Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Racines

This restaurant has just got its Michelin 1-star status in 2024 and is located on Upper Station Street in Sheung Wan, an old yet chic neighborhood that I immediately fall in love when arriving. The entrance of the restaurant has a classy feel which reminds me of nice diners we visited in Europe.

The restaurant is pretty small in size, with a few dining tables and also counter seats facing the kitchen. We have booked a dining table and got assigned to the one nearest to the counter, so able to see some of the activities going on in the background.

The staff explains the menu to us, and also introduces the origin of Racines, which means roots in French, as Chef Romain and Adrien want to showcase cuisine from their home, Nice and Toulouse. The ‘Genese 6’ is a 6-course menu at $1,688. Instead of wine pairing, I decide to go for a bottle.

Picking a champagne because of its versatility for food, I have opted for Champagne Eric Rodez Blanc de Noirs ($1,550). With the grapes from Ambonnay Grand Cru, and majority of the blend has not undergone malolactic fermentation, there is good freshness and elegant fruit.

The bread is a collaboration between the restaurant and a local bakery, with the chefs providing the recipe to the bakery, making the Cereal Sourdough with Black Sesame, paired with a smoked butter with some Piment d’Espelette chili powder, on a port wine jam on top. Very good.

There are three Amuse Bouche. The first is Chicken Liver Parfait, with some duck terrine, served on a spoon. The second is Broccoli Tarte, made with broccoli puree and basil, together with French and local clam in a clear consommé ‘shell’.  Both are flavourful and great in taste.

The remaining one is Croquette, with the deep-fried breaded mashed potato ball having fillings of tomato and Bechamel sauce. It is not oily, with a crisp crust but not hard, and the rich and delicious stuffing is very pleasant too. It is my favourite among the three small bites.

The first course features Tarbouriech Oyster. The famous producer raises the special oysters in Thau Lagoon, the third largest lake in France. The lightly poached oyster has nice mineral taste, and is mixed with Tzatziki, a salted yogurt and cucumber dipping sauce with lots of fresh herbs like coriander and mint, together with some sugar pea, grilled seaweed, and Kaviari Ocietra caviar ($98 supplement). The umami of the seaweed, combining with the savoury of the caviar, sweetness from the peas, and the sauce generates a feast of sensory delights in flavours. Truly wonderful.

The second course features Mediterranean Tuna. The pan-seared tuna is wrapped with a paste of anchovy and olives to give additional layers of flavours. On the bottom is a paste made with some fresh almond to provide nutty flavours to the dish. Together with some fresh tomatoes, peach, French and fava beans, and the beautiful sauce made with fresh tomato juice, peach, almond, red pepper, ginger, garlic and verbena oil, the whole dish is harmonized, with the different elements integrated well, reminding me of flavours we had in Nice on a visit. Fantastic.

The third course features Britanny Lobster, serving in two ways. The first part is the Lobster Roll, deep-fried in tempura style, with some breadcrumbs on the surface. The lobster meat has been mixed with dry orange peel, chopped chickpeas, pickled apricot, sage, and coriander. The sweetness and flavours of the lobster meat is phenomenal, testifying to the attention of the chefs in only having best quality ingredients in the dish.  

The second part of the Britanny Lobster, with the tail lightly poached with the tomalley of the lobster itself before grilling it over charcoal. The chef has prepared a sauce of great flavours, made from the lobster shell, chicken jus and harissa. On the side is the mashed chickpea, which has been cooked with some North African spices. In the middle is the chickpea salad with some pickled apricot, seasoned with coriander and mint oil. While the taste is gorgeous, the portion size of the lobster tail is frankly quite small. Good that the chickpea is also wonderful in flavours.

We get to pick our own knife for the main course, in which both of us have chosen Britanny Pigeon ($188 addition). The charcoal-roasted pigeon breast is encrusted with a layer of olives and capers, cooked perfectly, very tender, juicy, and flavourful. On the side is the organic eggplant, which does not have the usual bitterness, with anchovies and olive on top, along with an eggplant puree. The jus is made from the pigeon and cooked with liquorice, to balance out the flavours. This is my favourite dish in the evening, with each element fantastic and delicious. Amazing.

Coming to the fifth course, which features Burgundy Clacbitou, a type of cheese made from raw goat milk. The cheese is made into a sorbet, adding with pineapple chutney to give sweetness and fragrance, and the arugula balancing with a hint of bitterness from the greens, with some cheese foam at the bottom. Very pleasant, it is refreshing and palate cleansing. As Ivy was coughing quite badly and the doctor advised her not to eat anything cold, Chef Romain helps to arrange a Crème Brulee for her instead.

The sixth and last course features Celeriac Root. The chef creatively uses the vegetable to make a dessert, mixing the celeriac root with passionfruit seeds at the bottom, followed by some ricotta cheese, a passionfruit sorbet with honey, crisps made from coffee and almond, and some marigold leaves on top. A nice dessert that is not too sweet, with the different components harmonizing in flavours. A wonderful finale for the menu. Again, Chef Romain has kindly arranged a Lemon Meringue Tart for Ivy to substitute.

The Petits Fours are put inside two beautiful tin boxes, with the bigger ones having Madeleine and Almond Tuile, while the smaller one contains Chocolates of Almond and Hazelnut. Both are great complements to coffee and finishes our evening on a high note.

The bill on the night is $6,186. All the staff are friendly and helpful, with Chef Romain a cheerful chef, who comes to interact with customers, checking in on the food and socializing. He also took extra effort to accommodate our request to change the desserts. Even though it is very packed and might not be the most comfortable seating environment, in terms of food quality and customer service it has the intimate and enjoyable ambience we like. Knowing that the menu will be changed in August, there are ample reasons for us to return again.