Bo innovation review

I have once again ventured into trying michelin starred restaurants. After the disappointing outing at Joel Robuchon atelier (read it HERE), I have decided to once again eat at a "michelin" starred restaurant in HK.

as per hubby... this is supposed to mean "monster"
the name of the restaurant in chinese

We were a bit early for our reservation... so we waited for about 10 minutes and then shown to our seats. The interior is well lit and cosy.

I would also soon discover that the tables had drawers that contained utensils which you can use for the courses (some require more than chopstticks)

We were first served a egg waffle (common in HK) which had spring onions and hunan ham. I haven't tried an egg waffle before (me thinks this is their amuse bouche or "bread basket equivalent) and it was quite savory. I liked it and I thought it was brilliant twist to a traditional bread basket.

DISH 1: HOKKAIDO SCALLOPS
our official first course was Hokkaido scallop with caviar and rice crispies. they presented us with a special vinegar (read the ingredients and it has MSG salt and sugar). It was splashed on top of the scallops and actually gave it a nice kick. the flavor was very fresh and outstanding. the visuals were colorful too. Crusnch from the rice crispies and caviar was great.

DISH 2:BELLOTA BELLOTA

This was iberico ham on top, fish from japan, morel mushrooms on a bed of tomato puree

The crispy thing on top is the morel mushroom. the taste of the tomato and iberico ham were the first thing you taste and I hardly noticed there was fish. The acidity of the tomato was good as a follow up to the sweetness of the hokkaido scallop.  Love also that they have the compressed towels that they refill everytime you use one

don"t eat me

DISH 3: BRITANNY LOBSTER

lobster, truffle and dried shrimp wanton with floss. they actually present you with a bottle of dreid shrimp oil (which they drizzle over the wanton)

I loved that they have generous amounts of truffle on the dish. but I guess this was my least favorite because of the dried shrimp oil. It was kind of over powering. 

DISH 4: MOLECULAR 

you would never guess by looking at the dish that it was a xiao long pao. but it is.

it actually looks like an egg. The red line in the middle is vinegar. (blew my mind actually) and you eat it with one swoop. You bite. BOOM! it explodes in your mouth with xiao long pao flavor! pure genius. loved it!! 

DISH 5: FOIE GRAS

This is foei gras, and loved how he kept it in its original state (nice serving size too) on the side is mustard green "ice cream" that you eat with your goose liver. on the side is either a small plum or big cherry. 

All of the elements went together superbly... the slight sweetness/tanginess of the ice cream with the foie gras was excellent. it cut thru the richness of the liver and balanced it well. the ice cream is served on a peanut crunch bar. YUM!

DISH 6: MOU TAI

This is probably what you might consider a palate cleanser. Chinese rice wine with calamansi with egg white. The container itself was great. Something you would thing the emperor of china would use.

We had fun with drinking this. As with most of his dishes, I think he injects something whimsical and playful. (You had to hold both handles and pour the drink to your mouth.)

DISH 6: HAIDA GWAII WILD COD

This was one fun serving tray. They used a popular black bean canned mackarel as the serving plate (note: its my hubby's favorite canned fish). It had crispy fish skin on top, crispy kale (although I am not a fan of kale). The cod was good. the presentation was fun and creative.

If you look closely.. the can says.. bobo 100% extreme chinese

DISH 7: A3 SAGA GYU BEEF

In preparation for our main course we were given some serious looking knifeware

For the main course, we had a choice of  scampi or A3 wagyu. Of course I chose the wagyu! It was served with cheung fun (traditional cantonese rice roll) and generous amounts of black truffle.

Can you see the truffle in between the cheung fun? tender juicy tasty... should I say more?

DISH 8: NO SHARKS FIN

mango sorbet, grapefruit "sharksfin" and coconut molecular ball.

the coconut ball also exploded in your mouth. They used thai coconuts (I could tell.. its just different from Philippine coconuts). There is the crunch factor from the dried (not sure if it was mango). the ice cream was not too sweet and the grapefruit "sharksfin" was also good.

Even the coffee cup was unique

Bo is big bruce lee fan... we also got a picture taken with him (blue hair and all). He is a superb chef. Very creative and playful. I loved that he kept it innovative yet retained the taste (not too fusion that you couldn't recognize what you were eating). Foremost in my book is that it should taste good. and this surpassed all my expectations. The service was attentive (very good waiter to guest ratio). A good restaurant is evidenced when your water gets refilled without you even asking. 

He deserves his 3 michelin stars. CLAP CLAP! Highly recommend!