Did you know that the busiest day of the year for restaurants is not Christmas Day, New Year's Eve or even Valentine's Day? No, the busiest day of the year for the F&B industry is Mother's Day so you better make a decision and a booking soon. This year, Mother's Day falls on May 8 and Asia Tatler Dining is here to help you decide where to take your mother this Sunday, from the most decadent French meals to family-friendly Chinese banquets.
Barbecue Buffet and Cooking Class at Hooray
If May 8 turns out to be a warm day, we can't think of anything nicer than sitting on the giant terrace at Hooray, enjoying their barbecue dinner. Priced at HK$508 per adult, the barbecue buffet includes seafood such as lobsters from Maine, crab legs from Alaska and jet-fresh oysters. If you show up at 6.30pm when the barbecue starts, you'll even been treated to a cooking lesson from executive pastry chef Leung Tung Shing. Chef Shing will holding an hour-long free class for 15 diners, teaching students how to make a Mother's Day chocolate truffle cake.
P502, World Trade Centre, 280 Gloucester Rd., Causeway Bay. Tel: +852 2895-0885.
Tapas by the Sea in Sai Wan Ho
If your mum is a foodie, she's probably aware that Spanish cuisine continues to dominate the international food scene, with three of the top 10 restaurants located in Spain on this year's S. Pellegrino's World's Top 50 Restaurants list. So if you can't whisk her away to San Sebastian this May, then at least drive her out to Sai Wan Ho, where Tapeo's second outlet is. This Spanish tapas restaurant offers wonderful views of the harbour: while it's not exactly the Mediterranean, it comes pretty close on a sunny breezy day. On this Mother's Day, Tapeo is serving a five-course tapas dinner (HK$250 per person) including a broad bean gazpacho, seafood skewers, stuffed sardines, pork empanades and a watermelon and rose sangria jelly. All mums will also be given a complimentary box of Francesca chocolates.
G/F, Lei King Wan, Site A55 Tai Hong St., Sai Wan Ho. Tel: +852 2513-0199.
Omakase at Nobu
Our mothers are probably too sensible to be scared off Japanese food and they'll love the omakase Mother's Day menu at Nobu at the InterContinental in Tsim Sha Tsui. Priced at HK$888 per person or HK$1,288 with wine pairing, your mum will love executive chef Erik Idos' omakase dinner using the best ingredients. The six-course meal includes wagyu tartar with uni and caviar; king crab and avocado roll; pan-seared scallop with maitake mushroom; braised wagyu short rib with celery apple puree and chef Idos' sushi assortment before finishing with a yuzu curd with raspberry sherbey.
2/F InterContinental Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui. Tel: +852 2313-2323.
Chinese Banquet at Nanhai No. 1
If there is nothing your mother likes more than sitting down with the whole extended family on Mother's Day, then Nanhai No.1 in Tsim Sha Tsui is a great choice. There are four set menus to choose from, ranging from HK$4,380 to HK$8,880 for ten people. The HK$3,980 menu includes seafood such as pan-fried scallops, spicy deep-fried oyster and grilled turbot as well as deep-fried spare ribs and baked rice with seafood. The HK$4,980 menu includes Sichuan pepper chicken with Chinese wine sauce, braised fish maw in abalone sauce and pan-fried giant grouper fillet. For HK$5,980, there is grilled Dover sole, tea leaf smoked chicken and king prawns while the most expensive menu (HK$8,880) includes braised abalone with goose liver; simmered geoduck in consommé and salty chicken with scallion.
30/F, iSquare, 63 Nathan Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui. Tel: +852 2487-3688.
Wine Lunch at Amber
Does your mum like her wine? If so, we can't think of a better place to take her this Sunday than to Amber's wine lunch. This series of wine lunches has been going on for a while now, combining chef Richard Ekkebus' delicious dishes with sommelier Hervé Pennequin's choice of wines. On Mother's Day, the team has really pushed the boat out with their decadent six-course menu which includes oysters marinated with olive oil and mackerel with almond panna cotta as some of the choices for starters. For the middle course, it'll be hard to choose between a spiny lobster and foie gras ravioli or brown morels with corn-fed chicken. Main courses are not any easier: Bresse chicken with belotta ham; pink sea bream in veal broth or Dordogne farmer's pork with white asparagus? At least desserts are easier: from the choices of marinated pineapples, strawberries with mascarpone semi freddo or Jivara milk chocolate mousse, we'll definitely be going for the chocolate mousse. The Mother's Day Weekend Wine Lunch is priced at HK$998 including wine pairing.
7/F, 15 Queen's Road Central, The Landmark, Central. Tel: +852 2132-0066.
Spice Up Her Day at Yunyan
Just in case the present you bought wasn't exciting enough, the delicious and spicy cuisine at Yunyan should make it a memorable day for your mum. Some of the dishes the team at Yunyan Sichuan restaurant has whipped up include an original diced French cheese with Sichuan pepper sauce, fried Vietnamese mub crab wiwth chillies and crispy black beans, the classic poached Mandarin fish slices with crispy soya beans and hand-cut thin noodles in supreme soup to cool down. There is also a Mother's Day set menu with many of these items and priced at HK$1,980 for six people.
4/F Miramar Shopping Centre, 132 Nathan Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui, Tel: +852 2375-0800.
