Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Kung Lee

This is a traditional-style sugar cane juice store that I could still remember used to be common in HK when I was still a young kid. Nowadays becoming more a rarity, the decoration of this one still maintains the same style with the tables and chairs, the ceiling fan, all exhibiting that friendly atmosphere.

Not too many people because it was late morning but before lunch, we ordered the signature sugar cane juice and the sugar cane jelly. The juice is very tasty, sweet and natural, and in a hot summer it would be the best drink to quench your thirst. You can also see how the canes were crushed to squeeze the juice out, with nothing added to the juice it is really a pure pleasure.

The sugar cane jelly is another specialty, with the texture chewy and even though it was not as sweet as the juice, there is still that fragrance coming from the cane, plus having also a refreshing taste. As a dessert it is indeed perfect with the right sweetness level, and I basically finish the whole bowl in no time.

We each ordered the two and the bill was $52. Considering the pure enjoyment, the natural ingredients and how the owner kept up with business despite all the challenges and temptations for them to do something different, I would say this is a store we should try our best to keep, and also to showcase this to both HK and overseas people as one of our heritage and proud offering.

My overall rating is 63/100.

Wineshark Macau Restaurant Review - Man Ho Chinese Restaurant

Located in Macau Galaxy JW Marriott Hotel, this restaurant has a beautiful decor and since we were early, the restaurant was not yet started but the server kindly allowed us to sit down first at our table to wait, which got a good semi-private feel because of the partitions making it like a private room.

From the recommendation of the server we ordered a BBQ Kurobuta Pork Loin, a Smoked Chicken with Oolong, a pot of Hot and Sour Soup, Seasonal Vegetable and a Rice Vermicelli with Conpoy. The BBQ pork was nicely prepared, tender and juicy, and certainly a good char siu in any standard. But on the other hand it did not have enough fat to provide that oily charred smell.

The chicken is a bit mediocre for me, with good smoky aroma and palate but the oolong tea was not particularly stood out. It was still a nice dish, just that if it is a signature dish I would be a bit disappointed.

The hot and sour soup is very good, as I always prefer such soup to have sufficient hot and spicy palate, and this one can deliver that. Lots of ingredients, the soup also was served hot (in temperature) which is another critical element as a lukewarm one would bring a big deterioration in the quality.

The vegetable we chose was choy sum, fresh and crisp, prepared with broth which absorbed the flavors so it is healthy and without oil. A fairly good dish but nothing special there.

To wrap up we have the rice vermicelli with conpoy, which is well made as the vermicelli did not stick together and the conpoy and bean sprout adding the flavors and texture to make it both filling and flavorful.

One big negative comment however is the poor service we received during the meal. There were not much attention to our table throughout. Our dirty dishes were not replaced, no one come to at least offer to divide the soup for us, and of course no one come to at least check how we are doing. Considering this is a restaurant in a 5-star hotel that I would say is unacceptable.

Our bill totaled $1,000 for 4 which was very reasonably priced, and my overall rating is 58/100.

Wineshark Macau Restaurant Review - Loja Sopa de Fita Cheong Kei

Though its name may seem exotic, this is in fact a traditional Chinese noodle restaurant located in the old district in Macau, on the famous street for souvenirs. The restaurant specializes in the noodle made using the bamboo rod with the chef sitting on to repeatedly swing up and down to knead the dough, to get the dough to the right texture and chewiness.

We ordered a braised pig knuckle and deep-fried fish ball as appetizer. The knuckle was braised sufficiently to allow the skin to easily peel off from the bones, and the sauce was also fairly good on the taste. The deep-fried fish ball got a crispy rice noodle coating and inside was chewy fish meat. Dipping in the clam sauce it was another decent starter.

Of course we came all the way for the shrimp roe dry noodle, and ordered one for each of us. The soy sauce mixed well with the shrimp roe to give the noodle a good savory taste, and the noodle texture was so good that it was difficult not to have another one.

As a result I ordered a wanton soup noodle as well. But I have to say it was less impressive than the shrimp roe dry noodle. The wanton was decent but nothing spectacular, and the soup was also far from the likes of Mak's noodle in HK.

With some soft drinks, the total bill was $228 for the four of us. A bit expensive considering the portion and the types of food, nevertheless the noodle quality is still worth coming to try in my opinion.

My overall rating is 43/100.

Wineshark Macau Restaurant Review - Copa

Located in Sands Macau, Copa is an American steakhouse which got some cozy big sofa table on the two sides and more standard tables in the middle. Unfortunately for us, those on the sides were all booked so the four of us were seated at a fairly small table near the kitchen door. Nevertheless it was still quite comfortable.

I ordered a bottle of Portuguese red to pair with the food on the night, Domini Plus from Fonseca, which got a powerful palate. Regarding food the starter for me is Pan-fried Crab Cake, which is very well prepared with a crispy skin and a nice tartare sauce to accompany.

Ivy and her sister went for Lobster Bisque while my brother-in-law had a Mushroom Soup with Truffle. Both the soups were very good, rich and certainly setting the stage for the coming main dish.

On the main dish I had the American Kurobuta Pork Chop, with Garlic Mushrooms on the side. Although I told the waiter not to cut the pork chop, somehow they mistakenly did that. The taste and seasoning of the pork chop was quite good, though it was a bit dried up, probably because it was cut into pieces before serving.

Ivy and her sister had the Filet Mignon because of the smaller portion, but asked to have the steak in medium well, resulting in the meat being a bit too dried up also. My brother-in-law had the Rib Eye Steak instead and his was the best on the night, with the outside roasted perfectly while keeping the meat tender and juicy.

For dessert I had the Chocolate Lava Cake. Certainly very sweet but it was not a surprise considering it is an American steakhouse. The molten chocolate is definitely a textbook production, pairing with the vanilla ice-cream it brought a good satisfaction for the night.

The others had the Classic Creme Brulee and Grand Marnier Souffle. Both are appropriately done and a nice wrap up on the meal too.

Service was decent but the waiters were not too forthcoming in asking us on the food and explaining to us the dishes. But again for a steakhouse it might not be unexpected. The bill totaled $3,244 which was quite good price considering we had a three-course dinner and a bottle of wine.

My overall rating is 68/100.

Ah Sir's Recipe - 2. Grilled Pork Chop Stuffed Pineapple

Ingredients (for 4):

• Pork chop - 4 pcs
• Salt - 1 tsp
• Black pepper finely - 1 tsp
• Slices of pineapple - 4
• Slices of ham - 4
• Toothpicks - 8 pcs
• Butter - 1 oz

Procedures:

1. Cut the pork chop in half, but leaving the edge attached.

2. Marinate with salt and black pepper finely.

3. Drip dry the pineapple, and wrap with a slice of ham and put inside the pork chop.

4. Pan-fry the pork chop with butter.

5. Put the pork chop into oven under 220 deg C for 15 minutes.

6. Serve with the juices as gravy.

Ah Sir's Recipe - 1. Spaghetti with Tomato Mint Sauce

Ingredients (for 4):

• Pine nuts toasted - 3 tbsp
• Butter - 2 oz
• Anchovy fillet - 3 strips
• Onion finely - 10 oz
• Tomato diced - 8 
• Tomato paste - 2 tbsp
• Water - 4 oz
• Spaghetti - 1 lb
• Mint finely - 3 tbsp

Procedures:

1. Toast the pinenuts in oven under a low heat until the oil comes out and fragrant.

2. Saute the anchovy with butter, then add onion.

3. Add the diced tomato and tomato paste, continue to cook for a minute.

4. Add water to simmer for 15 minutes.

5. Cook the spaghetti with boiling water, along with 2 tbsp of salt. Follow the instruction of the package on the time needed to cook.

6. Drip dry the spaghetti when done, then pour the tomato sauce on top, scatter with mint finely and pine nuts. 

Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon

It's been a while since I wanted to try a restaurant from the famous chef Robuchon, and finally able to do so this week. Located in Landmark, the restaurant is a Michelin 3-star for five consecutive years, featuring a contemporary chic open kitchen with guests seated around, allowing customers to have a full view of the food preparation and cooking. With high chairs and a bar setting, it is surprisingly comfortable and cozy.

To start the bread basket is already a treat. With different types of bread all freshly made, we are reminded not to have too many despite how good they are, or otherwise we might not be able to finish our meal. I tried a couple of them and really they are phenomenal, and it was a shame I couldn't tried all of them.

We each ordered the discovery menu to sample the signature dishes, starting with the Amuse-Bouche which is a white asparagus, panna cotta and cheese roll. The asparagus is in the right season, very tender and fresh, contrasting well in texture with the panna cotta. The cheese roll brings in an extra dimension of crispy and savory to get us off to a wonderful start and high expectation. I also ordered a Ruinart Blanc de Blancs to pair.

The next dish is L'oeuf de Poule 'Mimosa', surprise imperial caviar with egg 'mimosa'. The egg yolk has been carved out and inside stuffed with caviar, with Bearnaise sauce on top decorated with some caviar. Another fantastic dish showing good combination of visual and flavor, the caviar brought the right saltiness to the egg which matched perfectly with the sauce. Again we finished the dish in no time to show how good it was.

The third dish is Le King Crabe, which is king crab and avocado cannelloni, with citrus and vanilla condiments. Just by looking at it you could imagine the skills and expertise required to prepare the roll, and the avocado matched well on the texture with the crab meat, plus the citrus condiment on top bringing the necessary acidity to enhance the flavors and freshness of the crab meat. For this dish I have ordered a Tekoko Sauvignon Blanc to pair.

Next comes L'asperge Blanche, which is white asparagus with miso emulsion, Espelette pepper and sea urchin. As mentioned earlier, the white asparagus is in the right season, tender and fresh, and has the trick of reducing the flavors of the sea urchin a bit in case some people might not like its special taste, while on the other hand the miso emulsion helped to bring forward the umami taste.

The fifth dish is Le Homard, grilled Maine lobster with green peas and baby pak choy. The lobster was cooked perfectly to the right level, and the sauce being a lobster bisque certainly further enriching the flavors. The peas and pak choy are wonderful dipping in the bisque and the dish paired so nicely with the Bruno Clair Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru.

Frankly by the time I was quite full, and began to wonder whether I have too many bread at the beginning. The next dish is Le Saint-Pierre, which is John Dory fried with shiso tempura and cuttlefish ink risotto. It is certainly a nice dish as the tempura was not oily at all, and the risotto was soft and creamy.

The seventh dish is what a lot of people comes to sample, Le Pigeon, a slow cooked French pigeon with foie gras and smoked bacon, accompanied with chicken bouillon and petit raviolis. The pigeon is so tasty, with a crunchy texture so amazingly great, and eating together with the foie gras the balanced flavors of gamey and savory really blew me away. The chicken bouillon was a bit salty and spicy for me however, but the mashed potatoes were velvety and so good, if only I could have room to eat more. I had a Louis Jadot Griotte-Chambertin Grand Cru to pair this wonderful dish.

Coming to dessert first comes La Foret Noire, 'mushroom' in black forest style with griottines and chocolate cream flavored with kirsch. The mushroom is made from the cherry and white chocolate cream, having the right sweetness and not overly so, and the look is so interesting it is another piece of art on the night. It should pair well with a sweet wine but unfortunately I got a bit too much by then to have more wine.

The final dish is La Noisette, Plemont praline mousse with lemon cream and fromage blanc sorbet. The lemon cream got a good tartness, in perfect syn with the sweet and salty cheese sorbet, allowing us to finish the night with another great satisfaction which is so wonderful that we really decide to come back for more.

Apart from the food and atmosphere, the services are also exceptionally good, with the friendly server explaining to us the details of each dish, suggesting the right wine to pair, and also checking in with us throughout the night. The server also offered us to pack the bread home which is also a nice touch. The bill totaled $6,280 which is a bit pricey, but considering that I had 5 glasses of wine and a bottled water, I still regarded this restaurant a must-try.

My overall rating is 80/100.

Wineshark Macau Restaurant Review - Sei Kee Cafe

Located in Taipa old village, this cafe was started in 1965 and throughout the years have been famous for its milk tea and pork chop bun. The decoration was kind of in the oldies but very clean and bright, with the small tables and chairs bringing good memories of such furniture at home when we were still young.

I ordered a cold milk tea and a pork chop bun, their signature offering. The milk tea was rich and got the right sweetness for me, and you could taste the charcoal fragrance. Really a nice milk tea and true to their fame.

For the bun, the pork chop was deep fried, crispy but juicy. The bun was toasted crisply too and I like that it was seasoned properly without a strong saltiness in most such cafe, and also not oily to the palate. Again it lived up to the reputation.

Overall I would say this cafe got me a wonderful surprise on the food quality, the nice environment with good clean that many such old cafe might not pay so much attention. Definitely my recommendation and one cafe I would come back again. The bill was $68 for 2 milk tea and the bun, not particularly cheap but still value for money.

My overall rating is 53/100.

Wineshark Macau Restaurant Review - Antonio

Been a while since I last visited this Portuguese restaurant, and like always by the time I arrived it was all packed despite only at 6:10pm. It is frankly quite crowded and not too comfortable with so many tables around, however I can understand with the fame nowadays it would only be normal to fit in as many tables as possible.

The wine selection was interesting, and I opted for a Alexandre de Almeida Bucaco Branco Reservado 2008. Quite pricey but certainly good in quality, it got me off to a great start. We ordered two Caldo Verde, and the soup was fairly well prepared, with olive oil mixing together well the spicy chorizo sausage. But still if I have to rate this soup the one from Solmar was still my choice.

Then we had the Pata Negra, the Portuguese cured ham that is pretty similar to Iberico. The ham were freshly cut out from the leg, and got the right saltiness and softness that paired perfectly with my wine, which people might believe would be a better match for a red. However, for most people (including me) this would be a bit too expensive.

I always go for some grilled sardines in Portuguese restaurants, as this was a good test of the culinary skills of the chef. The ones from Antonio was reasonably good, with a crispy skin sprinkled with salt and a perfect grill to bring out the best flavors of the fish. Paired with potatoes, by itself it would be a nice main dish, and the portion was generous with three sardines in total, plus some bell pepper salad as side.

Seafood is Antonio's signature so we ordered the wet seafood rice, since we had tried the paella last time already. The dish is good for two persons, with crab, mussels, clams, prawns and scallops. A bit too salty for me and the crab meat was mushy, nevertheless the seafood stock is delicious and the rice was tasty and a must try. Personally I still prefer the paella more.

We ordered a Serradura and vanilla ice-cream with cherries and cherry sauce, though the latter turned out to be not available. The dessert was decent, but Ivy thought it was still not as good as the other one from a dessert shop nearby. But altogether it was a good dinner and with Antonio himself coming out to check with the customers the services were nice and friendly.

The bill was $2,451 on the night, and I would rate this as definitely a good Portuguese restaurant that I would recommend, even if overall a bit too expensive for the quality of the food and the environment. My overall rating is 60/100.