Wineshark Mystery Restaurant - Pentola

This restaurant is located at Tai Po Arts Centre, which is the former Tai Po Government Secondary School. In 2019, the place is converted to dedicate to community’s needs and aim to nurture talents in Hong Kong. Arriving here, there is an eye-catching lightbox outside, with an interesting pig sculpture leading customers in.

The space should be a function room before, with high ceiling, and no columns. Quite a big place, there are many tables with the kitchen on one side. The brick walls and large windows create a nice industrial vibe, which is relaxing and comfortable. On a weekday evening, it is not busy and most of the customers are from the neighbourhood.

We ordered Set Dinner for Two ($438), which starts with soup. The soup on the day was Lobster Bisque, rich and flavourful. While there are not a lot of lobster meat you can find, the chef has added some kombu to add a bit of texture and extra layer of umami to the soup. Quite nice.

Next comes three appetizers. The first is Bruschetta with Eggplant Puree. On a crunchy toasted baguette slice are eggplant puree, together with anchovies and a bit of paprika. The eggplant is delicious with a nice smokiness, while the anchovies provide the savoury taste and the paprika a touch of mild spiciness.

The second is Roasted Capelin in Mediterranean Style. The sardines are roasted and seasoned with capers, parsley, taggiasche olives, lime, and olive oil. The fish has a bit of fishy note which can be an issue for some people, but adding a bit of lime juice helps to tone it down.

The final one is Italian Cold Cut Platter, with 24 months Parma ham, salami, and Coppa ham, paired with fresh melon. The ham are decent in taste, but I was surprised to see them serving the melon to pair, demonstrating the restaurant’s attention to keep to the traditional style.

While there are some choices for main course, we picked Gnocchi all’ Amatriciana, and Grilled Angus Hanger with French Fries ($90 extra). The gnocchi has a nice soft chewy bite, with the sauce having rich flavours, combining acidity and sweetness from tomatoes, fragrance from basil, and savoury from guanciale.

The steak is large in portion, grilled to a nice medium level, with a crisp surface, moist and juicy inside. The meat is also not too fatty. On the side there are plenty of French fries, also nicely done, with a bit of salad too to help balance the palate. While it is not necessary, there is also gravy provided for those who want a bit of sauce to go with the steak.

The set also includes coffee or tea. Service is decent, however there is not that much interaction with the staff. The bill on the night is $581. A good price to value and should be a good spot if you are living in the neighbourhood, but probably not worth coming all the way if you are living on HK Island to try it out.