Wineshark Mystery Restaurant - Path

Impressed by the food in Ankoma, I found there is another new restaurant, which open last December, using similar idea but featuring Chinese ingredients and ideas, but prepared using contemporary Western techniques. So today we come to Kimberly Road in TST, to visit Path.

After going through the gray sliding door it leads to a small space, with a L-shaped counter able to accommodate 8 customers and everyone able to see clearly Chef Tony Mok and his assistant in action. Tony has a fun and pleasant personality, interacting with the customers frequently. It is great to see they have a full house on the day.

The dinner tasting menu costs $1,380 per head, and I also go for the Prestige pairing at $1,280. For the first three starters and geoduck, it is paired with Brut Reserve from Bereche & Fils, a nice grower champagne.

The first course is Croustade, made with beer. Inside is a Ginger mayonnaise and Tea Smoked Pineapple. Chef Tony explained the idea comes from his background coming from local walled village, and they typically will start a banquet with a young ginger pineapple dish, so he wants us to experience the same combination in this starter.

The second course is Choux, stuffed with Salted Egg Shrimp and a Comte cheese cream, then further shaved lots of Comte cheese on top. The filling has a rich taste, with the umami of the shrimp and savoury of salted egg yolk and cheese combining well in harmony. Another nice small bite to start.

The third course is the prettiest among the three starters. Featuring a beautiful looking Purple Sweet Potato tartlet, inside are the whipped cream that is infused with Sweet Vinegar, and some pan-seared Foie Gras. On top are some pickled green apple pieces to provide acidity.

The fourth course features Japanese Geoduck thinly sliced and served raw, together with equally thinly sliced Cucumber, which has been marinated in miso for ten days. On top are some prized Caviar, with a sauce made from fermented apricot, cucumber juice, and tomato water. Refreshing and the sauce does not mask the delicate flavours of geoduck.

The second wine paired is Pelissero Nubiola 2017 Barbaresco. With a ruby hue, it has lots of black and red fruit, plus good nuttiness. The wine is chosen to balance the palate from the rich broth served in the next course.

Taking the concept from rice in seafood broth, the fifth course features charcoal grilled Thai Tiger Prawn, then using the heads of the prawn to prepare a rich and delicious broth, to add to Puffed Rice and Thai Omelet, made by deep-frying egg mixture at high temperature to give a fluffy texture. Intense in flavours, would be even better if the broth is searing hot.

The third wine paired is Markus Molitor Wehlener Klosterberg 2020 Pinot Blanc from Mosel, with a citrus, aromatic sur lie bouquet, plus ripe fruit and round palate, there is a nice minerality of saline in the finish which is a good match with fish.

The sixth course features a local fish, Painted Sweetlips, with the concept coming from the Sichuan preserved mustard green with fish. Chef Tony asks us to have a taste of the fish soup first, before pouring them into the steamed fish fillet as a sauce. With the homemade Fermented Cabbage, its juice is used to season the soup while the cabbage is charcoal grilled. The dish finishes with slices of bean paste pickled Eggplant, with a bit of green shoots as garnish. Very creative to reimagine the traditional Sichuan cuisine in a totally different way.

The fourth wine paired is Domaine Georges Vernay Blonde du Seigneur 2018 from Cote-Rotie. The wine has pleasant Syrah varietal characters, with ripe black fruit, peppers, smoky, but not too tannic. Powerful yet refined to match with the quail.

The seventh course is Soy Sauce Quail. The quail is first slow cooked in a soy sauce broth, like the traditional Chinese marinade, before charcoal grilling. The sauce, through repeated use to cook with different meat, has infused the quail with complex and great flavours. Apart from the breast, the dish is served with quail leg, and its heart as a specialty. Very tender and juicy. On the side is a Potato hash brown, crispy on the surface after pan-frying with chicken oil. This is my favourite dish in the evening.

The fifth wine paired is Chateau-Chalon 2016. The unique Jura wine is made by Savagnin in the vin jaune style, with its traditional bottle shape. Having a lot of similarity with sherry, but more refined and rounded, the nutty flavours are good match with the dandan noodle.

The eighth course is Dandan Noodle. Using the Korean Naengmyeon method to prepare the noodle, with some Flower Crab meat, homemade Chili Oil, and ‘typhoon shelter’ crumbs of deep-fried garlic, breadcrumbs, and chilies. Having elements of the namesake noodle but served in a cold noodle fashion, it is a nice staple food to wrap up the meal.

The sixth and last wine paired is Markus Molitor Haus Klosterberg Trockenbeerenauslese Riesling 2018. The TBA is intense yet refined, having nice lemon-scent bouquet and ripe stone fruit, very sweet but balanced perfectly with the acidity.

The ninth course takes the idea from mango pomelo sago. With a Coconut mousse and Umeshu jelly added to pieces of Mango, pomelo, and sago, it is a refreshing dessert, not too sweet, and able to help cleanse the palate.

The final Petits Fours looks like a burnt Madeleine but is in fact charcoal roasted pu’er tea mochi in the shape of a madeleine. Much better than the French pastry in my opinion, it is not too sweet, with fragrant tea aromas and a chewy texture on the bite. A wonderful finish to the meal with great satisfaction.

The bill on the night is $4,543. The food is good and innovative, with the sommelier Jean also providing a good pairing in the wines. Chef Tony also shares that apart from HK people they do draw quite a few New Yorkers as the restaurant is spotlighted in their local TimeOut. I hope we continue to see more such restaurants, which showcase the unique combination of cuisine integrating HK’s multi-cultural harmony to the world.