At aKin, the ‘Celebration’ menu felt exactly like that: a marking of achievement for the restaurant and anyone who gets to enjoy it. It arrived to perfectly mark the restaurant’s first year, as well as its Michelin star. It was a playful menu that not only brought in the crowds, but also demonstrated the kitchen’s ability to take fun, finesse and an outstanding array of ingredients and turn it into art.
The 10-course blind menu at aKin shifts every couple of months, and the outcome shows. There’s joy in the staff’s love of the menu that finds its way onto the dishes and into the evening. Nothing felt overworked or precious, more like an opportunity. The restaurant sits on a foundation of Hong Kong heritage, but the mood in the room is warm and oddly familial, helped by staff who explain dishes clearly, pair drinks instinctively, and leave you with a smile on your face. There is obvious collaboration behind the scenes, from founders Alvin Leung (three stars) and Eric Chong (winner of MasterChef Canada), but what came to the table felt cohesive rather than crowded with ideas. Nothing rushed, plenty of wine, and exquisite food.
The opening dish, Tide to Table, used every part of the fish across a sequence of canapes that were clever as well as moreish. Flesh, liver, eggs, skin and bone all came represented by local and distant ingredients, paying homage to the sea in ways you would never imagine. Yellowtail, tom yum, caviar, salmon skin, foie gras and Nova Scotia lobster all exploded out of tasting morsels over a three-dimensional fish skeleton tray.
Each dish stands out on its own but none more so than the single bite Phở. The Vietnamese noodle soup came spherified, with immediately identifiable flavours breaking open with a rich marrow and wagyu broth. Alongside it, an equally clever hibiscus margarita mirrored the sphere technique, one for dinner, the other the pairing. Hitting the theme perfectly, land and sea arrived as a delicate winter wreath of A5 wagyu with jalapeno kosho, lifting the lid to reveal a light ceviche of scallop and nước chấm tucked underneath.
In a city famed for its eclectic high-class food scene, aKin realised the stereotype almost immediately, validating the claims on day one of the visit. The food was excellent, the presentation exacting, and the care obvious.
