[Hong Kong] The Popsy Room

Rating: ❤❤❤❤

The Popsy Room is a contemporary art gallery and a French fine dining restaurant at the same time. What sets this place apart from other art gallery restaurants like Bibo is that each dish is inspired by one of the art pieces in the current show, plus the entire restaurant and menu changes every 3 months for a new experience in the intersection of art and food! The current show until July 25th is "Ribbons & Skulls" by Tracy Lee Griffith which honors the vibrant intensity of animal and human life through her use of vivid colors and abstract collages.

Located on Upper Lascar Row, the restaurant may seem hard to find at first as it is hidden behind the street stalls selling jade and antiques but I spotted this eye catching Skull piece at the entrance from afar with a bright blue background. "Buttercup" is made from authentic African animal skulls and painted with the intense colors of vivid African landscapes in crystal resin.

I was excited that I finally got to dine at The Popsy Room which had been on my list of restaurants to try for a while now, but I mistakenly thought that it was private dining only. While the restaurant is intimate with a max of 26 people, they do accept smaller tables of 2-10 and only serve up to 5 separate tables each night so best to reserve a table ahead of time. The dinner tasting menu costs $988 for 6 courses and $1,388 for 8 courses while the newly launched lunch service will start from $388.

This Ribbons piece is called "Party" where the artist created a myriad of abstract lines with ribbons, paint, handmade paper, inks and found objects throughout her travels. I loved the bold use of colors and the intricate layers of details!

All tables are surrounded by the gorgeous art pieces on display so all of your senses are stimulated while you dine. 

  

The Masquerade with black truffle prosciutto toastini, quail egg and fresh lemon mayo was a delight to eat especially with the crispy and aromatic toastini but I felt that the lemon mayo could have been stronger with its acidity to balance out the flavors. 

The Across The Pond with scallop tartar, crisp shallot and pesto, green apple, tangy mango and sweet strawberry sauce was easily my favorite dish of the night with its refreshing and sweet flavors. Who knew that strawberry sauce would go so well with scallops!

The World Party with fresh clams, crisp watercress and seafood creme soup was an interesting combination. The clams was flavorful with a buttery sauce while the soup tasted more like a fish broth and could have been thicker in texture. 

The Forget Me Not with buttery foie gras rice, silky French spring chicken roll, baby carrots and micro greens was a solid dish as the chicken roll was juicy and tender while the foie gras rice smelled wondrous without tasting overly heavy.

The Wildbeast with red wine braised beef cheeks, creamy mashed potatoes with nutmeg, cherry tomatoes stuffed with eggplant puree and ratatouille looked amazing with its splashes of colors. I loved the idea of putting eggplant puree into the cherry tomatoes but while the flavors were on point, I felt that that the beef cheek could have been more tender.

Finally we finished our meal with the Ribbon Vert which was a green tea crispy surprise with sweet beetroot sauce, pineapples, gooseberries, red currant and fresh vanilla creme. I loved this dessert as the green tea rice crispy was rather fun to eat which went very well with the fruits and sauce!

The petit fours were fresh macarons flown in from France that were served befittingly on a artist palette. 

Verdict - The Popsy Room offers a one-of-kind art food pairing experience which guarantees to excite all five of your senses in an intimate yet impactful setting!

* By Invitation

The Popsy Room

30 Upper Lascar Row, Sheung Wan
Tel: 2234 6711
http://thepopsyroom.com/

Follow me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/supertastermel

Follow me on Instagram @supertastermel