Food & Art @ Bibo

Want to kill two birds with one stone? Eating and art admiring? Well Bibo is certainly a new name that has brought about this somewhat interesting idea. The entrance is not stand out, when google map announced we had arrived, it looked liked the entrance of a residential apartment. If not for one of its employees standing by and seeing our puzzled faces and stating ‘Bibo’ with a question mark undertone, we then realised it was the black sliding door next to it.

The dining room is actually at the bottom, the entrance only reveals a hostess stand tucked into a small nook. Then down the stairs, past the barista/bar, along a short corridor lined with bookshelves with the most adorable ballon puppy dog ornament cast in a shiny red metal/plastic (I don’t know I didn’t touch it) and opens up into its dining area. It’s not too big, but pleasantly bright from natural light while your eyes may need a few seconds to adjust to all the mismatch and colour from the art adorning the room.

They say they specialise in Francais fine dining and the street/contemporary art decor is to ‘reinvent’ a little space of what Bohemian life in Paris was like in the 1930s. The combination is outrageous, daring, but in the end it all comes down to the food.

I’m sure this sad clown is pretty famous now…

Funky show plate and not at all cheap I was told.

They offer a set lunch with a choice of two or three courses, both very reasonably priced. We decided to have three courses just so we could try their desserts too.

Our bread basket and not bad at all. Thick cut rustic style bread with a slight sour tang. The insides was a little damp, but the crunchy crust gave it extra points. And the butter… heavenly~ Really high quality butter served.

Appetisers. Langoustine for him, chilled cucumber gazpacho for me. The langoustine unfortunately was mushy which is an awful texture, but the thick pea emulsion was flavourful and best of all the dish was served quite hot.

My cucumber gazpacho and if I remember correctly accompanied by a tomato sorbet was a little watery, a little bland. It was refreshing for a couple of mouthfuls before the flavour becomes a little tired.

Both of us had eyes on the beef cheek, but he let me choose it while he settled on the guinea fowl. The beef cheek was braised till it was soft and easily poked apart with your fork, very full flavour.

The guinea fowl looked a little dry, but I was happily proven wrong when it turned out to be quite moist with a crisp skin. The potatoes looked wonderful all crispy and golden brown, but they instead were the dry issue on the plate.

The two dessert choices on the menu were both fruit oriented. Can’t there be a chocolate option too?
Not expecting much, but they turned out to be the highlight of the entire lunch.

First a beautifully presented panacotta. Set as a shallow layer on the bottom of the bowl topped with raspberry sorbet, piped vanilla cream and a toasted almond crisp. Silky smooth it just melted on your tongue and the creaminess of both panacotta and cream were offset nicely by the light sharp sweetness of the berries.

I don’t recall having tried rice pudding at all. I mean I’m Asian and I love rice with my savoury dishes so when you present it to me as a dessert I would have to pass and pick something else. Well, if all rice pudding tastes like this then I would definitely order it next time I see it. Soft grains of rice cooked till there is a slight chew to it, all enveloped in a creamy vanilla custard. Really good~

All the staff can speak really good english there, but service seemed a little unsteady as there were some mix ups happening at other tables, but in general it wasn’t too bad.

Quintessence. A little bit of Tokyo in Macau~

I have heard that a lot of hard work goes into securing a table at Quintessence in Tokyo. A two month booking in advance where you can only call within two 1.5 hour periods throughout the day and provided you can actually get through the line, there is still the possibility of your preferred date being booked out.

So when hearing Chef Kishida and his team would be flying in to hold a 2 night Gala dinner at The Kitchen in Macau, Mr. C thought it most worthwhile to reserve a table for the first night 😀

My loves bread and butter~ Slices of freshly baked country loaf accompanied by The Kitchen’s famous mango butter. Oh my god, the still hot crusty slice soaking up the salty sweet mango studded creaminess… Combined both of us went through four slices of the butter just because we could.

And then it began~

A perfect slice of shiitake mushroom atop a cepe biscuit. The typical foamy texture of the mushroom filled the mouth with its perfume and paired well with the herby buttery biscuit.

Baked onion soup served chilled. The temperature struck me a little odd, but I shouldn’t have had any doubts. Being chilled, it concentrated the essence of the onions enhancing the intensity and it was just so sweet~

This was a signature dish of Quintessence. A delicate goats cheese bavarois with the most heavenly texture. Think thick and full like Greek yoghurt, but whipped till it was almost cloud-like, then drizzled with Chef’s favourite olive oil and sprinkled lightly with sea salt. If angels ate food… this would be it.

The scallop tartare was most refreshing, a little herby pairing well with the zesty marinated tomatoes and of course the caviar. Most delightful, I polished this off in no time while Mr. C was still halfway through slowly enjoying his favourite seafood.

Sea urchin is always a favourite and it was featured here as a savoury clafoutis with ginkgo nuts all arranged on top of a mushroom. Being baked the sea urchin gave a stronger briny flavour while being just as creamy and I loved how big the ginkgo nuts were ihere with its signature gummy chew.

The most flavoursome dish would have to be the socca of blue lobster and prawns. Left slightly undercooked the prawns were tender and sweet, while those brown cubes you see had a crunchy crust melting easily in the mouth and leaving behind the most concentrated essence of the lobster. Just amazing.

The first of the main dishes was fish. Kinme-dai with sauce of passion fruit. A most generous slice with the skin fried to a thin crisp. The fish itself was lovely, flaked easily, but the middle was too undercooked for me and eating a mouthful of solid raw fish was not too appealing…

Pigeon was the meat dish for the evening, slowly cooked for two hours the blushing meat retained all it’s juices and was so soft. Pleasantly gamey paired with roasted potatoes and a hearty savoury sauce, if I hadn’t been so full I would have enjoyed it even more.

The savoury dishes were pretty amazing, but the desserts were even more so. Don’t be fooled by how simple they looked as the taste of them were anything but…

Looking like a dish of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, Mr. C was puzzled by it when he came back to the table and saw this staring up at him :p In fact it was a most silky panacotta, so smooth and creamy you just don’t want to think about how thick a cream was used to whip this up. Tasting lightly of coconuts, it paired surprisingly well with the much bolder shot of bitter espresso and the heady pistachio oil. This dessert alone deserves three stars and I could hear the diners at the next table murmuring their pleasure too.

Freshly baked pastries always taste good and the savarin served to us was no different. Just a simple slice a hard crunchy crust protecting its soft inside of frangipani goodness. The tart pieces of apricot were a nice contrast to the sweetness of the cake, if only it was paired with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream…

Not to be disappointed, we did have ice-cream to end our meal. Not vanilla flavoured, but meringue. I have never tasted meringue in ice-cream form, but the flavour was absolutely spot on. Even the slight tang could be felt on the tongue as an afterthought. What made this dessert special though was the sea water that Chef Kishida sprayed over the ice-cream prior to serving playing up the welcome concept of sweet and salty. No wonder this is yet another signature dish.

Accompanying us all night was this bottle of Pinot noir.

I’m not a big drinker nor a wine connoiseur, I’m one of those people whose faces become swollen and tomato red after a few sips, but Pinot I like and this was deep with fruity notes, a slight sour tang mixed with the sweetness.

We had finished our dessert by the time Chef Kishida came around to greet us and at 39 years of age he looked so young and so humble too even for all his accomplishments. Hopefully we will have a chance to visit his restaurant in Tokyo as there had been murmurings that the dinner here was only about 70% of his actual ability so imagine what 100% would be like!

Traditional French @ Gaddi’s

I knew it was only a matter of time that I would be visiting Gaddi’s. The grandpapa of French cuisine in Hong Kong serving patrons for over 60 years and possibly the most traditional in terms of dress code, gentlemen do not even think of stepping inside without a suit on, while for ladies please leave your denim and sporty footwear at home.

Simply elegant would be the words I would use to describe the dining room. White walls contrasting against the royal blue carpet with a gold Chinese symbol printed all over it, a little East meets West style I suppose.

I have never been impressed by the bread served at The Peninsula, but the baguettes at Gaddi’s were decent. An adequate vehicle for the lovely butter, salted, unsalted and one with spices tasting like curry.

Ocean trout terrine with caviar was the amuse bouche. A little bland.

His starter of poached egg with I think prawns. I had a bite of the egg white which was cooked quite solid, but at least the yolk was still gorgeously runny.

I am quite fond of duck liver terrine. I remember The Verandah used to serve it during their Sunday only lunch buffets a couple of years ago and it was dreamy. Seeing it on the menu at Gaddi’s meant I had to order it. Beautifully presented and a large portion too, it was not entirely smooth with noticeable chunks of goose liver inside. The layer of port jelly was not too sweet yet just enough to cut through the gaminess. Paired with a large slice of toasted brioche… let’s just say I ate a lot of bread that evening.

We shared a serving of lobster bisque. For some reason the bisque looked and tasted quite oily with a strong aftertaste of alcohol. I liked the lobster ravioli though, sweet chunks of lobster with the al dente wrapper.

A serving of turbot was ordered on top of our individual mains. Perfectly cooked at the right temperature, the snow white meat was soft and flakey covered in a truffle crust. A sprinkle of salt was needed to enhance, but the smell of truffles was wonderful.

He went with the lobster. An absolutely striking dish filled with chunks of well cooked crustacean. All I can say, the flesh was very sweet and he polished it off in no time.

Baby lamb is in season so it seemed appropriate that I ordered the lamb saddle. Very tender and do you see that disc of lamb crackling? Well, it was just sinful~

And for dessert?

He suggested that I should try the more traditional French desserts as not many restaurants serve them, but I was fixated on having something chocolatey so he took his own advice and ordered the cherry jubilee. Cooked table side, there is just something so fixating about seeing flames flare up from the saucepan.

It didn’t look like much, just a bed of cooked cherries with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream, but it was good. SO good. I couldn’t believe I was envious over some cooked fruit, but something so plain was immensely flavourful. Oh and of course the ice-cream being Movenpick didn’t hurt either :p

My chocolate tart was something I saw on the tasting menu. Disappointing. The sponge cake was very dry, but at least the chocolate ganache was moist and rich. The espresso ice-cream was nice and refreshing, but I should have ordered the crepe suzette…

Petit fours~ The lemon meringue tart was too enticing, so much that I had to eat it even though I was so full. A sweet finish to quite an enjoyable meal.

Black Truffle Gala(ore)~

‘Tuber Melanosporum’ or just simply black truffles. Some say they smell musky, dirty, like old socks, sex and even old American dollar bills. To me, none of those come to mind, but they do have the most intoxicating and seductive scent, one sniff and everything just tingles…~

So I could say I was more than a little excited about the Gala dinner this year especially when the feature of the menu was black truffle and of course since Monsier Robuchon and his team would be there working their magic *happy dance*

A new addition to the bread basket, a petite truffle scroll all buttery and flaky, but unfortunately for that evening only.

To start, a truffled crumbed ball rolled in puffed rice hiding a layer of gorgonzola cheese, cow’s milk cheese and at the centre a small sphere of shaped black truffle. This was one of my favourites of the evening, rich and cheesy a variety of textures. Crunchy, mushy with the funny sensation of the truffle ball rolling along the tongue as you attempt to bite it. And the best thing? There were two of them.

The lobster dish, delicate spoonfuls of what seemed like lobster salad tossed in truffled creamy dressing sandwiched between floppy circles of celery with a most delicate arrangement of truffle matchsticks. A cold dish, light and refreshing.

A single scallop, perfectly seared sitting on a puree of truffle ringed with pumpkin. Those black circles you see were tubes of truffle pierced inside adding a little decadence to the dish. You can’t really go wrong with scallops, so although good it wasn’t special.

The hand made gnocchi had a nice chew to it, a pleasant surprise to the stodgy stickiness I have encountered elsewhere. Accompanied by thinly sliced fried potatoes and covered in a chestnut emulsion, the flavours were savoury and comforting. And the truffles? Cut into big chunks, ‘bricks’ was the term used with a texture like soft cartilage while a faint alcoholic flavour filled the senses as you chewed.

The next dish was quite interesting, a big ravioli hugging a cabbage wrapped bundle with a pepper infused chicken broth poured over it. The cabbage bundle was in fact a millefeuille layered with truffles, foie gras and vegetables, just the effort required in constructing it was pretty admirable. Simple flavours with the foie gras adding a hint of richness and the mild pepperiness of the savoury chicken broth was just stomach warming.

The main dish of the night was pork. A combination of different parts of the pig wrapped in layers of truffle, seared and then roasted. It was almost like eating a slice of sausage, but with more of a bouncy texture. Laid on a bed of truffled lentils ringed with an onion confit, this was a hearty dish, a more luxurious version of something that wouldn’t be out of place in a French bistro.

After such heavy dishes, dessert inclined towards the nature of light and fruity.

Tropical fruits were the theme. Cubes of malibu simmered pineapple, piped almond cream and a lovely pistachio ice-cream. I was quite smitten with the striking leopard printed chocolate as not only was it pretty, the dark chocolate belayed a very subtle peppermint flavour a play on the traditional mint and pineapple combination.

I was a little disappointed that La Mangue was served as although it was presented differently, the combination of ingredients were very similar to the original dessert served on the normal menu. Don’t get me wrong, I liked it, sweet juicy mango layered with salted caramel, passionfruit mousse and topped with a tuile, it just wasn’t ‘wow’ enough for a gala dinner.

And a special petit four of coffee sabayon to end, almost like inhaling an intense mocha in a breath.

I think I have had enough truffles to last me till the end of this year :p

Will new chef regain third star?

When the Michelin guide this year announced that Caprice had lost a star it was a little startling to see one of the greats take a stumble. Ever since previous Chef de Cuisine Vincent Thierry decided to move on to new ventures everyone was wondering who would be taking over the reins at Caprice. Now with new chef Fabrice Vuilin ex-executive chef of the two star La Chèvre d’Or at the helm, will his new menu regain the much coveted third star for Caprice in 2015?

Let’s see.

Some welcome appetisers to begin with. Sardine milifeuille with squid ink jelly, puff with foie gras mousse and fried shrimp patties. The pastry at Caprice is always nicely done crisp buttery layers with the smooth sardine mousse. Not fishy to taste, but it lingered on the fingers afterwards so remember to ask for wet towels. The puff was nice too, choux pastry with a sweet crunchy crust holding a savoury foie gras mousse.

Pull apart white crusty bread. Pillowy soft, but not special accompanied with olive oil.

Amuse bouche of artichoke cream. Two layered, a chilled thick and full bodied cream at the top, while a more translucent soft jelly-like layer on the bottom. Refreshing to start with.

This was the bread I was waiting for~ Olive scroll and baguette. Never fails to please, especially when consumed with a healthy spread of creamy butter.

His choice of appetiser, Brittany lobster soup with ravioli of lemon confit. The soup although creamy was not quite thick enough, but the raviolis were plump with a zesty tang. Nice temperature.

My poached egg was beautifully presented crowned with a savoury sable cracker adorned with greens, diced pork, foie gras and mushrooms. The egg felt like it was hard-boiled, but slicing into it revealed a runny yolk centre adding its richness to the sauce. The flavours worked well, the plain egg giving a neutral counterbalance to the intense savoury flavours of the accompaniments, if the egg white had been poached more softly and the dish served hotter than lukewarm I would have liked it even more.

The escargot was served with compliments (thank you) and the somewhat forest-like presentation matched the use of ingredients. Unlike what most restaurants in Hong Kong would serve- garlic butter soaked snails where we have to pry them out of their shells, here they were de-shelled and scattered among mushrooms, Iberico ham and mossy mounds of herb brioche. Not drowning them in garlic butter allowed us to fully appreciate the natural sweet flavour of these molluscs before following up with the brioche which had a garlicky oil seeped into it. Again, if only this was served warmer…

For mains, his dish of poached scallops and shrimps on a bed of cauliflower mousseline was lovely. It looked so simple yet the scallops were velvety and sweet, the shrimps nice and bouncy with the fried shrimp head adding a textural crunch. Perfect if you are looking for something lighter.

I chose the braised oxtail cannelloni recommended by the Maitre’ D and this was an extremely hearty dish. Three tubes of al dente pasta curled around a tender filling of pulled oxtail decorated with bits of bone marrow and strips of pancetta. The texture was quite sticky, requiring some effort to eat, but I guess that just meant it was full of collagen *pinches cheek*.

A little surprising to see chocolate fondant on the menu as it is now such a common dessert, but it came recommended so he chose this. A solid looking fondant with hints of its warm liquid center starting to leak out from the cracks. Intensely rich, the chocolate used was dark enough to leave enticing bittersweet tones on the tongue and when you are about to fall into a chocolate coma, turn to the sweet poached pears and cool Tahitian vanilla ice-cream to refresh yourself. I ate most of his :p

Feeling like something pastry for dessert I was a little disappointed that they did not serve a milefeuille anymore so I picked the substitute of strawberry tart. It was so pink! A trail of berry sorbet, dobs of cream and flavoured sugar crisps where the tart sat at the centre with a mane of strawberry slices fanning out. It looked better than it tasted. The tart base did not seem fresh, a little soft with no snap and the almond filling made the whole texture quite gummy. At least the strawberries were relatively sweet, but otherwise quite disappointed.

Finishing with coffee and petit four. I loved the mini carrot cake so much he surrendered his one to me too~

This was definitely not the best experience at Caprice and you can tell Chef Fabrice still needs time to assimilate with his new surroundings as well as tweaking his dishes to conform with the palate of the locals. Some of the dishes were served barely warm which was not ideal so hopefully they can improve on that, but otherwise service was welcoming and attentive as usual and the environment beautiful as always.

Gala Dinner June 2013~ @ L’ Atelier de Joel Robuchon

I have dined at L’Atelier numerous times already, but each experience still makes me just as excited as though it was my first and this time even more so since it was their Gala dinner~! Held annually in Hong Kong, Monsieur Robuchon and his team fly in just to prepare the menu and dishes for this particular evening, so it just makes everything all that more special 🙂

There is no a la carte that evening, just one set menu and guests are greeted by their own Joel Robuchon signed copy of the evening’s menu tied with their signature red ribbon.

And so it begins~

Their version of an amuse bouche, strawberry gazpacho. French strawberries blended into a chilled soup with a ricotta cheese sherbet made as an espuma and then flash frozen by a burst of nitrogen gas. This was then spooned into the gazpacho as it was served. A lovely dusky rose pink, the gazpacho was velvety in texture and mixing in the ricotta sherbet resulted in the slightly tart and subtly sweet flavours taking on a pleasantly mild creaminess. A wonderful start to the evening~

First course, asparagus adorned with Sologne Imperial caviar accompanied by assorted vegetables lain over a shallow layer of clear tomato jelly. This was a visual delight to the eyes, like a ready-to-eat vegetable garden all on a plate~ The asparagus was juicily fleshy with the soft caviar adding a brininess to the fresh green flavour. The tomato jelly was the highlight for me, intense tomato flavour filled the senses edged with a sour tinge pairing very well with the rest of the vegetables. It was so good, the gentleman two seats down from me could not keep murmuring his pleasure while swiping his plate clean with the tail end of his baguette :p

A softly boiled egg resting in a puree of spinach and an aged Comte cheese mousse was served next. Looking so simple, the flavours were anything but… Gorgeously oozy on the inside, it paired wonderfully with the spinach puree while the 18 month Comte cheese added a stronger flavour with an edge of saltiness.

Those that love sea urchin would have swooned over this dish. A Hokkaido sea urchin royale, essentially a custard, layered with a veloute of cauliflower. Creamily smooth with a thick body, the custard had an intense sea flavour from the sea urchin, but that was not all. As you gradually eat, I could taste a slight curry spice mingled within which gradually built up a pleasant heat on the palate. Interesting.

The sea main course used lobster as the main ingredient. Roasted rock lobster from Australia accompanied by French green peas served with a Chateau Chalon sauce. Two generously portioned pieces of bouncy lobster flesh fragrant from the roasting process was delightful with the wonderful savoury sauce and I loved how the green peas popped happily with a burst of sweetness 🙂

The last savoury dish was grilled French baby pork cutlets with white beans accompanied with a lettuce wrapped pork pluma and mushroom ball and a cannelloni of chorizo topped with a disc of beef bone marrow. This dish blew.me.away. Rustic, homely flavours, the pork was so tender with a richness from the slight trim of fat and paired perfectly with the heady, yet surprisingly spicy flavour of the white bean sauce. The cannelloni was al dente while the bone marrow was fragrant from its own fatty oils. I also really enjoyed the cabbage ball which had stronger salty flavours and tasted like a sausage meatball with occasional bouncy cubes of mushroom adding to the texture~

As I finished with my main course, my server of the evening thoughtfully asked whether I needed a break prior to my dessert. It is just little touches like these that make all the difference to ones dining experience 🙂

When I was ready, my first dessert was brought to me. Apricot compote and mousse with a ‘lulo’ sorbet. What is a ‘lulo’ sorbet you may ask? It is a Colombian mountain fruit with a citrusy flavour involving hints of pineapple and cherries. This centre of tangy sorbet paired nicely with its counterparts of chunky apricot pieces covered in a luscious blanket of apricot mousse. Those that are partial to sour flavours in their desserts would enjoy this.

The final dessert was a show stopper. A 3D cherry panacotta with a layer of almond sponge cake and cherries soaked in kirsch, encased in a layer of thin white chocolate. So so cute~ I could hear many diners cooing over this as it was placed in front of them. Very creamy, with the flavour similar to Black Forest, the tart cherries made sure that the overall dessert was not too heavy. Stunning~

And to end. Something different from their usual petit fours~ A butter sable with a dab of lemon curd decorated with a ring of French strawberries. Cute and sweet finish 🙂

The dinner was amazing~! So many elements that varied from their usual way of preparing dishes, from the nitrogen frozen ricotta sherbet, to the surprisingly spicy touches in the sea urchin royale and sauce of the pork cutlets while the undeniably cute cherry dessert captured many hearts that evening. Aside from the food, I really admired the decoration on the plates itself where each stroke and colour used were well thought out to be unique and subtly in sync with the overall presentation of each dish. I am sure every diner had their enjoyable moments and of course the ever personable Monsier Robuchon made himself available to take pictures with every guest and ensured everybody received a copy of the photo with a personal signature from himself. Tres bon!

Something new~@ Robuchon

Meeting up with Miss CL for our monthly get together we decided on Robuchon as our dinner destination. Since she had only ever dined inside Le Jardin, I suggested that we reserve at L’Atelier so she could experience Robuchon in a different fashion

Our menu that night was composed by the manager as usual and since I had been craving for some dishes that I have had previously there was a mix of new and old items for us to try and enjoy~

Even before our amuse bouche arrived, we were served a platter of thinly sliced jambon. However this was no ordinary jambon. Aged for 81 months, with certificates to show for it, there are only 100 legs of jambon like this in the world and two of them are secured by Robuchon. Looking like a mosaic of lean meat and fat marbling, it was not as chewy as I expected. I also liked how it was not too salty as most cured meats tend to be, and the richness from the melting of the fat was really quite indulgent. To cut the richness, there was an accompanying side of tomato bruschetta where the tartness of the tomato and pungent aroma of garlic oil helped cleanse the palate. This is something worth trying~

Amuse bouche that night from L-R fois gras custard with quince jelly and artichoke veloute with brocolli cream. Their veloutes are always creamy, but I found the brocolli cream to overpower the artichoke flavour. I had no complaints about the fois gras custard, always smooth with the quince lending a light sweetness to the overall flavour. I am so glad to see its return~

Le truffe blanche, or in english white truffles. This is in season presently and we had this showered over fois gras rolls and ratte potatoes. When served, please remember to inhale the heavenly truffle scent before starting on this delicate dish. Smooth luscious curls of decadent fois gras coupled with the honest flavour of marquise shaped buttered potatoes.. this was really amazing~ Definitely recommended.

Soup was next. Corn veloute to be exact. We had the option of requesting it hot or cold, I chose hot, Miss CL went with cold after hearing that it was originally supposed to be a cold soup. And yes she chose correctly. Le caviar arrived as a generous golden lake with a floating island of sour cream and caviar with a  wobbly mass of beef jelly. Previously I found their corn veloute to be too sweet, but this time they must have added stock to tone down the sweetness. I loved how the coldness of the soup made the texture creamily thick and coupled with the additional richness of sour cream and slight saltiness of the caviar it was just perfect. The beef jelly was there to add an additional savoury element to the veloute if desired, but both Miss. CL and I were not particularly fond of it. When compared with my hot version of the veloute, I can not say it was bad, but the heat made the texture more thin and it seemed saltier than the cold one.

This was something I requested as I had been craving it. La langoustine. Plump white fleshed scampi enveloped in a ravioli skin with a creamy fois gras sauce. Still as good as before~

Our first main dish arrived soon after. Something new on the menu Le ris de veau or veal sweetbread was suggested to me as I had never had this before. I know that this was an offal dish or more exactly the pancreas of the veal and since I neither hate nor love offal I did not mind trying it while Miss CL adamantly refused hahaha.. The sweetbread was pan fried with a bay leaf till golden brown accompanied by a creamed leaf of romaine lettuce and a small pot of veal jus for drizzling if needed. It had an unusual creamy and spongy texture, but was actually quite tasty, while the side of creamy lettuce was a perfect foil for when the veal jus became too overpowering on the palate. I do not know if I would order this again, but it did not hurt to try.

While I had the sweetbread, Miss. CL had the beef tartare. I do not think I need to repeat my positive comments on this, but Miss. CL enjoyed it thoroughly.  

Before our next main dish arrived, we were served another request of mine Le Burger. Whenever I see this, it always brings a smile to the face because it is so cute~ Do not let the size fool you, as it really packs a punch in the flavour department. Smear a little of the homemade ketchup on the burger and the tanginess coupled with the richness of the fois gras and juicy wagyu beef made for an oh so sinful mouthful. I really really missed this, and of course it was more than satisfying 🙂 Something to note about the service, the burger is originally served with fries, but since Miss CL already had fries with her beef tartare, the manager replaced our fries with truffled mash instead. Very thoughtful~

Our final mains of the night. Pork is in season right now, so I had Le Porc Iberique while I suggested Miss. CL try their signature Le Black Cod. I quite liked the rustic presentation of the dish with four lean slices of roasted pork loin and a jumbled side of roasted vegetables. The pork was cooked to a delicate pale pink colour where the natural flavour was pleasant, but some parts were not very tender and I found it to be a little dry. What I found interesting was the creamy smear of parsnip and quince puree, so light in texture with a floral undertone, it was delicately fragrant and surprisingly complimented the pork quite well.

Le Black Cod is always good, moist and well marinated in the sweet miso. Miss. CL seemed very happy with this as did I from the few forkfuls that I had :p

Even after so many dishes, there was still dessert to come~

Miss. CL chose the La Sphere, which was a different flavour this time. Coconut milk mousse encased in a delicate sugar sphere with an assortment of exotic fruits and pineapple sorbet. It was very pretty to look at, but to be honest, I was not a fan of this dessert, maybe because I am not fond of coconut flavoured things. Miss. CL had no qualms about this, and judging by her clean plate I am sure the problem lies with me hahaha..

I mentioned to the manager that I had an overwhelming desire to have something tart-like for my dessert, (preferably with ice-cream :p) and very soon I was presented with this~

Six balls of sorbet and ice-cream with two of my favourite tarts~ From top L-R: Pear, cassis (blackcurrant), vanilla, raspberry, chocolate and apple. Their sorbets were very good, really fruity and smooth with no icy texture at all, but my favourite was still their ice-cream. So creamy and rich, I loved both the vanilla and chocolate most, one so pure and innocent, the other so dark and decadent, both polar opposites, but just as dreamy in their own way… The tarts of course did not fail to please either. Firm, buttery short-crust pastry holding a tangy filling of lemon curd and rich chocolate ganache. I was very happy with my dessert~
Thank you 🙂

Since we were on sugar high already, why not finish with their petite fours and of course my piggy latte~

First time at Le Jardin

Having dined at the bar on a few occasions already, I was quite intrigued to see what Le Jardin de Joel Robuchon looked like. So when my friend C asked me to join her and her sister there for dinner, I was more than happy to accept the invitation.

Le Jardin is in a secluded room that you enter through a glass door via the bar area. Inside, the room is quite small with not many tables, but on the far side it is walled with full length windows which gives an illusion that the room is bigger than it actually is. Dining inside was quite a different experience in itself, the surroundings were more formal, service more attentive (but then there wasn’t many tables occupied that night) and overall just portrayed a very intimate setting. I must say that it was also a nice change to be able to sit elegantly into a cushioned chair, rather than climb up onto the bar seat.

For our menu that night, we decided to place our trust in the manager have him choose which dishes to try. Since there were some repeated dishes served to us that I have posted about previously, I will concentrate on the new dishes that we had that night.


First to come was our amuse bouche. A tri-coloured foam, starting with avocado at the bottom, corn in the middle and tomato and pepper foam on top which was then topped with three tiny spheres of green apple. Usually I am an avid fan of their amuse bouches, however I felt this one was a little lacking. The mix of flavours did not really appeal to me, but it was pretty to look at.

A plate of 24 month jambon was our shared starter with a side of tomato bruschetta. The jambon had a delicate flavour which was not overpowering or overly salty and the bruschetta with diced tomatoes on thinly toasted sourdough was pleasant with a strong garlic taste.

For our first dish, I had La Burrata which was a combination of burrata cheese, avocado and tomatoes. This was really a simple dish and not much can go wrong as long as the ingredients are fresh and of good quality. The burrata was soft and creamy, the tomatoes not too tart, but I found the avocado to be slightly under ripe.

C’s sister and herself had the Le Caviar Imperial and a new dish called the L’Oeuf de Poule. The L’Oeuf de Poule was essentially a soft poached egg enveloped by a crispy pasta nest and topped with caviar. C seemed to enjoy this, and I must say I had slight food envy when it was served to her, but not much I could do since I don’t eat fried food.

Next we had the La Langoustine. I know I’ve written about this in the previous post, but this time we had an additional treat of freshly shaved truffles :D. Although the dish was still good, scampi was tender and pasta was al dente, I felt the fois gras sauce was not as well done. The colour certainly showed it, being more of a brown colour rather than the coral pink I saw on my last visit. 

For C who is allergic to crustaceans, she was served Les Asperges. Green asparagus with poached egg and also with a generous topping of shaved truffles. From the bite of asparagus that I had, it was as fresh as they come.

This time round, Robuchon was in the process of launching a new drinks menu, both cocktails and mocktails. We tried a few different ones, but there were two that really stood out. One was C’s whisky with cherry liquer and the other was her sisters’ lemongrass mocktail. The whisky cocktail was quite good, smooth and the flavour of the cherry liquer complemented it well. However C found it to be quite sweet at first, as she preferred a stronger taste of whisky, but as the ice melted it helped to dilute the sweetness. The taste in general was quite mild, but I suppose it was made like that to not overpower the flavour of the food. Presentation was simple and I liked how they only used a cherry as decoration.

The lemongrass mocktail was very good. Extremely refreshing on the palate. Just one sip and your whole mouth was brightened with the lemony flavour. Recommended~

Back to the food, Le Fois Gras was next. A perfectly pan-fried portion of fois gras accompanied with cherries and almonds. Each mouthful was delightful, smooth and rich, it just melted in the mouth. C’s sister is a huge fan of fois gras and I was sure she enjoyed this dish immensely. As C, does not enjoy fois gras, she was served La Courgette Violon, a zucchini veloute with parmesean foam. I had a small spoonful of her soup, and it was very creamy and flavourful. Comfort food that would be perfect for winter.

Our first main, was fish. Amadai to be exact which I think translates to snapper. For a person that does not love fish, I found this to exceed expectations. The meat was perfectly cooked, and was able to be cut with a fork. The skin was the special part, baked to a crisp, its crunchy texture was a good contrast with the softness of the fish. This sat on a bed of brown grain risotto and japanese mushrooms in a creamy sauce. I must also mention how pretty the plate was, the pattern alluded to the Japanese touch of this dish. Very thoughtful~

By this time we were already very full, but we still had one more dish to come. L’Agneau, baby lamb racks. When the manager brought this out on a steel pan, we were shocked at how much there was. Two full racks. However, he reassured us that we were only supposed to eat the small round part of the cutlet. I found the meat to be quite rare, resulting in a chewy texture and it did not have any gamey taste at all, which would suit Asian palates. I must say that the highlight was the mint jelly we requested to accompany the lamb. Homemade and not overly sweet, it really was a perfect match.

And onto dessert~ What I had was a combination of mango and apricot fruits on a biscuit like base with honey ice-cream. On the bottom was a thin layer of yoghurt cream. Maybe because I don’t find yellow fruits interesting, the dessert although refreshing was only so-so for me. C and her sister had La Litchie Rose and Le Chocolate Sensation which again caused me food envy haha..

What Le Jardin offers which the bar does not, is the option of choosing desserts from their dessert trolley. It really was a pretty sight, when it was wheeled to our table and we were able to choose what we wanted.

We ended up having a full selection from the trolley :p There was raspberry tart, opera cake, pistachio cake, toffee profiterole (stacked like a snowman), chocolate mousse cake, mango cream, rum baba and in the middle was a mixed fruit salad. Just by looking at them, it made me very cheerful. However, we were only able to have small tastes of each, since we were already past our stomach quota. I did like the opera though, a good mix of coffee and chocolate flavour.

Last, but not least were their petite fours. No matter how full you are, I really do recommend having the macaron which changes flavours each time. Vanilla was the flavour that night, fragrant vanilla cream sandwiched between a crisp chewy shell~

Although there were hits and misses this time, I still enjoyed the experience at Le Jardin. The company definitely made a difference 🙂

Dinner at Spoon~

Visited the renowned Spoon for the first time with a friend who very generously decided to treat me to dinner. (thank you~)

Situated inside the Intercontinental Hotel on the Lobby level, it is not a large restaurant with tables widely spaced to allow greater comfort for diners. The decor is quite modern chic with varying shades of brown being the tone of choice. What is most breathtaking is the spectacular view of Victoria Harbour that they proudly show off with floor to ceiling windows. There are 3 tables which can safely be said are the prime seats of Spoon as they face directly towards the harbour and I was lucky enough to be able to enjoy the dining experience from one of those tables 

 As we were perusing the menu, we were served little pre-meal appetisers. The little green dome was a brocoli puree with scallops inside, sitting on a crisp cracker base and dotted with caviar. The other was a tiny foccacia sandwich with what I think was pesto inside.

We were also served bread (one of the highlights of any meal 😀). There were four types to choose from: baguettes, wholewheat roll, sea salt scroll and a red pepper type of roll. The baguttes were really good, crunchy on the outside with fluffy insides and had a fragrant wheaty taste. The wholewheat roll was cute looking in a chubby doriyaki (japanese red bean pancake) shape. This had a slight chewy texture and was a good alternative for those that don’t like hard crusts. The sea salt scroll was more like a croissant, very flakey and buttery texture. The least liked was the red pepper bread, which honestly did not have much texture at all. It tasted like barely cooked pizza dough unfortunately.

 We chose to go a la carte, which was more to my benefit as I was able to try more dishes since my dining companion had eaten there on numerous occasions. After ordering we were served our amuse bouche of a pan-fried frogs leg accompainied with a warm ginger soup. The frog’s leg was tender and as usual tasted like chicken meat, while the ginger soup had flavours reminiscent of the Thai soup Tom Yum Gong.

We ordered two appetisers. The first was a chilled tomato gazpacho with finely diced vegetables. This was really refreshing, the tartness of the tomato really came through and helped whet the appetite.

Our second appetizer was the steamed duck fois gras accompanied with diced nectarine, fresh almonds and basil. This was something different as normally fois gras for me is pan-fried. However, this method of cooking fois gras definitely rates highly for me. The smoothness of the fois gras is uninhibited by any crisp layer associated with pan frying and it just melted in the mouth. The tartness of the diced nectarines seemingly unspectacular was acutally a necessity in refreshing the palate from the richness of the fois gras. One of my favourite dishes of the night 🙂

When this dish was suggested to me, I was honestly not anticipating much. I mean I would not consider ordering macaroni at a 2 star French restaurant. As the “Coquillettes’ pasta was placed in front of me, it really did not look like much, but the rich tantalising smell of truffles and cheese arising from the bowl tickled my senses making my tastebuds start to anticipate the first spoonful. And I was so glad that I was able to try this dish. The creaminess of the pasta combined with the melted parmesean cheese and the saltiness of the veal jus that was poured into the bowl prior to mixing was amazing. The aroma of truffles was heady and added that extra oomph on top of an already amazing dish. Absolutely show stopping~ Highly recommended!

The first of our mains was the baked wild tiger grouper. This was supposedly a new dish to the menu. I must say it was quite average. The fish was fresh, with no fishy taste, which I really dislike, but it was overcooked resulting in the fish being too chewy and rubbery in texture.

Our second main was ‘Challans’ duckling. This came in two parts. One was duck confit, a generous serving of duck breast sprinkled with cereal on top, giving a crunchy texture when eaten together with the meat. The other was a bowl of duck meat braised until soft and served with soft crepes. This gave a feeling reminiscent of eating peking duck as it was a hands on affair, but I must say I enjoyed this quite a bit. The meat was tender and though the sauce was a little salty, the crepes helped tone it down.

Our last main was the braised milk-fed veal shank which was a dish served to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Le Louis XV restaurant in Monte Carlo. This was brought to the table as a whole shank, still on the bone and was cut and served in front of us. I was already very full from the preceding dishes, and could only manage a couple of mouthfuls, but from what I ate, the veal was very tender, but nothing amazing.

Onto dessert~ Despite being very full, we still ordered three to share :p  Something new was the strawberry and coconut which looked like a white snow ball covered with dessicated coconut. Strawberry sauce was then poured into the dish. Cracking into it,we discovered a meringue shell which enclosed a mixture of I think vanilla/coconut mousse with strawberry puree. A few forkfuls was enough for me as I found the tartness and overly strong flavour of the strawberry puree overpowered the mousse.

Second was ‘our favourite cheesecake’. The texture of this cheesecake was quite dense and it had a very smooth and creamy texture with a strong flavour of vanilla. Being a cheesecake lover, I quite enjoyed this dessert.

Our last dessert was the chocolate hazelnut bliss. This was a mixture of textures, crunchy from a biscuit layer, creamy from the mousse layer and the tempered chocolate on top snapped delicately when each forkful was taken. This again was nothing spectacular, but gave the requisite chocolate quota I needed to end a meal.

Last but not least we were served petite fours and a selection of Jean-Paul Hevin chocolates. For petite fours there was a pistachio cake, chocolate cake and almond macaron. I favoured the pistachio cake most, as the delicate flavours of pistachio shone through quite nicely, but the chocolate cake and almond macaron were not as good. The chocolate cake was quite dense in texture, with not much sweetness or cocoa flavour, and the texture of the macaron was quite sticky although the flavour was nice.

The dinner was a combination of hits and misses, but I would definitely go back for the steamed fois gras and ‘coquillettes’~.