[Hong Kong] Gaddi’s

A little background: Hong Kong and the rest of the world has been wining and dining at Gaddi’s for over 60 years; the first restaurant in the East to serve up exquisite European cuisine, with a dining room replete with opulent embellishments that constitute a restaurant of indisputable excellence.

Following an illustrious Michelin-starred career that has seen him through some of the world’s most renowned gastronomic capitals, culinary maestro Xavier Boyer has landed at The Peninsula Hong Kong as Chef at Gaddi’s. Boyer brings his self-described “modern-classic” culinary style to the venerated French fine dining destination, with a less-is-more approach to cooking that allows the curated flavors of each dish to shine.

My visit: I had high hopes for Gaddis when I found out that their newly-appointed chef, Xavier Boyer, was from Le Cinq at the Four Seasons George V which I had intentions of going when I was in Paris but sadly couldn’t make it in the end.

Amuse bouche

We started off with the pork pate with berry jelly as our amuse bouche.  The flavor profile of pate and berries usually pair well together but in this case the flavors just didn’t mingle.

Le foie gras de canard roti a la rhubarbe confite

The pan-seared duck liver paper with confit rhubarb was nothing out of the ordinary.

Les asperges blanches de Vaucluse grilles ey en veloute leger aux langues d’oursin d’Hokkaido

The grilled white Vaucluse asparagus on its veloute with Hokkaido sea urchin was highly recommended to us. Visually, it looked stunning but taste wise, the soup left a bitter aftertaste and the asparagus was overcooked to the point of being mushy.

Filet de canard de Challans au sang et zestes d’orange, fruits et endive caramelisee

For our mains, we had the Challans blood duck breast with orange skin, pan fried fruits and endive.  The duck breast was so gristly that we couldn’t cut through the meat even with a sharp knife! For $710, I expected a dish that was edible at the very least.  Sadly, we had to send it back and there was no follow up from the any of the staff either. In fact, we kind of felt like they were trying to avoid us.

Supreme de pigeon vendeen roti au sucre Musovado, sa cuisse facie et racines glacees

The Vendeen pigeon breast roasted with Muscovado sugar, its stuff leg with roasted vegetables had good points and bad points.  The pigeon breast was cooked beautifully and the unrefined cane sugar added a touch of sweetness which quickly dissolved into a rich, floral bittersweet.  The stuff leg however was way too salty and the roasted vegetables didn’t help compliment the dish either.

Pot de creme au chocolat et textures chocolatees, glace au lait fume

For dessert , we ordered the warm chocolate custard with chocolate textures and smoked milk ice cream.  The custard was mediocre and the ice cream received too much smoke imparting a very bitter creosote taste.

Verdict:  I was truly disappointed in Gaddi’s. Although the setting was grand with chandeliers hanging down from the ceiling and beautiful silverware, the dishes were poorly executed and the service was amateurish. I definitely expected more from a restaurant situated in such a high caliber hotel and with a chef who has a wealth of experience from various high-end establishments.

 

Happy eating 🙂

 

Gaddi’s
1/F, The Peninsula Hong Kong, 22 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
+852 2696 6763
http://hongkong.peninsula.com/en/fine-dining/gaddis-french-restaurant