leisa tyler reports on the latest food and drink news from the region
RAW TALENT
One of the top dining tables in Hong Kong right now is at the InterContinental Hong Kong, where the highly celebrated Japanese Chef Nobu Matsuhisa – renowned for his innovative new Japanese cuisine – has recently opened NOBU.
Gazing out over Victoria Harbour, the restaurant’s decor is reminiscent of the Japanese countryside; a blend of traditional and modern furnishings topped with a rolling ceiling made from thousands of sea urchin pencils.
Expect to find the very best of Nobu’s signature style dishes, including fresh yellowtail sashimi with jalapeno (below), toro tartar with caviar and white fish tiradito. We recently caught up with the master chef.
How do you describe your dishes?
The base is definitely Japanese. But years spent in South America and travelling around the world has allowed me to experience various kinds of ingredients and spices which I have incorporated into my cooking, creating an ever-evolving Nobu-style.
What is your favourite Japanese food?
Sushi, of course! I like everything, but I especially enjoy white fish, tuna, mollusk, squid, octopus and sea urchin.
What was the last really great thing you ate?
In October, I was in Milan and had this wonderful parmesan risotto with fresh white truffles at Da Giacomo Restaurant. Which five people would you ideally invite to a dinner party? My family: my late mother and brother, and of course, my wife and two daughters.
What would you serve?
A seafood salad with Matsuhisa dressing (my signature onion soy dressing), steamed cod (madara) with dried miso, and wagyu beef grilled tableside and served with dipping sauce (fresh wasabi soy sauce with a splash of yuzu) on the side. After that, we would have assorted sushi and mushroom soup, followed by fresh seasonal fruit for dessert.
NOBU at InterContinental Hong Kong, Salisbury Road, Kowloon, tel +852 2721-1211, www.intercontinental.com
SUGAR AND SPICE
Following the success of their funky Singapore hotel, The New Majestic, Peng Loh and Sebastian Ng recently opened Ember in Bangkok.
Tucked in the Lumpini Park end of Soi Lang Suang, the crisp white restaurant with clean lines and tasteful furnishings is the epitome of restrained chic.
Upstairs, there are private dining rooms and a kitchen bar for interactive dinners with Chef Haikal Johari.
Haikal’s splendid dishes blend the French techniques he had picked up from years working at Raffles hotel in Singapore with the zest of Asian herbs and spice. Don’t miss the succulent beef tenderloin with warm soy dressing, Mediterranean-style spring lamb with spicy lentil broth or the white chocolate panacotta with a hint of lemongrass. Balcony Building Room, Soi Lang Suan, tel +66 (0)2 652-2085
ALL ABOARDs
Take to Singapore’s high seas on Il Lido’s dazzling new catamaran. Following the opening of their exquisite Italian restaurant on Sentosa Island earlier last year, diners at Il Lido can now enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner, surrounded by the big blue ocean.
The plush new boat can accommodate up to 16 people for a meal or, with three cabins, sleep six overnight. Sea-faring guests order their meals before setting sail. Choose from delicacies such as aged parma ham with port-infused rock melon and venison carpaccio with slivers of white truffle, as well as an extensive cellar of champagnes and Italian, French and New World wines. Il Lido, Sentosa Golf Club, tel +65 6866-1977
FEEL GOOD FOOD
Three big cheers for the 23 students who recently graduated from the Shinta Mani School of Hospitality in Cambodia. Now in its third year, the innovative programme takes under-privileged kids off the streets and into the upper echelons of Siem Reap’s flourishing hospitality industry.
Funded by profits from the chic Shinta Mani Hotel as well as guest donations, the nine-month programme aims to train students in both kitchen and serving skills before placing them for service in various city hotels and restaurants.
Lend a hand by eating at the hotel’s divine little restaurant, a small outfit that offers both Khmer and Western dishes from organic produce. Or even better, book a room (from $80). Every paying guest is a helping hand.
Shinta Mani Hotel, Junction of Oum Khum and 14th Street, tel +855
(0)63 761998, www.shintamani.com
T’IS THE SEASON
… to drink sake. Experts claim Japan’s famed rice-wine tipple is best drunk in the winter, at room temperature. In fact, there is never a bad time to drink sake, meaning “alcoholic beverage” in Japanese but dubbed “sake” in English (Japanese call it nihonshu).
Reports claim the first rice wine was brewed in the Yangtze basin, China, around 6,000 BC. The practice later migrated to Japan, Thailand, Laos and other rice-producing nations, who all concoct their own versions.
Not all rice wine is equal, however, with sake’s precise fermentation and long brewing time, creating a smoother and more palatable sip than most of its other counterparts.
The best quality – displaying a delicate balance between sweetness and acidity – can be worth as much as aged Scotch.
GOURMET LUANG PRABANG
Magically situated overlooking the Mekong River in Luang Prabang, Na Dao is Laos’ latest gourmet delight.
Following on from his restaurant of the same name in Vientiane (tel +852 (0)20 504884), Chef Sayavouth – a scion of the old royal family in Xieng Khouang who grew up in the kitchens of Alain Senderens and Bernard Pacaud, both three-star Michelin chefs – blends the two culinary cultures in his new menu.
The result? Outstanding classical French cuisine cooked with local produce such as river weed, buffalo sausages, Mekong fish and watercress. Sala Prabang Hotel, tel +856 (0)71 252460, http://salaprabang.salalao.com
THE ART OF DRINK
Detangle the culinary world’s latest buzz word “molecular mixology” – by signing up to Tom Warden’s half day “Liquid Chef” programme at the JW Marriott Phuket’s Blue Bar.
Basically meaning the science of creating new taste sensations, molecular mixology is now the hottest thing on the bar scene – and one of the things guests can learn about on this fun new course.
Join Tom as he shows cocktail enthusiasts how to throw their own cocktail party – from finding the right tools and ingredients, to what to do and what not to do, experimenting, mixing… and, of course, drinking the end results.
Here, he answers a few questions about cocktails today. What are the current trends in cocktails?
There is a sense of going back to basics with the revival of the old classics, prepared using traditional ingredients.
I researched the original recipe for shandy and recently introduced this at the resort – a combination of ginger beer, Singha, orange Curacao and lemon.
Secondly, there is a blurring of distinction between the kitchen and the bar, with live stations being introduced and cocktails being treated in a similar way as food.
What are the most common cocktail-making mistakes? Using too sugary combinations, such as vodka and Red Bull; choosing low-brand spirits and cheap house pours over premium labels; and making it too complicated.
Do you have a top tip for budding mixologists?
Don’t be afraid to experiment. It’s all about personal taste and preferences at the end of the day. Just treat drinks the same way as food when it comes to picking and mixing flavours. JW Marriott Phuket, Mai Khao Beach, tel +66 (0)76 338000, www.marriott.com/HKTJW
SPA-LOVING CHEFS
From Chiang Mai to the Maldives, Susie Donald’s latest book takes readers into the kitchens of the region’s most luxurious spa resorts.
More coffee table than kitchen table, Secret Destinations: Asian Spa Cuisine is packed with 250 tantalising pages of beautiful spa and tropical haven images to drool over after your holidays have ended.
The food section includes more than 150 recipes of Asian favourites and signature dishes from selected resorts – re-jigged spa style, with less oil, sugar and salt.
Available at all leading Asian bookstores, or through Hardie Grant Books at www.hardiegrant.com.au
