[Hong Kong] Neighborhood

Rating: ❤❤❤❤ (4/5)

A foodie friend was in town so we decided to catch up at David Lai's Neighborhood for dinner - a restaurant that we've both heard great things about. The restaurant was nestled off an alley next to Hollywood Street and it was cozy and quaint like your friendly neighborhood joint. Since David was there, we let him choose the dishes for us so it was like eating at someone's house with a surprise at every turn - we didn't know what we were getting but everything turned out to be delicious. We shared a few bottles of wine and ended the night with our belly full of delight, just like how every dinner with friends should be. The menu changes often to incorporate the best produce David can find that day so I can't wait to come back to try the other dishes on the menu!

It's hard to pinpoint exactly what type of cuisine David serves (he laughed when we told him that his restaurant was labeled as Italian online) but I guess it's a modern mix of French and Italian. We started off with a few snacks including this ankimo (monkfish liver) with caviar, chives and chili flakes. The ankimo wasn't as sweet as the ones I've had in Japan but it was the first time I've had ankimo presented like this.

Cured Salmon and Wagyu beef

Fried padron peppers

Another interesting combination was this creamy shirako (cod milt) in a rich and flavorful seafood bouillabaisse soup - I didn't think they would work together but they did.

At first glance I thought it was escargots but it was actually quail eggs in escargot butter.

The roasted autumn fruits and vegetables "mr. ducasse" was a delightful surprise where the sweet pear, vegetables and black truffle were tied together by a slightly sweet and acidic sauce. 

Yellow chanterelle with escargot

Our main course was this impressive monkfish and lobster cooked in a bouillabaisse stew. The monkfish was cooked just right while the lobster could have been more raw (but check out those roes!). 

Perhaps the most surprising of all were the handmade pastas here which we all agreed was the best dishes of the night! The wild boar garganelli was packed with flavors while the sea urchin taglioni was more delicate - both were equally delicious and should not be missed. 

We were stuffed at this point but couldn't resist when David brought out this alluring cheese platter with brie de meaux "alleosse"/black truffle and 36 mo. comte "bernard anthony".

Lastly we ended the night on a sweet note with the chocolate palette and caneles.

Unpretentious and soulful, Neighborhood is the type of restaurant where you feel at home and can go back again and again. 

Neighborhood

61-63 Hollywood Road, Central

Tel: +852 2617 0891
https://www.facebook.com/neighborhoodhk

 

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