HKG: Yè Shanghai
Two Michelin Star - Decent brunch with a fusion dessert!
Let's move on from Tim Ho Wan, the cheapest One Michelin Star in the world, but we haven't steered away from the topic: dim sum. I believe Yè Shanghai was listed under One Michelin Star restaurants in 2011, but it has since paved its way to become a Two Michelin Stars restaurant in 2012.
It was a Saturday morning (almost noon) when I patronised the restaurant, and thankfully I could immediately get a table even though I didn't make any reservation. I wanted to have a quick meal before going to Repulse Bay, so I thought I ought to drop by Yè Shanghai. By the way, the dim sum items are available everyday from 11.30am to 2.30pm.
Appetiser HK$25.00 (~S$4.15)
Taste: 7.5/10
Before anything else, the first item that you have to spend your money on would be the appetiser sitting on the table. Comprising vegetables in small pieces, they tasted pretty savoury after effectively absorbing the sauce which I couldn't really figure out. Sorry about that...
Steamed Chicken Feet with XO Sauce HK$28.00 (~S$4.65)
Taste: 7/10
Whenever I eat dim sum, chicken feet have to be included in the acid test. Sadly, while the chicken feet were of adequate meatiness, the XO sauce (Chinese spicy seafood sauce) was weak. In fact, it wasn't spicy at all if I remember correctly. Also, the dish was kinda oily.
Steamed Shrimp Dumplings HK$40.00 (~S$6.65)
Taste: 8.5/10
Thankfully, the har gow was much better than the chicken feet. The skin was translucent and not too thick, and most importantly, the prawn inside each dumpling was plump and juicy. The har gow went really well with the chili with dried shrimp provided on each table. In fact, the chili was so good that I couldn't stop tasting it.
Baked Barbecued Pork and Pipe Nuts Pastry HK$36.00 (~S$6.00)
Taste: 8/10
Served piping hot, each pastry had a generous amount of filling which had a balanced taste. The crust, while not too flaky, was rich and fluffy. The nuts were successful in adding that extra crunch.
Deep-Fried Spare Ribs with Five Spices HK$78.00 (~S$13.00)
Taste: 7/10
Although the spare ribs tasted alright without being overcooked till dry, I was disappointed since the taste of ngo hiang (Chinese five-spice powder consisting of cloves, star anise, fennel seeds, cinnamon and Sichuan pepper) was almost non-existent. I also thought that the red sauce given was a special concoction. However, it turned out to be the ubiquitous tomato sauce you can grab from a supermarket.
Smoked Fish HK$48.00 (~S$8.00)
Taste: 7/10
The only cold dish I tried the other day was the smoked fish with nice smoky aroma which wasn't over-powering, but the teriyaki sauce was a tad too sweet for my liking. Pika's advice: Be careful when eating the smoked fish! Fine bones almost got stuck in my throat.
Black Sesame Dumplings in Osmanthus Soup HK$28.00 (~S$4.65)
Taste: 8/10
From the list of traditional dessert items, I chose something warm which turned out to be pleasing. While the black sesame dumplings came in small pieces, I could tell that they weren't those you could find in the frozen state in a supermarket, and the filling was rich in flavour, kicking my taste buds. Also, the soup was really aromatic as it came with a lot of osmanthus petals (I know I should've stirred the soup before taking a picture of it).
Tofu Bavarian with Blueberry Compote and Ladyfingers HK$38.00 (~S$6.30)
Taste: 8/10
From the list of modern dessert items, the tofu pudding caught my attention. Although it didn't really have a distinctive taste, it was silky smooth without being too fragile. The blueberry compote was warm, thick and sweet. The ladyfingers, coated with castor sugar, were airy and delicate.
Chinese Tea (per pax) HK$20.00 (~S$3.30)
Taste: 8.5/10
Steep price, yes, but I was glad that they provided high quality Chinese tea which was really strong and bitter in a good way.
Melon's Rating
Taste: 7.5/10
Ambience: 8/10
Service: 8.5/10
Overall: 8/10
Nothing much to talk about service; usually I use that phrase when the service was bordering on non-existent, but actually this time I mean it was efficient as expected (and should be). All in all, I wasn't 100% impressed, but all I could say is that I had a decent brunch. I'm not sure if I'll be back for the dim sum items, but perhaps I'll try some other stuff in the future.
Yè Shanghai
3 Canton Road
6/F The Marco Polo Hotel
Tsim Sha Tsui
Hong Kong
(Daily: 11.30am - 3.00pm, 6.00pm - 12 midnight)
*Prices quoted are subject to 10% service charge.
Have a nice meal,
Cliff(y)
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