With a harpist, chandeliers and plenty of trolleys wheeling around the grand dining room for tableside service, Petrus at the Island Shangri-la in Admiralty offers old-fashioned haute cuisine at its best. With its 56th floor view of the Hong Kong harbour and courteous staff offering discreet yet efficient service, Petrus is an ideal venue either for a romantic date or a larger celebration in one of its private dining rooms.

Chef de cuisine Frederic Chabbert has compiled a menu that is traditional in its use of luxury French ingredients (there are plenty of bone marrow, duck liver, Brittany lobsters and truffles on the menu) yet handles them with a light and modern hand to create dishes that feel new and unique. Take one of our starters, the mackerel with horseradish cream, bleak roe caviar and green apple. This distinctly Nordic appetiser is wonderfully light, perfect for a sultry summer evening with its tart cured mackerel tempered perfectly with the kick of the onion cream and tartness of the green apples. While the mackerel is vibrant in its contrasting flavours, our other starter of risotto with langoustine, celeriac and poached Marans egg is a much more mellow appetiser that whets the appetite. For mains, we opt for meatier dishes: a roast Aveyron lamb rack and a grilled aged beef from famous Parisian butcher Hugo Desnoyer. The lamb is served with an eggplant puree, vegetable gnocchi and cubes of smoky eggplant. The lamb itself is not as tender as it has been on previous occasions but makes up for it with plenty of flavour, and the combination of the smoky eggplant and airy and light gnocchi with the meat is wonderful. The beef is a far fry from the more flaccid steaks served at other restaurants, with a deep flavour and a more substantial texture thanks to its aging process. The beef is served with potatoes scooped out to resemble bone marrow and stuffed with duck liver, a traditional accompaniment that cannot help but work well. Light as air mustard sabayon and shavings of summer truffle complete the dish. The only flaw to the dish is that the jus is slightly over-reduced, leaving a sticky texture on the lips. For dessert, the crêpes Suzette flambed tableside may be an enticing option, but we prefer the Guanaja chocolate dessert that comes with tart raspberries and buttery caramel.

The impressive wine list at Petrus features not only the best of the chateau of the same name, but from all over the new and old world. The selection of half bottles is one of the larger ones we’ve seen in Hong Kong and for those so inclined, there is even kosher wine available.

The service at Petrus is as exquisite as the food with waiters that are knowledgeable about the menu and willing to accommodate your every request. Expect much attention to detail, down to a change of napkin between the main courses and dessert.

A three-course meal for two with wine will come to just under HK$4,000. While this is certainly expensive, we would argue that with the exquisite dishes, excellent service and atmosphere, this is a meal that is worth splurging on for special occasions.