A little tongue teaser

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It's my last meal in Hong Kong this trip, and I arranged to meet up with 2 lovely ladies for lunch.  For all the buzz this place has created since it opened, I've amazingly managed to stay clear of Linguini Fini.  I guess it was about time that I checked out the place…

I was running really late and wasn't able to check-in first, so I ended up bringing my big duffel bag to the restaurant.  I showed up at the reception on the ground floor, gave them my name for the reservation, and was sent upstairs.  I exited the elevator, and spent a few seconds looking for the ladies.

Having failed to locate the ladies - who had their backs to me - I wondered why none of the staff came up to me to see if I needed any help.  They seemed content to leave me standing around like an idiot…  Finally I asked the two people closest to me for help, saying that I had a reservation and that my friends were already here; could they please help me locate my table.  Blank stares came my way for a few seconds.  After asking for a second time, one of them disappeared, presumably to look up where they had seated my friends with the reservation under my name.

Above and Beyond expectations

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I needed one dim sum lunch on this trip, and met up with a few friends at Above and Beyond (天外天) at Hotel ICON.  This was an interesting location for me, not just because I had never been to the hotel before or that Tsim Sha Tsui East is out of my normal "comfort zone".

I never paid much attention when the hotel first opened for business, and therefore did not realize its background as being owned by the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, or that it is being used as a training ground for students from the university's School of Hotel and Tourism Management.

The restaurant was located on the top floor of the hotel, affording guests views of Victoria Harbor.  We were not seated next to the windows and I had my back to them, but I was still able to enjoy the beautiful skyline thanks to strategically placed angled mirrors.

Trip to the Principal's office

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It's been more than 2 months since the boys of MNSC gathered for dinner, and we finally managed to get 6 out of the 7 of us together last night.  I have never been to the Principal since it opened last year, but it seemed a natural venue for this gathering when one of the principals behind the venture was hosting the dinner.  I was pretty excited to see what was in store for us tonight.

There were some snacks on the table, including gougères, sweet popcorn and macadamia nuts coated with green tea powder.

More of my favorite lamb

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It's Mrs. Tigger's birthday and I'm back in Hong Kong.  We had dinner at the same venue as last year's birthday dinner - 8½ Otto e Mezzo Bombana.  I was very happy, because it's been quite a while since I was able to have some of that delicious lamb…

There was a plan to open a bottle from the birthday girl's birth vintage, but it turned out that a couple of us weren't in the best condition to consume alcohol, so we fêted Mrs. Tigger this year sans alcool.  Uncharacteristic of me, yes, but we'll just save those bottles for future years…

Another Taiwanese Japanese sushi joint

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The Japanese theme continues… and my guests and I were introduced to Jin Fu (錦富日式料理) by their friend.  I'd actually been to this alley restaurant once many years ago, and was curious to go back and try it again.

From the moment we walked in, it was obvious that this was much more local Taiwanese in style.  It also looked more like a neighborhood restaurant.  We were seated at the counter, and asked the chef for omakase.

Taiwanese abalone (九孔) - not a bad way to start.