de-stress.

Sometimes all I want is to chill out with a slab of meat and ice-cold beer. How I miss BBQs... can't wait for summer!



:)

FoFo: Worth the Extra Chubb

I absolutely adore Fofo - from the drinks, the interior design, the concept, the service, to the most important aspect, the food. I've been a few times now and it has never disappointed. I recently discovered upon my last visit that the name "Fofo" was selected because it's Spanish for "chubby". Apparently this idea inspired the decor as well, with an army load of chubby penguins and piggys adorning the walls and ceiling lamps:

Chef Alex Fargas is also a delight who always makes a point of checking up on all the diners.

i love the quirky design

white sangria. yum! my go-to drink at fofo 'cause you don't often see it on menus.

platter of iberico ham to start, on the house :) love this stuff.

spinach, tomato, and mozzarella salad with pesto sauce mmm ($90).

organic winter vegetables ($85). meh.

We also had a grilled eggplant salad with spinach and Manchego cheese. That was delicious but unfortunately, people dug in too quickly before I could take a picture!! It's a must order though! Then again, I'm pretty partial to anything with Manchego cheese in it :)

organic eggs cooked at 62 degrees in crispy potatoes "nest" with chorizo ($110). flavourful and fun to mix, but a little too salty for me. couldn't manage more than a few spoonfuls.

kingfish. forget the complete description but this was really good - we were all fighting for the last piece.

foie gras, tomato chili jam, basil ($145). i'm not a foie gras fan so I shouldn't pass judgment. friends really enjoyed it though.

crispy suckling pig ($115) was decent but I actually prefer suckling pig at ABC Kitchen haha maybe because of the price discrepancy? :P

red peppers with codfish mousse filling ($90). delicious! usually I don't like mousse but this dish might have converted me!

sauteed button mushrooms with garlic ($75). so simple but SO GOOD!

spanish omelette with potatoes & onions ($50). not much to say, it's just an omelette.

half portion of Boston lobster juicy rice ($170). The name just sounded so inviting. The rice was pretty good comfort food, tasted almost like risotto and it was so easy to shovel down spoonfuls of the stuff.

iberico pork paella ($348). Usually go for the seafood & lobster one but since we got the juicy rice, opted to try this instead. I actually prefer it to the seafood!

Should also get the sauteed prawns with garlic & chili ($85) which again were attacked before I got to take a photo! One of their signature dishes :)

What I love about Fofo is that they update their menu regularly so each time I return there's always something new and exciting to try! Highly recommended, though it's not your traditional tapas joint and I must say, tapeo and estudio iberico gives it a run for its money ;)


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Fofo by El Willy
20/F M88,
2-8 Wellington Street, Central

Food Hodgepodge!

Here's some food that's kept me happy (in varying degrees) in 2011, and that I've been meaning to write about. Hopefully this'll get me back on track to start blogging (more) frequently!

the vietnam woods

Came across this restaurant one evening and really liked the interior so decided to give it a try. The restaurant is very minimalist inside, with dark wood tables and mirrors to make the room even more spacious. I loved the high ceilings which reminded me of my old home back in Tai Po, though what with the high ceilings, linen-free tables and wooden floor it was a nightmare to have conversation - restaurants really need to do something about their acoustics!

They also have a side room for larger parties with a gorgeous birdcage hanging from the ceiling (sounds garish but it wasn't).

The food was plated beautifully but a little hit and miss. One thing I loved though was the prawn rice paper rolls which were so good we ended up ordering one each. I'm addicted to the sweet sauce.

prawn rice paper roll

The beef fried rice was delicious the first time I had it, but I've been back twice and both times took a bit of a dive in quality. Hm...

beef fried rice - forget the proper name

The shrimp paste on sugar cane came in a beautiful deep bowl but was a little too deep-fried for my taste.

shrimp paste on sugar cane

Will be back though to try the avocado milkshake (first time I've seen it in HK!!). On a side note, the menus are the largest I have ever seen - can only imagine how cumbersome it'd be to manoeuvre without the ample space between tables!


nahm

Following the trend of Vietnamese eateries, we recently moved to Elements so I've pretty much exhausted all the restaurants on offer. Nahm was probably the last one I got to, and while it's not strictly a Vietnamese restaurant (there is a whole range of Thai food too), they did offer two dishes I enjoyed - though I wouldn't recommend the pad thai.

poached sea bass rice roll - this dish really grew on me! served warm.

gelato - vanilla bean was amazing. or maybe i just liked the presentation.

sushi shin

Lunch bento box is such good value! I think it's something like $150? Loved the sweet prawn sashimi.

shiro

I always enjoy my meals here - while it's pricier, they do offer interesting combinations and I recently discovered they have amazing beef udon (don't get the stir fried beef one). Though if you like the traditional inaniwa udon, you might not be impressed. Shiro offers the thicker variety which I actually prefer - maybe my tastes aren't refined yet :\

I'd suggest going at dinner when it's less busy. Also, the photos are a bit odd - I'm not adept at photographing long-plated food!

lovely scallop roll and soft-shell crab roll

the tuna toro on the left is my favourite at shiro! (forget the name but it's under their "signature dishes")

this is the strangest thing I've seen at Shiro.

estudio iberico tapas bar

This was absolutely delicious! The pictures don't do justice because I was lucky enough to eat this in the comfort of my home...So it's all in tupperware, plus my lighting sucks, plus I'm using an iPhone camera, plus my friend was eager to eat...But it was really, really good. Don't let these photos fool you :P

delicious patatas bravas.

absolutely loved this salad of mixed greens with crispy ham and manchego cheese (my favourite!)

looks kinda sad here.. but this was really succulent duck in a delicious orange sauce. i wanted to lick it all up!

Also tried the calamari which was deliciously fried, and the chicken skewers which weren't so good and a little dry. Should've ordered the wagyu beef skewers!! Will definitely be back to eat there in person :)

Phew... W Sunday Brunch up next :D

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the vietnam woods
Shop 1, York Place
22 Johnson Road

nahm
Shop 1044-1045
Elements

sushi shin
G/F, Wing Hing Court
110-114 Tung Lo Wan Road,
Tai Hang

shiro
Level 1, Pacific Place

estudio iberico
Great supermarket,
Pacific Place

La Fleur

I know there's been quite a hiatus in the blogging but here's a quick post about a restaurant I recently discovered on a walk around Star Street. We were craving pizza and wanted to grab food at Pizza Express but with the lunch rush, they were fully booked. We decided to stroll around the area to see what else caught our eye. After wandering through some park where people were practising tai chi, we found ourselves on St. Francis Yard and in front of La Fleur.

The chalkboard menu outside was definitely inviting. At really reasonable prices, you could choose between three appetizers and four different mains, ranging from $75-$90. Price includes coffee/tea, with an additional $25 if you want dessert or extra soup.

Started off with amazing home-made bread that was served warm and crispy on the outside, soo soft inside. I polished it off and wanted to ask for more, but practiced great self-restraint, though I couldn't help staring enviously at the fresh bread rolls coming out the oven and being delivered to new diners.

freshly baked bread

For the appetizers, you could choose between apple & prawn salad, duck breast salad, and soup of the day (which was pumpkin I believe). We both opted for the prawn salad. It was really refreshing on a hot day, and I loved the prawns. Wished they gave more than two! I liked the addition of walnuts as well.

apple and prawn salad

For our mains, we decided to share the salmon fillet ($85) and the rib-eye steak ($90) - our own little surf n' turf :) I forget what the other two options were but I think one was linguine and the other pork .. something.

The salmon was huge and came with a dill sauce and extremely creamy mashed potatoes, which I loved. The sauce was a little heavy for me but worked well in moderation. Salmon was cooked well and I couldn't stop eating the salmon skin hehe. Really enjoyed this dish.

salmon fillet

Our rib-eye came medium rare as requested and there wasn't much to complain about in terms of the meat. However, they over-sauced the dish and the sauce itself was too salty. I decided to just scrape it all off and eat my meat with the side of mustard provided and was pretty content :) The long beans were also delicious and there were some tater tots hiding below. I think the salmon won out though.

rib-eye steak

All in all it was a very enjoyable meal at a bargain price. I'll definitely be back again for lunch, though I'd advise making reservations in advance as the place was packed.

We decided to skip on the dessert because we were both craving Yo Mama on such a warm, sunny day. Perfect end to the meal!


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La Fleur
16 St Francis Yard
Wan Chai

December Desserts!

Winter's my favourite season - I love the feeling of coming in from the cold and de-thawing with a mug of hot chocolate, my blanket, and a large supply of chick flicks :) Whenever winter rolls around, it also means I have an excuse to binge on desserts! You can always hide the excess fat under cute peacoats and long trenchs ;)

Here's a round-up of the yummiest dessert and goodies I've had this past month:

selection of Sift mini-cakes, gingerbread cookies, and macarons :D

sift chocolate cake (the three closest to the camera) and the ispahan were my favourite

so I had to re-visit the real dessert bar
signature sift chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream :)

All this Sift reminded me of my birthday last year where my friend was sweet enough to arrange a huge Ispahan birthday cake!! It was pretty spectacular and almost tasted like Pierre Herme's. How I miss Paris!

sift Ispahan - raspberry, lychee, and rose buttercream macaron.

mandarin oriental's opera cake. always a winner!

a crazy dessert platter at Zuma. loved the gelato at the top :)

zuma's molten chocolate cake.

this is by far the best chocolate cake i've ever had. served warm, the chocolate oozed out the minute i sunk my fork in. i see why people always complement Zuma's pastry chef - he's an absolute genius! i wanted to return just for this dessert and will definitely be back for their Saturday Sake brunch :) i think it was so popular they had to take it off their menu so that some of the other desserts got a chance, but you can still ask them to make it for you!

do not share.

thomas trillion's rosenana. this was so much fun to break into!

slightly clearer picture at home. isn't it stunning? :)

thomas trillion's marron. also beautifully presented.
i'd love to try their mille feuille next time

christmas hamper!

love the huge pannetone and rosey apples

all my favourite british cookies! from oliver's the delicatessen

bourbon creams, custard creams, jam sandwich creams, and milk digestives <3

of course the requisite christmas log cake

and to round it all off... like I said, I love my hot chocolate!

Happy holidays!

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Sift Dessert Bar
G/F, 46 Graham Street, Central
Tel: (852) 2530-4288

Zuma
5/F, The Landmark
15 Queen's Road Central
Tel: (852) 3657-6388

Thomas Trillion
G/F, 17 Wing Hing Street, Tin Hau
Tel: (852) 2806-0332