Only up to a year ago, it was impossible for anyone to make me sit at a Hong Kong style cafe restaurant; I just simply hated them and would rather go to McDonalds. The reason is, HK style cafes never suited me before and I do not like their menus (IE one item with rice, spaghetti or some other form of carb, or a baked rice/spaghetti dish). So, I would be starving but at the same time torturing myself since when I am picky, I will not touch anything I do not want. However, fast forward to a year later, I do not mind going to HK style cafes when I am not hungry. Or to be entirely honest, occasionally visit HK style cafes when I am feeling scrubby and do not want to be seen by anyone important lol.
Walking in, there were a few waiters on the floor and every one of them was friendly as well as professional. We were provided with a few different menus and as usual, I was overwhelmed. When browsing the menus, I usually start by eliminating any beef with vegetable (beef with gai lan, beef with bittermelon…) as well as pork dishes (honey garlic spare ribs, sweet n’ sour…), and go straight to the steaks or hot plates. By the way, I do not even use the hot plates properly and will never pour sauce over the food because I like the natural flavours LOL. Unless the sauce is really good...CREAM SOUP INCLUDED IN MEAL OR ($4.50).
A choice of soup is included with most orders of a hot plate or steak, and I went for the cream soup. The soup is served very hot and has a nice creamy consistency. Furthermore, there is a rich flavour along with a nice sweetness from the corn. To date, this is the best cream soup I ever had at any HK style cafe restaurant. Also, in general, the cream soup is not bad.
BF went for the lobster bisque which is an additional ($2.50) for the lobster soup and ($1.50) for the puff, with an order of a hot plate or steak.
The puff has a nice crisp and the interior tastes soft as well as flaky (which is more than what I can say for ABC HK Cafe’s). As for the bisque, there is a rich and strong lobster flavour and the soup tastes a lot better than La Amigo’s. In addition, there are actually a few pieces of lobster and the meat tastes perfectly cooked with a nice snap.
OVALTINE AND MILK ($1.00).
ROMAINE AND ARUGULA SALAD WITH RANCH DRESSING.
Huh?! Salads too? Whoa, totally did not expect this. The salad tastes fresh and has a generic ranch dressing. As for the drinks, there is ovaltine for him and cold milk for myself. Hot drinks are included with most orders and cold drinks are an additional $0.50. The milk is $1.00 though.HAINANESE CHICKEN, HALF ($12.00).
The hainan chicken is actually not bad and is even slightly better than Tropika's. The silky smooth skin has as nice gelatin layer underneath and the meat is fairly tender, including the white meat. In addition, the ginger sauce tastes extremely flavourful and is a Top Five. The chicken actually tastes quite fresh and has a hainan flavour.
The wings are perfectly fried with a nice crisp exterior, and tastes extremely juicy. Furthermore, the both of us really like the peppery salt and five spice seasoning, which is used for Taiwanese chicken nuggets. As for the crisp fries, although generic, the interior is a bit pillowy which I personally prefer and are neither crunchy nor hollow.
Starting with the lobster, I actually never had this style before! The meat is sliced and all you do is jab, pull and eat. The lobster is nicely cooked where the meat tastes bouncy and being originally unsure about having cheese added, the natural flavour of the lobster is not overwhelmed at all. In addition, the lobster sauce actually has a real lobster flavour along with a nice consistency, not bland at all.
As for the steak, although there are nice grill marks visually, there is no nice crust or charred flavour! After wondering what that was about, it turns out the steak was flipped too soon because the bottom has no color at all. Nevertheless, the steak is cooked to a perfect medium rare and tastes fairly tender (but not very juicy). However, I really wanted that nice flavourful char. If anything, the very tip of the steak had that nice charred flavour, which was just a tease because I wish the taste was throughout the whole steak.
Since the garnishes for my baked potato were missing which I assume was for presentation purposes (placing the steak on top of the potato), I requested for some bacon, sour cream and chives. The potato is served hot (not cold like ABC HK Cafe's), soft but not mushy, and there are no complaints. Is it sad to admit that I have not had a nicely cooked baked potato in a while? Asides from the baked potato, the choices for a carb are rice, spaghetti, fries and mashed potato. Furthermore, carrot, corn and broccoli are included as a side, which do not taste overcooked.
BFs rib eye steak is so much better than mine! Again, cooked to a perfect medium rare, the steak tastes extremely juicy and tender. Furthermore, both sides of the steak are nicely grilled and have a nice crust along with a charred flavour. As for the sauce, there are a couple slices of mushroom and a nice thickened consistency, along with a mushroom gravy flavour.
Since we wanted to try every type of soup available, we added an order of Russian borscht for only an additional $1.00 because we ordered the wings. In addition, the wings come with a drink which we wondered about in the beginning but did not ask about until later on, and BF got the horlick. As for the Russian borscht, the soup has a rich strong tomato beefy broth.
The platting is pretty fancy for a HK style cafe eh?
Overall, our visit did not disappoint. BF has been wanting to come here for months and I was more like wtf am I going to eat at a HK style cafe? I enjoyed the lobster as well as the hainan chicken, also the wings and BFs steak. I pretty much enjoyed everything except for my steak! Furthermore, the service was surprisingly professional and the waiters are definitely approachable, one even said goodbye before we left! Kingspark Steak House is definitely a Top Five HK style cafe restaurant, and so far the only one on that list is La Amigo too.- One of the better HK style cafe restaurants
- Friendly and professional staff (especially for a HK style cafe)
- Above average eats
NEGATIVES
- My steak could have been better
LITTLE THINGS
- HK style cafes are a fun novelty for me because I never used to like them and when the food tastes good, my belly is full and I leave with a smile on my face
- I actually really liked the simple salad because I love romaine more than arugula
Food: 3/5 (for a HK style cafe restaurant 3.5/5)
Service: 3/5
No comments:
Post a Comment