While Cantonese food will always be king in HK, here we sample some of Hong Kong’s best restaurants for other Chinese food delicacies – from a more modern interpretation of traditional HK favourites to spicy Sichuan fare that livens up the palate!
Sichuan Rouge
As the lift doors open on 27, we are magically transported back to glamorous 1930s Hong Kong. Chinese lanterns hang from wooden beams, ornate carved window frames showcase neon signs of yesteryear, and there are decadent red walls, floral motifs and crimson velvet upholstery. Behold the joyful nostalgia of Sichuan Rouge!
Master chefs Hu Taiqing from Sichuan and Hong Kong’s own Kenny Chan Kai Tak present a rich and complex array of flavours. Authentic ingredients are sourced from Sichuan Province and Chongqing.
We’re snugly settled in our booth when a delightful box of spices and chillis is brought to our table, showcasing the wonderful philosophy behind fine Sichuan cuisine. Vibrant pickles and roasted peanuts accompany our aperitifs as we peruse the menu.
Appetisers at Sichuan Rouge are creative masterpieces! The deep-fried slivers of beef with lotus root and Sichuan peppercorn is like nothing we’ve ever seen before; it’s also crisp, delicate and such a treat. Sliced pork and cucumber is fanned out like a lotus flower, on a soy sauce pond laced with chilli – a contrast of fresh and savoury flavours and textures. And the hot and sour soup has a tangy depth that teases the taste buds for the courses to follow.
These include string beans with minced pork, featuring wonderful Sichuan notes of chilli and peppercorn, and – for me, the dish of the night – twice cooked pork with black bean and soybean paste. The crispy slivers of pork are bathed in an unctuous umami sauce, with the addition of vibrant leeks and spring onion. On the side are perfectly plump Sichuan-style Zhong boiled dumplings, made even better with a generous bath of chilli oil. Chengdu dandan noodles are a true staple of Sichuan, and the restaurant delivers: the fresh homemade noodles zing with citrusy peppercorn.
No wonder our generous host Paul is beaming with pride at all this fare. Next time, we’ll have to see how razor clams, smoked eels, coral lobster, prawns and pigeon get the Sichuan Rouge treatment.
Our evening concludes with ice jelly and pomelo – refreshing and colourful. And the final touch is a well-executed Spanish-looking croquette, whose crisp breadcrumbs encase stretchy glutinous rice paste and a secret black sugar centre. Creative, exciting and surprising – that’s the exhilarating ride that is Sichuan Rouge.
27/F, Soundwill Plaza II, Midtown, 1-29 Tang Lung Street, Causeway Bay | 9370 6345 | WhatsApp 7045 4963
Sun Moon Place
Many expats still mourn the loss of American Peking, which closed on Lockhart Road a few years ago. Happily, another Peking-style palace has opened just nearby.
The floral yellow dining hall of Sun Moon Place is bright and alive with chatter, and we’re soon joining the buzz as our starters arrive; the mutton and scallion pie is full of flavour and the Chinese chives and egg pancake light and crispy. Fried dumplings with assorted meats are plump and generous.
Unsurprisingly, the barbecued Peking duck is the star of the show. Carved tableside, it’s a triumph of crispy shards, cucumber, spring onion and hoi sin sauce. We can’t assemble our pancakes fast enough!
The hits keep on coming, too; shredded beef in chilli sauce is crispy and tasty, with pieces of baked sesame cake. Extra pancakes arrive, this time to accompany the shredded pork in Peking soya sauce – and it’s almost up there with the duck. Fried egg rolls are packed with beansprouts and meaty morsels, fabulous!
We manage to sneak an extra order from the à la carte menu – chicken and cashew nut, which proves a wonderful blast from the past. We finish with a dish of caramelised apple and, as soon as we put down our chopsticks, vow to return soon to order our hit list.
G/F & 1/F Pao Yip Building, 1-7 Ship Street, Wan Chai | 2893 9686 | epicurean.com.hk
Grand Majestic Sichuan – best restaurant for authentic Sichuan Chinese food in Hong Kong’s Central district
Contemporary and classic sit happily side by side at Grand Majestic Sichuan, with its plush red velvet booths, elaborate chandeliers and vibrant hand-painted murals. You can imagine Chinese tycoons, foreign dignitaries and taipans unwinding here back in the day – maybe even Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn sharing a cocktail or two! This is the place for celebrating special occasions; it doesn’t get any better.
So, let the banquet begin! Our meal started with poached spinach in ginger dressing ($108) – delightfully refreshing, like tightly packed green bales of wellness – and perfectly steamed pork wontons ($208) that sat proudly on an aromatic sweet soy and chilli oil.
The hits kept on coming, with grassfed beef tenderloin ($348) intriguingly accompanied by ten-year-aged tangerine peel. Slightly bitter and zesty, the quirky citrus added a wonderful twist to the melt-in-the-mouth beef. Dry-fried green beans ($198) were crunchy and elevated by divine dices of Kurobuta pork.
Speaking of intrigue, we were also curious to see what the chef would do with a humble cauliflower ($228) – and it was anything but humble. Accompanied by garlic and outstanding Sichuan cured bacon that permeated the al dente stems and florets, it was mind-blowing. The same Sichuan cured bacon performed its salty smoky magic on a heavenly fried rice ($188), which was also studded with nutty edamame. All this culinary splendour culminated with the dish of the night. The Sichuan sweet and sour Kurobuta pork ($268) was intense, fragrant, tender and gloriously sticky – perfection on a plate.
The wonderful sommelier paired everything beautifully with an eclectic blend of new and old world wines. And the service was impeccable all night long, efficient yet warm and genuine.
From the tiger carpet that greets you at the entrance to the hand-painted flamingos on the rear walls, and from the gorgeous black marble-topped bar inside to the stunning outside terrace with a second equally welcoming bar, Grand Majestic Sichuan is a stunning oasis in the heart of corporate Central.
Grand Majestic Sichuan
3/F, Alexandra House, 18 Chater Road, Central
2151 1299 | grandmajesticsichuan.com
Ho Lee Fook – best restaurant for classic Cantonese Chinese food in Hong Kong’s Soho district
Ho Le Fook is pure Hong Kong, with mahjong tiles on the façade and a giant brass fortune cookie at the entrance. The rear wall is littered with prosperous gold “beckoning cats”, just like the cute little statues seen in every Chinatown across the globe. Wonderfully playful.
To the left is bustling activity, plumes of steam and hanging roast meats in the open glass kitchen, from where they also do a roaring trade in passer-by takeaways. To the right, a mysterious red-carpet staircase leading down to the basement.
Entering Ho Lee Fook is like going into a forbidden secret sanctuary. It’s also loud and Hong Kong Cantonese proud – think bold red décor with matching seats, vibrant cheongsam vintage wallpaper, and a quirky mirrored ceiling to ramp up the vibe. At the corner is a stunning golden onyx bar, where the house cocktail – the Sichuan Sour – is close to life-changing.
The menu pays homage to Canton – and Ho Lee Fook’s modern interpretation brings it to another level. The pork jowl and cabbage dumplings ($148) were invitingly plump and delicious, served in a sacha soy and coriander dressing. Another must is the Chongqing chicken wings ($168) with “facing heaven chillies” and Sichuan pepper – numbing and zesty.
We considered ordering a whole steamed barramundi with ginger, spring onion and soy sauce, which adorned many of the other tables; or the equally popular wok-seared tiger prawns and steamed live razor clams. Unfortunately, Ho Lee Fook had run out of roast goose, such was the clamour from takeaway diners. In the end, we opted for the smoked crispy skin three yellow chicken ($268), which had a wonderful contrast of textures. The soft tender meat combined superbly with the sand ginger and spring onion sauce. Egg fried rice ($138) was the perfect companion – with choy sum, more spring onion and Chinese olives giving it a lovely savoury hit.
Our personal favourite Hong Kong delight over the years just had to be sampled here, even more so on discovering it arrives charcoal-grilled. Take a bow, Kurobuta pork char siu ($268). With champion charring and a decadent honey glaze, it’s no surprise this absolute showstopper arrives on tables and gets taken away in boxes by the trough-load.
Ho Lee Fook is another triumph for Black Sheep Restaurants. The dining, décor and proud service beat all the right drums. With its nod to HK’s golden cinematic age and classic dishes brought full speed into the modern era, we’ll be back again soon. Mine’s a Sichuan Sour…
Note: Elgin Street runs parallel above Staunton Street, but the restaurant is on another little finger of Elgin separated by Peel Street (off Staunton Street above and Hollywood Road below). We nearly missed our opulent night out!
Ho Lee Fook
3-5 Elgin Street, Central
2810 0860 | holeefook.com
Chilli Fagara – best restaurant for fiery Sichuan Chinese food in Hong Kong’s Soho district
This chic Sichuan restaurant promises to take the palate on an adventure – Fagara in the name refers to lightly roasted, dried Sichuan pepper, and the menu has sections reflecting the different flavour concepts of Ma (numbing), La (burning) and Tang (neutral).
We mainly focused on the burning La offerings, but the chef is happy to fire it up or tone it down to suit each table. Some of the meat dishes can be ordered as plant-based instead, too.
As we were choosing a nice bottle of house red ($488), some vibrant snacks arrived. They included infused peanuts, finely chopped raw green beans with numbing (Ma) chilli, and some cold chilli glass noodles. It was a nice gentle introduction before the twists and turns that awaited. DEC 22-FEB 23 101 The shredded chicken salad ($108) was an absolute delight, with an indulgent peanut sauce beautifully balanced with the sharp note of pickled cabbage – we were tempted to order another one despite the many more dishes that were headed our way! Also good were the tender cumin lamb skewers ($188) with a spicy dipping sauce.
General Tso’s Chicken ($168) was very tender, served in a sweet spicy sauce – it would have been even better with a crispy outer. Sichuan-style string beans ($148) were coated in a fine minced pork in chilli sauce and were delightfully fresh, the perfect side dish.
From the neutral Tang menu, we were intrigued by the homestyle shredded potatoes ($138) and they were different in a good way – refreshing and interesting. The juicy shreds of al dente potato had a delicate crunch and full-on potato flavour. We also ordered jasmine rice but the exciting main dishes didn’t warrant it.
We didn’t think the satay-style salad earlier could be beaten but the total showstopper of the night was the caramelised beef ($188). When it arrived, it just had that look of perfection – crispy shards of beef with fine ribbons of carrot and onion in a sticky garlic and ginger sauce. The delicate beef comes with a crispy, slightly sugary crust and features heat from the chilli, freshness from the ginger and a quiet zing of vinegar – the most perfectly balanced sweet, sour, spicy, fresh morsel. Again, we wanted to order another one, maybe two!
Chilli Fagara proved to be a wonderful evening out. The staff were friendly and the dimly-lit dining room with elegant Chinese décor was a joy to sit in.
Chilli Fagara
G/F, 7 Old Bailey Street, Central
2796 6766 | 2796 6866
chillifagara.com
Like this article on Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong? See more foodie inspiration in our Wine & Dine section.
This article first appeared in the Winter 2022/23 issue of Expat Living magazine. Subscribe now so you never miss an issue.
