This month is all about indulging in good food and company as we close out 2016, and with so many fantastic new restaurant openings and old standbys serving up festive Christmas menus, the options for where to host your holiday get-togethers are endless. To add to the mix, there’s also a number of visiting guest chefs and temporary pop-ups circling through town this month, bringing the best of international gastronomy to Hong Kong. If you have a second to spare, check out these three dining pop-ups to round out your month of wining and dining.
Chef Julien Royer at Restaurant Petrus
Julien Royer, chef and co-owner of the two-Michelin-starred Odette in Singapore, stops by Restaurant Petrus for a two-night stint this month, collaborating with Petrus’ chef de cuisine Ricardo Chaneton on an eight-course menu focused on premium ocean produce. With the aim of preserving the integrity and natural flavours of each ingredient, the menu will draw on a variety of Asian ingredients including Hokkaido uni and scallop tartare with Oscietra caviar, crispy-skinned kinki with charred pork belly and miso caramel, and abalone with veal tendon and sticky yuzu sauce. Each chef will present one half of the tasting menu, culiminating in a duo of irresistible desserts to close out the meal: caramel toffee with an ‘exotic’ lollipop, and Granny Smith apple with ginger liquid sphere and cinnamon marshmallow.
When: 15–16 December 2016
Price: HK$2,280 plus 10% per person
Restaurant Petrus, 56/F, Island Shangri-La, Supreme Court Road, Admiralty, Hong Kong, +852 2820 8590, shangri-la.com
A ‘Slice of Tuscany’ at WHISK
If you’re dreaming of sunshine and warmer weather, you can escape to Italy’s sun-swept wine regions this month as WHISK welcomes acclaimed guest chef Domenico Francone from the renowned La Taverna in Castello Banfi. The ‘Slice of Tuscany’ menu features ingredients native to the local terroir of Montalcino, with the six-course dinner kicking off with a rich and fruity local olive oil and special 12-year-aged balsamic vinegar, served with the house bread basket. Mains embrace seasonality, including a lobster tagliatelle with burrata foam, a ‘Duo of Veal’ featuring cheek and sirloin on a bed of garden veggies, and the chef’s signature — Cannolo di Branzino, a fried sea bass spring roll accompanied by a sweet melon and celery brunoise. Naturally, the wine pairing will involve a sampling of vintages from Castello Banfi, a family-owned vineyard estate in the heart of Tuscany.
When: Menu available through 14 December 2016; Monday–Saturday from 6:30-10pm
Price: HK$888 per person, add HK$358 for wine pairing
WHISK, 5/F, The Mira Hong Kong, 118 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, +852 2315 5999, themirahotel.com
Nobu Matsuhisa at Nobu InterContinental Hong Kong
Arguably one of the most internationally recognised and influential Japanese chefs in the world, Nobu Matsuhisa returns to his Hong Kong flagship at the InterContinental Hong Kong for two nights from 14–15 December in celebration of the restaurant’s 10th anniversary. Nobu-san will kick off the festivities with a cocktail reception and sake ceremony on 14 December (6-7:30pm), followed by an eight-course Gala Dinner with sake pairing. The celebrations continue on 15 December with another omakase dinner headed by chef Nobu-san, while the anniversary menu will extend through 23 December. Highlights include uni and botan shrimp tartar with caviar, hamachi sashimi with jalapeno, o-toro tataki with truffle yuzu miso, and seafood Inaniwa udon. A special sake pairing features Nobu-san’s own label made by Hokusetsu Sake.
When: 14–23 December 2016
Price: HK$1,638 plus HK$350 for sake pairing on 14 December (includes anniversary souvenirs and sake bottle); HK$1,488 plus HK$350 for sake pairing on 15–23 December; all prices plus 10% surcharge
Nobu, 2/F, InterContinental Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, +852 2313 2323, hongkong-ic.intercontinental.com
