Tag: food
Megabites: 1 February 2014
Alfresco Terrines and Pâtés 
Almost two years on from an extensive renovation and rebranding the Causeway Bay Centre – the former Sanlitun – has still to imprint itself on many people’s dining radar. But if you enjoy sitting outside and especially if you have kids it’s worth a look as there’s extensive seating on the spacious walkways – all discretely labelled for general public use so you don’t have to actually buy anything to sit down, but expect some dirty looks if you don’t. A couple of reasons to sit-down at Divino Patio’s comfortable chairs are it’s Italian Aperitivo Buffet and this month’s Terrines and Pâtés promotion. The free (upon purchase of a drink) Aperitivo Buffet is typical of the type you’d find in bars across Italy and is full of nibbles including cheese bites, pizza squares, salmon bites, vegetables in tempura, grissini wrapped with salumi’s, polpette (meat balls), fried fish, pork belly and is available nightly from 5:30-8:30.
February’s Terrines and Pâtés promotion includes a country style pâté flavoured with guerande “fleur d sel” at HK$118 per 100 grams; Foie gras terrine and yellow wild mushrooms at HK$138/100grams; a traditional duck pâté at HK$168/100g; and a free range chicken breast and fresh tarragon terrine at HK$128/100g. The pates are served with toasted farm bread, gherkins and garden salad and are paired with a selection of wines and beer from the Italian artisan microbrewery 32 Via dei Birrai.
Divino Patio: Shop !1, 1/F Brim 28 Causeway Bay Centre, 28 Harbour Road, Wanchai, Tel: 2877 3552
Fondue
Locally fondue has in recent years come to mean dipping marshmallows and other confectionary in chocolate and while that’s nice and incredibly sweet the more traditional dipping medium is cheese (An aside, marshmallows and jelly beans dipped in cheese… intriguingly tasty idea….). 
Nightly through February 28 Divino in Central is offering three delicious cheese fondues to share with friends, Fonduta Svizzera ($300/person) comprising 1⁄2 Gruyere and 1⁄2 Vacherine Fribourgeois with a hint of Kirch wine; Fonduta Alla Valdostana ($280/person) using fontina cheese and Fonduta al Gorgonzola ($250/person) which as the name implies, uses gorgonzola. All are served with a selection of toasted bread cubes and fresh vegetables – including lightly poached Brussel sprouts and pumpkin both of which are delicious when dipped and coated in cheese, especially the gorgonzola. Remember to scrape the bowl, the slightly burnt cheese that sticks to the bowl is a crispy oft forgotten delight. All three fonduta are offered paired with wine or Italian artisan beers.
DiVino: G/F, 73 Wyndham Street, Central, Tel: 2167 8883
A Chinese New Year Option
It’s Chinese New Year, the weather’s sunny and you’re stuck for something to do… Why not check out Ocean Park or Disneyland both have a variety of restaurants offering CNY specials and a wealth of other activities to make for an enjoyable day-out. And with the mainland hordes staying north of the border visiting their relatives crowds should be light and meal prices are not too extravagant.
In a Grain of Rice: Food & Culture for South & Southeast Asia
The Asia Society Hong Kong is holding a food festival on Sunday 12 January, 2014 to explore the cultural significance of food, particularly rice, from a variety of sociocultural anthropological perspectives. Join artists, writers, culinary experts and scholars to explore eating as a social activity which reflects social and personal identity. Using all types of rice – including blue rice – as a starting point, the two-part one day festival will explore food as a conduit bringing cultures together, a collective narrative about place and time, desire, satiety, heritage and changing traditions.
The full day event is split into two sections: a morning panel discussion starting at 10:15am and an afternoon food tasting & cooking demonstrations from 1pm.
The speakers for morning session are:
- Tony Cheng, CEO & Founder, Drawing Room Concepts
- Sidney Cheung, Chairperson, Department of Anthropology, Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Peter Cuong Franklin, Chef/Partner, Chôm Chôm
- Rosa Paula “Rochie” Cuevas, Grain Quality and Nutrition Center, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)
- Michael Leung, Founder & Creative Director, HK Honey
- Yoshiko Nakano, Associate Professor, Department of Japanese Studies, University of Hong Kong
- Daisy Tam, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Humanities and Creative Writing Hong Kong Baptist University
While the afternoon cooking demonstrations includes:
- Rice tasting with IRRI
- Asian street food tasting
- Seafood Laksa by Andy Cheng, Lobby Chef of The Peninsula Hong Kong
- Hainan chicken rice demonstration by Tony Cheng
- Shrimp & pork rice paper roll by Peter Cuong Franklin
- Hakka tea cake demonstration by Tsoi Yuen Village residents
In a Grain of Rice: Food & Culture for South & Southeast Asia
When: 12 January, 2014
Morning panel discussions 10:15am – 12:45pm; Afternoon food tasting & cooking demonstrations 1-5pm
Morning panel discussions 10:15am – 12:45pm; Afternoon food tasting & cooking demonstrations 1-5pm
Where: Asia Society Hong Kong Center, 9 Justice Drive, Admiralty
How Much: free registration 10am
More Information: http://asiasociety.org/hong-kong/events/grain-rice-food-culture-south-southeast-asia-afternoon-session
More Information: http://asiasociety.org/hong-kong/events/grain-rice-food-culture-south-southeast-asia-afternoon-session
Le French GourMay 2013
Le French GourMay 2013
Le FrenchMay has with an ongoing series of high-quality performances and productions over many years established itself as one of the cultural highlights of the year in Hong Kong. Slightly less well known is the Le French GourMay, now in its fifth year, which promotes gastronomy with a french flavour. Each year the festival chooses a region of France to focus its offerings around and in twenty thirteen it’s Bourgogne a thickly forested region in Eastern France – better known to wine lovers as Burgundy – blessed with south-facing slopes and a moist, cool climate perfect for grapes.
The most famous wines produced here—those commonly referred to as “Burgundies” are dry red wines made from Pinot Noir grapes and white wines made from Chardonnay grapes. Burgundy has a higher number of appellations d’origine contrôlée (AOCs) than any other French region, and is often seen as the most terroir-conscious of the French wine regions. Although archeological evidence establishes viticulture in Burgundy as early as the second century AD, the practice of delineating vineyards by their terroir in Burgundy goes back to medieval times, when various monasteries played a key role in developing the Burgundy wine industry – currently Bourgogne has nearly 28,500 hectares of vines in production, over 100 classified Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (A.O.C) and produces about 200 million bottles annually.
Burgundy cuisine is symbolic of so much that is French and Burgundians are as passionate about their food as their wine – Escargots à la Bourgogne (Burgundy Snails), Boeuf Bourguignon, and Coq au Vin are just three of the famous regional dishes. Food in Bourgogne is filled with danger and death. It is not the gentle, vegetable cooking of Provence dribbled in olive oil. Burgundy cuisine is imbued with garlic, violence and what one daintily names ‘variety meats.’ Beef tongue (langue), sweetbreads (ris de veau) or calf’s head (tête de veau) and kidneys (rognons) are among the region’s favorite cuts. Pork feet (pieds), braised jowls (joues), and pork intestine sausage (andouillette) pop up everywhere on Burgundy menus. Hearty meals these, but the regions chefs have also updated their cuisine to appeal to modern tastes, and there are 29 Michelin stared restaurants, including three with three stars, within Burgundy.
There’s a wide range of promotions throughout GourMay and the full programme can be found here www.frenchmay.com/gourmay. At W Hong Kong in West Kowloon GourMay offers include
The Winederlust Date @ Woobar
10 varieties of Burgundy wine paired with tasty regional cheeses and coldcuts to entice any monsieur or madame. From 8pm to 10:30pm every Wednesday in May, HK$258+10% per person
The Star-Crossed Pair @ Sing Yin
West and East converge as Chef Bryan Lee creates a 7-course wine dinner offering local flavors complemented by selected Burgundy wines matched to each dish. Lychee wood-fired crispy skin chicken is the signature dish of Sing Yin. The chicken is seasoned overnight before being roasted with aromatic lychee wood, cinnamon and premium Longjing (Dragon Well) tea leaves. Fired to a golden finish, the tender meat and crispy skin are laced with flavour. This entree is paired with Louis Latour Savigny les Beaune 2003. Its rich bouquet of red fruits draws out the tender taste of the chicken. The entire menu is available at HK$888+10%. (Wine expert Mark Allen will also be there to share about his winery insight on May 23.)
The Chef’s Passion @ Kitchen
Burgundy’s Two Star Michelin Chef Florian Muller will join hands with W’s Culinary Director Gunnar Kuchenbecker from May 16 to 26, to bring a French flair to the international delicacies at Kitchen. The esteemed Chef himself will even be present during this period to interact with guests and talk about his own cooking experience, engaging all in his amour for food while serving specially created GourMay dishes.
Dinner: Monday – Thursday, 6pm – 10pm; HK$498 per adult, HK$249 per child;
Dinner: Friday – Sunday, 6pm – 10pm; HK$538 per adult, HK$269 per child
*All prices are subject to 10% service charge
Bookings at www.w-hongkong.com
