Caprice in August, part 2: Le Pin duo

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It's been exactly two days since some of the MNSC boys last saw each other, and here we are again tonight, sitting around a table blind tasting wines. It's my turn again to play host, and for the second time in two weeks I'm back at Caprice with the Hairy Chevalier. With a smaller group tonight compared to last week, we could comfortably fit into the Chef's Table and hang out near the cheese cellar.

With a bunch of old fogeys at the table who bitch about long menus, I asked my friend for a short service. I was serving Champagne to start plus 3 flights of reds, so 4 courses ought to do it for these guys. Focus on quality, not quantity.

As is the same with every meal, the amuses bouches arrive in la boîte à bijoux:

Foie gras tartlet

Lobster tartlet

Crispy anchovy roll

Clueless at the club

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The MNSC boys are doing two dinners this week, two days apart. We almost made it three in a row, but alas, it wasn't meant to be. The Ox played host tonight, and we found ourselves back in The Grill at the Hong Kong Country Club.

After a weekend of stuffing myself in Shantou, I was more than happy to take things easy tonight and order à la carte. Soup and salad for me, then... But our host ordered a few starters for us to share.

Jambon persillé - a classic dish I am always happy to see. So nostalgic to see aspic with ham, and the fragrance of parsley just works so well with the gribiche sauce.

L'Ami du vin

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After a year of inactivity, MNSC is playing catch up this year. So for the second week in a row, the boys gathered over dinner to blind taste a few bottles. We haven't seen much of Dr. Poon since the onset of the pandemic, so it was good of him to be hosting tonight. Knowing his close connection to Sébastien Allano, it's not surprising that he chose Ami as the venue.

It is perhaps surprising to myself that I have yet to visit the restaurant despite it having opened some four years ago. I dined at Épure several times, and enjoyed Nicholas Boutin's cuisine. After handing over the reins of Épure and setting up Ami, though, he somehow fell off my radar... as friends I dine out with don't seem to mention the place. This would be a good time to redress the situation.

We were, naturally, seated in the private dining area. Unfortunately, the soundproofing was practically non-existent, so the diners outside were probably still subject to our conversations...

I was a little hungry, so the sourdough and buckwheat and genmai (玄米) smoked butter was a welcome relief.

Rayas does British

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I was a little bummed about missing the MNSC dinner that Pineapple hosted on Christmas Day. He is a perennial generous host and I was envious of my fellow MNSC members for being able to taste the fantastic wines he opened. But truth the told, these days my priority is to spend more time with the Parental Units, and Christmas is just family time for me. I made the same decision to miss the MNSC dinner for Pineapple's 30th birthday in order to travel to Japan with family.

As we hadn't been holding MNSC tastings for a whole 11 months last year, it was decided we needed to catch up this year... and Lord Rayas took responsibility for hosting one tonight at Roganic. I had forgotten that he likes Simon Rogan's cuisine, but I happy to come back after my second visit to 2.0 a few months ago. Tonight I would get to try some of the dishes I didn't choose from my last visit.

Raw Spanish mackerel, oyster emulsion, pickled kohlrabi and smoked roe - very refreshing, almost a little cheesy.

The saffron club

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The new MNSC cycle actually started at the end of last year, but I had to skip Pineapple's customary Christmas dinner so I could be with the Parental Units. While it definitely was a bummer to have missed out on some fantastic wines, these days I wouldn't miss spending Christmas with mom for the world.

We needed to get another session done early in the new year, so a few of us gathered for a quiet tasting hosted by Juliano. I'd never had the chance to check out the Hong Kong Golf and Tennis Academy Town Club right in the middle of Central, so I was kinda looking forward to dinner tonight at Saffron.

Hokkaido scallop tartare, uni, avocado - this was probably my first time coming across avocado balls, and we've got a few tongues of creamy sea urchin, what seemed to be crème fraîche at the bottom together with the scallop, along with some crunchy cucumber and ice plant. The chilled soup delivered a healthy dose of fruity acidity, which made this a very refreshing dish and helped stimulate our appetites.

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.

Big reds for big meat

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It has, once again, been much too long since the MNSC boys gathered for one of our tastings, and I'm glad we finally got around to it tonight. It's Ox's turn and we have found ourselves at the Grill Room of the Hong Kong Country Club. The food has always been decent here, so I'm happy to be back.

Seafood cocktail

Beef bone marrow, sourdough with Bordier butter and chives - roasted bone marrow always makes me drool.

And bone marrow on bread is just always so perfect.

Da Doctor iz in da haus

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It's been more than 3 years since some of us were last in the presence of Dr. Poon, as he hasn't been back in Hong Kong during the pandemic. While the rest of us have had sporadic gatherings of the MNSC gang, he hasn't been able to join us for any of those. We have heard many tales of his wanderings, including one regarding a bottle of fake wine in London, but tonight we finally got the chance to meet the man, the legend, our friend... once again.

Our friend decided to host a casual dinner at MIÁN (紅棉), and I was pretty happy to return. The food is pretty decent and there are a few dishes I am always happy to have.

Mian's roasted barbecue Iberico pork (別不同叉燒) - with a ton of shredded coriander coating the pork.

The best suckling pig gets better

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Here in Hong Kong, we are slowly emerging from the deep winter that is the Covid pandemic. One impact has been the reduction of gatherings with the MNSC boys, resulting from factors such as social distancing measures as well as quarantine requirements leading to prolonged absences by some of us. So it is that tonight would be only the second tasting of the current "MNSC year"... As I wasn't feeling very inspired to come up with a lineup, Curry very graciously offered to host.

I was pretty happy when I learned that dinner would be at Moon Bay Chinese Cuisine (灣悅 賞 • 中菜). I have heard some rave reviews from friends, especially regarding the roast suckling pig that used to be the centerpiece of many of my meals at Seventh Son (家全七福) and Fook Lam Moon (福臨門).

Barbecued suckling pig (皇牌大紅乳豬全體) - well, of course we would start with the pièce de résistance. One always does in a place like this.

A tea house feast without tea

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It has been just about 6 months since the MNSC boys got together for a formal tasting, as we waited for some of us to return from our various trips out of Hong Kong. Lord Rayas finally got his chance to play host, and I wasn't the least bit surprised when we were asked to show up at Woo Cheong Tea House (和昌飯店).

Deep-fried homemade turnip puff (日本手作蘿蔔千絲酥) - this was... meh. The crispy shell was rather powdery, and the dough just inside was kinda soggy, almost as if it wasn't properly cooked. Didn't expect to see shreds of carrots inside along with radish.

A golden finale

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A few hours after my big lunch, I joined some friends at a private residence for a dinner that I wasn't hungry for. This was our last MNSC gathering for the cycle, and thanks to the government restrictions it could not be held in a restaurant. The upside surprise was that our food was catered by Woo Cheong Tea House (和昌飯店), the relatively new Cantonese restaurant I had visited at the end of last year.

I was pretty amazed at how extensive the menu was tonight, and I'm glad my friend's home kitchen is properly set up for this... because what we had tonight was pretty close to what we would have experienced had we dined at the restaurant.

We started with a plate of appetizers which, much to our surprise, were four different types of shellfish:

Pan-fried crispy honey glazed oyster (蜜餞金蠔) - this was indeed a little sweet. I also spotted a little bling.

Chinese for Christmas

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Another year of not traveling during Christmas means I am, once again, able to accept Pineapple's kind invitation to his birthday dinner.  MNSC hasn't had a gathering for a few months now, so it was a good opportunity to meet up and taste some good wines together.  As a break from tradition, dinner was at the brand spanking new Woo Cheong Tea House (和昌飯店) instead of the I-Hate-the-Handover-Club.

Pineapple tells us that this is one of the few places in town where no MSG or chicken powder (which usually contains MSG) are used in the kitchen. Apparently they asked Chef Edmond Ip and the team to create the stocks without those key ingredients found in most Chinese kitchens, and factored the extra effort and cost into the pricing.

We started with a trio of appetizers:

Marinated clam, soy sauce (醬油花甲)

Homemade daikon puff (手作蘿蔔絲酥餅) - stuffing was made with Japanese radish. Kinda mushy.

Bad company

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The MNSC boys found ourselves sitting around the same table again just 3 weeks after our last gathering.  Since a couple of us will be out of town for the next few weeks, we decided to notch up one more tasting before the end of the year creeps upon us.  I was ever so happy that our host Curry Jayer chose to bring us back to Megan's Kitchen (美味廚), a place I have not visited for a few years.

The food has always been pretty good here, and I've always enjoyed my experiences on the few occasions I have been here. Glad to get another taste tonight.

We started with a sextet of appetizers:

Marinated jellyfish (蔥花拌海蜇)

Braised beef shank (鹵水鮮牛腱)

50+1

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So... it was finally time to hold my "birthday MNSC" for the boys. I had been planning a big one for my 50th last year, but of course just about everyone's plans got derailed by this thing called Covid-19... So I kept the bottles set aside in the cellar for another year, until the time when all of us - well, except for Dr Poon... who is still MIA - could find a date to sit down together.

There was never any question of where this dinner would take place. I trust Hairy Legs and his sommelier Victor to come up with the best selection of dishes to match whatever wines I bring.  So once again we convened in the private room at Caprice for what I hope would be a better lineup of wines than our dinner 3 years ago.

As usual, we started with a trio of amuses bouches which arrived in a jewel box. Some of us were more special than others and had their own individual boxes without having to share with someone else...

Tomato ravioli with Parmesan cookie - topped with black olives. Nice to get some seasonal flavors with this.

Balik salmon with Kristal caviar and crème fraîche

Pita with curry chicken mousse

A night of surprises

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The MNSC boys are trying to get back to a more regular schedule for our gatherings, and The Ox very kindly hosted us after flying back into town for the Easter holidays.  The last time I had a proper meal at The Porn Pawn was a few years ago, so it would be interesting to see what the kitchen is delivering these days.

Burrata, arugula, cherry tomatoes, aged vinegar - this was OK.

Beef carpaccio: Japanese wagyu, truffle - very, very thin. Very well-marbled, and definitely not kosher for my current diet. Pretty tasty, though.

Burgonfusion

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A few hours after stuffing myself with Dominique Ansel's goodies, I joined the MNSC boys for our gathering at the Hong Kong Club.  It's been a while since Gayliao last played host, and we were only too happy to see him in town.

Crab meat salad, turnip, fried Jerusalem artichoke skin, piquillo pepper - didn't expect the crab meat to be packed so densely... and the deep-fried sunchoke skin was a nice touch.  BUT WHY THE FUCK DID THE KITCHEN PUT SUPERMARKET TAKUANZUKE (沢庵漬け) IN THE DISH?!

A classic Bordelais evening

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About two hours after landing in Hong Kong, I found myself back at the Grill Room of the Hong Kong Country Club... ready for another blind tasting with the MNSC boys.  After a weekend of dining in Singapore, I really couldn't care less about the food tonight.  Hell, I came for the wines!

The amuse bouche was crab meat and celeriac.

The sweetbreads were very milky, while the pickled fungus was crunchy and acidic.  There were some blue cheese flavors there somewhere...

The pigeon in the shelter

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The MNSC boys have been a busy bunch this year, and we haven’t really found time to gathering for our tastings. Incredibly, enough of us were able to be available during the few days I am actually in Hong Kong this month… and it didn’t surprise me that Dr. Poon chose to host us at Arbor – which has become his “canteen” in recent times...

I have been here only once, and came away with mixed feelings. So I was really looking forward to trying it again to see what I was missing.

Always start with the warm brioche...

Sazae – the horned turban (栄螺) from Fukuoka (福岡) is steamed in herb oil and topped with pickled mustard seeds.  Came with aioli made from the whelk's liver, which was OK.

No inspiration

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Another month has passed from our last gathering, and we were finally doing our third MNSC tasting of the year.  With three of the boys perennially outside Hong Kong and in Shanghai, it is increasingly difficult to get enough of us together to pop a few bottles.  Given the low turnout tonight, our host Curry decided to serve us some steaks at the American Club.

The butcher platter - I only tasted the mortadella.

The bread was a little bitter thanks to the grilling...

Californian Bong

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It's August and once again, we find ourselves at only our second MNSC dinner of the year.  Just like last year, I was tasked with hosting.  With several chef friends announcing job changes while others go on their summer break, I was at a loss trying to choose a venue for us.  I then explored the somewhat crazy idea of hosting the dinner at Neighborhood, and surprisingly the boys seemed to welcome the idea.

While The Man in White T-shirt is on his European vacation, I have full confidence in the kitchen when it comes to execution.  We just wouldn't have any special fishies - which was fine, because of the wines I would be serving.  Once the logistics for decanters and glasses were resolved, it looked like it could work.

But we weren't gonna be in a private room tonight - as we almost always are - so I cautioned the boys about keeping their voices down and to watch for colorful language.  We don't want to be the assholes that other diners hate.

I noticed a familiar face after I walked through the door.  It was Bong, who used to be our friendly waiter upstairs at On Lot 10.  He's put on a little weight (well, so have I...) and changed from wearing white to wearing black.  I always wondered what had happened to him, but I was happy to see him.

I also noticed a table next to us with a couple of old fogeys, and wondered why they had chosen a restaurant with a rather noisy environment.  One of the older gentlemen looked familiar, but I didn't think much about it.  Two minutes after the appointed time for dinner, the first of the boys finally strolls in.  The Ox clearly noticed the older gentleman at the neighboring table but did not react.  When Pineapple finally arrived, he immediately greeted the tycoon.  That was the point when the boys realized that they REALLY had to behave tonight... at least while uncle was still here.

I had reserved two of the large dishes ahead of time, and picked a few small dishes to go with the wines.

Mochida tomato / salted plum / melon - I had ordered this but cancelled it minutes later, thinking that it would mess with our palates.  But the kitchen had already plated it, so they offered it to us on the house... I love these fruit tomatoes from Mochida Farms (持田農園) for their ripeness and sugar levels, and tonight they came with thin slices of Italian melons. The sweetness worked well with the acidity and savory notes of the salted plum powder.