Delish Roast beef bahn mi at [越之味 Tasty Vietnam HK]

Randomly went here because of the roast beef banhmi.

I didn't have any expectations because the location being in polam so I was expecting everything to be localized.
They did have some interesting items on the menu like the rolls with liver paste.

Dined in for the roast beef bahnmi and it was pretty good there wasn't a 10% service charge. But then I suppose, it is getting competitive with so many new eateries nearby such as the Taiwanese noodle joint, Marugai udon, laksa joint and this Chinese joint.

When it arrived, it looked promising.
The baguette was not burnt with a lovely golden crispy crust while the middle was soft.

The roast beef was convincing, it was pink and you could see the fibres without any connecting tissues.

I was totally satisfied after taking a bite because everything was good from the baguette to the beef.
Most importantly the pickles were properly pickled and not sweet.

There was a dash of mustard which went well with the beef.
The texture of the beef was really tender that I wouldn't describe it as roast beef but a cross between pastrami without the smokiness and slow cooked beef.

I think the beef tastes better in the banhmi than the pho as the heat will end up changing the texture of the beef.
Will definitely be back and hopefully the beef will be just as good on the next visit

The only thing they could improve is having tissues on the table.

[越之味 Tasty Vietnam HK]
Shop 051G, UG/F, MCP Central, 8 Mau Yip Road, Tseung Kwan O

Best Pastas in Lai Chi Kok by [PICI]

Business is booming in Lai Chi Kok and so is the demand for good food!
Pici started off in Wanchai, Feb 2017 and now has five branches with the fifth branch in Lai Chi Kok. Last week, they were doing a pasta giveaway but unfortunately I had other plans that day.

I like the way, all the branches have the same style an alfresco bar, dining area and a bar table where you can watch the pasta chefs make the pasta.

The menu at Lai Chi Kok is slightly different.

Green Ravioli and Tuna Tartare are exclusive at this branch while the popular favourites like truffle pasta, meatballs and tiramisu are all on the menu.

Started with the Sicilian Sunrise which was a vibrant sweet start with citrus flavours.

Green Ravioli [LCK exclusive at the moment]:
The green ravioli was new and I love ravioli so tried it.
It has broccolini, peas and asparagus which were all my favourites.
The ravioli was fresh with the crunch of the vegetables topped with ricotta which gave it the saltiness.

My friend had the lunch because you get salad and a dessert.
The truffle pasta was on the lunch menu so how could you not order it for HKD148!!!

Radicchio Salad [Part of the Lunch Set]:
There were so many options to choose from ranging from Hams to Burrata cheese but we chose the Radicchio salad which was healthy and light topped with delicious hazelnuts and tangy vinegar.

Taglioni with shaved fresh truffle [Part of the Lunch Set]:
Less is more and this was simply delicious because it was just freshly made pasta with freshly shaved truffle and truffle sauce. The pasta was silky yet al dente.

Tiramisu [Part of the Lunch Set]:
For dessert, the Tiramisu is a must as it is thick and creamilious.
PICI's Tiramisu is unique as the mascarpone is visually yellow like custard and it tastes so delicious with the soaked layers of ladyfingers.

With freshly made pasta, PICI never fails to impress.

PICI, Lai Chi Kok
Shop G03,
D2 Place TWO,
15 Cheung Shun Street, ]
Lai Chi Kok.

New Summer dishes at [Casa Lisboa Gastronomia Portuguesa]

It has been a while since I have been to Casa Lisboa.
Since my last visit, Casa Lisboa has relocated to Wyndham Street.

We had the new Summer menu that night and every dish was flawless.

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First was the [Cozido Soup], which is a popular soup that you will find in every Portuguese home. Just like Chinese soup, you will find lots of meat and vegetables which are eaten as well.
The chef has modernized it by wrapping the meat inside the cabbage parcel.
I really enjoyed the soup as it was smokey with the  saltiness from the salami.

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The next dish was the [Vegagna] which was a vegetable lasagna made with layers of courgettes filled with tomato and aubergine. It had a nice hint of cumin which gave it a Mediterranean twist.

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The [Bone Marrow] is definitely recommended because it is so different to the ones I have had.
There were lots of herbs in it and it tasted like Christmas Stuffing that goes with the Turkey.
Although it came with crispy slices, it tasted good with the bread on the table.

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[Guinea Fowl Cabidela]
Traditionally, this dish is made with chicken blood but it has been modified with beer and morel mushrooms for a healthier approach.
The risotto was definitely delicious infused with flavours from the beer and morel mushrooms but being adventurous I would still love to try the recipe with chicken blood.

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[Iberico Pork Chop with Apple Sauce]
Pork and apples always go well together in any cuisine so this dish was popular with all the guests.

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[Short Ribs with Alheira Migas]
The ribs were visually flawless as you can see how lean and moist it was that it doesn't need much explanation.
The side of Alheira Migas was also the star of the show as it was beans with kale.

I found it really comforting because it tasted similar Mexican refried beans.

+++++
[Mango and Passion Fruit Burrata] 

Finished with the burrata which looked like burrata!
It was fluffy sweet cream cheese shaped like a burrata drizzled in mango and passion fruit sauce.

Overall, I was impressed with meat dishes that they serve especially the ribs and risotto.

[Casa Lisboa Gastronomia Portuguesa]

2/F Parekh House,

63 Wyndham Street,

Central

Lime Caviar and its culinary potential in dishes

Ever since I heard about Lime Caviar I have always wanted to try it.
I literally thought they were pearls made with lime juice using molecular gastronomy.

To my excitement, I finally got to see them at Hofex on the second day.

Lime Caviar comes from Finger Limes native to Australia and there are quite a few different colours available.
The best thing is that Finger Limes are all natural and the beauty is that you will find tiny pearls when you slice it open and squeeze it.

These pearls will burst zesty tangy juice so imagine taking dishes to the next level by garnishing oysters or anything that needs a zesty and colourful finish!

You can now get them in tubs which are quick and convenient to serve by spooning them out and sprinkling them on whatever you fancy.

The good news is that you can now get them in Hong Kong through [Eat The Kiwi].

[Eat The Kiwi] offers a good range of New Zealand groceries.

Also at the booth, I spotted some Deer Milk powder which is said to be rich and creamy.
Deer Milk was apparently on the menu at the worlds 50 best in Macau so I wouldn't mind just drinking a pure shot of deer milk to see how it tastes!!

About [Eat The Kiwi]:
Eat The Kiwi was born out of the success of The Produce Company, a business responsible for sourcing and delivering high quality, fresh food to many of New Zealand’s top restaurants since the 80’s.

In the early days they started exporting to Super Yachts and Luxury Hotels in the Pacific but then as they learnt how to provide small consolidated orders to hard to find locations, they decided on taking Eat the Kiwi to the World by hoisting a New Zealand flag.

They landed in Hong Kong in 2015. For the first two years, their carefully chosen, fresh New Zealand ingredients were only available to top restaurants and hotels, but they soon found out that people were eager to access their naturally good food in their own homes too. 

In recent years they have opened Eat the Kiwi Offices in Shanghai and Western Samoa.

The best chicken soba at [Zagin Soba]

I have been wanting to visit Zagin Soba for ages because everyone is raving about it and how no other chicken broth ramen in Hong Kong is as good as this. Finally went over during the Bank Holiday as there were less people.

Zagin Soba on Gough Street is the second branch in Hong Kong and while I was there, I overheard that they will expand to UK by the end of this year. Their signature chicken based broth comes from Osaka which is rich and creamy so I had that with extra smoked egg.

To summarize I was really impressed with the chicken ramen because every element was good, ie the broth, ramen, meat, egg and the crispy burdock.

Although, seemingly a simple bowl of ramen, there were lots of things going on so decided to try every element separately. To begin, the burdock looked like a complicated spaghetti junction of crispy strands. It was deliciously crispy but also delicious dipped in the chicken broth as you get some unami to it.

Moving on to the meat, there was a piece of chicken and chashu. Both were slow cooked hence the tenderness. The chashu tasted like delicate slices of ham.

The smoked egg which costs HKD15 was silky with an evenly smoked flavour that combined well with the rich thick creamy yolk.

The star of the show was the broth, thick and creamy just like English chicken soup. It gets its taste from finely pureed chicken, where the broth is then frothed up like cappuccino.
The purple onions and greens help balance out the heaviness of the broth.
Simply a comforting broth that everyone will love and drink to the last drop.

As well as ramen. the fried chicken is also worth ordering. I was expecting the usual fried chicken with mayonnaise but here they give you yuzu salt which is a million times better as the yuzu salt is refreshing like squeezing lemon juice on to it with a touch of saltiness.

My friend had the Salmon Tsukemen which looked captivating so next time I am going to have tsukemen as they have limited edition ones like Kinmedi.

Overall, it was an impressive visit from the environment to service.
All their crockery and fixtures come from Japan so that you get that all round Japanese experience.
Will be back soon.

McCafe's 20th Birthday in Hong Kong - Rainbow Cake

If it wasn't for this new tea series and rainbow cake I wouldn't have known that McCafe has been in Hong Kong for 20 years. I remember going to a McCafe near North Point MTR station but not sure if that was the first branch.
Anyway,  I happened to be in Fortress Hill so went in for the new Tea!

Out of the drinks choice, I wasn't keen on the Four Seasons Tea because it was tasteless from the shops I have tried before, but still ordered it as it was the only tea choice available.

Spotted the rainbow cake so got that as well.

The bill came to HKD35.

Visually the cup was nice with rainbows on it and there was a decent amount of cheese froth on top.

The cake was topped with colourful candy pearls.

As each layer was a different colour,  I tried each layer to see if the colour made any different but it just tastes the same. The cake was soft, fluffy and not too sweet.

Finished off with the Four Seasons tea which gave me a surprise because it had a strong taste compared to the ones I have tried before.
On top of the cheese foam, there was some dried tea leaves which enhances the tea flavour when they get in your mouth and you end up chewing them.
The cheese foam texture was thick like double cream but I find it strange they call it cheese because it wasn't cheesy but sweetened.
Anyhow the thick creamy cap and the tea were a match made in heaven. 

I felt quite content after having the cake and drink because I didn't feel thirsty or have any strange aftertaste in my mouth.
Definitely will be back to try the berries drink as strawberries and thick cream go so well together.


#McCafehk #McCafe #HongKong #foodie #rainbowcake #20thanniversary

Lutosa at HOFEX 2019

As a potato and carbs lover, I was immediately drawn to the Lutosa booth Thanks to those eye catching Belgian cones that hold the fries/chips.

It sent me memories of La Cornet Belgie in Central.

I tried samples of the flat slices which were fried to perfection!!!
They were similar to potato scallops but without the batter.

At the front, there was a cabinet that showcases most of the products they have.

I believe I have tried most of them at various different restaurants except the Pom'Tapas so I was really keen in trying some.
They are delicately flavoured potato mash under a crispy crust and they come in four flavours:

Pom'Tapas Sirataki: garlic onion paprika, coriander, cumin, pepper, caraway seed and oregano
Pom'Tapas Latino: tomato, paprika, pepper, allspice, cumin, oregano, thyme, bay leaf and parsley
Pom'Tapas Basilic: basil
Pom'Tapas Arabesque: coriander, cumin, curcuma, pepper, fennel seeds, aniseed, allspice, celery seed, mace.

All of them were captivating especially the Arabesque and Green because I love cumin and fennel.
I can imagine for the Hong Kong market, restaurants would probably want to offer the Italian but in UK it would be the Arabesque or the Latino but I believe they would all taste great.

Tried the Pom'Tapas Sirataki which was just how I expected it to taste, they were crispy on the outside and silky in the middle infused with light cumin and caraway seeds.

All the samples I tried were good on their own and didn't need sauces.
Quality potatoes and bi products should be tasty on their own and things like mayonnaise should enhance the taste.
It frustrates me when I see people dunking their fries/chips in sauce without trying how it tastes alone.

After browsing the Lutosa catalogue, they offer more than just fries and it seems I have tried a majority of their items at different restaurants.
It is hard for me to remember fries/chips but if I was to seriously taste test them I possibly could, whereas the restaurants that serve different potato products make it memorable.
My personal preference is [blonde] lightly crispy on the outside and not hollow in the middle but in Hong Kong fries have to be CRUNCHY or people complain and even bread has to be hard toasted.
This explains why my blonde hair is white to them as their definition of gold is BROWN, so if you ask for blonde hair at the hairdressors in Hong Kong,  you get ginger.
The fried stuff in HK which is golden brown by their definition is burnt in my opinion!!!

The HK KFC fried chicken has a different batter to UK, again it is crunchy!
They serve grid fries only whereas UK serves chips.

I just wish that Hong Kong restaurants could be more adventurous with more variety.
Once something is trending then all restaurants will be serving it which makes dining so boring as the menu is practically the same everywhere.
I understand they will only serve what will sell but as a consumer I feel that the restaurant scene is getting boring.
As well as the restaurants, shopping malls are clones with the same shops, restaurant groups and even clothes.
The hilarious thing in Hong Kong is that when the temperature drops below 14 degrees, you will find 90% people wearing puffer jackets!!!

Enough ranting for now, here are the potato products from different restaurants which I believe are from Lutosa.

[Please Note:  Some restaurants below are no longer in business]

Mini Waffles at Shelter Lounge, Sheung Wan:

Croquette at Shakeem Bun, Wanchai

Dauphines at La Cantoche:

Duchess at Champak:

Vegetable Rosti and Cheese Rosti at Chip In"

Potato cubes at the Green Waffle Diner:

• Lutosa also does mash and roast potatoes but I would really need to try samples from them to recall anything but for now I want to buy every Pom'Tapas flavours as you can put them in the oven according to the brochure which is convenient!!