Sweet and thankful that my sister had finally put on her wedding gown, under this whole year from engagement to organizing the whole wedding ceremony, my family decided to round this important moment up with an elegant finish (believe it was actually a kick-off of this newlywed couple's brand new page) by joining Epure again for a decent dinner.
In contrast with the shiny and forestry atmosphere in the afternoon, Epure turned to be a lot more romantic and elegant with its dimmer environment this evening. Golden linings along the interior walls, doors, and all utensils shone all over to adorn this beautiful dining night.
To start off this evening, we ordered the 6-course "His" tasting menu, which comprised very appetizing oyster, foie gras, green asparagus which was on season, wagyu (with supplement $200), cheese and dessert.
Finger food (5/5): (From left: Comte cheese ball, Artichoke tart, foie gras ball with cherry glacing)
-This very HOT comte cheese ball had its cheesy heart wonderfully melting! (It's like the Pizza Hut ad which you could pull the cheese string out!) The strong flavor of Comte was enhanced after deep-fried.
-The foie gras ball made me think of another haute restaurant's signature lollipop. Nevertheless, it was also perfectly executed, with slightly sour cherry glacing on top and the umami foie gras filling inside. A combination that could never fail.
-Artichoke tart was refreshing enough to be stood in the middle of the other two and cleaned our palate.
Amuse Bouche (3.5/5): Pan seared tuna, topped with basil (green), olive (brown), lemon (yellow) and chilli sauce (red).
The tuna was medium-seared with beautiful pink flesh. These 4 sauces were interesting, each paired with tuna to give its own typical character. But overall it would say it's creatively presented, rather than outstanding in taste.
Pain (4/5): Baguette, Croissant, Mustard seed bread, Black olive bread, Black pepper and cheese bread, soft milk bread
*With orange chilli butter and unsalted butter
Have been writing about pain de Epure in my last review but this time they slightly earned their marks. The new flavor black peppers and cheese bread was ultimately impressive, imagine cheesy savory flavor lingered with exciting black peppers dancing on your palate.
This piquant orange chilli butter was only spicy in nose and a bit salted only. It did complement all breads very well.
Huitres de Bourcefranc(5/5): Special French Oyster, cucumber, melon & spicy crunchy peanuts
The dish setting was enchanting to
kick a nice start of the night. The delicate french fresh oysters was carefully
wrapped with a thin transparent greenish cucumber jelly and an beautiful orange french
melon sorbet came along to garnish this hearty cradle. A nice blow of cooling
dry ice vapor ran out over the dish once the servers poured water to the bottom
of the dish. (The dry ice effect is always adorable, even for a milk tea in HK Tai
Hing).
The oyster was remarkably crispy and fresh. I always agree that tasting freshly shucked oysters alone could retrieve its biggest taste. But out of
our expectation this time, the honey sweetness of melon sorbet accented the oyster’s tang
of ocean and went along so harmoniously with all ingredients. Rarely could an
oyster dish offered such a clean finish.
Chateau Haut-Brion 1993 (4/5):
Daddy brought us one of
his prestigious wines to Epure for our celebration tonight (as Epure has great
discount on corkage: Purchased 1 in-house wine and receive 1 self-brought in
full bottle corkage free). Again, not a big fan of reds, but found this wine
rather intriguing. Garnet in color, a medium+ leather and blackberry aroma and
hints of black peppered meat. On palate, it was a very elegant and full bodied
wine with obvious coffee and smoky wood, medium+ alcohol. The black fruit
revealed after it had been breathed along the dinner.
Le Foie Gras de Canard (4/5): Seared duck foie gras, poached rhubarb, Tonka beans sauce
Have been in love with Epure’s
foie gras since my last visit and I did expect something new (or outstanding)
this time. The foie gras was again thick and juicy enough, it just smoothly melted on your palate luxuriously. Rhubarb, with its natural tart flavor, has been used this time to
offset the greasiness of foie gras. Impressed with the use of tonka bean nuts
as sauce as it burst a wonderful nutty, vanilla-like and coffee aroma which
exceptionally complemented the foie gras. A very special combination indeed.
L'asperge de Jerome Galis (3/5): Warm Jerome Galis green asparagus & mousseline sauce
Attendant suggested that Asparagus
was just seasonal and I believed she was right. Keeping the texture crispy, and smooth without any residue, the flesh was also sweet and juicy. However, the mayo foam with lemon was a tad too oily,
and seems it walked alone itself. It might be my prejudice that vegis should
always be kept less oil and healthy when preparing them.
Before serving wagyu, a strawberry sorbet was served to clean the palate. Actually we had been more than 70% fed up when this course was approaching. This was meant to be the main course of the night but seems it had slightly pulled the climax down.
The potato soufflé was cute and airy, but again seems it did not participate much in this dish. Wagyu slice (not at generous portion) was at medium and its interior was pinkish, however it didn’t show up adequately with luscious greasiness nor meatiness. Cider jus at the side was a tad too sour in my opinion.
Trust me, desserts from Epure could never disappoint anyone, and we even got their in-house sauternes collection: Chateau Doisy Daene Sauternes 2004 (4.5/5)
A golden yellow hue sprinkling in the glass, you could feel its honey and apricot bouquet. The palate demonstrated even more strongly, with caramel, honey, peach jello, pear and dried apricot dancing all along. Just that the acidity could be more pronounced for a perfect balance.
Quelques Fromages de Saison (4/5): Selection of matured cheese by Xavier, from Toulouse, France
(Starting from 12:00) Ossau, St. Maure, Tomme de Soulor, Cabrioulet, Roquefort
The cheese were very new to me, seems they were not easy to find at supermarkets except St. Maure and Roquefort. I especially love St. Maure, (I rarely like goat cheese) and Tomme de Soulor. Both was mediumly strong in character and revealed intense milky flavors.
Le citron de Menton (4/5): Light lemon mousse, marinated pineapple, faisselle sorbet
I did appreciate Epure that they endeavored to exhibit perfect artpieces to you, you could never be pampered less from any aspects. This dessert was a good example which they made several layers of ingredients in this really tiny cup, pineapple compote and white choco coated rice crunches at the bottom and on top fresh and tangy lemon mousse with a zest of lime peel.
A la carte - Le Souffle de Grand Marnier (Epure's signature dessert) (5.5/5)!
We picked our favorite souffle in Mandarin flavor out from the a la carte menu because of the highly acclaimed dessert reputation at Epure. The souffle was a pretty large one and the surface was beautifully smooth and flat. Spooned a mouthful out, you could see the very small bubbles formed a fluffy yet concrete souffle, and it went very smoothly, lightly like wind but at the same time reflected deep citrus flavor. Every single part of the souffle was densely packed, without any bigger holes or hollows you could find. This was absolutely the best souffle I have ever meet. Complementing with the Mandarin sorbet at the side brought out the full citrus bouquet. Truly well executed dish.
Petit Fours (4.5/5):
By the time we finished whole menu, we were super full (and a bit drunk actually) to enjoy the Petit Fours. Nevertheless, the quality of these little sweets were still outstanding (Attendants even asked us to try even a tiny bit as they just recommended so much on the mango tart and truffle macaron).
For a wonderful restaurant like Epure, it would be definitely regretful if you missed the chance of visualizing this esteemed secret kitchen. Attendants invited us for a little "tour guide" to the cooking area and I was more than pleased to have this fascinating opportunity! The working environment in Epure was really really decent and hygenic as you could see, and I was really thrilled to have a little chat with Chef Nicolas and Chef Matthieu that night to know more about the other side of this pretty place...:'>
*Corkage: For 1 bottle of wine purchased in house, they will waive the corkage of 1 BYOB :)
That's why we were so much eager to open our Haut-Brion here :)
Having
been a Dalloyau fans ever since it has launched in HK, I had always been
glancing through and imagining what’s actually behind its golden gate to its
fine dining side Epure.
Couldn’t
believe it was just a decision right in the morning that daddy would be bringing
sis and me to Epure.
And
right when I stood in front of this golden gate, I could exactly feel how
exciting Charlie was when he opened his eyes to his long-awaited chocolate
factory.
The journey finally started. We were
arranged to have window seats (even it was a last-min booking at 11am that
day). Though Epure is at G/F, the bar environment outside was actually cozy
enough. It would be nice if a sunny day came through.
Seatings at Epure were spacious and private in between tables. I liked the greenish design and sofas all around which made the environment a lot more enjoyable.
Epure
offers a tasting menu (4 course*starter, soup, main, dessert/cheese - $598) and
a self-selection of weekday lunch menu (2 course - $398, 3 course -$498,
4-course - $598 *Note: starter, main, cheese, dessert). Without any hesitation,
I chose the tasting menu, with duck foie gras as starter, chestnut soup with
black truffle slices, lobster as main and cheese assortment as final.
Pain (3/5) 5 selections of breads were available at Epure. Soso breads but the herb butter was yum.
Eager to
look at the wine list of Epure, selections were just enough for French countries.
Fans of wines from other countries might be slightly looking for more.
Apertif: Saracco Moscato D’Asti 2013 ($500/bottle) (4.5/5) Having a very nice mood that day, we in four have ordered a bottle of Moscato
D’Asti. Beautiful fluffy bubbles unlimitedly rose from bottom to shape a small cordon on top, the moscato d'asti was as expected utimately refreshing. Pear and white peach flavor came forward and a slight touch of fresh lime was just right to raise the acidity. A light and straight forward wine most suitable for apertif.
Amuse bouche (4.5/5) Citrus jelly and apple puree tart: Both were refreshing. Mini ham croissant: Size was just enough and was buttery and crispy. Truffle creamy foam: Absolutely gorgeous taste of truffle and creaminess, very lovely *Nice Service: One of the servers proactively asked us to enjoy it before the foam just all sank down (as we had been chatting for long)
The duck foie gras really SURPRISED us! This very thickly cut foie gras (around 4cm i guess) had been firstly poached before searing, so that the inner flesh was still so soft, smooth and melting-in-mouth, but maintained solid (rather than runny) in texture (See the cross section). I would rather describe it as a jelly dancing on the dish.
The crispy outer layer and the cabbage puree complemented the overall mouthfeel perfectly. I particularly loved pairing the foie gras with vinigarette for a cleaner version.
Texture wins and it dominates my no.1 foie gras ranking.
The soup base was silky and quite watery and has a lighter taste on its own. It actually didn't taste like chestnut, but rather a mushroom flavor?
When mixing with fennel puree, the soup became a lot more strongly flavored by the fennel and was garnished with a slightly grassy mouth feel. With generous amount of winter truffle slices, the divine aroma swirled around my palate and gave additional crunchiness.
Plat Principal: Poached Lobster, Amandine Mousseline, Baby Leeks, Comte Cheese & Jura Yellow Wine Jus (4/5) The
yellow wine sauce was strongly umami but with a hint of sweetness. It combined with the tender lobster perfectly through a very flavorful chemical reaction,
leaving it a sweet and meaty aftertaste. I also loved the little peels of comte
on the dish which mixed all ingredients harmoniously together.
Fromage by Xavier (4/5)
Having
recalled the media interviews about Epure on its unique cheese collection,
without doubt I ordered the cheese selections as my dessert. Cheeses
from Epure could disappoint no one. All 5 selected cheeses were ripe enough to
be served and were just with enough characters. I especially loved the St. Felicien
at the 12am position which had a runny texture and deep strong mellow taste. The
goat cheese Gour Noir was less strong but its creamy and supple texture just stole
my heart away. If to pinpoint, I would suggest to serve with more dried fruits and honey
for pairing these lovely cheeses.
(Dessert: from sister)
My
sister ordered a blood orange dessert instead and was unexpectedly large
portioned and beautiful! Tarty flavors refresh every taste buds from the
powerful dishes. Textures were comprehensive with the use of chips, fruit
pulps, sorbet, mousse, orange peels and sauce. Very nice dessert with effort
seen.
Wine: Fritz Haag 2012 Brauneberger Juffer Sonneuhr Riesling Auslese (3.5/5)
Craving
for a dessert wine to accomplish this lunch with a wonderful finish, daddy
finally ordered an extra wine in glass.
German
Riesling is always girls’ favorite. This Auslese style was at medium sweetness, soft and
light, with a bit of honey and yellow peach in flavor. Quite balanced with the
adequate level of acidity, but I would always opt for sweeter ones. Very nice with my sister’s dessert and to some extent could also pair my
loved St. Felicien and the blue cheese.
*Nice Service: Another server proactively provided us one of our preferred dessert wines to taste before ordering.
Petit Four (4.5/5)
The
petit four were also elegantly presented like a mini high tea. The lemon
marshmallow was zesty like a real bite of lemon juice.
The truffle macaron was very stunning and stood out from the crowd. The truffle aromma blended so well
with the smooth black chocolate filling. Chestnut puff was soso but again not too sweet. Finally I had the Japanese Lime tea as a decent and clean ending.
Service (5/5!)
Their service is absolutely professional; Servers were all very experienced and knowledgeable, very eager to share and interact with us on the food and wine tasting, very attentive to details that we might want (or forget), very smart on explaining the ingredients used, cheese varieties and wine knowledge.
This first Epure experience was truly all rounded at all aspects. I actually found truffle dishes by Epure (the milky foam, chestnut soup and truffle macaron) particularly outstanding. Would definitely come back for sure.
*Corkage: For 1 bottle of wine purchased in house, they will waive the corkage of 1 BYOB :)
