Located in the fluorescent purple 8 Lyndhurst Terrace building along with whisky bar Blackbird and Italian restaurant La Piola, JAR (short for Just-A-Restaurant) is situated in an ideal spot in Central. Because of all the brand new tenants, the exterior and lift lobby of the building is still covered in dusty cardboard and the pleasant decor of the second-floor JAR is a welcome haven. The motif is industrial chic with grey tables, mismatched chairs, white brick walls, exposed wires and wooden floors. Sweet touches such as a mini burlap sack as a breadbasket give warmth and charm to the place.

“Hearty and rustic” is how Bridget Chen, one of the owners of JAR, describes the food and the menu is promising with comfort foods such as steaks, pastas and roast chicken. The execution of the dishes, however, is disappointing. Starters included a fried camembert with sweet onions: the cheese has the quick-to-congeal quality of a cheap mozzarella and while the flavours are pleasant, it is too simple and predictable. The anchovy fillets with fennel (HK$72) lack salt and are too tart, even for something that is described as a ceviche. The portobello mushroom with arugula (HK$55) is similarly bland and could have done with much more goat cheese and pine nuts, a lovely but scant complement to the fungus. The mains fare better on the whole: the “secreto di Iberico” (HK$188) - a signature dish using a cut of meat from the Iberico pig that Chen says butchers usually take home and reserve for their families – is juicy and goes perfectly with the smoky roasted radicchio. The only flaw of the dish, as with the rest of the mains, is its tepid temperature. The roast chicken with corn on the cob (HK$150 for a half chicken) comes in a saucepan: sadly that was more for show as the pan was cold, as was the chicken. It is also overly salty and lacks the crispy skin that one would hope for in a roast chicken. Save room for the warm dark chocolate and orange dome with Grand Marnier gelato (HK$68), that – along with the pork – are the only reasons we can think of to return to JAR.

At the time of the review, there was no corkage or wine list. But that should soon change, with a corkage fee of HK$300 per bottle and a wine list consisting of mainly boutique labels at reasonable prices.

Mainly attentive on the whole but oddly negligent at times. A simple inquiry for recommendations resulted in an earnest five-minute monologue yet while we hacked away at the roast chicken in an attempt to share it, the waiters stood by idly.

Dinner for two comes to around HK$600 and up, excluding wine. One wouldn’t expect to pay less for the location, but it is a bit much considering the generally mediocre quality of the food.