Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Le 39V

This French restaurant is located in ICC, on the highest 101st floor, with an phenomenal view looking at the Victoria Harbour and HK Island. Inaugurated by Frederic Vardon, the chef who opened the restaurant in Paris under the same name, the interior design shows an elegance, with not too many tables and each facing the windows to enable customers to enjoy the meal with an amazing backdrop. 

We were seated on the window side and decided to go for the 8-course Saveurs d'exception menu ($1780) with wine pairing ($680). Sommelier Doll Chan came to greet us and introduced a champagne from AR Lenoble, a Blanc de Blancs from Grand Cru Chouilly 2014, which was not yet released to the trade. The wine is fresh with good autolytic development, and was a nice aperitif to start our meal. 

The Amuse-Bouche comprised of three pieces: a pumpkin soup with some small cheese dices, rich and creamy and having a nice bite from the hard cheese; a brioche with crab meat fillings which is decent in taste; as well as duck terrine on toast, giving nice contrast in texture from the crunchy toast and the creamy terrine. 

The first course was Aji Ceviche with Beetroot Variation. Beautifully rendered, there is a yuzu wasabi ice-cream to add the kick and freshness to the fish meat to highlight it even more, and the different beetroot components, from the slices, meringue made from sugar and beetroot juice, to the accompanying sauce and beetroot powder, the dish was certainly complex in the techniques to prepare. The wine paired was a Chablis. 

The second course was French Frog Legs, Watercress, Black Garlic. Again the dish was artistically prepared, with two sauces made from watercress and black garlic. The frog legs had two ways too, one was deep-fried and the other poached. Both were nicely done. A puff with watercress sauce fillings was also included which showcased the creativity of the chef. The wine paired was a Sancerre.

The third course was Duck Foie Gras, Jerusalem Artichoke, Autumn Truffle. Instead of pan-fried, the foie gras was prepared similar to the Japanese egg custard, with every bite smooth and silky, but also rich in the foie gras flavors. The pieces of truffle on top further enhanced the overall enjoyment with the great aromas.

The fourth course was Blue Lobster Cannelloni, Butternut, Corn and Chestnuts. Cannelloni is a cylindrical pastry with a filling, and this one was stuffed with lobster meat. However the lobster was very mild in taste, not having much flavor as if no seasonings was added. A bit disappointing. The wine paired was a Napa Valley oaked Chardonnay. 

The fifth course was Black Cod, Fresh Herbs Sauce, Porcini Mushroom. Again the cod was not adequately seasoned, relying on the fresh herb sauce to give a bit of flavors. In fact the mushroom on the side was more tasty, with the tiny pieces giving also a nice bite. Not sure of the reason but the two seafood dishes were both under-seasoned.

The sixth course was Pigeon of Bresse, Cocoa and Sesame, Salsify and Figs from France. This one certainly rescued our faith in the restaurant from the earlier two dishes, with the pigeon seared nicely, juicy and pink, cooked to medium level. It was nicely seasoned, with the cocoa and sesame giving an interesting crisp on the skin. The figs and salsify serving as sides, with a puree to supplement. It was paired with a Gevrey Chambertin. 

The seventh course was Cheese Selection by Maison Mons. Sommelier Doll Chan introduced the different types of cheese to us, and I finally opted for Comte and Roquefort. I have now became addicted to blue cheese and it was certainly my favorite among all the varieties. 

The last course was dessert and originally we opted for souffle with fresh and confit ginger, paired with lemongrass ice-cream. But Doll recommended us to try the signature dessert from Frederic, and only available as the restaurant was celebrating its first anniversary. It was a raspberry sorbet on top of another sphere made from chocolate, with a spongy Blackforest cake, further decorated with a piece of chocolate garnish with rum-soaked dark cherries. Good that we took the recommendation, this dessert was both great in appearance and taste, and was paired with a Jurancon sweet wine.

The petits fours got a macaron with figs, almond beignet and canele. They were both good and provided a great finale to the dinner.

Throughout the night Doll came to chat with us, explaining how she paired the dishes with the wine, and offered me some choices for the pairing. She also asked me to re-taste the champagne again at the end to pair with the petits fours which was surprisingly complementary.

The total bill was $4664, and both the view, ambiance and service were very good. If only the seasoning was done right for the two seafood dishes I would rate the restaurant even higher. But that should be a relatively easy problem to fix, and would like to visit again in future.