FATHER'S DAY

I am not big on official declaration of love a la Hallmark ... be it Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and indeed, Father's Day. I find those unimaginative, syrupy and formula driven words appalling. Even more difficult for me is the regimen of saying those magic words ... 'I Love You Dad' ... on one given day a year, presumably created by Hallmark. What about the other 364 days? Forgive my being sarcastic but it is like going to confession once a year, and penance is a Hallmark card, presented amidst a Father's Day Special Buffet or Dim Sum at Yum Cha ... then comes the Coup de Grace ... the hero of the day gets the tab. Can you see it, can you believe it, can you stomach it?

Enough ranting from a grumpy 65 year old ... now let me share with you the long awaited rainbow. The first ever card, written by our grand twins Jamie & Sonya. They are not quite 4 and they believe in Santa Claus, in Christmas, in loving both parents in equal doses. They fight for time with their parents, they love to be held, they ask to be hugged and kissed, they touch, they squiggle until they find the perfect spot in your arms - just like our adult daughters used to do at that age, the operative words are 'used to' here which I miss so much I get misty eyes when I talk about it, right this moment - and they have no qualms about saying 'I Love You' whenever they feel it, as shown in my Fathers Day card, in writing.  We need to all learn from the twins. This is true love, Father's Day messages are not quite it.

"Dear Kung Kung, Happy Father's Day Love Sonya & Jamie" ... yes, there is hope and meaning in life yet!

BACK TO PALCO

Always on the look out for the next pizza or pasta that impresses, we have been to a few recently opened trattorias and ristorantes in town. I will come straight to the point, Placo in Chai Wan which I blogged earlier, remains the winner. It is best for casual pizza and pasta nights with family and friends, I can guarantee satisfaction. The attention to details can be felt right across the board, as in this traditional Marinara pizza with tomato and mozzarella, adding a twist of poached eggs. It would bring the blood pressure of a die-hard Italian way up but the yolk did bring a bit of 'Carbonara' to the party, quite refreshing. Our second pizza was a super fragrant black truffle with ceps, and we also had gooey oven baked raclette with new potatoes, 3 pastas - pesto, mushroom cream and braised oxtail - simple, classic, wholesome, authentic and rewarding.

No stars (yet) and no pretenses, just fresh ingredients cooked in the best way Chef Ken and his crew know how. What more can you ask for?  Palco is still located in mid town Chai Wan but it will soon be relocated to Wanchai.  Go soon .. like in the next few weeks .. as the new venue will bring teething issues and you might end up blaming me for false reporting.  

PALCO : 4F Youth Centre Chaiwan (852) 2618 8388
   

LEBERKNODELSUPPE

Literally the 3 words mean Liver-Dumpling-Soup which is one of my all time favorites from my many trips to Germany. Even though it is a traditional dish of German, Austrian and Czech cuisine, it was after a serving in Bregenz Austria - the best ever - when I made the commitment to try my own version, and I did.

The dumpling is made from a 50-50 mix of calf's liver and top quality ground beef. I would use my hands to knead it like dough instead of blending to give it more structure like Beef Balls in Chiu-Chow noodles. The liver will keep the mixture moist, giving the finished product an out of this world flavor. Next comes sauteed onion, minced garlic, an egg, finely chopped fresh parsley, bread crumbs, shaved nutmeg, and seasoning to taste. To make sure it stays firm and consistent I leave them in the fridge for a couple of hours. The beef broth is a challenge as it is close to impossible to make your own at home. I need to plagiarize, using organic beef stock in a box and adding to it Oxo beef cubes to intensify the flavor. The magic is crushed black pepper, I mean lots of it, to achieve that uncompromising taste. It is like a noodle connoisseur who rules on how good a bowl is by taking the first sip of the broth. Early dementia might have set in since retirement - I forget names these days after remembering them to make a living for 25 years as a headhunter - but my palate never fails me. I remember how food, especially my favorites, are supposed to taste and Leberknodelsuppe is right up there in my memory chip.

The cooking part is easy. When the broth is on put the dumplings in, at high simmer, once they are ready they float to the top. More chopped parsley will garnish this beautiful comfort food, which is more like a meal than a soup. The missing link here will be the bread to go with it, there is simply no way Hong Kong can produce the same quality of crusty bread served in Europe.

This one is a breeze, you can make it to your own taste, and you will love it.      

RAMEN-MANIA

Have you noticed the so called Ramen specialty shops are invading the world of fast foods lately? Several are legitimate branches from Japan but many are look-alike, me-too copies no different from LV bags and Rolex watches in Mongkok.  I am a noodle lover who swears by the famous comment by a dear friend ' ... I have not met a noodle I did not like'.

I took my 93-year old Mom for lunch last week and noticed this tiny shop with lots of Japanese words on their DIY menu, including a multitude of boxes to tick. For instance ... degree of al dente of the Ramen - which is thoughtful but why, if you do not like the chewiness of Ramen try cook-to-submission Sorba, which is not my cup of tea; saltiness of broth (technically it is a soup) but if the soup is diluted ie minus the Dashi, the Miso, the Pork Bone base to please the health conscious it is no longer a proper Ramen; then there are the accompanying veggie - including kernel of corn which, without doubt, is a Hong Kong innovation because fresh veggie is not an integral part of a Ramen. However, the order sheet says nothing about portion size like they do for rice portions in the Cha Charn Tang culture. Anyway, while the 3 admirable young men, probably partners, were full of passion their product was regrettably a look-alike as the pieces were just not there to make the jigsaw work.

That gimmicky sliver of Nori with Chinese characters - 'Noodle Craftsman' - was a cute touch. I was told they ordered them from Japan, and it is actually egg white that does not dissolve in soup but customers did not seem to be convinced, as most were left untouched.    

Well, folks, it was an experience but one I would rather not recommend to you.

SOME LIKE IT HOT

Fellow foodies who swear by spicy Sichuan fare, wondering why there is none in Central all these years, your prayers have just been answered.

SICHUAN HOUSE opened very recently at the top of Wellington Street, in the same building as my #1 Izakaya - SushiKuu. Its previous incarnation was a seafood restaurant which apparently did not work out and the owners acted fast to make a change. The end result was awesome. I am no expert in Sichuan cooking but I can tell you the taste here is as close as you can find in Chendu or Chongqing. Their story : 3 known chefs from Sichuan were brought in to commission the restaurant, 2 have since repatriated, 1 stays behind to QC and .. hear this .. to coordinate fresh and indigenous ingredients flown in weekly from the Wild West which he crosses the boarder to pick up from Shenzhen. There you have it, commitment to quality.

Authenticity of tastes aside I strongly suggest you try 2 dishes, as shown (1) the classic 'Fish Cook in Water' .. do not ask me why they call that deadly but heavenly red hot broth 'water' and (2) the 'Romance of Chicken & Duck' .. a clever and well executed dish which I will let you discover on your own. It is such a pleasure to not have to go to the boondocks for adulterated versions if you 'truly like it hot'.  They do not have a liquor license yet so it is BYO, hurry up to enjoy the privilege while you can. One last thing, excellent service!

SICHUAN HOUSE : 7F M88 at 2 Wellington Street Central @ 2521 6699
www.sichuanhouse.com.hk - Manager Paul Yiu