Very rarely have I wanted to return to a restaurant simply because of how excellent and warm the service has been. That was only until I visited Megan’s Kitchen for a weekday dinner visit this summer.
With a crew of convivial and gentle service staff leading the restaurant, every need is cared for at Megan’s Kitchen: the menu is explained considerately, suggestions catered to your preferences, and food served with grace.
We ordered the signatures – dishes that exemplify fancified Cantonese dining – and got served plates leaving us with memorable flavours.
Dinner began with the deep fried truffle tofu (HKD98, 8 pcs). Whilst I am not a fan of plain shaved truffle – it can elicit strong muddy tastes that don’t particularly please my palette – I love a creamy truffle paste and this dish excels with it.
The deep fried dish is packed with the paste and gives off a salty and meaty flavour. It is fried in a shallow oil bath to ensure a clean bite.
What began as the best dish we ate of the dinner (so far) – what followed was even better – the steamed giant garoupa (HKD980) presents how flavourful simple Cantonese cooking can be.
The fish is washed over with a diluted soy sauce bath with fresh spring onion, which brings acid and salt to the bountiful fatty fish. You can taste exactly how fresh the fish is, seemingly taken out of the South China Sea that morning.
The braised ox tail with black truffle sauce (HKD288, 4pcs) blew us away. The familiar truffle flavour at Megan’s Kitchen is mixed together with mushrooms and onions to serve a French-like roasted sauce, alongside the ox tail.
The ox tail itself is indulgent with the juicy fat and robust with strong umami tones from the grainy beef chunks on the tail itself.
For the final dish, we both tucked into the roasted baby pigeon (HKD148), ripping the bird apart to reveal juicy, fatty, grizzly bits of the pigeon oozing with saltiness. The skin is crispy and flesh meaty, suitable for earning yourself a fix for your salty craving.
To wash all the salt, fat, acid, and heavy mains down, the mango sago soup with grapefruit (HKD30) wiped my palate clean and left me light after the heavy mains.
Our verdict of Megan’s Kitchen
We felt like family dining at Megan’s Kitchen, a 20-year-old restaurant that reflects what Hong Kongers love to eat when in the mood for eating more fancy: gourmet Cantonese dishes made for sharing. Each and every server shone bright with a friendly aura, making us feel welcome and the food more tasty.
Now we know why actor Andy Lau, former basketball player Yao Ming, and snooker player Marco Chu have visited this restaurant before.
Megan’s Kitchen, 5/F, Lucky Centre, 165-171 Wan Chai Road, Wan Chai, 2866 8305, book here
| Order this: deep fried truffle tofu, giant garoupa, braised ox tail, roasted baby pigeon Menu: dinner à la carte menu Price for two: HKD800 – HKD1,200 | Atmosphere: you feel like you are dining in someones home with such high level of service Perfect for: savouring gourmet Cantonese classics prepared fresh and with top ingredients |
This review is intended to offer an individual perspective on the dining experience and should not be considered as a definitive judgement of the restaurant’s overall quality or reputation. The views expressed in this review are solely the author’s and do not reflect the opinions of Foodie.
