Indian restaurants
HONG KONG CLUB

I've visited Hong Kong Club which is dubbed party central post- midnight; it's 'the' place to be in terms of ambience, cocktails and trippy music by International DJs! But last fortnight it was the first time I was indulging in the Cantonese cuisine it's celebrated for. Trust me, the menu doesn't come close to describing the intensity of the flavours that await!

 

Walking in from the poolside entrance, my friends and I were once again awed with the sheer scale of its spaces—the two-floor three-hundred cover, artistic restaurant and lounge has a central island bar, private dining rooms with their own bars, open kitchens and wine racks. My friends and I surrendered ourselves to the management, requesting them for signature dishes, and they ordered an assortment of dimsums, to begin with. Now, dimsums translates as "to touch your heart" and that's what these delicacies did! I was both surprised and impressed by the sheer variety and added a dollop of soy in a bowl as the live kitchen sent out a procession of baskets beginning with "lobster, crab and spinach shumai" and "Shanghai dimsums filled with chicken broth, ginger and scallion". It was beyond sumptuous. Everything we had seemed to emit flavour and freshness and we ate from basket to basket ending with ''classic barbecued pork bao". There were more enticing dimsums on the menu but we had to pace ourselves for the next course.

 

Sipping cocktails and enjoying live music, we were content though once we moved on to the heartier dishes we were rewarded. The imagery of chefs roasting ''Honk Kong Duck" taunted our appetite. The duck was plump and golden, sumptuous enough for a poultry portrait!! It was carved table-side, the slices fanned out on a plate ritualistically, with shredded cucumber and mini bao. Oh!! It was gustatory pleasure and I can now appreciate why diners return for this signature dish. The chefs had maintained its succulent smoky flavor. flavour and crisp texture. Up next was off- the- hook fresh "lobster in black bean sauce''. I loved the aroma and portioned some out onto the wok-fried rice with preserved olive leaves, on my plate. The first forkful was heavenly and being a sea-foodie I quickly went in for seconds! I also discovered that no matter how full I am there's always room for dessert particularly when we were served what I now describe as 'Heaven In A Bowl' — a large dark chocolate edible bowl filled with dark chocolate ice- cream. It's insane how chocolate can be so finger lickin' delicious — and instagrammable!!

 

Reminiscing of the dinner, the maxim "build it and they will come" applies to Hong Kong Club. Every new diner has been astonished by its magnitude and stunning interiors. What I found remarkable is emphasis on quality and detail right from the design aesthetic to maintaining culinary traditions and presentation of the dishes. What most people don't know is that they can escape here to indulge in a slow elaborate meal. I use the word "escape" because that's what you do to get away from the commonplace and here you’ll be serenaded by a live band! Thank You, Chef! Bon Appétit.

— JASMEEN DUGAL