Wineshark Mystery Restaurant - Man Wah 文華廳

After the news of someone paying more than $80k for dinner at this restaurant, Man Wah has become the talk of the city. As a regular patron, we come today not because of the hype, but knowing Chef Wong is retiring soon, it is important we can visit and enjoy his culinary skills one more time.

Seated at the same table we have always taken, we start with Barbecued Iberico Pork Loin, Longan Honey 蜜味西班牙黑豚肉叉燒 ($325). The BBQ pork is truly amazing, with the meat very tender and juicy, without needing to add the gravy. The pork is of a thick cut but the texture remains soft, with the glaze using local longan honey, which has a more floral note and less sweet.

Next, we have Baked Green Crab Meat, Matsutake Mushroom, Cheddar Cheese 芝士松茸焗釀蟹蓋 ($328 each). The chef has used fresh Yunnan matsutake mushroom to cook with crab meat, cream, onion, and white wine, finishing with Cheddar cheese. Both the delicate crab meat and fragrance of mushroom can be highlighted without one masking another. The cheese also does not overpower the flavours, really a nice change to the traditional recipe.

Then comes Braised Abalone and Chicken Casserole 文華鮑魚滑雞煲 ($368 each). Using tealight to keep the casserole warm, the abalone is braised nicely, soft on the bite, gluey inside with great flavours. The chicken pieces are also cooked perfectly, seasoned well and delicious. The dried tiger prawn supplemented more texture and savoury flavours, with a bit of spiciness from the chili, which adds wonders to the taste.

Instead of more meat, we have opted for Sweet and Sour Shiitake Mushroom 菠蘿咕嚕脆香菇 ($298). The chef also has hawthorn juice to prepare the sweet and sour sauce, with a better balance. The mushroom pieces are deep-fried to a crisp surface while keeping tender and moist inside, with the fresh pineapple appetizing. Finishing the dish there is no puddle of sauce on the plate, a great example to demonstrate how to make this dish right.  

Following is the highlight on the night, the pre-ordered off-menu item, Sole Casserole Rice 順德醬油方脷焗飯 ($552). The fillet of the large sole is cut into shreds, half-cooked before putting on top of the rice to cook together, ensuring the rice can absorb the flavours from the sole to the full. Adding a bit of aged tangerine peel to increase the fragrance, the plenty of chopped spring onion further enhances the aroma. It is so good we finish the whole portion and frankly can even finish more if available.

For dessert, I have Almond Cream, Egg White, Sesame Dumpling 蛋白杏仁茶湯丸 ($128) while my wife has Red Bean Cream, Aged Tangerine Peel 遠年陳皮紅豆沙 ($128). The almond cream is prepared using three types of almond, to make it rich and flavourful, while the sesame fillings of the dumpling are not too sweet. The red bean cream is also delicious, very fragrant from the aged tangerine peel used.

The complementary Petits Fours include Pea Cake 豌豆糕, made from pea powder, adding sugar, persimmon, and other ingredients to make a soft, delicate dim sum. The other piece is Egg Biscuit 雞蛋餅, with the rich egg flavours permeating the crunchy biscuit. Both of them are appropriate in sweetness. A real treat to finish the meal.

Service is very good, with all the staff very friendly, attentive, and eager to explain the dishes and helpful in making recommendations. We also appreciate tremendously their manager helping us to pre-order the casserole rice beforehand. The bill on the night is $2,725 which is reasonable in my opinion considering the quality of the food. It is definitely a restaurant not to be missed.