Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Tin Lung Heen 天龍軒

This Chinese restaurant is located on 102/F of ICC, inside The Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong. Awarded Michelin 2-star status, we came on the night to sample its traditional Cantonese cuisine. 

After seated at a table on the window side, the breathtaking sea-view certainly was amazing. Even though it was not facing the HK Island, the view offered a nice backdrop of West Kowloon, with the container port and Stonecutters Bridge in the distance.

The ambience is elegant, quiet and serene. With a very high ceiling, the use of dim lighting helps to present the night view even better. And there is also a bar behind to prepare the beverages, from some good tea to a nice range of wines.

We ordered the Signature Tasting Menu ($2,138 each), which included a glass of Champagne. Knowing that we did not drink on the night, the staff kindly replaced them with apple juice. The amuse bouche is an Egg Custard with Young Ginger, Wolfberry and Chinese Yam. With the sour and sweet marinade of the young ginger, matching well with the savory of the egg custard, it is a appealing start for the dishes.

The first course is a Platter of Appetizers including Wok-Fried Eel with Plum Sauce, Barbecued Pork with Osmanthus Flower Honey, and Deep-Fried Shrimp Toast. Starting with the toast, the minced shrimp is bouncy in texture, nicely seasoned and the crispy toast does not feel oily at all. The eel is thick but cooked beautifully, with the plum sauce giving a nice fragrance to the mouth. The BBQ pork is my favorite, with the thick cut extremely juicy and tender. The honey also is delicate on sweetness. All three are very good and I give high marks. 

The second course is Pan-Fried Fresh Crab Claw with Crab Meat and Lily Bulb. The crab claw is cooked without adding much seasoning or sauces to highlight the original taste, and also to complement with the delicate notes of the lily bulb. A dish with finesse but for me a bit more seasoning would make the dish even better. 

The third course is Double-Boiled Chicken Soup with Fish Maw in Baby Coconut. The soup is clear, having the sweetness from the chicken and the coconut water. Really tasty and I cannot stop spooning into my mouth. The fish maw is also impressive, thick and large, rich in collagen. A soup I strongly recommend.   

The fourth course is Braised Australian Fresh Abalone. Frankly on presentation it might look a bit frugal, with half an abalone and two pieces of kale. But I was surprised with the tender texture of the abalone, giving a similar bite as a nice Japanese dried abalone, further supplemented by the delicious abalone sauce. The kale is also young and crunchy on the bite. 

The fifth course is Stewed French Duck Leg and Onion served with Pan-Fried Foie Gras. A fusion dish, the duck leg is soft and tasty, but would be a bit too rich and heavy. As a result the chef cleverly added some purple onion shreds to balance the fat. The foie gras is nicely pan-fried, and the gamey notes is perfect in harmony with the duck leg. A great example of how the chef merged the Western ingredients into Chinese cuisine.

The sixth course is Wok-Fried Assorted Mushrooms served in Crispy Net. Beautifully presented, the different types of mushroom are cut into shreds and put on a bird's best made by deep-frying rice noodle. The bird's nest as a result can absorb the sauce from the mushroom, making the originally bland taste flavorful. 

The seventh course is Braised Rice with Diced Garoupa, Salted Egg Yolk and Taro. The rice got a nice aromas, with generous amount of fish meat and the taro adding the signature flavors, enhanced by the egg yolk. The chef used some cherry tomatoes to add acidity and freshness to the rice to balance, with some chives on top to give further fragrance. 

The eighth course is a Platter of Desserts including Chilled Milk Pudding with Snow Swallow, Steamed Dumpling with Red Bean Paste and Vintage Tangerine Peel, Purple Rice Mochi, and Almond Biscuit. The various desserts are all good in taste, with the pudding creamy and rich, and the snow swallow giving both a luxurious addition and a contrasting bite. The dumpling is also good in taste, with the red bean paste appropriate in sweetness and the tangerine peel highly aromatic. But I like the purple rice mochi most, with the chewy bite and the nice taste really memorable. 

Service is very good, with the team attentive to our needs, but like most Chinese restaurants I still believe they can provide customers more information on the ingredients and the way the dish is prepared, which would give another dimension to them. The bill was $4,800 which was reasonable considering the overall experience and the quality of food and service. 

Wineshark Go Hiking - Lung Mun Country Trail 龍門郊遊徑

Difficulty: 3/5

Distance: 5.09 km

From: Chuen Lung

To: Shing Mun Reservoir

Transportation:

• Take KMB No. 51 departing from Nina Tower Tsuen Wan heading to Sheung Tsuen, alight at Chuen Lung.
• Return by taking green minibus No. 82 at Shing Mun Reservoir heading to Tsuen Wan.

Date: 28 Feb 2021

Following the road at Chuen Lung and walk on, you will see the local Sam Seng Wine, producing an assortment of yellow wine and other tonic spirits. After passing the AFCD Chuen Lung Management Centre, follows the signs showing the direction of Lung Mun Country Trail. 

Walking for about 1.8 km you will reach a junction, with the road going straight towards Tai Mo Shan Road. Turning right will go down towards the start of Lung Mun Country Trail. 

There is an arch showing the start of the trail, and from this point onwards the trail is of dirt and broken stones path. The distance posts of this trail ranges from C3401 to C3410. 

You can see glimpses of Tsuen Wan through the trees. 

The path is a bit rough, with some up and downhill sections with pebbles so it would be good to wear proper hiking shoes to protect and get better traction. 

As the trail passes through a number of streams, there are three bridges built to ensure hikers can safely cross the streams even in rainy seasons. 

There is not that many branches on the trail, and each junction there is clear waymark showing the direction, so there is no chance to get lost. 

At the bottom of a power grid post, there is a large rock full of holes, and making one wonder whether how that comes about?

The trail in general is well-shaded, except for a small section, so even in summer it will not be too hot walking on the path. 

Throughout the trail there is no long ascend or descend until the end. At one junction you can see the path leading towards Lead Mine Pass to the left, but we would take the right one towards Shing Mun Reservoir.

This last section is a long descend, with a lot of stone steps. After overcoming the tiring downhill hike you will reach the end of the trail, re-joining a concrete road. Going straight will lead to Butterfly Garden and one can take this shortcut to Shing Mun Reservoir, or follow the road downhill and take a longer path. 

Wineshark Cooking Class - Chicken Sticks 雞肉棒

Ingredients (for 4):

• Chicken fillet - 300 g
• Leek - 1/3
• Japanese perilla - 5
• Yuzu skin - 1/4
• Corn starch - 4 tbsp
• Mirin - 1 tbsp
• Salt - 1/2 tsp
• Black pepper finely - 1/2 tsp
• Egg - 1
• Oil - 1 tsp

Procedures:

1. Mince the chicken fillet.

2. Cut the leek into small pieces.

3. Cut the perilla finely, and cut the yuzu skin finely.

4. Mix the minced chicken with the leek pieces, perilla, yuzu skin, corn starch, mirin, salt and black pepper finely. And then add the egg white. Keep the egg yolk.

5. Use a chopstick or two skewers and make a minced chicken stick.

6. Put the chicken stick on a cold pan with oil. 

7. Turn on the heat to medium and let it pan-fry for about 5 minutes. Do not move the sticks.

8. Flip the chicken sticks and then continue for 5 minutes to cook with the lid on, turn to lower heat. 

9. Serve with the egg yolk on the side as dipping sauce.

Wineshark Cooking Class - Lobster Bisque 法式龍蝦湯

Ingredients (for 4):

• Lobster - 1
• Fish - 600 g
• Garlic - 4 cloves
• Onion - 2
• Carrot - 1
• Celery - 3 sticks
• Tomato - 3
• Tomato paste - 1 tbsp
• White wine - 30 ml
• Brandy - 15 ml
• Bay leaf - 2
• Black pepper whole - 2 tsp
• Cream - 100 ml
• Salt - 1 tsp
• Black pepper finely - 1 tsp

Procedures:

1. Chop one of the onion into shreds, then cut 1 stick of celery into pieces.

2. Clean the fish well and drip dry.

3. Boil a pot of water and put the onion, celery and fish in, adding the bay leaves and black pepper whole. Cook for at least one hour to prepare the fish stock.

4. Cut the lobster in halves, and then put in boiling water to cook for 8 minutes.

5. Remove the lobster and take the meat out of the shell. Cut into bite-size pieces.

6. Chop the lobster shell into big pieces.

7. Cook the lobster shell in a pot, and then pour in the white wine and brandy and torch to remove the alcohol.

8. Add the tomato paste and mix well. Then pour in the fish stock. Cook for 30 minutes.

9. Cut the remaining celery into small pieces.

10. Cut the carrot into small pieces.

11. Cut the onion into small pieces.

12. Cut the tomato into small pieces.

13. Cut the garlic into small pieces. 

14. Saute the garlic in another pot. 

15. Add the vegetables in and saute for a while.

16. Add the lobster soup and continue to cook for 15 minutes.

17. Blend the soup with the vegetables until smooth. 

18. Reheat the blended soup. Add cream, then season with salt and black pepper finely. Put the lobster meat in the bowl, then pour in the soup. Sprinkle with parsley on top.