This restaurant is a concept by the Swiss watchmaker Franck Muller, providing fine dining experience to customers by offering a new exclusive and private setting, and the cuisine is a contemporary Cantonese with a western fusion touch. Located behind Times Square on Sharp Street, this is the second time I came to the restaurant in a week. I am sharing my experience on the latest visit because of the special menu I requested.
First on the ambiance. The restaurant is not busy on the night, and we have our own private room, with a good size table and comfortable seats, and having a view looking at Times Square. The general decoration is elegant and modern, with a cozy and relaxing atmosphere. Certainly getting us off to a good start on our dinner.
Like I said, I chatted with Head Chef Chan early in the week to fix a menu. So I have to admit I came with high expectation. But everything was so well delivered that we got a lot of wows on both the presentation and flavors. The starter is a trio, with Brine French Foie Gras, Holland Cherry Tomatoes in Lychee Sauce, and Scallops in Yuzu and Osmanthus. The scallops are tender and paired perfectly with the yuzu and osmanthus to bring in an extra freshness of floral and citrus, while the foie gras was soft and melting in the mouth, marinated by the brine superbly. The tomatoes was soaked in the lychee sauce to give the sweetness, balancing well with the acidity of the tomatoes. This trio really got us even higher on expectation for the coming dishes.
Next is Golden Pepper Baked Prawn, with the prawn baked just right, and the sauce is prepared from some green and Sichuan peppercorn providing some spiciness but not crazily hot. And apart from those the sauce also had some crab yolk to give further flavors. On the side there are crispy deep fried purple sweet potato shreds which are great together with the sauce.
Then it came the soup, which is a Rich Fish Soup with Crab Meat and Bird's Nest. According to Chan, the fish soup is made from boiling a large portion of fresh fish and reduced that to only a few bowls so it is very rich and tasty. The creamy fish soup was by itself phenomenal and when added to the crab meat and bird's nest, the delicate flavors from those complemented nicely with the soup and I have to admit I finished the whole soup in no time!
Following is the Crispy Dried Scallops with Baby Geoduck, Cellophane Noodle and Asparagus Lettuce. Again, the freshness of the geoduck can be tasted immediately, with the sauce made from shrimp and crab yolk soaking well to the noodle and asparagus lettuce shreds, and on the texture both the tender clam contrasting beautifully. My only recommendation was to make the sauce a bit less salty.
Now is the time for the fish, which is a Thai-style Sour and Spicy Garoupa. Taking the meat out and then wrapped in bean curd skin to fry, the fish is then served with a light tom yum sauce. The fish is really soft and smooth, and the bean curd skin allowing a chewy texture to supplement. The sauce provides a fusion style and is a nice try to combine the two cultures.
Next came the Baked Okinawa Pork Marinated with Herbs, which is another fusion dish prepared in western style. The pork is marinated first with mixed vegetables and then coated with herbs before baking to the correct level to maintain good juiciness. Pairing with some salad which balances the fat from the meat, it is another good example how Chef Chan creatively combined the dish to the Chinese menu without us feeling awkward or unmatched.
Like all Cantonese dinner we need to have some carbohydrates and the Stir-Fry Crab Yolk Braised Noodle Skin is a perfect wrap-up. The rice noodle skin is first braised in crab yolk to soften and seasoned, and then it was stir-fried. It was not oily at all and each shreds is also separated instead of lumping together. This is a good test of the chef's skills.
Finally on dessert it was Sweet Dumplings in Ginger Tea with Red Dates and Dried Longan. The dumplings are made using the special Japanese rice flour, giving a very chewy and smooth mouthfeel, with nice fillings of coconut. The soup is similar to those you would have after eating hairy crab, but it was less spicy from the ginger and with the right sweetness too.
I have to say it was one of the best Chinese dinners I had for a while, and on each dish Chef Chan personally coming over to explain how it was prepared and the special features certainly giving us extra knowledge on the food and enhancing the overall experience. The services are also impeccable with the right attention and privacy provided to us to make this meal very enjoyable.
The price is $2,866 for two, which is in my opinion a good value given the quality of the food, the atmosphere, the experience and the exclusivity. I certainly will come again often and maybe with more people so we could try their other dishes which would need more people in order to prepare.
My overall rating is 85/100.
1. Marinate the rib eye with salt and black pepper.
