Caprice: Reaching for the stars

Hong Kong is definitely one of the cities with most diversity for its food scenes. From local street food vendors to Michelin-starred restaurants, and classic Hong Kong-styled eatery to prestigious western fine dining. Hong Kong is one of the places in Asia that allows you to “eat around the world” without traveling too far.

I visit Hong Kong at least once or twice every year because of my family. Ever since I started university, I don’t have the chance to go home for Chinese New Year, hence every Christmas break has become our “pre-Chinese New Year” gathering. Since Kaohsiung (south of Taiwan, and that’s where I’m from) lacks of authentic western-styled fine dining, it becomes a habit/ritual of visiting at least one French or Italian restaurants whenever I visit Hong Kong. As I was browsing through the list of Michelin-guide for Hong Kong & Macau, I narrowed down to Amber, Caprice, and L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon. We ended up going to Caprice due to its availability (only few dates worked for us), good reviews, and its lunch menu set looks appealing too! Appetizer: Poached farm egg, sweet onion compote, Australian black truffle, and Pata Negra. Poached egg? Black truffle? Must order! I definitely loved this appetizer. I think anything with poached egg just makes the dish better, and even a level up with black truffle! The saltiness of the Pata Negra balanced out with the poached egg. The fragrant of truffle… miam.. Appetizer: Duck foie gras, rhubarb in chutney and confit style. My brother ordered this. I had a bite of it. The foie gras was creamy, but it wasn’t an outstanding. Appetizer: Brittany lobster soup, ravioli of lemon confit and fresh mint. The soup was creamy, yet still light. However, couldn’t really taste the mint. Main: Skate wing Meunière style, young spinach leaves and mustard, crushed potato in lemon sauce. The skate wing wasn’t overcooked. It was soft and flaky. However, I think the potato outshines the skate wing. The potato was light with the lemon sauce, and wasn’t too starchy. Dessert: Peach and strawberry vacherin, crispy meringue, virgin mojito, and peach sorbet. Strawberry is one of my favorite fruits. The sorbet was light to end the meal with. Dessert: Black forest éclair, cherry marmalade, Griotines and Inaya chocolate ice cream. The dark chocolate and cherry marmalade were a good combination. The sourness from the cherry balanced out the sweetness of chocolate. The meal ended with petit four, which were two types of chocolate and a mini macaron, with a choice of coffee or tea. I always opt for earl grey tea after a heavy meal. Overall, I had a great experience! The waiter was attentive, and answered our questions. The lunch set menu is definitely a catch for fine dining at an affordable price. I loved their pastry basket. There were 5 choices of different types of bread/pastry (personally loved the black olive danish), and you can keep asking for it till you are stuffed! Weekend lunch set menu has a complimentary glass of wine (at the same price as weekday lunch menu)! Reservation should definitely made in advance (made mine three months ahead). The earlier you make your reservation, the better chance that you’ll get a table close to the window with awesome view facing the Victoria Habour.