For the last of my birthday festivities, I took a trip to HKK with Mr Old Fashioned. I have been wanting to go here for quite a while and was sure that it must live up to the original Hakkasan in Hanway Place that I had been to some years ago now. As always, there is the risk that the new outpost that is in a place easy to get to will lose some magic, class or passion along the way. HKK may not have the glamour of the original but it did not disappoint; from booking to dining. Before arriving, I received a call asking if I had dietary requirements (and of course I do…) and asking if they could do something for me as it was my birthday (thank you open table). The restaurant opened in 2012 and got its Michelin star a year later – bravo.
Upon arrival, we were the only ones on a Monday evening at 6pm. We had decided to dine at the counter, which is the only spot you can take advantage of the 8-course tasting menu in the evening (£48 and usually only for lunch). However we ended up feeling that if we didnt at least try 10 (£78), what was the point! And well, 15 (£98) courses might be a little optimistic! I was kindly given a souvenir menu with a birthday message to take home – here you can see what we had!
There are several spaces available to sit: the main dining room with its cool central island where you see the wait staff and chef prepare your food before presenting to your table; a private dining room/ chef’s table; and the sleek counter where you can see the kitchen and duck oven from. We ordered a cocktail to begin: the Hakka for me and the Chinese Mule for him.
Next we had to decide what we were going to drink with dinner. There were some awesome ‘flights’ that included sake and all kinds of yumminess, but seeing as it was a Monday, we had to be a little sensible. The sommelier was delightful; as it was still quiet, he spent some time walking us through the options and suggested that we might like to either have a custom made flight for our menu or play a wine ‘game’. The game we went for was called ‘Terroir vs Purity: compare and contrast’. For £40 we had some lovely wines (Sancerre, Sauvignon Blanc, Malborough and Pinot Noir) to accompany our meal. This is an example of what would go with a larger set menu – looks amazing!
Then the procession of food began making its way out to be beheld in majestic glory and delight our palates.
#1: Truffled egg white with Tobiko caviar. Delicious and light with perfectly cut vegetables!
#2: Dim sum trilogy. The first photo is of Mr Old Fashioned’s plate, with a crispy pork roll. Mine had two of the same, which was a slight disappointment since I dont think it could be incredibly difficult to have something else in there (my personal chinese equivalent to pork is minced prawns and chicken – keeps moist while cooking!). The fun part was painting on the soya sauce before taking a bite of these delicious parcels and the lamb (orange one in the pics, was really spicy and good!)
#3: Cherry wood roasted Peking duck. WOW. This was a show in itself, and I can still taste how the crisp part melted away in my mouth with the sweet taste and gorgeous silky texture. A totally guilty pleasure as it is of course so fatty but it did not taste that way at all. I would go back just for this. The chef came out and personally sliced the best meat of the half duck for us, whilst the maitre d’ perfectly positioned everything on to our plates before serving. 1 crispy shell, 1 tender piece of meat, 1 duck in sesame spring roll with plum sauce and flavoured sugar.
#4: (getting full again…)HKK supreme seafood soup. A bit like a lobster bisque, this was great but almost a little unnecessary with all the other mind-blowing going on. Still a lovely civilised dish.
#5:Braised Alaska king crab in Osmanthus flower rice wine. A very elegant and light dish full of flavour and perfectly textured meat.
#6:Hong Kong style steamed lotus leaf halibut with Maitake mushroom. This was beautiful. All the smoky flavours really lent themselves well to the fish and I am a sucker for oriental shrooms… and here is a picture of our wine game just behind too!
#7: Sugar snap, lotus root and water chestnut in XO sauce. This was very light. A perfect example of what a good fresh vegetable dish should be. But after all the other rich and varied flavours, I could have easily skipped this one. Beautiful presentation.
#8: Seared King soy Wagyu beef with Jasmine tea. Yum yum yum. Cant say more than that really, it was perfectly cooked, great meat, succulent and flavourful. And the yellow bit was nice too!
#9: Lemon cream, citrus sablé and yoghurt sorbet. DELICIOUS. really lovely like a modern cheesecake. The lemon wasnt overpowering and the biscuit base was a bit like a thick poppadom – Mr OF didnt agree but you be the judge of that! really nice dish.
#10: Chocolate velvet, roast banana and five spice crouton. This was lovely – I am not usually a fan of 5 spice but I guess it works for me in a dessert!
And a lovely little bday message too to cap off the last of my gastronomic celebrations… now back to the gym!