Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Sing Kee

This traditional stall-style restaurant is located in Stanley Street, in the urban Central area. One would be quite amazed by having this kind of restaurant in the prime commercial district, but in fact it is a good example to highlight how this city actually developed and became so prosperous.

Still quite hot in the end-Oct period, we had a table at the end which is a bit dark. Instead of ordering those more signature dishes, this time we had more seafood, with Steamed Pomfret in Soy Sauce, Steamed Prawns in Garlic, plus Young Pak Choi in Broth.

The fish is steamed to the right level, having a very silky smooth texture and the soy beans, spring onion and soy sauce enhancing the freshness of the pomfret. From this we can tell the skill of the chef in controlling the time for steaming was just spot-on.

The prawns are also nice, of good size and also fresh, as can be told from the texture of prawn. The only thing I would criticize is that the fine garlic sprinkled on top was just too salty. Apparently they had added a bit too much salt to the garlic.

The presentation of the pak choi is quite interesting to me as it was served kind of like a soup, in a stainless steel bowl. One would not expect anything from this dish but I like the amount of ginger they put in the broth to bring out a small spicy note.

The environment, being a street-stall, could not be called nice and for the elegance it would be difficult to handle. With the three dishes, two bowls of rice and a can of coke it only costs $275. Considering we are having dinner at Central with three dishes and two being seafood it is certainly great value.

My overall score is 53/100.

Hokkaido trip - Oct 2016 (Day 1)

Last year I came to Hokkaido in early Nov, but this year we decided to return slightly earlier to try enjoying a milder weather, since my parents were also coming together in this family trip. Unlike many of my recent trips, our flight was in fact very smooth, without any delay from push-back, taxiing and take off, and it was a pleasant flight arriving earlier than expected.

Like last time I rented a 7-seater for the trip, allowing us more flexibility and comfort in going around. The weather was quite good with sunshine, dry and cool, and it took me about 75 minutes before arriving at ANA Sapporo Hotel, located at the convenient spot very near to JR Sapporo Station. Luckily for us also, there was only 2-3 parking spaces left in the hotel when we arrived.

The room is very small as expected for hotels in Japan, though it is clean and tidy. I also like the services as all the staff are very friendly and helpful. I tried to get their help in booking the restaurants, and because it was full and they tried to help us by checking how long we might need to wait on stand-by so we could decide whether to go or not. And they apologised profusedly also for not able to get the table for us in the end.

After walking for a few minutes we arrived at Kani Honke, the restaurant famous for crabs. Since we need to wait for about one hour before our table is available we decided to go to Daimaru, the department store opposite. No longer in business in HK, it brought back some good memories for us, as we used to go there frequently when I was young.

At the supermarket we had found an interesting 'soup ingredient', looking like dried seaweed plus some other vegetable. The saleslady just added some hot water, and after a minute or so, it became a tasty seaweed broth which is frankly very good. We immediately bought a few packs to take back home, which would be good as the broth for preparing some udon or noodle.

Returning to Kani Honke, the first interesting thing for me is of course the pool where all the live crabs were resting. It took us another 10 minutes or so before getting our room, showing how good the business is with the restaurant having a few floors in total. The room we got was nice in size for the four of us, and good for chit-chat while having plenty of space to put all the different dishes.

As you might expect I went for the biggest set menu available, the Kin no Mai, including

1. 5 types of appetizers
2. King crab dressed with sauce
3. Crab sashimi on drift ice
   
   
4. Vinegar king crab and hairy crab
5. Fried king crab claw
6. King crab steak
7. King crab and snow crab Kani Suki
8. Rice porridge with crab meat
9. Tsukemono 
10. Fruit (melon)

The quality of the crab and portion are all very good. In fact when compared with the other two crab restaurants I tried last year this one is much better. No wonder why there are so many customers, and there are also a lot of Japanese too so it is not just for tourists. The set menu costs 13500 yen but I still think it is worth trying.

OK, that's enough for the night, let's check out my day 2 recap tomorrow!

Wineshark Nice Hotel Experience - Takinoya

Located in Noboribetsu, Hokkaido, this onsen ryokan offers an excellent experience for us. 

After arriving and a quick registration, we were shown to a sitting room where there are comfortable sofas and soft music, a beautiful scenery of the Japanese garden outside, and being served with matcha and yokan, while the rooms are prepared for us.

We were then taken to our room. I have made reservation for the Japanese/Western style room, Tsuru, located on the third floor. There is one room which is decorated in Japanese traditional way, with tatami and very simple design, and can be used as an extended room if you have other family members along.

The main room is western style, with a big sofa in the middle, and a fireplace on the side. At the back there are two big queen sized beds which offers the best sleeping experience, as well as a small writing table and a rocking chair. All of these are looking out to the beautiful trees on the hillside, which happens to be turning golden and red in our stay so making it particularly serene.

Outside there is a balcony with two rattan chairs which is a good way for you to enjoy the scenery and reflect, and it was such a nice experience with the cool breeze on your face.

The bathroom is nicely decorated, with warm flooring and two separate sinks so you don’t need to fight during the morning with your partner. There is a Japanese wooden bathtub as well, and you can enjoy your onsen while watching the same scenery outside.

Regarding the public bath there are two in this ryokan. The first is located on the top floor, called Kumoi No Yu, an open bath looking out at the forests of Noboribetsu. The other is located at the basement level, called Chien No Yu. The indoor part of this bath have pools of two different kind of spring water, as well as a steamed bath.

But the one I like most is the outdoor one. After walking a few steps it opens to a pool of the signature Noboribetsu sulfur-rich spring water surrounded by trees and next to a clear pool where you can see fish inside. Immersed in nature and feeling completely relaxed, it is a good treatment for physical and mental stress.

For the cuisine it is also phenomenal, with our private dining room located on the second floor looking out to the Japanese garden. Being served by a friendly maid who speaks good English, our kaiseki dinner has 9 courses, and I also ordered a sake along.

Starting with an aperitif, then comes the appetizers which has 6 different pieces. The third course is the clear soup with tofu, ginseng and shrimp ball. Next is sashimi which showcased four different seafood, and there is a unique creamy soy foam to pair apart from the traditional soy sauce.

The fifth is the main course and I have opted for the hairy crab. The serving is huge as each of us is having half the crab. Then it is the miso-marinated cod fish. The seventh dish is local vegetables which are very fresh, tasty and sweet.

Next comes the boiled vegetables and scallop, and then the rice with pickles and miso soup. Last comes the dessert which is mixed fruit with apple ice-cream. A really wonderful and fantastic meal for us and we were all very full after that.

For breakfast it is equally impressive with an assortment of dishes, including fresh juice, salad, yoghurt, tofu, fish, egg, sweet beans, fish roes, pickles, rice and miso soup. Again it was a perfect meal and the food highlights the skills of the chef and his seriousness in the attention of all the details.

The price for boarding and two meals is HK$6,650. My overall rating for this onsen ryokan is 8.5/10.

Wineshark HK Restaurant Review - Wagyu Takumi

Located in Wanchai and near where my secondary school is, this Michelin 2-star Japanese French restaurant may take you a while to find. Fortunately(?) we saw some mainland tourists taking photos with the restaurant sign so could readily tell where it is.

Once inside, you would find it is only a small restaurant with seating around the open kitchen, maybe around 14 in total. Immediately we were greeted by Chef Mori and his team and seated at one end of the counter, which was more private. Honest speaking the decoration might not have a big wow factor, but the close proximity to the chef and kitchen allows you to have a first-hand close-up experience on the cooking and delicate preparation of the dishes which is also a great experience on its own.

We had decided to go for the tasting menu, which has 8 courses and I also opted for the wine pairing. To begin with, we have the Amuse Bouche, comprising three seasonal items. The first is a beef tartar on rice cracker, which is seasoned perfectly and giving a nice contrast on texture with the cracker. The second is a fennel soup with some crab meat, full of flavors and delicate, and the last is a deep fried scallop ball which got a puffy outside, with the scallop soft and melting inside. The presentation is also impeccable. This certainly reminded me of some similar experience from Amber and L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon. The wine paired is a Blanc de Blancs from Champagne.

Second course is Sanma, which is Bourghour with Fresh Herbs and Sweet Bitter Sauce. The fish is very fresh and tasty, having been marinated and slightly pan-fried, with some onion, cucumber and tomato chopped very finely underneath. A fantastic dish and is one of my favorite on the night. The sauce is also phenomenal, made by the fish reduction to provide a anchovy notes to further enhance the taste. The wine paired is a Sancerre.

Third is Uni, which is Hokkaido Sea Urchin with Lily Root and Caviar. Once again the presentation is very beautiful, with the sea urchin fresh and complemented by the caviar. There are also some shrimp with the lily root jelly to give a different bite to the enjoyment. Probably because we had experienced some of the best sea urchin back in Hokkaido, this one is a bit short of expectation, but it is still a very good one. The wine paired is a Chablis Grand Cru.

Fourth is Japanese Octopus, which is cooked with red wine, pumpkin espuma and truffle foam. The octopus has the right texture and can easily be cut by the knife, and got a bit of chew to offer, and the red wine sauce added a nice note on the finish. To pair with this sauce, the chef has a grape on the side which got some spice sprinkled which added an extra dimension to the palate, and the pumpkin espuma and truffle foam further increased the complexity on the flavors. The wine paired is a Pinot Noir from Alsace.

Fifth course is Barley Risotto, with Abalone and Shimanto Seaweed and Lotus Root. This is a signature dish of the restaurant, and looking at how the risotto is being prepared throughout you would further be amazed by the skills of the chef, in not only cooking the risotto with the perfect bite, flavor and creaminess, the lotus root further adding a crunchiness to it, the abalone is simply out of this world with a very tender texture, perfect marination which I couldn't stop eating. This dish is my favorite on the night and certainly warrants one to return. The wine paired is an older vintage Gewurztraminer from Alsace.

Sixth comes Ayu, a Crispy Japanese Sweetfish with Komatsuna Puree and Water Eggplant. The fish is prepared so that it could be eaten whole, with bones and tail and everything, wrapped in a thin rice paper to deep fry, but there is no any oily feeling at all. There is a aioli sauce on the side to pair with the fish, and the finely chopped vegetable giving a good balance to the sweetfish. The wine paired is a Junmai Daiginjo, a Japanese sake.

Seventh is the main course which got a choice of three to choose. I have decided to go for French Blue Lobster, while Ivy decided to try the Japanese Wagyu. My lobster is cooked with lemon-grass flavor, gnocchi and seasonal vegetables, and there is also a lobster sauce poured on top to bombard my taste buds. Such intensity on the sauce did not mask the lobster taste, a good sign that the lobster is fresh and good quality. The wine paired is a Cote-Rotie from Rhone.

Last came the dessert, which is Rhubarb, with Ricotta Lemon Ice Cream with Tonka Bean Mousse. Different parts of the rhubarb had been used to prepare this dish, and overall it was such a nice wrap up to the meal with the stem providing good acidity to balance the sweetness of the ice cream and the mousse. There is no wine paired for this but by then I think I also got enough alcohol in me to go for more.

There is some explanation for each dish when they are served, but it is a bit too superficial and I would probably expect more elaboration on how it was cooked and prepared apart from what the ingredients are included. But nevertheless the service is still good, and I have a few words with Chef Mori to say thanks for such a wonderful meal and everything is so tasty. This connection between the chef and the customer is a key element for the restaurant in my opinion and Wagyu Takumi can certainly deliver that well.

The price is quite expensive, with the tasting menu at $2080 and the wine pairing an additional $1080. Overall on the night the bill was $5861. Still I would recommend you to sample their signature dishes and really appreciate the skills and attention the chef put in each dishes.

My overall rating is 68/100.

Nutritionist Recipe - 11. Chicken Rice with Mixed Mushroom

Ingredients (for 4):

• Chicken - 300 g
• Japanese white mushroom - 1 pack
• Japanese brown mushroom - 1 pack
• Garlic - 2 cloves
• Chinese yellow wine - 2 tsp
• Oil - 1 tsp
• Soy sauce - 2 tsp
• Potato starch - 2 tsp
• White pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
• Rice - 2 bowls
• Stock - 1.5 bowls

Procedures:

1. Wash the chicken, drip dry, then cut into pieces.

2. Marinate with soy sauce, potato starch and white pepper powder.

3. Remove the roots of the mushroom, then use clean cloth to wipe. Break them apart.

4. Chop the garlic finely.

5. Heat the pan and add a tsp of oil, then add garlic. When fragrant, then add the mushroom and continue to stir fry.

6. When the mushroom becomes softened and shiny, add the Chinese yellow wine. Then remove from heat.

7. Cook the rice with stock, and when the stock is heated add the chicken and mushroom in. 

8. When the rice is cooked, mix well the mushroom and chicken before serving.