tasting, group-buy or credit card offer, which is why this is not a review.

Since I had this generous $200 voucher gift, I decided to get a variety of bakery items and share the experience on OpenRice.

I chose the chocolate eclair $35, pistachio eclair $35, clafoutis $38, pistachio and apricot tart $38, Lemon meringue $44 and a bun for $10 amounting to $199.

I tried to use the $200 voucher and they said that I could not use it because the bill was under $200.
It was a bit stupid because I am sure Eric Kayser gave this to us as a gift and not to cause inconvenience to the recipients or their staff.
Furthermore, the coupon does not even say you have to spend more than $200.
They should have been happy that it was below $200 anyway.

Anyway, here are the terms on the voucher which I tried to explain to the cashier but they just wouldn't agree.

*Only applicable to Maison-Eric Kayser Artisan Boulanger Café
*Only applicable to a single time spending on Maison Eric Kayser Artisan Boulanger Café
*Not applicable to use in conjunction with other promotional offers
*Not redeemable for cash

Also on the coupon, it says that you can contact Olivier Candiotti on 2178 2566 for assistance regarding this coupon.

Luckily I spotted the 4GB USB for $58, so I got two of those and two cherry clafoutis for $200!
MISSION COMPLETED.




★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Eric Kayser 4GB USB key:

★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
Cherry Clafoutis tart:


The cherry clafoutis tasted better than I expected because it was quite acidic complemented by the sweet tart base and there were so many cherries in it.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★
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Price: $200
Service: ???
Yummy factor: ok
Sweetness levels: just right
English Menu: Yes
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