Thursday, February 28, 2013

K-Town Eats


Guest blogger hkLifestyleGeek takes us out for some K-Town eats
The far west side of Hong Kong island is burgeoning with new eateries springing up particularly in Kennedy Town. And if you want to narrow it down further, it's along Davis Street, a small strip by the water that has a series of restaurants and bars shoulder-to-shoulder.

One of the casual joints is Piccolo Pizzeria & Bar, a pizza and pasta place that's popular with residents in the area, so come early or make a reservation. Many usually get take-out, but it's fun to come here and sit by the window looking into the kitchen and watch pizzas being made in the brick wood fire oven.

Oh and yes you can bop along to the 80s hits playing in the background...


The calamari (HK$85) were a tad too deep-fried, but they were tasty, while the warm salad with pumpkin and cherry tomatoes (HK$80) was fresh, lightly seasoned, though it would have been better with a few more chunks of delicious chunks of pumpkin.

Next up were the higlights of the evening -- thin crust pizzas! (HK$130 each)


The suprema pizza was laden sliced sausages, onions, mushrooms and fresh chillis for a spicy kick. The angled slices of sausages were quite large, making every bite a meaty one.


However we preferred the proscuitto pizza with thin slices of the cured ham on top of the hot pizza topped with rocket leaves in the middle. The best way to eat it was to fold the slice in half -- the Neopolitan way.

I hear the pastas here are also very good, in particular the aglio e olio (HK$110), spaghetti with roast garlic, chilli and olive oil.

Next door is Bistro du Vin, the newest addition to Davis Street.

Inside it's very quaint and feels very Parisian with interesting knick-knacks on the walls, tiled floors and high ceilings. However it can get noisy when it's busy so it's not a place for romantic evenings.

Nevertheless, the food here is very good.


Start with the house-made charcuterie platter (HK$170), featuring pork pate, duck pate and duck rilettes, great smeared on bread.


For mains, the bouillabaisse (HK$570) is a meal in itself for two, served in a shallow Le Crueset ceramic pot and filled with perfectly cooked seafood like crab, prawns, clams and fish. Don't miss out on the broth which is so full of flavour.

Another winner is the crispy suckling pig confit (HK$220), a sinfully delicious dish with a crispy skin on top followed by very tender meat underneath.

If there's room for dessert, the lemony taste from the freshly-baked Madeleines (HK$70) are a nice finish.

And finally around the corner from Davis Street is a new Jaspa's. The restaurant opens up onto the street so diners can eat outside if the weather's nice, or those inside can do some people watching.

The interior (this post's header photo) is rustic looking with brick and wood, though we have to say the chairs aren't very comfortable, perhaps hinting there's no need to linger too long in this place. At the time of writing, the restaurant still hadn't been approved for a liquor license so it's BYOB for now.

Like in other Jaspa's, the portions here are huge, so best to share everything -- even if it's for a quick bite to eat.


The smoked salmon salad (HK$120) came with three rosettes of smoked salmon and tons of greens in a deep bowl, but hardly enough dressing. We had to ask for more of the honey mustard dressing in order to finish it without feeling like we were eating rabbit food.


Desserts are also huge and the Aussie pavlova (HK$75) was a giant slab of meringue covered in cream and strawberries. Unfortunately the meringue was on the verge of sickeningly sweet and because of that very hard, while the cream was a bit tasteless, so the only saving grace was the sliced strawberries.

We'll try Jaspa's another time perhaps for its popular breakfasts, but for now best to avoid the pavlova unless you're having a sugar craving.

Piccolo Pizzeria & Bar
Shop 1E, Davis Street
Kennedy Town
2824 3000

Bistro du Vin
Shop 1D, Davis Street
Kennedy Town
2824 3010

Jaspa's Kennedy Town
G/F, Manhattan Heights
83 Catchick Street
Kennedy Town
2872 0823

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