Two of Hong Kong’s grand dame hotels are inadvertently competing head to head as they’ve both created similar dining promotions for Art Basel Hong Kong fair (May 15 to 18).
Chefs from both posh palaces, in anticipation of lots of art buyers and sellers coming into the city for the annual cultural extravaganza, are serving special menus with entrees decorated to resemble (or at least be aesthetically inspired by) famous works of art.
If you can’t afford a real Picasso or Magritte on your wall, here’s a chance to enjoy a replica version on your dinner plate. But given the five-star surroundings, it’s not much cheaper for a night of culinary art.
The Mandarin Oriental
The Mandarin Oriental, which is the official hotel for Art Basel, assigned their highly conceptual executive chef Uwe Opocensky to conjure a few dishes for a different kind of palette. The result is a three-course lunch and five-course dinner menu for the Mandarin Grill+Bar that should delight anyone with even a rudimentary knowledge of art history.
Possibly inspired by Damien Hirst, Bloody, a tomato and celery appetiser
Among the artful dishes are Bloody, a tomato and celery appetiser inspired by the Bloody Mary cocktail and perhaps a bit of Damien Hirst. Fans of American abstract painter Jackson Pollock will recognise the violent splash of colours in Paint, a beef dish with little jars of spinach, potato, pepper and truffle jus to splash your own canvas or plate. The surrealism of René Magritte is captured in the dessert Apple & Man, which is served in a frame and is a perfect copy of the classic 1964 painting, The Son Of Man. The three-course lunch menu is HK$788 and the five-course dinner menu is HK$1,688.
Does this dish remind you of the works of American abstract painter Jackson Pollock? Paint, a beef dish with little jars of spinach, potato, pepper and truffle jus
Surrealism of René Magritte captured in the dessert Apple & Man, which is served in a frame and is a perfect copy of the classic 1964 painting, The Son Of Man
Original painting of the 1964 classic, The Son Of Man
The above is available at the Mandarin Grill+Bar until May 18. As a bonus, a ticket to Art Basel is included with your Art Menu meal. For reservations, 2825-4004.
The Peninsula
Over on the Kowloon side, the Peninsula’s avant garde Art Pairing Menu is conceived by Felix’s chef Yoshiharu Kaji. Designed for pairing with Ruinart champagnes, their six course meal is offered only for dinner.
The Persistence of Memory, duck liver terrine with passion fruit jelly and droopy clocks made from food
It starts with a Salvador Dali-inspired dish that references his famous painting The Persistence of Memory, with duck liver terrine with passion fruit jelly and droopy clocks made from food. It’s followed by a pan-seared Spanish red Prawn with saffron risotto, sliced Iberico ham and a chilli-bean dressing, plated to look like Pablo Picasso’s The Weeping Woman.
Pan-seared Spanish red Prawn with saffron risotto, sliced Iberico ham and a chilli-bean dressing, plated to look like Pablo Picasso’s The Weeping Woman
Stuffed chicken leg with chicken consommé to re-create Claude Monet’s Water Lilies series
Next, a stuffed chicken leg with chicken consommé is the base for some lily boule, onion, savoy cabbage and green peas to re-create Claude Monet’s Water Lilies series. Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper is interpreted with cod in salt bread with red wine sauce, Kyoto mushroom and braised belle peppers. Another not so literal adaptation is Paul Cézanne’s Les Joueurs de Cartes, with a lemon-crusted lamb, with asparagus, a fried piece of potato and a dab of black truffle mayo.
Cod in salt bread with red wine sauce as Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper
Not so literal adaptation of Paul Cézanne’s Les Joueurs de Cartes, a lemon-crusted lamb, with asparagus
Felix’s The Son of Man dessert
Interestingly, chef Kaji also uses Magritte’s famous The Son of Man for his dessert. Felix’s version is a caramelised apple, with caramel ice cream, mascarpone cream and almond cookies. “I wanted to create something that was both a tribute to the creativity of the artists and a unique dining experience,” says the chef.
This menu is HK$988 or HK$1,388 with Ruinart champagne pairing, until the end of May. For a table, call 2696-6778.
So which meal actually tastes better? Well, I suppose art is in the eye (and tongue) of the beholder.
Mandarin Grill+Bar
1/F, Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong
5 Connaught Road
Tel. +852 2825 4004
Felix
28/F, The Peninsula Hong Kong
Salisbury Road
Tsim Sha Tsui
Tel. +852 2696 6778
