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The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one’s own country as a foreign land.” – G.K. Chesterton

Monday 5 January 2015

Christmas lunch @ LE SALON DE THÉ de Joël Robuchon (Elements), Hong Kong

Christmas was less than two weeks ago, yet almost all the decorations and lights have already been taken down, no doubt to be shortly replaced by the lunar new year festive decorations. To be honest, I didn't have a very good day on Christmas, partly due to being struck down by some bug which caused me to lose most of my voice on that day. I enjoyed watching the kids opened their presents that morning, and I mustered up all my strength to go out with my family for a celebratory lunch. Our original Christmas lunch plans at a certain restaurant fell through when I went to the restaurant the day prior to confirm our booking, and discovered that I had been misinformed and that the restaurant was not serving a special turkey menu for Christmas lunch. At such short notice, I scrambled to find suitable options. As the kids and I were not the best of health, we needed a restaurant nearby in the mall downstairs so that we did not have to travel too far away from home. Robuchon's LE SALON DE THÉ was indeed serving a special festive lunch menu, but I was informed the restaurant was already fully-booked. The lady must have sensed my bitter disappointment, and suggested that I try walking in as the restaurant reserves a few tables for walk-ins. After discussing with hubby our options, we decided we were most keen on LE SALON DE THÉ, as we had good experiences there previously with both lunch and afternoon tea (though there were no turkey on the menu either - I think we just wanted another reason to eat here again). We arrived at the restaurant at 11:30am on Christmas day, and we got a table! Despite feeling poorly, I could still appreciate the beautiful food presentation and the delicious flavours. The lunch set menu contained three courses for HK$368, with a choice from three options for the appetiser and main courses, and either the daily crêpe with ice cream or a selection from the cake showcase for the dessert course. Unfortunately I forgot to take detailed notes of the menu (I blame my poor health!), so bear with me as I rely on my memory to describe the dishes.

Two plates of bread rolls were placed on our table, meant to accompany the two lunch sets we ordered for hubby and I, but both kids devoured most of them (this was the 1-year-old's after-lunch snack):

The boy ordered from the a-la-carte menu a Smoked Salmon Crêpe, a great choice as this restaurant specialises in crêpe. Smoked salmon, potatoes, egg, lemon and dill cream are a good combination:

For appetiser, I chose the soup (which I forgot to take a picture of - again I blame my poor health) and hubby got the Tomato Tart. Very flavourful, texturally interesting and so pretty to look at. The gold foil accent added a luxurious touch:

There was Maine lobster on the menu, and hubby had to get it. Two large claws, sweet and juicy, accompanied with artichokes. Very, very good:

My choice of main course was the Mushroom Risotto - perfectly seasoned with the gorgeously earthy flavours of mushrooms on a bed of creamy risotto. Who says vegetarian options are boring?

For dessert, hubby had the Dessert Crêpe with a scoop of chocolate ice cream, nice and simple for full appreciation of the lovely crêpe:

I chose the Salted Caramel Tart, which was delicious:

This was another excellent Robuchon experience, and it will definitely not be the last.

[Prices quoted above do not include the 10% service charge.]

LE SALON DE THÉ de Joël Robuchon
Shop 1020B,
1st Floor Elements
1 Austin Road West
Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon
Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2351 6678

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