Over the last four years, the Butchers Club family of restaurants has expanded rapidly throughout Hong Kong with the opening of four outlets, including its newest addition, Butchers Club Burger in Tai Koo. Because Hong Kong is such a transient location, many may not ever have known that before their burger claim to fame, they were originally a private kitchen focused on dry-aging beautiful cuts of meat and then preparing those cuts for private kitchen clients.
We were recently invited to experience their full private dining experience at their original Aberdeen location, and it was absolutely a night to remember. Their original location is tucked away on a small hill in Aberdeen on the 13th floor of a large industrial building. After exiting the elevator, we quickly identified their signature Butchers Club bicycle at the end of the hall.
The private kitchen truly is that, a large commercial kitchen, with a large communal table for 12 at the front of the room. It feels like you’re at a chef’s table inside a large restaurant, except that, in this case, you and your party are the only table being served.
There’s a chalkboard near the door listing out our menu for the evening and it looks like we’re in for a treat. As we all arrive, we’re greeted with a glass of bubbly, and Chef Tom proudly introduces the custom dry-aged USDA Angus prime rib roast that we’ll be dining on later that evening.
We’re started off with an amuse bouche; a Wagyu pastrami on a rye bagel with onion jam, and a smoked ocean coral trout potato blini topped with caviar, dill, and sour cream, which is served in the shell of a hollowed-out book. Both are exceptional.
The enormous seafood trough arrives next and includes oysters, lobster ceviche, a king crab and avocado salad, and a yellowfin poke. Our favourite here is the gin and tonic oyster shooter, which is a bit effervescent, briny, and fresh with lime. The lobster ceviche is also a winner, with chunks of lobster and oranges, marinated in a tangy citrus brew.
The hot appetisers arrive next and you start to wonder how you’re ever going to eat a steak dinner after this. A bucket of fresh, hot, mussels cooked with fennel and chorizo arrive, along with huge shin bones full of roasted marrow, topped with caramelised shallots. Both marrow and shallots require bread, and Nick’s famous bread does not disappoint.
Like pieces of a puzzle, the staff starts serving the main course, with food from all directions on chopping boards. There are six bones of prime rib that have been carved up for us, two large butter lettuce and heirloom tomato salads, a huge wooden bowl of duck-fat fries, and a board of amazing homemade sauces including a foie gras béarnaise, a mustard stilton jus, and a smoked apple ketchup. There are few words to describe the intense flavours and richness of the meat when it’s been dry aged and prepared in this way. It’s tender, marbled and perfectly cooked, and our belts are getting very tight. The duck-fat fries with the mustard stilton jus are a real treat here, and as we mop of the last of the remaining gravy, we’re told to prepare for dessert.
A meal as decadent as this would be amiss without dessert, and the chefs do not disappoint. They’ve taken the liberty of baking blueberry cheesecakes and key lime pies for each person, and both desserts were outstanding. Granted, we consumed most of the desserts for breakfast the next morning, but who said that the meal had to last just one sitting?
With that being said, it’s hard to call this a meal; it’s truly a dining experience. If you’re looking for an exclusive, unforgettable meal with friends, where you’ll have the place all to yourself, we’d highly recommend giving The Butchers Club a call as you’re planning your next special occasion.
Butchers Club Private Kitchen
13C Sun Ying Industrial Centre
9 Tin Wan Close,
Tin Wan Hong Kong
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