Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Sing Yin Cantonese Dining

This Cantonese restaurant is located in W Hong Kong which has just recently renovated. After doing the temperature check, we were seated at a comfortable booth. The decor features contemporary design, with a theme highlighting the scene of the streets in old HK in a subtle way. The shiny brass frames with glass serving as partitions which also has a light film illustrating the traditional metal shutter gate of the shops. Interesting and quite aligned with the hotel's fun and hip style. 

Although there is a set menu which I think is very good value, we decided to order a la carte. Starting with the soups, I had the Braised Hot and Sour Soup with Seafood and Wild Mushroom ($250) while my wife had Double-Boiled Fish Maw and Conch Soup with Lily Bulbs and Lotus Seed ($298). My soup was tasty, with a good balance of hot and sour, and plenty of seafood including shrimp, crab meat and conpoy, as well as other mushroom giving different texture on the bite. There is a fair amount of Chinese yellow wine flavors I found in the soup which is a bit strange but did not put me off. A good soup to start.

Next we had Chicken with Black Bean Sauce in Casserole ($398). Served steaming hot in the clay pot, the nice aromas made my mouth water before even tasting it. The chicken pieces were cooked perfectly, tender in texture. Taking the great flavors from the black bean sauce, along with plenty of shallot, leek and chili, this dish is one of the signature of the restaurant and I can appreciate the reason why straight away.

 

Then came Braised Bean Curd Stuffed with Minced Shrimp and Lobster ($388). A creative dish developed by the chef, the bean curd was hollowed on one side so that the lobster meat could be stuffed into it. On the bottom the chef had put the shrimp patty, making it possible for getting a mix of all the three components on a single bite. The taste is nice, and the only issue for me is that the color of the orange brown with a Cantonese dish is a bit weird for me visually, not sure whether the chef had tried to recreate a western-style lobster sauce. 

We also had Seasonal Baby Spinach with Superior Broth ($168). The baby spinach certainly is young and tender, and had absorbed fully the great flavors from the superior broth, with some finely shredded Chinese ham on top. Very good in taste. Personally I would use a smaller circular plate to serve this as the presentation was not as good with the two sides of this long boat-shaped dish having lots of the broth but no vegetable, so at first glance it might seem the portion is very small but in fact it was not. 

We nearly forgot we also ordered the Baked Crab Shell Stuffed with Alaskan Snow Crab Meat, Onion, Eryngii Mushroom and Cheese ($198 each). It was not the fault of the restaurant as we were informed at order that this dish would take a while longer to prepare. Still it was actually a bit strange to have this after we have finished all the other dishes. The stuffed crab shell was a beautiful golden brown in color, and there were lots of crab meat, delicate and tasty, with the onion giving good sweetness and the oyster mushroom a good bite for contrast in texture. Overall a very good dish, if this could be served after the soup but before all the other dishes it would be fantastic. 

The dessert menu is put on a light box inside a bird cage, a fun and interesting idea. I had the Chilled Sago Cream with Pomelo with Mango Juice ($78) while my wife had Double-Boiled Whole Pear with Osmanthus and Red Date ($98), along with Sweetened Black Sesame Rolls ($34) to share. The sago cream is appropriate in sweetness, with a rich cream and intense mango notes. Quite nice. The sesame rolls comparatively is more bland, and maybe I should finish that first before the sago cream to have a better enjoyment. 

Services are good, with the staff attentive and courteous. But like most Chinese restaurants, the communication with the customers to explain each dish is lacking and it would be a great complement to the overall experience if they can spend the time to let the customers know the special ingredients, cooking techniques, or other unique features and stories, I am sure it can bring the whole satisfaction to another level.

The bill was $2,274 after a 10% discount from Hang Seng credit card. A good value for the dishes and with some more attention to details the restaurant can attain an even better reputation.