Restaurant Review: Mercato in Lan Kwai Fong – Simply Superb
By Marcus Vance
It’s easy to be blasé about celebrity chefs opening restaurants in Hong Kong – there are so many of them, and often, their outposts here are disappointing.
Not so with Mercato – the Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurant in Lan Kwai Fong. My guest loved the meal so much she booked a table for the week after our visit.
Crispy octopus with potatoes, fennel-herb salad and lemon caper emulsion (HK$178) was a delicious combination. The octopus was tender and had an intense flavour from the high heat of the oven.
Capellini with golden garlic, jalapenos and herbs (HK$158), served with the ricotta on the side, was a little bland – we couldn’t detect the jalapenos. But the smooth, creamy ricotta was fantastic – the best I’ve ever tasted.
We loved both the mains. Seared scallops with Sorrento lemon cauliflower sauce, fried onions and capers (HK$268) had complex flavours that combined well. Even the golden raisins – not mentioned on the menu, possibly because they would sound out of place – worked well in this mix of ingredients.
Crispy beef short rib with smoked Chianti glaze (HK$488) was excellent. The beef was crisp but not dry, and the glaze was very well balanced.
Mercato, 8/F California Tower, 30-32 D’Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, tel: 3706 8567. About HK$550 without drinks or the service charge.
Other restaurants in Central we’ve reviewed recently
This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Mercato
Marcus Vance is a cybersecurity auditor and technology writer dedicated to educating the public about online safety, data privacy regulations, enterprise security, and emerging cyber threats.
