The famous grocery shop Fortnum & Mason was founded in London in 1707. Now a landmark, their flagship store in 181 Piccadilly attracted people from around the world to enjoy their afternoon tea and their food hall. Named after that address, this restaurant, located in K11 MUSEA, is their first outlet in Hong Kong.
The ground floor is the shop, selling wine, chocolate, tea, and chinaware. Walking up the internal staircase will bring you to the restaurant, where the staff warmly greeted us and showed us to the table, with a wonderful view looking out to the Victoria Harbour. The booth seat is spacious and comfortable, perfect for the two of us, and the ambience is premium, cozy, yet relaxing.
I started with the mocktail Peach Condition ($128). Prepared from peach, orange, and Fortnum’s Champagne Marmalade, it was added with some sparkling tea too, with the drink very refreshing, having a bit of sweetness but nothing excessive. A pleasant aperitif.
For the starters, we ordered Black Pudding Scotch Egg with Piccalilli ($228). A signature Brit dish, the boiled egg was mixed with minced, black pudding. Black pudding is made from pork or beef blood, together with fat and oatmeal. Coated with breadcrumbs to deep-fry, it has the perfect presentation, with the layer of crumbs, black pudding and egg with runny yolk distinct and appealing, with different flavours and textures. Paired with some Piccalilli sauce and English mustard, with a bit of salad greens, it was tasty and one dish I highly recommend.
The second starter was Brixham Crab with Burnt Grapefruit ($248). The crab came from the famous Brixham’s market, with the meat handpicked and seasoned delicately. Mixing with some burnt grapefruit to provide a bit of acidity and bittersweet flavours from the fruit, the chef also included some crispy toast, quail egg, and salad greens to add colour and texture. Nice but if I had to choose the two, I would still pick the scotch egg.
For the main dish, we had Beef Wellington ($988). The portion was good for two persons, with the food serviced from the trolley and prepared from tableside. The staff first showed us the baked beef wellington, with the side dishes of Dauphinoise Potatoes and Green Beans, before starting to prepare the peppercorn sauce.
First, she melted some butter in the saucepan, then added shallot. Cooking for a while she put in the peppercorns and poured in the brandy, touching with fire to burn away the alcohol, before adding beef stock to reduce and finishing with cream to thicken.
The staff then carved open the beef wellington to serve, with the fillet beautifully cooked to medium rare, juicy, and delicious with the peppercorn sauce. The pate and duxelles, or finely chopped mixture of mushrooms, was appropriate in seasoning and not overpowering the beef’s flavours. The puff pastry on the outside was thin too. Checking off in all the different components, even the side dishes tasted well, and I was particularly fond of the potatoes with its soft and richness. A must-order in my opinion.
For dessert, I went for Knickerbocker Glory ($118) while my wife had Tiramisu ($108). The sundae had an abundance of cream, strawberry sauce, and strawberry chunks, with a strawberry ice-cream on top, as well as torched and melted marshmallow as cap, with some meringue decoration. Bringing a smile up, the sweet marshmallow and ice-cream was balanced well with the strawberry chunks, making one feel not as guilty. The tiramisu was nice too, but my wife mentioned she preferred having the ladyfingers at the bottom.
Service was very good, with the staff courteous and friendly, willing to help explain the menu and advise us on the portion to avoid ordering too much. The bill was $2,138 and a little on the high side, but considering the food quality, service and the impeccable view, it is definitely worth a visit, and you can also use the discount coupon to enjoy some shopping in the store afterwards.
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