A Spoon full of sugar
MILLIE: The best highlight of our recent Hong Kong trip was an extraordinary dinner experience at Spoon, that fabulous restaurant by celebrity chef Alain Ducasse at the Hotel Inter-Continental in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon.
The dinner was co-hosted by Verne and myself in honor of Ramon Tan, a very special friend’s birthday, to show him how much we appreciate and value his friendship and to celebrate life with wonderful friends.
We started with sunset cocktails at the lobby lounge of the hotel as we enjoyed a magnificent view of Hong Kong harbor. We ordered a cheese platter while sipping our pinot noir. Soon, we were ushered to our table, which was at the center of the restaurant, where we could continue to enjoy the fabulous view. The accueil was warm and friendly, not snooty or pretentious. The feel was casual and welcoming but with a certain flair of elegance and class. The ceiling above us was decorated with hundreds of spoons — quite a different touch, I must say. The wait staff was very attentive and accommodating and service was brisk and smooth.
KARLA: As soon as we were settled in, we were served fancy amuse bouche pieces that we popped into our mouths without hesitation. Next came soup, which apparently was frog broth served with breaded frogs’ legs shaped as lollipops on the side. The soup was poured on the spot, which gave us quite a thrill … well, until I discovered what it actually was. I’ve never actually dared try frogs’ legs before but people say that it’s just like chicken. True enough, the texture was indeed like chicken, even softer, actually. And the soup was very, very tasty.
Our main dishes came shortly after. Tito Ramon, the birthday celebrant, had juicy, huge pan-seared scallops with cauliflower and lemon. At first glance, we all thought the scallops came with either rice or couscous, but we were surprised when we realized that the grains were actually chopped cauliflower heads. Tito Hector ordered the line-caught sea bass served with French endive. Both Tita Verne and Tito Larry had the steamed plaice fillet with caviar in lemon sauce. For mom, it was a tossup between the beef tenderloin or the chestnut pasta, which she found rather intriguing, served with foie gras, crayfish and chicken. So, since I could not make up my mind on what to order, I told mom to get the homemade chestnut pasta while I settled on the beef tournedos with salsify, black trumpet and tortellini.
After all that, I still had the urge to order dessert. Who could pass up a good soufflé, let alone, a salted butter caramel soufflé with salted caramel ice cream on the side? They initially told me that they had run out of the soufflé, but the restaurant manager somehow worked his magic and surprised me instead. It was so good that I would definitely go back even just for the soufflé. Everyone at the table was somehow jealous of my dessert since they refused to order any. Dining at Spoon is quite an experience as there were many surprises and freebies that popped out throughout dinner.
MILLIE: Defying etiquette rules, all throughout dinner there was the constant passing of teaspoons or bread plates of bite-sized portions of the various dishes, as the group enjoyed a degustation of each other’s meals. Never-ending laughter was also shared and intoxicating. For Verne and myself, this is Hong Kong! We were in Hong Kong last June to celebrate her birthday and treated ourselves to dinner at Spoon. She had duck breast with a red wine sauce and I had a milk-fed lamb chop, which was totally mouthwatering and out of this world. We thought we could savor it once more but it was not on the menu this time. But it was truly a most pleasurable dinner that left a memorable mark, so we thought it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience to be shared with bosom friends, her husband Hector and my darling daughter.
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