Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Barkada

This restaurant is located on Cochrane Street in Central, underneath the escalator going from Central to Mid-Level. The name in Tagalog means ‘group of friends’, and the place offers contemporary Filipino cuisine with a modern twist.

The restaurant has a bar section as well as a dining area, and the space is comfortable, with nice decorations and art pieces adoring the walls. With the windows fully open on one side, the tables facing the street are semi-outdoor which creates a good vibe for diners.

After ordering a pint of Red Horse Beer ($70) and Fresh Coconut ($55), we start the dinner with the signature Adobo Popcorn Tofu ($98). The crispy, bite-sized pieces of tofu have absorbed the sauce with its soy, vinegar and slightly smoky chili note, and are very delicious.

We also have the Ensaladang Mangga ($63), with the salad comprising of ripe mango, tomato, red onion, parsley, calamansi dressing, with the addition of bagoong, which is a Filipino fermented shrimp sauce. The savoury taste integrates well with the sweet and sour notes of the other ingredients.  

For the main course we have Sizzling Salmon Sisig ($148), and the salmon pieces are served on a sizzling hot cast-iron pan with soy sauce, calamansi, vinegar, chili, onions, scallions, kewpie mayo and egg. Mixing them up, the slight spiciness is very appetizing. I would certainly like to try the other recipe of pork belly next time.

The other main course is Chicken Bicol Express ($108). This is my favourite dish when I worked in Manila many years ago, but this could not satisfy my longing. The chicken pieces are tender, simmered in coconut milk with bagoong and chilis, but lacking the necessary kick of spiciness which is the essence. Perhaps I have too much attachment to the best ones I had tried back then.

Feeling still able to eat a bit more, we have Spicy Funky Coconut Noodles ($158), which are squiggly wheat noodles in an umami-packed coconut-chili sauce, with fried garlic, cilantro and bagoong shrimps. The al dente texture of the noodle is pleasing, with the sauce coating the noodle to give the flavours on each bite. The shrimps are also crunchy on texture and tasty.

The service is very good, with the staff friendly and helpful, and the atmosphere is very relaxing and pleasant. With another serving of beer, the bill on the night is $847. Very reasonable in price, if you want to try out Filipino cuisine, this will be a good choice.