Liberty Private Works is both a private kitchen as well as a giant communal chef’s table. Diners are seated behind an L-shaped bar, where they get to watch chef Vicky Cheng and his team cook and plate their dinner. (Ed's note: this review is based on LPW's previous location at Wellington Street. We have not yet visited the restaurant's new location at Stanley Street.) The atmosphere is friendly as the chef is both open and talkative and the casual ambience is further emphasised by the handwritten chalkboard featuring the evening’s menu. While the private kitchen certainly provides a fun experience, it may not be suited for all diners, as the high stools are not the most comfortable for a multi-course dinner and the proximity to the kitchen does mean that you will leave LPW smelling rather like a fryer.

Previously, chef Makoto offered elegant renditions of comfort food at Liberty Private Works. New chef Vicky Cheng, who has worked with some of the greats including Daniel Boulud, takes things in a more refined direction. This is evident from both the flavour combinations, which are more daring, as well as the plating, which are more intricate. The menu changes regularly, depending on what produce is in season and what chef Cheng finds down at the local markets. On the night we visited, we were served an amuse bouche of onion, done four ways. There was a spring onion fritter with yoghurt, which would reappear again later in the night as a component on a meat dish; a poached shrimp with onions cooked in balsamic, which was wonderful; and an a onion tart with goat’s cheese. This playful and competently executed starter sets the tone for the rest of the meal. A second starter of farmed big-eye tuna with espelette pepper mayo and caviar was originally a late-night snack slapped together by the chefs at Cheng’s previous restaurant, made up of leftovers from service, but this glorified tuna mayo is a treat with the spicy espelette giving the dish a subtle kick and balanced by crispy puffed rice. The only flaw with the dish is the chef is overly generous with the caviar, which causes the dish to fall on the salty side. The pasta course, a raviolo with truffle, egg yolk and parmesan cream is perfect, but how could this dish go wrong, with such decadent and perfectly complemented ingredients? What is exciting about the menu, however, is that chef Cheng does not always stick to such tried-and-true combinations. Sometimes his unusual pairings are extremely successful, as in the case of a pigeon breast with chocolate sauce; or an oxtail croqueta with coffee sauce; and sometimes they are less so, as with an abalone dish with white asparagus that was much too heavy-handed with vanilla. Sometimes a single dish can have diners divided: for example, a dessert of roasted pineapples, hazelnut feuilletine, coconut foam, Malibu rum and kaffir lime powder. A diner seated on one side of us rhapsodised over the dessert, while a couple on our other side did not seem convinced by the addition of the lime. Yet the successes on chef Cheng’s menu far outweighs the failures and overall, an experience at Liberty Private Works is one that we would gladly go back for time and time again.

There are wine pairings included with the meal served at Liberty Private Works, including a glass of Champagne with appetisers, a white wine and a red wine. There is not much choice in the matter as the wine pairings are selected by the chef, but we enjoyed our pairings, especially the red wine from Haut Medoc that complemented the pigeon and beef dishes particularly well.

Chef Cheng does much to set the convivial tone of the service at Liberty Private Works and the rest of his small staff are equally well-trained, enthusiastic and attentive. But keep in mind that although the reservation confirmation email will state that dinner starts promptly at 8pm, diners are only served when all guests arrive. Therefore, if there are any tardy diners who have made a booking the same evening as you, it could be a long wait for dinner to begin.

Depending on what ingredients are used on the menu, dinner per person at Liberty Private Works can range from about HK$680 to $HK800 for an eight-course meal. Given that this also includes wine pairings and the location of the restaurant in Lan Kwai Fong, this is very good value indeed.