Michelin guides me in Hong Kong: L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon **

L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, 25 June 2011

This is my final stop for my eat-venture in Hong Kong for this trip. I guess I do not need to give an introduction of this world class French Contemporary restaurant. L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon one of the best restaurant in Asia by Miele Guide and She is holding two Michelin Stars. Believe me, this is a restaurant that serves extraordinary French cuisine in extraordinary pleasant environment with extraordinary service at extraordinary price. But it is worth well the money, I will definitely return to the restaurant for absolutely perfect dining experience.

L'Atelier means workshop in French. I guess that is the theme of the restaurant, which is to setup counters around the kitchen and diners can see how their food being prepared by the cooks and chefs. The colours used in the restaurant are black and red and all L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon restaurants worldwide are using the same colour and decor. The decor is generally quite simple yet quite high class due to the colours used. The atmosphere is pleasant and quiet with classical music played throughout the dining service.

This is my second time sitting at the counter and see my food being prepared. My first time seating at the counter was my dining experience in Iggy's. The feeling is absolutely amazing. It is just like watching Hell's Kitchen live, except I do not see the head chef screams at his cooks. The counters are the chef tables.

The kitchen is led by Chef Michel del Burgo. He is a celebrity chef in France. He worked with some of the world famous French restaurants before then he owned a restaurant in France. Then he works for Chef Robuchon at this restaurant. He has quite an impressive resume and I believe his cuisine should meet Chef Robuchon's extraordinary standards.

I order the testing menu for this trip. Next time I am rich, I will fly back to this restaurant for Degustation menu. The complimentary appetizer Carrot and Tomato Pudding with Avocado. It is quite appetizing and it makes me really, very hungry.

My first starter is Le Caviar Oscietre. It serves oscitre caviar with crab in a gelée of lobster coral and fennel cream. This dish is Chef Robuchon's signature dish. He really knows how to combine complement ingredients together. The sweetness of the crab balance the saltness of the caviar. It is absolutely delicious and it is a great way to start my dinner.

My second starter is the beautiful and artistic Le Crabe with avocado, tomatoes and green apple. The ingredients are stacked on top of each other of that the diners can taste all ingredients. Again the ingredients are complement together. The sweetness of the apple and crab balance well with the sourness of the tomatoes, and the creamy texture of the avocado bind the flavors of the ingredients together. It is absolutely delicious.

My third starter is Le Foie Gras with cherries and fresh admonds. The duck foie gras is pan seared, well seasoned, creamy and absolutely delicious. Foie gras contains a lot of fat but the way the cook sears it, I do not find foie gras grease at all, and I will not grow tired of eating it. In fact I think the serving of the foie gras is too small and I want more.

My Fourth starter is L'Oursin which is sea urchin royale with fennel emulsion. It is creamy, well seasoned and absolutely delicious.




My fish entree is Le Black Cod with smooth daikon cream and extra virgin olive oil. This dish is a Japanese-French fusion. The cod fillet is tender, sweet and juicy. The daikon cream has a mild flavour and taste well with the cod fillet. The olive oil gives a nice fragrant to the dish. Le Black Cod is absolutely delicate and delicious.

My meat entree is La Piece de Becuf. It is actually pan seared Wagyu Beef with aromatics. It served with Chef Robuchon's signature Pommes Purée (meshed potatoes). This medium well Wagyu fillet is cooked to perfection. The outside layer of the fillet is crispy, it is well-seasoned, juicy and very tender. It is absolutely delicious. The only problem I had with this dish is the serving is too small. I want more proteins.

Pommes Purée is absolutely delicious as well. The taste is absolutely different from ordinary meshed potatoes,  saturated with butter flavour. Now I understand why Pommes Purée of L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon Las Vegas is voted one of the top ten America comfort food. American diners travel to L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon Las Vegas just for Pommes Purée. They order Pommes Purée for their starter and this dish again for their dessert. This dish is Chef Joel Robuchon's signature dish and it is one of the reason why diners worldwide are crazy about L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon chains. 

My first dessert is Le Mango-Mango. It is luscious mango cream with exotic fruits and gold foil on top. It is simple, sweet, creamy, a bit of sourness from the mango and yet very luxurious. It is very tasty.


My second desert is L'Habit Rouge. It is A red coated chocolate caramel dome with marjoram biscuit and walnut, and raspberry. This dessert is really artistic and beautiful. It is sweet and very tasty.

Last bit not least a dinner should always end with Le Moka Ou Le The with variety of chocolates. Le Moka Ou Le The means espresso, coffee or tea. I order the coffee and it is absolutely unique and delicious. The coffee is a mixture of blue mountain with other two types of coffee that give the unique texture. It is sour but it is really good. My best coffee so far in my life.

Even the dinner is quite pricey, I think it is quite worth the money. I will be back to L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon for my dinner again.


So far for this trip, I had seven Michelin Stars dining experience within three amazing days. I am now looking for more Michelin Star restaurants in near future.

Address: Shop 401, 4F, The Landmark, 15 Queen's Road, Central, Hong Kong

Tel: 2166 9000

Michelin guides me in Hong Kong: Cafe Gray Deluxe *

Cafe Gary Deluxe, 25 June 2011

Cafe Gary Deluxe is a restaurant served European Contemporary cuisine. This restaurant has mixed reviews. Despite this, Chef Gray Kunz earns his Michelin Star. The decor is 21st modern century and diners are able to enjoy the Victoria Harbour while dining there. However the restaurant is noisy. I did not personally enjoy my brunch due to the noise from other diners. Service is good but can be better. The price is mediocre. I think Chef Kunz is a Singaporean. I personally think that he is a talented chef and his cuisine represents 21st modern century European cuisine with Asia elements, and I decided to drop by his restaurant for my brunch.

I ordered Trout and Cucumber Salad Calamansi Vinaigrette. First impression of this dish: artistic. The trout steaks were poached, they were tender, juicy, well seasoned and very tasty. The tomato chutney, the cucumber salad and calamansi vinaigrette made the dish more vibrant and full of flavour. It was delicious. There was a bowl of Star Anise Steamed Rice came with the dish. The rice was full of star anise flavour and yet not over powering. This steam rice was absolutely delicious and really complement with the trout. The feeling of the overall dish was like I stayed in Switzerland, having the local cuisine and it reminded me of home. I must really give my thumb up to Chef Kunz.

I ordered a dish for this eat-venture because I needed to have some space in my stomach for my feast at one of the best restaurant in Asia. I will be back to Cafe Gray Deluxe for my next trip to Hong Kong to taste Chef Kunz's artistic creations.

Address: 49F, The Upper House Hotel, Pacific Place (just beside JW Marriott Hotel), 88 Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong.

Tel: 3968 1106

Michelin guides me in Hong Kong: Nanhai Number 1 *

Nanhai Number 1, 24 June 2011

This Chinese contemporary Michelin-One-Star restaurant is considered as Number 1 very easily. There are several reasons behind this.

1. The cuisine of this restaurant is inspired by cuisine at coast areas around China and South China Sea.

2. It serves fantastic seafoods.

3. It serves modern 21st century cuisines with strong Cantonese element. That is why Nanhai Number 1 deserves a Michelin Star.

4. It has Eyebar which the diners can go for drink after their dinner. They can drink and enjoy the night scenery of Central and Victoria Harbour from the top of iSquare.

5. The cuisine the restaurant served are absolutely delicious.

The dining experience is great. Friendly and helpful waitresses and waiters. The decor is modern 21st century and with very nice view of Victoria Harbour and Central. The price is affordable. It is a great place to dine in with family. But I recommend to make reservation beforehand. This restaurant is very popular and always packed of diners.

My first appetizer is Pan Seared Scallop with Eggplant. This is more a French cuisine than Chinese cuisine. I guess you can call it a Chinese dish because the oyster sauce is just around it. The fresh scallop is seared perfectly, the seasoning is perfect and it is delicious.

My second starter is Fried Tofu with Oyster Sauce. An ordinary dish and yet taste very delicious and I like to enjoy this dish with steamed rice.

My entree is Kurobuta Pork with Soy Sauce. It is one of the few species of pig that has heavily marbling meat, other than Tokyo-X. My pork is well seasoned, cook perfectly, very tender yet so juicy and it is absolutely delicious.

Last but not least is my dessert, Chrysanthemum Jelly and Almond Tofu Pudding. It is light and tasty. Another perfect way to end my dinner.

I strongly recommend to my readers to dine in to this restaurant if they have a chance to go to Hong Kong. I will definitely bring my family there for dinner.

Address: 30F, iSquare, 63 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Tel: 2487 3688

Michelin guides me in Hong Kong: One Dim Sum *

One Dim Sum, 24 June 2011

Hong Kong is famous for her delicate and tasty dim sum. This Michelin-One-Star restaurant does justice to dim sum. One Dim Sum is not a fine dining restaurant. It is just an 40-seated restaurant at Mongkok and yet serve amazing dim sum. The decor is very simple, one will not expected to find a Michelin-One-Star restaurant at such a place in a neighborhood at Mongkok. The service is mediocre. The price of the delicious dim sum cover up the restaurant's "weaknesses".

The chefs and cooks of One Dim Sum prepare dim sum non-stop for the dining service. I had my Crispy Pork Dumplings, Prawn Siew Mais, Barbecue Pork Buns, and steamed pork ribs. Every dim sum cooks fresh and every dim sum tastes fresh, vibrant and absolutely delicious.

This restaurant is always queue up by a lot of people every dining service. Make sure you go early to this amazing restaurant for delicious dim sum.

Address: 15 Playing Dield Road, Mongkok, Kowloon, Hong Kong.

Tel: 2789 2280

Michelin guides me in Hong Kong: The Square *

The Square, 23 June 2011

The Square is another amazing Chinese restaurant in Hong Kong. It was my second Michelin-One-Star restaurant for my dining experience. This restaurant is located at the same building with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. I guess once the stock brokers earn their commission, they go to The Square for lunch. They are lucky that this amazing restaurant is within their walking distance.

Although The Square is at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, diners do not rush for their meals. In fact they take their sweet times to enjoy the cuisine. In my opinion, they earn enough for the single day. Ok I admit I am joking. This restaurant is big and quiet at start, but it is very crowded later. Surprisingly the diners are not noisy, they looks highly educated office men and ladies. The brands of their watches, you name them, you find them in this restaurant. I guess it is only me wearing a Nike yellow tee-shirt, a pair of jeans and Nike Basketball shoes in the restaurant.

I always order the comfort food to test the level of the chefs. And it was no exception when I dined at The Square. I ordered the simple yet amazing Seafood Soup, Wagyu beef with Fried Onion Rings, Lotus Rice and the Coffee Pudding.

The Seafood Soup is clear and tasty. The ingredients inside are ham, scallop, sea cucumber, mushrooms, tendon, bamboo shoots, etc. It is just like a mini Buddha Jumps Over the Wall. Each layer in the soup lies different intensities of the flavour. The flavour of the soup is getting more intense as you drink to the bottom of the soup.

The Wagyu Beef with Fried Onion Rings is a dish with strange combination. The Wagyu beef is very tender, well seasoned and delicious. But it is ridiculous that the side dish is fried onion rings.

The lotus leaf rice is full of flavour, fragrant and absolutely deliciously. The only thing I can complain about the serving is too small.

Last but not least is my Coffee pudding. The sauce of the pudding is the chocolate flavour sweeten milk. This dish is simple and absolutely delicious. I guess great food does have to be very complicated.

The service of the waitresses and waiters are great. They are very attentive. As compare to the service in Singapore. Hong Kong are miles ahead. How I wish all fine dining restaurants in Singapore has such level of service.

Not only the service is great, the price is not that expensive at all. I will definitely return to this restaurant again. Hopefully I will not see the fried onion rings on the Wagyu Beef again.

Address: 4F, Two Exchange Square, 8 Connaught Place, Central

Telephone: 2525 1163

Michelin guides me in Hong Kong: Lei Bistro *

Lei Bistro, 23 June 2011

Lei Bistro is a Michelin-One-Star Restaurant and this restaurant serves absolutely amazing Chinese cuisine. This restaurant is located at the Time Square at Causeway Bay. This restaurant can hold up to 150 seats. Despite the large number of seats, this restaurant is always fill up by hungry diners at lunch and dinner time. Lei Bistro has served from Northern to Southern Chinese cuisine and also from Western to Eastern Chinese cuisine. 

Sichuan Spicy and Sour Soup is a must try for Chinese cuisine lovers. Spicy and Sour Soup was originated from Sichuan Province in Western China, where the local cuisine is famous for spiciness. The soup is a bit of spicy, sour, salty, fresh and fragrant.  The proportion of the pepper, salt and vinegar must be at the right proportion to prefect this absolutely delicious soup. Again, this soup was absolutely appetizing.

The Lion's Head is a interesting dish. The shape of the meat ball looks like a the shape of the lion's head and this is how the meatball got its name. It is a dish from Huaiyang cuisine in Eastern China. The traditional way to eat this dish is to cook it in cabbage soup. Lei Bistro's large fatty pork meatball is fried and braised together with the vegetables and oyster sauce. This dish is delicious.

Wonton Noodle is a fusion of Southern and Western Chinese cuisine. Dumpling are now commonly found in all parts in China and Chinese community in different versions. Wonton is a kind of dumpling which pork is warped together with the handmade flour skin. This is a Cantonese dish, the southern Chinese cuisine. The truth is dumplings were actually originated from the northern part of China. La main (handmade noodles) are originated from Lanzhou, western part of China.  A well made noodle is firmed. A slight resistance can be felt when I bite the noodles. Again it is plain delicious.

Xiaolongbao (soup dumpling) is a "Shanghaiese" cuisine and it is originated from Shanghai, the eastern part of China. Xiaolongbao is one of my all time favorite dish and I never fail to order this dish whenever I go to China every meal. This dish is plain delicious with Zhejiang vinegar. But the juices in the dumpling are extraordinary hot, be careful when you eat it.

Lastly I have the most amazing and tasty Dongpo Pork.  Dongpo pork can be melted-in-mouth tender if you order the FATTEST pork belly.

There is an interesting story how Dongpo Pork was created: During the southern Song Dynasty in China, there was exiled minister who was also a poet by the name of Su Dongpo. One day Su tried to cook his pork belly by braising it in the wok. However an old friend of his came to visit him for a Chinese-Chess game. As Su was so engrossed in the game, he had forgotten his pork belly. At the same time the villagers brought some bottles of wine to Su and they left them to his servant. The servant reported Su about the wine and the cooking progress of the pork belly. At the same time Su was playing chess and he never paid attention what his servant told him. So he answered to his servant: “put it in, put it in”. Su meant to his servant to put the wine in his house. But the servant mistakenly added the wine into the braised pork belly, allowed it to simmer and absorbed the flavor from the wine. As the aroma of the braised pork drifted towards Su, he stopped his game and identified the aroma came from his wok. He tasted the pork belly and it melted in his mouth leaving a sweet taste behind. He also found that the pork belly was not greasy to be consumed. Thus Dongpo Pork was found and the recipe spread from Huangzhou where it was first created, to all parts of China, and subsequently to the Chinese community living overseas.

Source from http://www.cookingtrek.com/the-story-of-su-dongpo/

Address: Shop B217-218, Basement 2, Time Square, 1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay

Tel: 2602 8283

Michelin guides me in Hong Kong: Dragon Inn

Dragon Inn, 22 June 2011

Finally I have the opportunity to come to Hong Kong for my culinary tour. I work hard, play hard and eat hard. Hong Kong is famous for dim sum, seafood, Cantonese cuisine and French cuisine.  Michelin Guide is the best way to get around in Hong Kong for my eat-venture. And because I always held my Michelin Guide, many pretty "Hongkongese" ladies recognized I am a foreigner and they were willing to show me the way to my destinations. We exchanges emails and contacts and right now we are keep in touch with each other.

This was my first taste in Michelin restaurant is the Dragon Inn. Due to its unique architecture, many drama series and movies were filmed there. Right now the restaurant was in this building for more than 60 years. I needed to find out whether this restaurant did justice to seafood cuisine.

How do the local have their seafood feast in a restaurant? First go the the seafood store and get their live favorite seafood. Second go to Dragon Inn and ask the chefs cook the seafood that do justice to them. Thirdly enjoy the seafood with a glass of white wine and say "absolutely delicious".

Dragon Inn has the most amazing Steamed Abalone with Fish Sauce, Steamed Glutinous Rice with Gross Crab and Minced Garlic, Razor Clams with Black Beans and Chili, and Baked Baby Lobster with Cheese. I really enjoyed the dished very much.

Address: Castle Peak Road, Miles 19, Tuen Mun, New Territories.

Tel: 24506366