Chuan Yue

Chuan Yue (川粵米線大王)
G/F, 22 Whampoa Street, Hung Hom.
Sichuan dumplings (紅油抄手), dan dan noodles (担担面), spicy and sour
noodles (酸辣粉), and sliced beef and ox tongue in chilli sauce (夫妻肺片).

The noodles in the dan dan noodles were cooked al dente, with plenty
of chew and body. The Sichuan dumplings, bathed in a pungently
exciting chili oil, offered a fresh sack filled with minced pork and
chopped spring onions.

Bistecca

Bistecca Italian Steak House
2/F, Grand Progress Building
15 Lan Kwai Fong, Central.
My fourth time here, and my second time doing the Florentine. This
Florentine was done medium. The strip was juicy and packed with beefy
flavors, but the filet, offering very little by way of flavor and
texture, disappointed. Overall, Bistecca is still the place to be for
some serious beef in HK.

A private kitchen

Steamed freshwater ling cod head (about 1kg), with Chinese miso.

Purim meal at a private kitchen

Challah (braided bread), Lubiya (pea soup), Sephardi spiced chicken
rice, stuffed onions, minced lamb skewers, sweet and sour brisket,
stuffed onions and zucchini, Hamentashen (pocket pastry) with prunes
and caramel.

Liberty Exchange

Liberty Exchange
G/F, Block 2, The Forum
8 Connaught Road, Central.
Burger: Statue burger
Architecture: bun, basil mayo, tomato confit, patty, micro greens, bun.
The Australian sirloin was loaded with beefy notes, but was cooked way
beyond medium as requested. The tomato confit provided an acidic
counterpoint to neutralize the beef fat, while the basil mayo added a
layer of garden freshness to the mix. The sturdy flour bun, lightly
toasted with a blissful amount of butter, embraced the enormous stack
with ease and flair. The thick-cut fries, slightly seasoned with
Parmesan cheese and cooked to yield a crunchy shell and a mushy core,
were the highlight of the dish.

Al Molo

Al Molo Ristorante Italiano
G63, Ocean Terminal, Harbour City
17 Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui.
Salumi sampler, semolina pasta with clams, squid and spicy tomato,
Granny Smith apple pizza with almond cream and rosemary gelato.
The sampler and the pasta were up to snuff, but given that Al Molo is
NYC superstar chef Michael White's flagship restaurant in Asia, I was
expecting much more.
The first two dishes aside, there was the apple pizza. Though thinly
crusted, cutting through it felt like trying to cut a brick with a
pair of mom's decade-old garment scissors. It tasted as though it has
been sitting in the freezer for far too long and was carelessly thrown
into the pizza oven (or the dreaded m-wave?!) to race to an edible
temperature. The rosemary gelato partially redeemed the dish with a
slight hint of floral accent, though its subtlety was quickly engulfed
by the brashness of the brick. Disastrous as it was, I would give
White benefit of the doubt, and will visit in a few months to see if the master
is able to right what I would imagine, at least by my book, to be a sinking ship.

Si Sun Fast Food

Si Sun Fast Food (時新快餐店)
G/F, 1A Whampoa Street, Hung Hom.
Burger: double cheeseburger with egg and curry sauce.
Architecture: bun, patty, fried egg, patty, curry sauce, sliced cheese, bun.
This Hong Kong-style burger sported a lightly griddled sesame bun,
patty made with sumptuous amount of onions and black pepper, fried egg
over easy, and a generous helping of curry sauce. The curry sauce was
sweet, with just a tinge of spice and herbs to accentuate but not
overwhelm the stack. The beef was cooked to death, but remained juicy
due in no small part to the moisture of the onions and perhaps a
mixture of beef tendon and fat into the patty. Two pieces of juicy
chicken wings (1.5USD) were ordered as sides. At barely 2 USD, the
burger has to be one of the best deals in town.