Tag Archives: Lan Kwai Fong

Arcane restaurant review – can you keep a secret?

Posted on March 2, 2015 | 5 comments

Arcane /ɑːˈkeɪn/ adjective
Understood by few; mysterious or secret

Despite the dictionary definition, I promise that you won’t need a degree from Hogwarts to understand the food at Shane Osborn’s new restaurant, Arcane. It’s simple – it’s stunning.

Having fallen head over taste buds in love with Osborn’s cooking, I was absolutely gutted to hear that he had left St Betty, the restaurant that brought him to Hong Kong following his award-winning stint at London’s Pied a Terre. But that sadness quickly turned into elation when I discovered that Osbourn was in fact opening his own restaurant in Central.

Located on the third floor of a brand new building on On Lan Street, the interior of Arcane is pretty unassuming – the décor is nothing exciting (although there is a lovely terrace garden where Shane grows fruit, veggies and herbs for the kitchen) – but frankly, you don’t need design tricks and kicks when your food is this good.

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Tagged Arcane, Arcane HK, Arcane Hong Kong, best restaurants in Central, best restaurants in Hong Kong, European cuisine, European cuisine Hong Kong, favourite restaurants Hong Kong, Iberico pork, Lan Kwai Fong, Modern European, Modern European cuisine Hong Kong, Modern European restaurants Hong Kong, On Lan Street, review, Shane Osborn, Shane Osborn Hong Kong, special occasion dining Hong Kong, suckling pig, where to eat in Central, yuzu posset

Gaucho restaurant review – don’t cry for me Argentina!

Posted on November 11, 2014 | Leave a comment

*UPDATE: Gaucho Hong Kong has now closed*

There’s something of a Brit invasion going on in Hong Kong’s restaurant scene right now – Gordon Ramsay’s Bread Street Kitchen, Jason Atherton’s Aberdeen Street Social, Tom Aikens at The Pawn, even Jamie Oliver’s Jamie’s Italian. Well, here’s another one, except it’s not a famous chef but a famous restaurant – London’s award-winning Argentinian steakhouse, Gaucho.

Brought over to Hong Kong by Dining Concepts (yep, them again – importers of Ramsay, Laurent Tourondel, Michael White et al), Gaucho takes over the space of another of the group’s steakhouses, Mario Batalli’s Carnevino, at a super convenient location in LHT Tower next to Central MTR.

The space is unashamedly masculine, but in an almost metrosexual way – think sleek black surfaces, shiny mirrored accents and aeons of cow hide everywhere (I dare you to resist stroking it).

In case you’re wondering what makes an Argentinian steakhouse Argentinian, it’s that the cows are from Argentina… simple as that (and sadly not that they’re doing Argentine Tangos amidst the pampas; don’t worry, they’re free-range and fed on 17 types of pesticide-free grass in the most luscious grasslands in the world, so they’re probably not too bothered about missing their chance for Strictly Come Dancing fame). Elsewhere, the menu features further Argentine accents in the form of cooking techniques (hola open-fire asado grills), ingredients (hola chorizo and dulce de leche) and dishes (hola ceviche and empanadas).

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Sense Of Touch, LKF: The Sweetest Hangover spa treatment review

Posted on August 19, 2011 | 2 comments

As you may have worked out from this blog by now, I’m rather partial to a good spa treatment (hi Bliss Spa and Elemis!). Sense Of Touch is a spa that has a lot of buzz and positive word-of-mouth in Hong Kong (plus the multiple awards to prove it!) – and now I’m going to join the ever-mounting chorus of praises!

Thanks to Sense Of Touch, Sassy Hong Kong and the lovely Vivien, I was invited to try their newest spa treatment – The Sweetest Hangover (the fact that this branch is in Lan Kwai Fong, THE nightlife spot in HK, should mean that name makes a little more sense!). It’s a 2- hour intensive treatment comprising of an organic seaweed bath, a sugar cane scrub and a full-body massage using a combination of essential oils – and it’s amazing!

The seaweed bath actually has real pieces of Irish hand-harvested seaweed floating around in it, which made me feel like a cross between something from a wildlife documentary and an alien from Doctor Who! But sans tub in my apartment, it was just exciting to be getting to have a bath in the first place!

Overall, it was a blissful experience – detoxifying, invigorating, refreshing and relaxing. By the end, my skin just felt out of this world (and in a good way, rather than a Doctor Who alien way). You can read a full review of The Sweetest Hangover, Sense Of Touch and all the beneficial best bits of the treatment at Sassy Hong Kong here – but this is just a quick garble to say, if you get the chance to try Sense Of Touch, GO GO GO!

The Sweetest Hangover is currently on promotion until 15^th September for $1290 for 2 hours and normally costs $1590.

Sense Of Touch Lan Kwai Fong, 1-5F, 52 D’Aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central, 2526 6918