Weekends are made for brunch and The Optimist is made for weekends. If lots of delicious Spanish food (think cheese, cured meats, grilled seafood, broken eggs, and much more) sounds like your kind of meal, then The Optimist certainly won’t disappoint. The fresh and vibrant atmosphere will pull you in right away and the ample amounts of food will undoubtedly leave you satisfied.

Cold Pintxos Buffet

We began our feast with The Optimist’s cold pintxos buffet. With a range of cured meat (I had an entire plate dedicated to this deliciousness), a variety of salads (pasta, rocket, barley), and mini tartines, this buffet is a meal in and of itself. A word of warning: be sure to exercise caution and restraint when piling up your plate, as you still have three incredibly filling courses to go.

Sharing Starters 

After you’ve had enough of the buffet nibbles, get ready for a spread of four hot sharing starters. The Broken Eggs (Heuvos Rotos) with Iberian ham, chorizo, potato, and egg, was a show-stopper – we couldn’t wait to cut the yolk and mix everything together. Another Broken Eggs (Heuvos Rotos) dish was next, this time with mushroom, truffle, potato, and egg. We also shared Ham & Mushroom Croquettes with Iberian ham and Boletus mushrooms and the Charcoal Grilled Octopus with potato, garlic, and Ajada sauce.

Mains 

Despite already regretting not wearing stretchy pants, we were ready for our mains. The Whole Seabass “A la Espalda” (for two people at an additional $68 per person) was covered in fragrant garlic, making this one juicy fish. While we loved the taste of the seabass, we didn’t love the bones we kept having to pick out of the fish. We all fell in love with the vegetarian dish of Eggplant “Berenjena al Horno”. The combination of juicy eggplant, rich sauce, and the ample amount of goat cheese brought this dish together so well that we wished we had ordered two.

Dessert

To finish off our brunch, a chef selection of desserts were brought to our table. The first dessert had an almost liquid-like cream-coloured base with what resembled (and could very well have been) Rice Krispies. After shaking some cinnamon on top and taking a bite, we were hooked. The smooth texture of the pudding with the crispy crunch of the Rice Krispies, made for an interesting combination. Next was the vanilla custard “Natillas” with corn flakes and strawberry coulis. This was equally as delicious as the first dessert – we loved the addition of the strawberry coulis, which really gave it a wow-factor. 

Verdict

If you’re looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of weekends in Central, The Optimist in Wanchai is a great option with a welcoming atmosphere, friendly service, and enough food to keep you full the entire day. The brunch here is also very good value at $368 a pop with the option to add on free-flow drinks for $180, this is an excellent way to spend a Saturday or Sunday.

Price: The Optimist’s brunch starts at $368 per person, which includes a cold pintxos buffet, sharing starters, a main course, and dessert. Add an additional HK$180 for free-flow sangria, prosecco, and wine.

The Optimist
Website or Tel: 2433 3324 

This article was originally published on thisgirlabroad.com