One of the great benefits of living in a global city like Hong Kong is the ability to interact and meet other global nomads, people who have experienced and learned from numerous cultures from all around the world. We get truly lucky when we find those nomadic chefs who have taken the learnings from their wanderings and incorporated those new methods and flavours to create something inspired, innovative, and oh-so-tasty.
Pomegranate Kitchen is the brainchild of Maria Bizri, who originally hails from Lebanon, but has spent extended periods of time in Canada, Pakistan, Dubai, Indonesia and now Hong Kong. She tells Foodie that, “Personally, I feel that food essentially is an expression of one’s self and one’s journey – both physically and metaphorically. For me that means imparting flavour, love, and nurturing. Pomegranate Kitchen is an expression of that ultimately-well travelled food that reflects my journey.”
While Pomegranate Kitchen explored the concept of a weekly open-to-the-public private kitchen concept, they now focus solely on the catering and events planning niche of the F&B business. Because they’re not open to the general public for meals, we jumped at the opportunity to attend their 2nd birthday party celebration in their warehouse-based space in Wong Chuk Hang.
Vibe:
Though the entrance to the Sing Teck Factory Building is quite industrial and worn down, once you enter Pomegranate’s 4th floor doors, you are transported into a completely different world. There are beautiful dark wood floors and white tables and we are absolutely impressed by the open-plan kitchen, large indoor dining room, and their gorgeous 2,000 sq. ft. terrace.
Maria and her team were also excited to show us their new, second venue upstairs, 8D by Pomegranate. With its pristine all-white decor, this new venture will serve as a multi-purpose space for their corporate and consumer clientele base. They share with us that the blank canvas concept can be used for parties, photo shoots, launches, pop-ups, or other corporate events.
Food:
We expected to dine well this evening, and we were very much impressed by the creativity and taste of all the small plates we tried. With her Mediterranean roots, many of the dishes we sampled showed that strong influence, and we were happily surprised to see the multiculturalism of her cooking shine through in other dishes as well.
A few favourites that stood out to us were the Shredded Duck Shepherd’s Pie, Grilled Lamb Chops with Chermoulah Dressing, Scallops with Pomegranate Gremolata, Harissa-Marinated Duck with Citrus in Lettuce Cups, and finally, the Churros with an Orange-Infused Dulce de Leche.
The shepherd’s pie was comfort food heaven. For us, it doesn’t get much better than duck confit and gravy, topped with creamy mashed potatoes, all baked into a cute ceramic pot.
The lamb chops were cooked medium-rare, and were nicely contrasted with the tangy, herby, cuminy, chermoulah dressing.
The scallops were pan-seared, and topped with a light parsley and pomegranate sauce, which thankfully did not overpower the flavour of the fresh seafood.
The Harissa-marinated duck in lettuce cups was absolutely lovely. There was a touch of heat from the Harissa, a cool balance from the citrus fruit, and the crunchiness of the gem lettuce made this bite a winner.
The lightly-fried churros were a great way to finish our culinary journey at the Pomegranate Kitchen that evening. All conversation in our group ceased as we each eagerly used our churros as dining utensils to scrape the last globs of caramelly dulce de leche out of the shot glasses they were served in. Unfortunately, these got eaten up so quickly that we weren’t able to snap a photo. You’ll just have to use your imagination.
Overall:
If you’re looking for a caterer or an event space for your next special occasion, we would highly recommend considering Pomegranate Kitchen to be added to your shortlist. Not only was the food fantastic, the quality of the service staff that evening was also top-notch. As Pomegranate Kitchen gears up for year three, we’re hoping to hear more good things from this team, and look forward to the next time we get to dine with them.
Pomegranate Kitchen
