*OFFICIAL EVENT PHOTOS TAKEN BY RUBY LAW (@rubylaw) - NOT MY OWN!*
There are many who can attest to my deep love for eggs, and pretty much all of my egg-related fantasies were fulfilled on the evening of this particular event. On 12 Jan, around 30 friends and members of the media gathered to preview a parade of #yolkporn-worthy dishes by 6 talented Hong Kong chefs. Participating chefs included Chris Grare of New York-style brasserie Lily & Bloom (host), Satoru Mukogawa of Japanese restaurant Sushi Kuu, Ferran Tadeo of refined Spanish tapas restaurant Catalunya, Anthony Burd of casual Italian Mercato by Jean-Georges, Alex Fargas of contemporary Spanish FoFo by El Willy, and a special guest chef: the beautiful and bubbly TV personality Hilda Leung.
So here's how it works - and what's in it for you. Similar to previous campaigns like The Mac Attack, Winner Winner Chicken Dinner, Reinventing Salads, and A Tribute to Pigs, Before the Rooster Comes the Egg shines the spotlight on the humble and versatile egg. 6 limited edition egg dishes specially created by the chefs will be served at Lily & Bloom as part of the blackboard specials from 13 Jan - 31 Jan 2017. Each chef's dish will also be served at their respective restaurants throughout this period, with the only exception of Sushi Kuu. Don't forget to vote for your favourite, post a pic on Instagram and hashtag #EGGSALLDAY. Let the eggporn madness begin, and may the yummiest yolk reign supreme. ;)
SUSHI KUU: Chef Satoru Mukogawa's Udon Carbonara with Onsen Egg, Bacon and Shiokonbu. Priced at HK$118, and quite frankly, one of the best udon dishes I've tasted in Hong Kong ever. Admittedly, I rarely go out for Japanese food because I eat so much of it at home/in Tokyo, but this is a dish I'd shell out for anytime! The rich seaweed umami that came through was definitely one of the highlights.
CATALUNYA: Chef Ferran Tadeo, the newest chef to take the helm of upscale Spanish restaurant Catalunya, prepared an elegant and simply stunning egg dish for the event. The so-called Fabergé Egg (HK$148) is a Japanese soft-cooked egg yolk that sits on a layer of cauliflower gelatin made to look like egg white, and the spectacle is completed with a generous dollop of caviar. Not pictured are the buttered toast soldiers, which we thought had the most wonderful velvety smooth texture for dipping.
MERCATO BY JEAN-GEORGES: Chef Tony Burd's colourful eggy rendition (HK$128) comprised of a crispy soft-boiled Japanese egg, tomato confit, umami-rich maitake mushrooms, tarragon and a punchy veal broth that we all wanted to slurp up like soup. Loved the sharp, contrasting taste of the herbs too. We wish we still had some of Catalunya's soldiers left over to mop up the plate with!
HILDA LEUNG: A comforting egg dish that draws inspiration from Hilda's upbringing in Hong Kong, I really enjoyed how the soft-boiled egg broke over the crispy noodles seasoned with shrimp roe, because crispy Chinese noodles are one of my all-time faves. I didn't get to sample the other components of this dish, but included are a nicely-presented quail egg fried in duck fat, honey chorizo, pickled seaweed and saffron chicken jus. Priced at HK$155, and available only at LB.
LILY & BLOOM: With the home base advantage, we had high expectations for Lily & Bloom's egg dish. Exceed them it did, and then some. Chris Grare's "Egg in the Nest" is priced at HK$185 and features a soft-boiled egg encased in a delightfully crunchy batter, surrounded by asparagus, roast corn, farro, black truffle and a sweet truffled corn purée. My favourite element was definitely the purée, which melded the dish together beautifully.
FOFO BY EL WILLY: Aand, the final dish! At this point, exclamations of "egged out" could be heard up and down the table, but Alex Fargas managed to momentarily deter us from all notions of fullness with his gorgeous Egg with Lobster dish. The creamy egg yolk mixed with the savoury white bean ragout and light shoestring-style potato crisps were truly a match from heaven. The lobster was a nice touch, but I barely noticed it 'cos the egg really took centre stage!
LILY & BLOOM RESTAURANT INFORMATION
Address - 5/F - 6/F LKF Tower, 33 Wyndham Street, Central, Hong Kong
Booking/Enquiry Tel - +852 2810 6616 or Whatsapp to +8525580 3379
Instagram - @lilyandbloom