The most delicious wines I tasted in 2024

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I've been doing a annual "best of" list of dishes since 2016, and a few years ago someone asked whether I would also do one for the wines I tasted during the year. I didn't do anything about it then, but when someone asked again recently, I figured I could try to do a review this year... even though I had missed out on some fantastic wines during the year by being absent from a couple of key MNSC dinners. Nevertheless, I still think I drink pretty well when I don't compare myself to the 0.1 percent...

2018 Egon Müller Riesling Scharzhofberger Trockenbeerenauslese, tasted at the Trimbach/Egon Müller dinner at Caprice in Hong Kong - I don't think it's possible for any TBA from Egon Müller not to be amazing, and this was only the second time I've had the pleasure of tasting a bottling of this rare nectar.

The best dishes I had in 2024

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2024 was a strange year for me. While the borders had been fully-open since late 2022, I went on a self-imposed travel ban for 6 months in the middle of this year, thereby missing out on a few amazing culinary trips my friends undertook. I told everyone that I was staying in town to support Hong Kong's economy, and I hope my chef and restauranteur friends appreciated that...

As I have done each year since 2018, I have compiled a list of dishes I've enjoyed during the year which were the most emotional experiences for me. There have been no shortage of delicious dishes over hundreds of meals, and making a concise list of the best of them remains a difficult task. So here they are in chronological order:

Sweet and sour pig tails (菠蘿咕嚕豬尾), from The Chairman (大班樓) in Hong Kong - as someone who loves pig tails and who also enjoys a good sweet and sour pork this combination proved insanely delicious. The light and airy batter was especially bewitching.

27 Michelin star chef x 7-Eleven

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Pretty much the first thing I do after I get back to my apartment in New Taipei, after dropping off my luggage, is head to the 7-Eleven downstairs to pickup some supplies. This would usually be drinks, junk food, and maybe breakfast for the next morning. This time around Foursheets noticed a big poster in the window of our local 7-Eleven with the face of Olivier Elzer in a prominent position, along with smaller pictures of a bunch of products.

Apparently Olivier - who opened Seasons by olivier e. at the W Taipei last year, has created a series of ready-to-eat meals exclusively with 7-Eleven Taiwan. Olivier is being introduced as a "27 Michelin star chef", and now you can get a taste of his "star rated cuisine (星級饗宴)" at an estimated 7,000 outlets on the island.

Girlie drinks in a girlie izakaya

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We are back in Taiwan to spend the holiday season with the Parental Units, but have alternating days off when we are on our own. I had planned exactly zero meals out for this trip, so as tonight was our first night off, we didn't have any idea of where to eat. Foursheets asked to go to an izakaya (居酒屋), and after doing brief research online, I decided we should try a place literally just across the river from our apartment. In fact, I could hypothetically hit it with a Stinger from my living room window if I could get one...

As my research was very brief, I thought Tokyo Skewer (東京串燒。酒場) would just be some old school izakaya since the words I remembered were "old mansion (老宅)". The key words I missed were actually "hipster (文青)"... And while we entered through the door of Tokyo Skewer, we were actually led to seats inside the connecting space next door at Old Town West (老城西。酒食製作所), with a feminine, farmhouse charm.

We were seated at the bar lined with potted plants and flowers, and watched the two mixologists work their magic all night. The drinks here were pretty elaborate, which took us completely by surprise. Since the house rules impose a minimum spend with the added condition that customers must order at least one drink, we started with an alcohol order...

Rose in lychee garden - as Foursheets exclaimed... "IT DOESN'T GET MORE GIRLIE THAN THIS!" With Glendalough Wild Rose Irish Gin as the base together with lime juice, garnished with both canned lychees and dried rosebuds... and finally finished with a blooming red rose plus baby's breath on the stem of the martini glass.

Closing out the cycle

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There hasn't been an official MNSC dinner in over 11 months. I had tried to close out our current cycle - which began in the middle of 2022 - unsuccessfully several times earlier in the year. But busy travel schedules and force majeur made it impossible to get at least 5 of the boys together for a scheduled meal. Seeing that we were reaching the end of 2024, I reached out to the boys for one last try to host a dinner. Much to my surprise, EVERYONE raised their hands and we ended up with a full house tonight!

Since I had to cancel the original dinner scheduled at Andō earlier this year, I figured it was only right that I host the dinner there. Most of the boys have, in fact, never been to the restaurant, so it was a good opportunity to introduce them to Goldfinger. I asked for a custom menu to match the lineup of reds I was bringing, and worked out the opening/decanting schedule to Carlito Gorgor to try to catch the optimum windows of the wines.

Roasted piquillos, onion, sardines, caviar tart - this was nice, and the sardine didn't feel too heavy with the combination.

3-star Chave

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This is a dinner I waited more than 10 months for.

Not long after the epic dinner with Domaine Trimbach and Weingut Egon Müller, Hairy Legs told me that they were arranging a dinner with Domaine Jean-Louis Chave. I was very, very excited to hear the news, and I would get periodic updates on the progress from both Saffron Bae and Victor over the following months.

I was a little surprised that I had some difficulty in finding friends to share my table for this event. After all, this dinner at Caprice featured a tailored menu which Saffron Bae and Victor had worked on with Jean-Louis, with each course specifically paired with a specific vintage. We would also be tasting an older vintage of Cuvée Cathelin - a bottling I have had the privilege of tasting several occasions, and whose price has skyrocketed in the last few years. Finally, we would finish with the domaine's Vin de Paille - a wine I have neither seen nor tasted in person, and which I have only seen on offer once the last 2 decades or so.

Thankfully I found a couple of friends looking for a taste of Cathelin, so the four of us sat down pretty much as soon as the restaurant opened tonight. I also got a chance to catch up with Jean-Louis before dinner started.

It's very rare that I choose not to have anything from the bread basket when I'm here, but knowing how much food was coming our way - and considering how I'd been stuffing my face for the last week - I decided to forgo those little delicious buttery lumps.

Mushroom tart - on top of a little Parmesan sablé.

Tokyo 2024 day 8: airline food again

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We had a morning flight to catch this morning so we didn't have time for a proper breakfast. Instead Foursheets bought me a tamago sando (たまごサンド) from Family Mart. This was absolutely perfect and I finally got to have it before I left Japan.

Tokyo 2024 day 7: a date with Puchi Jr.

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For a number of reasons - some of which I have shared with a handful of friends - I have never found myself sitting down for a meal at DEN (傳). I have had tastes of Chef Hasegawa Zaiyu (長谷川在佑)'s cuisine via his collaborations with Gaggan and Goh-san from as far back as his Bangkok pop-up in 2017, but I just never managed to get myself a seat in Tokyo.

I usually hate to beg chefs who aren't already friends for seats at their restaurants, but this time around I figured I needed to check DEN off my list, so I finally messaged Zaiyu-san and asked for help. He was, of course, very gracious and asked the team to help make the arrangements for me.

We were running late due to stupidity on my part, and I ran from our taxi into the building like a headless chicken. I knew that the restaurant is on the first floor and I could see that there is a restaurant, but the glass panel on the door reads Le Gaulois... So WHERE THE HELL IS THIS PLACE?!

After seeing two very confused people outside their door, Noriko-san came out and asked whether we were looking for their restaurant. It's been a few years since I last saw her, and I was relieved to see a familiar face. She explained that Le Gaulois used to be Zaiyu-san and Emi-san's favorite restaurant, and when they moved DEN into the space, they kept the decor of the restaurant - including the door.

We were seated at the big tree trunk table facing the open kitchen. This facilitated some interaction between us and the kitchen, but I would soon find that, thanks to a combination of my short stature, my protruding o-toro, and the beveled edge of the table, I was often stretching to reach the dishes and found myself eating in an uncomfortable position. Oh well... time to put some work in and shrink the o-toro!

DEN monaka (傳最中) - I've had this signature dish quite a few times over the years, and know that some of the ingredients vary with the seasons.

Tokyo 2024 day 7: cats and the noodle, part 2

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We got ourselves up a little earlier this morning to grab our morning coffee, but rather than being lazy and go somewhere in our neighborhood, we returned to one of our favorite cafés in Tokyo. Reissue has been doing 3-D latte art for quite a while, and we paid them a visit back in December 2018. Foursheets decided that she wanted to go back for more. Six years after our first visit, the place has garned more internet fame, and we saw more customers even on a weekday morning.

I gave them a picture of our CC Dogcow and asked for 2-D art. I thought Sadaharu did a pretty good job, and so did many friends who saw it.

Tokyo 2024 day 6: Champagne and sushi again

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We're meeting up with Geruhage for dinner in Roppongi, so I thought Foursheets and I could get there a little early and take in the Christmas lights at Roppongi Hills. The tree lights along Keyakizaka-dori (けやき坂通り) have always been pretty, and since Foursheets keeps reminding me that we don't take enough photos together, this would seem to be a good time to do it. We started with the lights on the podium level, but the gusts of wind were so strong and so cold that we had to run for safety. It got a little better when we moved to Keyakizaka, but by then the damage had already been done.

There were lots of people at the Christmas Market, but seeing that we had a nice dinner coming up, there didn't seem to be any point in lining up for food or drink here. Maybe next time I can plan things a little better...

The walk from Roppongi Hills to Ark Hills seemed extra long on this windy night, and we felt as if we had landed in another world and about to be greeted by Elsa and Anna any minute. After arriving at our destination, we definitely needed to defrost a little with the indoor heating while waiting for the second seating at Sushi Saito (鮨さいとう). Thankfully we weren't stuck outside very long.

Tonight was my fifth visit here, and while I sometimes wish I would have to chance to visit other high-end sushiyas to try out the craft of other masters, I quickly realized that this was most definitely a "first world problem". How does ANYONE get tired of dining at a place like Sushi Saito?! Besides, it would only be Foursheets' second chance to sit in front of Saito-san...

Female Japanese snow crab (香箱蟹) - so, so happy to have this while it was in season. The tomalley (蟹味噌), ovaries (内子), and eggs (外子) have been well-mixed with crab meat simmered in sake for this presentation.

Tokyo 2024 day 6: cats and the noodle

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I needed coffee and breakfast this morning, and there happens to be a branch of Komeda's Coffee (コメダ珈琲店) not too far from our hotel, so we strolled over in the other direction towards Tokyo Dome so we could check out that neighborhood. I have, in fact, never been to Tokyo Dome myself or Korakuen (後楽園), so that was kinda new for me.

Handmade egg dog (手作りたまごドッグ) - seeing that I still haven't gotten myself an egg sando after 5 days, I decided to order this up. Interesting to see that they've put ketchup on the bread. Loved it.

Tokyo 2024 day 5: drunken onion, episode 10

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Two days after the epic Isojiman Adagio tasting, I'm back at Tamanegiya (酒たまねぎや) to see Master. It's my obligatory visit when I come to Tokyo, and although I had already seen Master on this trip, I still needed to be here, sitting at the bar, surrounded by all the fridges and the sake inside. I need to feel that vibe, that feeling of familiarity. As I don't know exactly Master would decide to retire, I need to be here as many times as I can before I'm no longer able to come.

Bijofu Junmai Daiginjo Yumebakari (美丈夫 純米大吟醸 夢許), 2024, from isshobin - the nose was nice and fragrant, with a touch of sweet fermented rice lees, and a faint nose of banana, along with perhaps some muscat grapes. Pretty nice and elegant.

Tokyo 2024 day 5: the god of tempura

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On a trip to Tokyo 10 years ago, one of the places we visited was Mikawa Zezankyo (みかわ 是山居). Saotome Tetsuya (早乙女哲哉) is sometimes referred to as "the god of tempura" in the same manner that Ono Jiro (小野二郎) is referred to as "the god of sushi", and that visit 10 years ago left a lasting impression on me. When it came time to look for a place for tempura on this trip, I thought it would be nice to go for a return visit, especially since Foursheets wasn't there with me the first time around.

While seats at the restaurant can be booked via TableCheck - which is the only way first time customers are able to book - counter seats can only booked for the 5 p.m. seating. Well... if I'm coming back, I definitely want to be at the counter watching Saotome-san at work. Which was why we are having an early dinner tonight.

There was a good mix of locals and tourists at our seating, but once again we were seated closest to the entrance - just like my first visit. Oh well...

Our starter included some very creamy tofu with miso and marinated greens.

There was also a cube of conger eel jelly (穴子の煮凝り).

Tokyo 2024 day 5: nigiri for lunch

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Everything on our schedule is shifted a little early today, and we needed a quick and early lunch to fit into that schedule. It was fortuitous, then, that Geruhage very kindly offered me his 11 a.m. booking at Sushitokoro Yamato (鮨処 やまと) this morning. It's one of his newer discoveries and he was so impressed with this place that he insisted that I go try it.

I have never had the pleasure of dining at Nihonbashi Kakigaracho Sugita (日本橋蠣殻町 すぎた), so knowing that Yasui Yamato (安井大和) spent 5 years there and, when he chose to open up his own shop, received the blessing of Sugita-san, kinda felt like I was getting the consolation prize. And of course I have full confidence that we would enjoy our meal given the high praise that Geruhage heaped on the chef.

The restaurant, like so many others in Japan, is on the street level in a nondescript building. One can barely guess that this is the door to a restaurant by looking at the wood-and-glass door before the place official opens, because that's when someone comes out and hangs up the noren (暖簾) bearing the name of the establishment.

Tokyo 2024 day 4: Bonneau and birdie

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It's been more than a year and a half, and I'm back together with my Tokyo gang for another round of wines. This time around H-man booked us a private room at YAKITORI燃, which specializes in Californian wines and is, apparently, happy to let us bring more than 1 or 2 bottles to dinner. For someone who normally stays away from yakitori joints due to her disinterest in tasteless chickens and a dislike of innards, Foursheets is having her second yakitori dinner in just 3 days. We did tell the restaurant that she wishes to avoid innards, so they offered her substitute skewers.

The Moe Course (燃コース) includes 7 skewers, a warm dish, a cold dish, a carb dish, plus dessert for a pretty reasonable price.

Oden (おでん) - with tofu, egg, maitake (舞茸), and spinach.

Tokyo 2024 day 4: Instagram-famous tonkatsu

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Over the years, the core group of alumni from my high school in Tokyo living in Hong Kong has gradually shrunk, as friends move back home to be with family. A few guys have relocated back to Tokyo, and I'm taking the opportunity on this trip to meet up with them. While I had originally thought about going back to a curry shop I visited a few years ago, or even checking out a biryani restaurant I had heard about, I eventually left the choice up to the locals.

I was pleasantly surprised that my friend suggested lunch at Tonkatsu Marushichi (とんかつ 丸七), as it was kinda on my "hit list" for Tokyo. The place is "Instagram-famous" thanks to its very thick cuts of tonkatsu (とんかつ), and I always wondered whether the pork cutlet actually tasted good.

Since no bookings could be made for this popular chain of restaurants, I suggested that we visit the Fukagawa Fudo (深川不動) branch as they have 14 seats at the counter, versus 8 seats at the nearby honten or 6 seats at the Ginza branch. This would increase our chance of getting seated early and, hopefully, in the first round.

Foursheets and I arrived 15 minutes before the official opening time of 11 a.m. and there were 4 other tourists with their suitcases at the front of the line. I guess that fits with their Instagram fame. We were relieved that we would be seated in the first round, and I got to spend some time chatting with my alumni friends while we waited for the doors to open. Meanwhile, a long line started to develop while we waited.

I was surprised that the restaurant only opened up and seated us around 11:30 a.m., which was 30 minutes late and quite unusual for Japan. As we had pre-ordered everything while waiting in line, the cooks inside simply waited until they had fried all the pork cutlets for everyone in the first round, then served us within a couple of minutes after being seated. Well, I would have preferred to wait for my food while sitting down inside and not stand outside for an extra half hour...

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BABY, THIS IS WHAT YOU CAME FOR! OF COURSE I chose the thickest cut, as did the other 2 guys. Foursheets, though, took the "half portion" of the same cut of pork, so she "only" had 180 grams instead of 300 grams of pork.

Tokyo 2024 day 3: Isojiman, Mon Amour

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The main reason for taking this trip to Tokyo was to see an old friend. My first visit to Tamanegiya (酒たまねぎや) came in the summer of 2010, and ever since that fateful night, I have made sure to visit Master on every single subsequent visit to Tokyo. Nine visits over the space of 14 years may not sound like much, but my relationship with this place is longer and more meaningful than with any other hospitality establishment in all of Japan.

On my first visit back there last year after a 3-year absence due to the pandemic, Master mentioned that he was thinking to close up shop and retire this year, as he would be turning 70. That was, of course, not good news for long-time fans like myself, and I resolved to come back to see him before the place becomes history.  

Master organizes around a dozen or so vertical tastings each year of sakes from breweries he is friendly with, drawing on his extensive cellar to showcase a single bottling in a way that few others could accomplish. Usually the president or the toji (杜氏) of the brewery would also be present. I had thought about joining one of these events in the past, but for various reasons I chose not to pull the trigger. Until now.

Today I joined about 20 others for a tasting of Isojiman Junmai Daiginjo Nakatori 35 Adagio (磯自慢 純米大吟醸 中取り 35 アダージョ), covering 16 vintages beginning from the very first in 2009 to the 2024 vintage that has literally just been released. As if these weren't enough, Master has thrown in an additional two bottles to make it even more interesting.

Photo credit: Kinoshita Takayoshi

After shelling out a big wad of cash to Master just outside the door, I walked into one of the function room at Hotel Metropolitan Edmont to find 3 tables set up and a wall of sake. Since it's free seating, I hurriedly put my bag down and saved seats for Geruhage and V as well. As luck would have it, we were seated at the same table as brewery president Teraoka Yohji (寺岡洋司).

Tokyo 2024 day 3: Instagram-famous tongue

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In preparation for a heavy drinking session this afternoon, I have very wisely scheduled a very big lunch to make sure my stomach is full and can handle all the alcohol. 29 Terrace (29テラス) is a place I found thanks to it being "Instagram famous", and when I saw a video of their ox tongue stuffed with spring onions I knew I wanted to come and try it. As V also needed a big lunch before joining me for this afternoon's festivities, I figured he should come along with us.

Even though we were the first to be seated today, I wanted to make sure that we got the signature ox tongue, so I pre-booked the most expensive set menu. It looked like a lot of beef to take down, especially for lunch, but I figured what the hay...

Korean salad (チョレギサラダ)

Kimchi (キムチの盛り合わせ)

Yukhoe (ユッケ) - this was pretty good with all the diced spring onions.

Tokyo 2024 day 2: Takasaka chicken

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I haven't seen Geruhage since my little detour to Kyoto earlier this year, and a lot has happened since then. We met up for dinner tonight at Yakitori Kyotamba (焼とり 京丹波), and I managed to rope in V for our little soirée. I'm really happy that he looked well and hasn't slowed down much, and even looks chic in his new accessory. 

Takasaka chicken (高坂鶏) is one of the famous breeds used in yakitori, and it's rare to find a restaurant like this where everything is done using this particular breed, as often a restaurant will use it for a few skewers only. We were pretty excited to try this place for the first time.

We were presented with a menu in English for the Chef's selected course:

A plate of assorted Takasaka chicken sasimi aged for 5 days (高坂鶏の刺身) - this included a slice each of thigh (もも), kelp seasoned breast (ささみ昆布締め), and fatty liver (白肝) along with some gelée. The abundance of perilla flowers added wonderful fragrance to mask any potential pungent flavors.

Tokyo 2024 day 2: pizza day

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After a night of insomnia, I really needed some coffee this morning. I had planned to hit a few Instagram-famous places on this trip, and it starts with a kissaten (喫茶店) famous for its crème caramel (プリン). Hekkerun (ヘッケルン) opened more than 50 years ago, and the place certainly looks like it's been around for a while... even from the outside.

Unfortunately while I was rearranging our itinerary and moved this visit from another day to this morning, I had forgotten to check which days of the week this place actually opens... and they're closed on Saturdays. So I've come all this way for nothing! Well, we still needed coffee, and ended up at a Caffé Veloce nearby.

I took a classic "Morning Set" that is common in cafés in Japan, with a cup of coffee and a ham and cheese toast. This did the job of getting some caffeine in me so I could get through the rest of the day.

Tokyo 2024 day 1: airline food

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I'm taking my first overseas trip after the end of my self-imposed travel ban, and our first destination is Tokyo. As we were flying JAL today, we got access to the Qantas Lounge at the Hong Kong International Airport and checked it out for the first time. I had done a quick search online as we headed to the airport, and there was something I was really looking forward to.

Unfortunately, the bar only serves up char siu rice (叉燒飯) and other main dishes after 4 p.m., so we were visiting just a tad early for this.

But wait! There's a dim sum cart being pushed around in the lounge! I've never seen that, even in the Cathay Pacific Lounge! I was pretty excited about this, and learned that they offer 2 options daily - one savory and one sweet.

Shenzhen with MO day 2: elevation 388

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After a much-needed and restorative massage at The Spa at the Mandarin Oriental, the team took us on a tour of the Mandarin Oriental Shenzhen to show off some of the facilities and fantastic views. This included taking us up to the rooftop helipad at a height of 388 meters, where we got a 360° view of the city as the sun was setting.

As night fell, we settled into our seats at the counter facing the open kitchen of OPUS 388 for dinner. Chef Alessio Durante is relatively new to Shenzhen, having recently joined from Alain Ducasse at The Morpheus in Macau. I would imagine he's still learning the peculiarities of this market, although the menu that had been prepared had a few interesting things that piqued my interest.

Perrier-Jouët Grand Brut, dégorgée le 22 Janvier 2024 - a little mineral and flint on the nose, and good acidity on the palate.

The dinner started by having our napkins sprayed with a perfume that was meant to smell of bread...

Then came some grissini along with other breads.

A coral from the sea - the amuses bouches were presented on a ceramic coral stand, which certainly made an impression...

Shenzhen with MO day 2: Up the Hill

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Woke up to another beautiful day in Shenzhen, although I didn't get to sleep until very late while watching events unfold in Korea. I finally rolled down (or actually up) to breakfast at Bazaar, the café where guests at the Mandarin Oriental Shenzhen take their morning meal. This is buffet-style but one could also order up some noodles, eggs, or even beef noodle soup for something a little more substantial. I opted for a lighter breakfast so chose none of those.

I was really intrigued by how cheese names are translated in China. Gruyère into "古老也" is a phonetic and slightly funny take, while Emmental being called "大孔芝士" - literally "big hole cheese" had me sideways.

Shenzhen with MO day 1: tapas night

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Believe it or not, after my delicioius lunch earlier today, I actually went to the gym at the Mandarin Oriental Shenzhen for my usual quick run. I can't remember the last time I worked out in a hotel gym while traveling, but it was good to get back to it.

I desperately needed to rehydrate after running, and fortunately the hotel provided me with a bottle of pear with white fungus (银耳雪梨汤), which was very helpful.

After watching the sunset in my room, I headed up to dinner at Tapas 77, with commanding views of the Shenzhen skyline. Chef Ivan Arroyo has had an interesting journey in his culinary career, but now focuses on introducing the local clientele to classic Spanish fare.

Shenzhen with MO day 1: back at The Bay

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On my first trip back to Shenzhen last November, Foursheet and I had a very enjoyable dinner at The Bay by Chef Fei (东湾 - 由辉师傅主理) in the Mandarin Oriental Shenzhen. When an invitation came to spend a couple of days at the hotel, including a meal at the restaurant, I didn't hesitate to say 'YES' once I figured out my travel schedule.

The jouney by car on a weekday morning took just less than 1 hour, and we were greeted by the ladies from the hotel upon arrival. Minutes later I stepped into the Skyline View Suite the hotel had prepared for me, and the view over the city was just fantastic.

After soaking up the calm above the city, it was time to head to The Bay by Chef Fei for our lunch. This time we were placed in one of the private dining rooms and not in the main dining room. A few of the nibbles were already laid out on the table when I arrived.

Six stars in Kowloon

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Chef Sung Anh (안성재) has become a global household name this year, thanks to his part in the Netflix series Culinary Class Wars. Although he was already well-known in the culinary world after opening Mosu in Seoul and receiving 3 Michelin stars, it was only after the airing of the Netflix show that those who don't regularly patronize fine dining establishments became familiar with his name.

Mosu Hong Kong opened in the first half of 2022 while Hong Kong's borders were still closed, and I've had the opportunity to dine there twice - although I've not been back in some time. When it was announced that Chef Sung would be in town for a collaboration with Jimmy Lim of JL Studio - making it "6 stars" in the kitchen - I was pretty excited to see how the menu would look like. I had thought about grabbing a table when booking opened, but hesitated as I was still unsure of my travel plans around this time. Thankfully an invitation came to join a tasting today with other media and "KOLs", and I happily crossed the harbor on a beautiful day for lunch.

I was a little apprehensive about the seating arrangements today, as things didn't work out so well the last time I accepted an invitation to join a tasting at one of restaurants from this group. Thankfully they seated me with the boss man, who got so tired of my company that he started to socialize with guests at other tables...

We started with a few small bites from both kitchen teams:

The welcome drink was a Korean rice wine, with grains of (glutinous?) rice, cinnamon, ginger, and interestingly lemongrass for a touch of Southeast Asia.

Lucky 14

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I haven't seen much of DaRC and Ro Ro this year due to their busy travel schedule, and as we met up for a casual dinner a few weeks ago, we realized there would be limited chances we could see each other for the rest of the year. So they very graciously added me to the guest list for tonight's dinner at my favorite private dining facility, and the group would eventually grow to a party of 14.

Our host arranged the menu with Chef Tak, which are full of the classics that I have become familiar over the years. The highlight, though, would undoubtedly be the snake soup, which is only offered when the reptiles are in season during this cooler part of the year. I was definitely very excited.

1996 Bruno Paillard Assemblage, dégorgée en Janvier 2006, en magnum - the acidity was quite nice on the palate. The wine was starting to show some maturity but still tasted youthful and lively. On the nose there was a little flint, a little sugar cane, and a hint of straw. Overall this was rather elegant.

Leisurely dim sum lunch

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I'm doing my small part in helping my friend eat her way around Hong Kong, and today we're at Forum Restaurant (富臨飯店) for some dim sum. It's something that my friend has sorely missed while being away from Hong Kong, and she's finally getting her fix. The restaurant was surprisingly full at lunch today, with all tables occupied in the main dining room downstairs, and Jacky busy pouring wines for a big wine crowd in one of the private rooms, a few of which were also full.

Seeing there were just two of us and that we wanted to try as many dishes as possible, the staff informed the kitchen and for most of the dishes, we were served only one piece for each of us. This was very thoughtful.

Deep-fried radish cake stuffed with preserved meat (蘿蔔絲酥餅) - I love ordering this for visitors, as the crispy and delicate pastry shell can be fantastic. The shell wasn't as perfect today, but still a nice experience.

The shredded radish and diced ham inside were very, very flavorful. The radish was particularly sweet.

Latin with Spanish

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It was exactly 3 months ago that our Gang of Pfour washed down some Italian food with a few bottles of Italian wines, so we were now due for another meeting. I was surprised to learn that neither Ms. Hurricane nor Wai Gor had ever been to MONO, and it's been much too long since I last saw Ricardo - both of which definitely need rectifying.

I had a panic attack about an hour before dinner started. Foursheets is currently taking some Chinese meds, and doctor's orders are for her to avoid a whole slew of ingredients in her diet. I hurriedly messaged Ricardo, who very kindly promised to do what they can to accommodate her. And they certainly did.

Seeing how it was our friends' first visit, I suggested that they take the Journey instead of the Soul menu, as there was a course that no one should leave without trying.

Mexican infladita / corn / bafun uni / tonburi - I was here for an event last month so I've already had a taste. The purple corn infladita came topped with some summer cypress seeds (とんぶり).

The bar in the 'hood

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A friend is back in town for the first time in 5 years and is eating her way through some of the city's best restaurants. While I would love to join her for every meal, I have decided that I would only do one big meal per day these days, and agreed to accompany her to Neighborhood for her first meal.

The Kitchen Nazi has not let people (translation: me) sit at the bar counter for a while now, but as the restaurant was busy on a Thursday night, he decided to put us there as it also enabled him to have more of a conversation and interaction with our friend.

Of course, with the Kitchen Nazi being himself, he arranged everything for our friend and there was never any question of us ordering what we wanted to eat...

Boiled artichoke / liver mousse / truffle - having this for the second time in a row, and that liver mousse packs a real punch when it comes to richness and bitterness. I do like it, though.

Rainy expedition

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Mr. and Mrs. Locust are back in town for the first time in a year, and as we kinda missed each other a year ago, we've only seen each other once since the borders opened. Tonight was their "free night" away from family, and I was asked to pick a place for us to eat out. Having known Mr. Locust for more than 30 years, I pretty much know which types of places are up his alley. And in spite of the distance we'd have to travel, I really thought Sun Hon Kee Restaurant (新漢記) would be something he'd appreciate.

Unfortunately for us, the presence of a few typhoons and tropical depressions around meant it started to rain in the late afternoon, and ended up with a downpour in parts of town. We changed our original plans of taking the train up to Fanling and ended up taking a taxi to dinner, which ended up costing a pretty penny.

Brother Hon was in da haus and Foursheets immediately struck up a conversation with him. While we ordered a few dishes that we felt were "must try", the boss added a few dishes which were off-menu for us.

Pork tendon with shallot oil and soy dipping sauce (白烚豬前腿筋) - I can't imagine bringing someone here without ordering this up, and as always, the strips were very springy and crunchy. This was also VERY strong in terms of their pork flavor. Perfect with the soy-based garlic dipping sauce on the side.

A good day not to die

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Some 6 months after our last relaxing lunch, my friend pinged me again to arrange another date. He proposed two venues, with one being a private club and the other being Restaurant Petrus. I mentioned to my friend that Uwe usually enjoys killing me and that it's been a while since he last got the chance, so naturally my friend was kind enough to make that booking.

I was really hoping to surprise Uwe so for the first time ever, I didn't tell him that I was coming in. Unfortunately, my friend ended up alerting him without specifically mentioning my name, so the cat was out of the bag.

I had been dining out a lot this month, so I asked Uwe for a reprieve from the usual. Much to my surprise - and perhaps on account of my friend - he agreed. There would only be three savory courses today. My friend did tell Uwe that he would like some mushrooms...

Vegetable waffle with vegetable dip - the acidity from the vinegar and the mild mustard flavor were nice.

Champagne cork - oh yes... I remember this from earlier this year. Love the Comté cream inside this gougère.

Hidden in the clouds

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I have long had a policy of not visiting restaurants associated with people I consider assholes, as they most certainly are not deserving of any of my hard-earned money. Over the years I have heard different stories about a certain chef well-known in town for drinking with customers at his sushi counter, so I've never had much interest in getting another taste of his cuisine.

Years after it opened and rebranded itself, I finally sat down in front of the main counter at Sushi Kumogaku (寿し雲隠) - at the invitation of Mr. Chichi, who owns a share in the restaurant. Truth be told, the boss invited The Great One to dinner but needed a "plus one", so that became my job for the evening. I also had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Giona for the first time.

I actually don't know anything about the current taisho (大将) Kin (健), so I had zero expectations. But I figured that the boss is well-aware of my reputation, so the fact that he extended the invitation means he's got sufficient confidence in the guy.

2013 Dom Pérignon - the nose was really nice and toasty with lots of brioche, and the acidity on the palate was nice, too.

As expected, we started with a few otsumami (おつまみ):

Thread-sail filefish with liver sauce (皮剥ぎ 肝和え) - I jokingly complained to the boss afterwards that instead of serving us "real" caviar, they used the chaper, plant-based substitute that is summer cypress seeds (とんぶり). In reality, I really enjoyed this first course, as the flavors of the liver sauce was much lighter than I had expected. I suppose the use of perilla flowers (花穂紫蘇) also made it a little more elegant.

Oysters and goose

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The King is passing through Hong Kong on his way to sightseeing in China, and asked to meet up over dinner before boarding his high speed train tomorrow morning. I tried to book a few high-end Cantonese restaurants located in 5-star hotels on the Kowloon side, only to find that the first three I checked were all fully-booked for the evening, even more than a week out! After some discussion with our visitors, I decided to take them to our new favorite Chiuchow place Noble Imperial (尚御潮滷居). This seems fitting since I last saw the King at Sheung Hing Chiu Chow Restaurant (尚興潮州飯店) just days before its closing.

This would now be our fourth visit in the last 3 months or so, and Foursheets is now on familiar terms with boss lady so that dishes are being pre-ordered via messaging...

Marinated goose webs (滷水鵝掌) - very nice flavors of master stock (滷水).

A Pic-y Friday

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It's been more than a decade since I spent 2 nights at Maison Pic (now known as Hôtel Pic) in Valence and dined both at the gastronomic restaurant with three Michelin stars and the casual bistro 7 par Anne-Sophie Pic (now renamed Bistrot André). My one regret was that for our main dinner, we all chose to take the Collection Pic menu which featured more classic dishes from the family's history - thereby robbing me of the chance to get a full taste of Anne-Sophie's own cuisine. She did open an outlet in Singapore just before the pandemic hit, but it wasn't on my hit list and now it's gone.

I wasn't particularly interested on any of the outlets when The Forty-Five opened last year, figuring that most of them were overhyped and not worth my attention. I did wonder a little about Cristal Room by Anne-Sophie Pic, as I have heard positive feedback from friends. But I never took the step of walking in.

I was a little surprised when PR8 extended the invitation for me to join lunch at the restaurant today (especially after my dig at him for the initial press release), but I figured there's been enough time for the kitchen to work out the kinks after opening, so perhaps there wouldn't be any nasty surprises. The surprise, though, came in the form of my dining companions - with whom I shared a table just two days ago.

Billecart Salmon Pic - nice and floral nose. Good acidity on the palate with a little bit of ripeness.

We started with three small bites:

A very different Chindian

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For the last few years it seems that PR8 has been working overdrive to promote "4 hands" collaboration between kitchen teams, sometimes with very different cuisines. At times it almost appeared to me that nothing was out of bounds and the crazier the better. This cultimated in a joining together of Forum Restaurant (富臨飯店) and Chaat. I was not a participant and, honestly, was somewhat skeptical of the results. PR8 was, of course, adamant that it was genius. But as the old Chinese proverb says, "A dog cannot spit out ivory from its mouth (狗嘴裡吐不出象牙)".

Now that Chef Manav Tuli has set up Leela, there is a new collaboration with a Chinese restaurant - this time with Yong Fu (甬府), one of my favorite restaurants in town. Regardless of whether the idea did actually come from Chef Manav or Chef Liu Zhen (刘震), I will always blame the hare-brained idea on PR8...

Tonight was meant to be a preview of the actual event so a few of us guinea pigs were invited and placed in the private dining room at Leela. I did ask PR8 whether there would be any bitches in the room, but he wasn't very forthcoming beyond giving me a couple of names he knew I wouldn't have issues with...

The menu looked pretty long, so I was glad I had a light lunch in preparation for the onslaught tonight.

Bollinger Special Cuvée - good acidity but pretty simple and flat on the palate. Later on this showed a little bit of Chinese salted plums.

Rooted in Bangkok

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I received a message from The Great One asking me to join her at lunch today. Our friend Vincent Thierry is back in town for a few days, doing a collaboration with the team at Racines to celebrate the restaurant's second anniversary, and he's invited us to come to lunch. Although I've had a couple of chances to catch up with Vincent over the last 2 years in Bangkok, it has been 5 years since his eventful trip to Hong Kong - when the Hong Kong International Airport closed down from protests and he had to return to Bangkok by detouring to Macau.

Romain Dupeyre had worked with Vincent from their time together at The Lebua in Bangkok, and has now done a second collaboration with the head chef from Caprice. I was curious to see what these two would cook up, but I had full confidence in anything Vincent chooses to stick his hands into.

"Oreo" - this version of the famed treat comes with Parmesan cream sandwiched between two Parmesan cookies made with truffle jus. The cream in the middle had really nice milky and cheesy flavors.