Top restaurants in town with first-class food, service and ambience often cost patrons an arm and a leg for dinner. To some this may seem a fair tradeoff, but did you know that you could enjoy all that food in the same atmosphere without making quite the same dent in your wallet? Your best bet is to go for lunch when many restaurants offer relatively inexpensive set lunch menus, while still using the same premium ingredients and showcasing the skills of the same chef. Below we present a roundup of the best lunch deals at the top restaurants in town.
Otto e Mezzo
At the top of our list is the highly acclaimed Italian restaurant at Alexandra House in Central. The two-course set lunch is priced at HK$360 per head, which includes a starter and a main course. Its thoughtful main course selection always includes a pasta dish, a seafood dish and a meat dish to satisfy any appetite.
Dishes on the menu rotate monthly and currently on offer is a perfect example of the first-class menu: the starter selection includes artichoke soup, Taiyouren organic egg and warm octopus salad; current options for main course include Otto e Mezzo's notable homemade tagliolini, Pacific cod in orange and tomato fondue and a freshly made pork sausage cotechino. If you are here to taste the premium cheese from its famous ageing room on-site, a cheese platter to sum up the lunch deal costs just an extra HK$70, and for the same price you can also opt for a delectable Italian dessert. Those who fancy a sip can order the daily selected red, white or sparkling wine for just HK$80 per glass.
Shop 202, 2/F Alexandra House, 5-17 Des Voeux Road, Central. Tel: +852 2537-8859.
Sushi Ta-ke
This high-end Japanese restaurant at Cubus in Causeway Bay has been known for its varied and extremely fresh sushi and sashimi selection. While an omakase dinner starts from just over HK$1,000, the lunch menu starts from HK$180. The premium sashimi platter (HK$280) and deluxe sushi platter (HK$320) made with jet-fresh seafood flown in daily from the Tsukiji market are just some of the must-haves. There are also enticing hot dishes such as grilled wagyu beef and simmered fish to choose from. For a more lavishing treat, the seven-course matsu set menu priced at HK$880 is definitely worth a try, considering a similar dinner set menu is normally priced at HK$1,200 or more.
12/F Cubus, 1 Hoi Ping Road, Causeway Bay. Tel: +852 2577-0611.
Robuchon au Dôme
Fine dining icon Robuchon in Macau needs little introduction, and its French haute cuisine is decidedly one of the best in both SARS. After moving from Hotel Lisboa to Grand Lisboa, the haute French restaurant takes on a new name, Robuchon au Dôme, but thankfully continues to offer its legendary bargain set lunch menu, which diners can sample some of the house signature dishes including the caramelised quail stuffed with foie gras and mashed potatoes. A two-course set lunch with dessert is offered at MOP398, for those with heartier appetites, it is MOP498 for four courses, or a full menu for just MOP638. The same menu will cost you easily two thousand or more at dinner.
43/F Grand Lisboa Hotel, Avenida de Lisboa, Macau. Tel: +853 8803-7878.
Pierre
If you fancy the haute French cuisine by legendary chef Pierre Gagnaire but not its haute price tag or the long time it can take to serve, take advantage of this bargain set lunch at the Mandarin Oriental. The Pierre Express lunch (available on weekdays only) starts at HK$408 for two courses and HK$468 for three, any additional dishes can be ordered at a bargain price of HK$98.
For such reasonable prices you will receive top-class service while sampling chef Gagnaire's masterpieces including a beetroot carpaccio with oyster, beaufort cheese and celeriac; foie gras soup with plums and cumin; and grilled lamb cutlets with watercress and "Pierre" potatoes. Best of all, for those in a hurry to get back to the office, Pierre promises to have you in and out in exactly one hour.
25/F Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong, 5 Connaught Road, Central. Tel: +852 2825-4001.
Cuisine Cuisine
Chinese restaurants are undoubtedly the most popular option for group lunches, especially the Cantonese dim sum, which allows diners to taste a morsel of many different flavours and ingredients. So it should not come as a surprise that we have included this veteran Chinese dining room at IFC in our bargain lunch menus roundup.
The executive lunch menu rotates weekly and is priced at HK$298 per head for a minimum of two people. It begins with a dim sum platter and a bowl of double-boiled Chinese soup, which is followed by a selection of three dishes including sweet and sour spare ribs and wok-fried diced beef tenderloin. The scrumptious meal deal also includes a choice of rice or noodles and ends with the chef's selected dessert. Still want more? A table of four or above will receive an extra dish of steamed fresh garoupa for free.
Shop 3101 Podium Level 3, IFC Mall, Central. Tel: +852 2393-3933.
