All posts tagged: fusion

The House on Sathorn (BK): A Turkish-Asian Tasting Journey

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Bangkok and Lima are no doubt my favourite cities to experience food in general, but especially “fine dining”. If you read my feature on The Maker’s The Hit List, or Fine Dining Redefined in Hong Kong, you’ll know that this concept often makes me cringe. But a number of restaurants on the World’s 50 Best or Asia’s 50 Best lists stray far away from the white tablecloths stereotype of fine dining, and focus on creating an experience of a meal. For example, the experience at World’s #5 Central in Lima taught me everything I wanted to know about unique Peruvian ingredients at different altitudes. Asia’s #36 The Dining Room of The House on Sathorn in Bangkok brought me a similarly impressive experience, teaching me much more than just Turkish cuisine, but also how to get creative. The Dining Room of The House on Sathorn As soon as I got off my Uber to check in at W Bangkok, this beautiful house next door had my full attention as I eagerly turned to a friend, to ask “what …

Bib n Hops: Casual Korean with Subtly Unique Flavours

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There are definitely enough Korean ‘fusion’ restaurants in Hong Kong, including Moyo, Momojein and Kobab & Koshi, just to name a few that I did enjoy. But just when we thought the train of modern Korean restaurants had long set off, Chef Alvin Leung from One Michelin star Bo Innovation introduces yet another casual ‘urban’ take on Korean food. Casual, Semi Al Fresco Vibes Located in Wan Chai, Bib n Hops lives up to the standard of good vibes its neighbours (22 ships, Ham & Sherry) have brought to Ship Street, as they played epic hip hop throwbacks like No Diggity as we walked in. But unlike their neighbouring restaurants, the seating arrangement was very comfortable and pretty spacious too. They also take bookings. This makes the restaurant a good choice for medium-sized group gatherings and dates alike. They also have a nice spacious outdoor area for drinks. Kimchi Supreme Fries – HK$98 We had decided on a few items already and contemplated whether we were ordering too much. But who could say no to kimchi fries!? From the …

Momojein: Creative Take on Korean Food (Lunch & Dinner)

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Korean fusion or ‘modern Korean’ is no new trend. It was super hit about 1.5 years ago – that’s when I first tried Italian-Korean restaurant, Moyo – but the hype around kimchi-everything has definitely tapered off. Fads come and go but Momojein’s creative take on traditional Korean flavours goes far beyond kimchi grilled cheeses, focuses on quality and is definitely here to stay. A Korean foodie friend has talked about Momojein since the day it opened last year. She’s eaten there about three times and kept urging me to try it. Finally I gathered some colleagues to go with me – in fact I ended up going twice in one week, for dinner then lunch. So let’s talk about both! New ‘Season 2’ Menu for Dinner I was a tad confused and disappointed when I arrived because the menu items didn’t match the recommendations my Korean friend had whatsapped me with. It turns out they had just launched their new menu which was almost completely revamped: their Season 2 menu. Unfortunately I can’t make comparisons to their original Season …

Viet Kitchen: New Menu Items Better than the Pho

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When I first visited Viet Kitchen, I was pumped for the beef pho, having read some good reviews. I was ultimately a tad disappointed because it wasn’t really my kind of pho. While the beef soup base was outstandingly full of flavours, it was the soft pho and beef cuts that I didn’t love too much. But pho aside, their other dishes, especially some of the new items, turned out to be good surprises. They’re not traditional Vietnamese choices at all, but are delicious and definitely interesting to try. Salmon tartare – HK$108 *must order* This salmon tartare reminded me not to take authentic-ness too seriously as I’m certain the chef had no intention of serving traditional Vietnamese dishes, rather modern food with influences from different cuisines. With that in mind, this new item on their menu doesn’t taste very Vietnamese-like, but had strong Asian herby tastes to it. I loved the taro chips too! It’s a refreshing dish to kickstart the meal. Caramelised Chicken Wings – HK$88 Our group had many compliments for the …

Recipe for Kimchi Grilled Cheese and Kimchi Carbonara

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Asian fusion, especially kimchi-everything, seems to be strongly trending in Hong Kong these days. Having sampled such fusion dishes myself, such as the kimchi bruschetta from Moyo, I do understand the addiction. That’s why I’ve even gone ahead to try these kimchi-fused dishes at home! Apart from actually making the kimchi (I’m not Korean enough for that yet), incorporating it into everyday comfort food turned out to be pretty easy, straight forward and a great complement. See my two recipes for kimchi grilled cheese and kimchi carbonara below. Kimchi Grilled Cheese Ingredients: 2 slices of bread A handful of grated cheddar cheese A small handful of kimchi Butter Method: 1. Butter one side of each slice of bread 2. Mix the kimchi and grated cheese in an oven-proof bowl, shove it in the oven (I put it in my mini toaster oven) until cheese is melted (about 3-5 mins) 3. Spread the mix onto one slice of bread on the non-buttered side 4. Place on the pan on medium heat (butter side down), place other …

Try This: Mentaiko Pasta for Lunch at Tabibito

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I came here for dinner once and absolutely loved all the dishes we ordered, especially the Lobster Toastie. Given that dinners here can cost about HK$500 per person, coming here for lunch is one way you can taste their delicious Japanese fusion dishes on a more wallet-friendly budget. Of course, the menu is very different though. Lobster Toastie – Special item served during dinner I actually fell in love with mentaiko pasta at Baby Cafe in iSQUARE (now closed), which was featured in Fusion pastas that actually taste amazing. After being thoroughly impressed by Tabibito’s food during dinner one time, their mentaiko pasta definitely met my high expectations of being creamy, tasty and with a good amount of ‘crunch’ from the roe. It’s HK$80 for a lunch set with miso soup and they have a few other options on their menu too. Mentaiko pasta (served during lunch) The downside is of course that it’s quite inconveniently located in PoHo (upper Sheung Wan). See more “Try this” articles here. Tabibito 20 Po Hing Fong Sheung Wan Phone: 2547 2833 …

Cafe Gray Deluxe: Fine dining with delicious wines and breathtaking view

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Little things count. And Cafe Gray certainly knows this. Their attention to details during our dinner was really what made the overall experience so memorable compared with other fine dining meals I’ve had in Hong Kong. The restaurant is located on the 49th floor of Upper House – a relatively new boutique hotel in Admiralty atop Pacific Place – which translates into a beautiful view of Victoria Harbour. They serve western dishes with hints of fusion touches (African, Chinese, Indian…). They charge HK$725 for their four course “Market Menu” which is a relatively inexpensive price tag considering its location, ambience, food and service. Notably, their sommelier was super knowledgeable and the wine pairing worked very well with our dishes (highly recommended). All in all, it’s an excellent choice to treat your loved ones on a special occasion. There are two choices for each course (see the Market Menu on their website) and we picked all of them (there were two of us) to sample them all. To be honest, you can’t really go wrong with any of …