Destination: Hong Kong

favorites of 2019: the restaurant edition…

A tangle of claws cascading from scalloped rims brimming with ice and seafood. A shoulder of goat with crispy skin and tender meat melting off the bone. Glistening turbot, straight off the coals, and trolleys laden with all manner of goodies, from sweets to cheeses. These are just a few of the incredible scenes I […]

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favorites of 2019: the restaurant edition…

A tangle of claws cascading from scalloped rims brimming with ice and seafood. A shoulder of goat with crispy skin and tender meat melting off the bone. Glistening turbot, straight off the coals, and trolleys laden with all manner of goodies, from sweets to cheeses. These are just a few of the incredible scenes I […]

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12 days of christmas: calvert… (2019)

– Each night of the Twelve Days of Christmas at The Restaurant at Meadowood, hosting chef Christopher Kostow writes a personal note about that night’s guest chef, which is printed with the menu. His note for Daniel Calvert, who cooked on the third night, was far more eloquent, precise, and personal than anything I could muster, […]

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12 days of christmas: calvert… (2019)

– Each night of the Twelve Days of Christmas at The Restaurant at Meadowood, hosting chef Christopher Kostow writes a personal note about that night’s guest chef, which is printed with the menu. His note for Daniel Calvert, who cooked on the third night, was far more eloquent, precise, and personal than anything I could muster, […]

Continue

the best of 2014: the restaurant edition…

~ The sheer splendor with which my year in dining unfolded made the task of identifying my ten favorite restaurant meals from 2014 an especially difficult one. However, forcing myself to narrow that “wide and rich field” (as I described it in an earlier post) – a process that at moments seemed merciless, requiring me to eliminate extraordinarily good meals that in any other […]

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the best of 2014: the restaurant edition…

~ The sheer splendor with which my year in dining unfolded made the task of identifying my ten favorite restaurant meals from 2014 an especially difficult one. However, forcing myself to narrow that “wide and rich field” (as I described it in an earlier post) – a process that at moments seemed merciless, requiring me to eliminate extraordinarily good meals that in any other […]

Continue

travel: leapfrogging…

~ Another year is gone, and I’ve barely written about it.  This is especially sad to me, since so many wonderful things happened. Every year, I pause at calendar’s end to record and remember the anxieties and adventures that made the preceding months memorable, including an accounting of all the restaurants I visited, and my favorite meals and dishes among […]

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travel: leapfrogging…

~ Another year is gone, and I’ve barely written about it.  This is especially sad to me, since so many wonderful things happened. Every year, I pause at calendar’s end to record and remember the anxieties and adventures that made the preceding months memorable, including an accounting of all the restaurants I visited, and my favorite meals and dishes among […]

Continue

best of 2009, the restaurant edition…

Corton New York, New York The course of any meal unfolds in a highly personal and circumstantial way.  Evaluating any restaurant experience devoid of personal context (e.g. company, mood, and personal preferences) is an impossible task. Though I like think that I can be scrupulously objective, I know that emotion trumps reason, personal preferences cloud […]

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best of 2009, the restaurant edition…

Corton New York, New York The course of any meal unfolds in a highly personal and circumstantial way.  Evaluating any restaurant experience devoid of personal context (e.g. company, mood, and personal preferences) is an impossible task. Though I like think that I can be scrupulously objective, I know that emotion trumps reason, personal preferences cloud […]

Continue

best dishes of 2009…

Petales de Melon Confit Pierre, Hong Kong 2009 arrived on the heels of an incomparable eating tour of London, Paris, and beyond.  I can’t believe a year has gone by since I stuffed myself silly with macarons, cheese, bread, butter, and truffles. As memorable and impressive as my eating itinerary was last year, I can’t […]

Continue

best dishes of 2009…

Petales de Melon Confit Pierre, Hong Kong 2009 arrived on the heels of an incomparable eating tour of London, Paris, and beyond.  I can’t believe a year has gone by since I stuffed myself silly with macarons, cheese, bread, butter, and truffles. As memorable and impressive as my eating itinerary was last year, I can’t […]

Continue

review: farrago…

European Ham Assortment Pierre, Hong Kong Conventional wisdom dictates that if Pierre Gagnaire’s not in the kitchen, don’t go. I violated this rule, and I paid the price. But I did so in the company of a veteran and devotee of Gagnaire’s restaurants – he’s been to every one of them: Paris, Bangkok, Hong Kong, […]

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review: farrago…

European Ham Assortment Pierre, Hong Kong Conventional wisdom dictates that if Pierre Gagnaire’s not in the kitchen, don’t go. I violated this rule, and I paid the price. But I did so in the company of a veteran and devotee of Gagnaire’s restaurants – he’s been to every one of them: Paris, Bangkok, Hong Kong, […]

Continue

review: palace of tongues and durian…

Duck Tongues in Abalone Sauce Summer Palace, Hong Kong An impromptu pay-back lunch found a friend and me deliberating on a convenient, yet pleasing place for a quick lunch on my last day in Hong Kong. Lung King Heen, where I had a pretty successful meal the week before, was fully booked. And Yan Toh […]

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review: palace of tongues and durian…

Duck Tongues in Abalone Sauce Summer Palace, Hong Kong An impromptu pay-back lunch found a friend and me deliberating on a convenient, yet pleasing place for a quick lunch on my last day in Hong Kong. Lung King Heen, where I had a pretty successful meal the week before, was fully booked. And Yan Toh […]

Continue