Located across the street from the Taikoo Place office complex in Quarry Bay, The News Room draws a distinctly white-collar crowd, especially around happy hour. Thanks to The Press Room, The Pawn and Classified, The Press Room Group already has a reputation for creating sophisticated yet casual venues and The News Room does not disappoint. Wooden tables, retro mismatched light fixtures and tiled floors give the restaurant a rustic yet warm atmosphere. We particularly enjoy sitting in the semi-private room with its wine rack, potted plants and floor-to-ceiling windows which looks out into a quaint back alley.

The menu at The News Room may not be the most innovative but it is varied enough that there should be something for everyone. We start our meal with two seafood starters: a bowl of clams and crab cakes. The clams came in a wide-bottomed bowl, which meant that the already lukewarm sauce cooled very rapidly. This is a shame as the white wine sauce with garlic is absolutely delicious: buttery and with just enough of a spicy kick from the chilli. However, for HK$130, the portion is on the small side with perhaps a dozen clams, especially as three of our clams were not opened. Equally well-seasoned are the Louisiana chilli crab cakes with delicate flakes of crab meat and generous amounts of coriander covered in a light batter. For mains, we go with the sustainable beer-battered cod and an eight-ounce rib-eye. The fish is extremely crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside and accompanied with French fries that are every bit as delicious as the famous Press Room ones. The USDA steak from Nebraska has a great smoky flavour but it is on the thin side, perhaps one of the reasons that even though we had requested the steak to be cooked rare, it came out closer to medium. Finally, we end our meal with two desserts: a Valrhona chocolate tart and a crème brûlée. The tart is a nice break from the usual chocolate molten cake and its rich, dense filling is well complemented with a white chocolate mousse. However, the real star of the dessert course is actually the shortbread that comes with the crème brûlée with its rich buttery taste and crumbly texture.

In accordance with the concept of The News Room, there is an inventive cocktail list that draws inspiration from journalists and writers such as Ernest Hemingway and Walter Kronkite. The extensive wine list is sorted by grape varietals and feature wines from both the new and old world. There are quite a few boutique producers and unusual grapes on the list, which will impress even seasoned restaurant-goers.

The service at The News Room is friendly, competent and efficient. However, it can be difficult to get the attention of the busy waitstaff when the restaurant starts filling up.

A three-course dinner for two with wine will come to about HK$1,200. This is more expensive than most other restaurants in the Quarry Bay neighbourhood, but quite reasonable given the quality of the setting, food and service.