Steak and wine birthday

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I'm back in Hong Kong for a last-minute trip after spending just two days in Taipei, and came back just in time to dodge a typhoon join the birthday dinner of an old friend.  I've known the birthday boy ojisan for some 17 years, ever since I first arrived in Hong Kong.  Our group of friends have known each other for long periods of time, and have been pretty tight-knit throughout.  There is something to be said about long-lasting friendships…

The birthday boy wanted steak, and asked to try out Grand Hyatt Steakhouse.  I've heard the buzz about this place ever since it opened, but as I'm not big on steaks - unlike someone I know - I never found the urge to check the place out.

We started with some big chunks of garlic bread.  I find garlic pretty irresistible, but don't have many opportunities to chomp on garlic bread much.  These were very yummy with crispy crusts.  I took down two of these tonight…

The bunch of us shared some seafood on ice.  While I really did enjoy some of the items such as the lobster, I am usually not a big fan of this - at least not the way Tony Bourdain was obsessing over his shellfish tower while in Brittany.  The clam I had was very big, but near frozen solid and not very palatable.

The others were a little puzzled over my preference NOT to have steak at a steakhouse, and I eventually explained the rationale behind not wanting to eat grain-fed beef.  The steaks did look very good, and I think everyone really enjoyed chomping on them, but I do try to stick to my principles when I can…

I took an iberico pork chop instead, and asked for medium.  This was very, very good.  The exterior was well-charred and imparted a good amount of flavor along with the seasoning.  The interior was very tender and juicy.  Needless to say the good amount of fat here didn't hurt.  I happily chomped down on it.  Yes, I was in hog heaven.  I didn't really need the mushroom sauce that came on the side.  This was about a hundred times better than what I had at the Hong Kong Golf Club or Sabatini.

I also nibbled on some of the sides we ordered: the aged white cheddar macaroni was very good, although my personal preference would have called for the sauce to be a little more gooey and viscous; the sweet potato fries were decent; and the beer battered onion rings were gigantic.

The rest of the gang seemed pretty full, so I didn't push to have dessert.  Oh well, there's always next time.

I wasn't able to stop by my cellar to pick up a few bottles before dinner, so I was tasked with choosing from the wine list.  Not surprisingly, the list was dominated by recent vintages which required extensive aeration in decanters.  Ever mindful of the budget, I tried to strike a balance between value and current accessibility…

2010 Pascal Jolivet Pouilly-Fumé - green apple, flint, white flower, muscat.  Acidity mid-palate and finish was quite high.  Together with the lobster, the minerality really came out… perhaps not the best pairing.

2007 Andrew Will Ciel du Cheval Vineyard - minty, really sweet and syrupy, very ripe on the nose.  The alcohol at 14.5% was so sharp that it burned my nostrils.  Blend is dominated by Cab Franc for this vintage (45%).

2007 Araujo Syrah Eisele Vineyard - not surprisingly this wine was really concentrated, really sweet on the nose, with a little vanilla and some smoke.  With a little time it opened up to reveal aromatic coffee and muscovado notes.  The wine showed lot of alcohol at 14.8%, and burned the back of my throat as it went down.  Needs a few more years, or at least another hour in the decanter…

While the food was great and we enjoyed the wines, I must say that the service was a little off.  Actually, it just came down to one particular waiter.  While he was introducing the 3 different cuts of steak, the last dish was introduced as "Château-I-don't-know-what" ("Château我唔知乜" in Cantonese)…  OK, so the guy was being honest, but seriously… How do you work at a steakhouse and not remember chateaubriand?!  We all had a good laugh…

At the end of the evening, I asked the same waiter for a bag so I could take the empty wine bottles home, as is my habit.  My request was acknowledged, but no bag came my way.  When I got tired of waiting, I stood in clear line of sight, but nothing clicked inside that waiter's head.  Finally, I lost my patience, and decided to ask another waitress for the bag.  I had in within seconds.

So… something clearly went wrong with the training of that particular waiter.  A clear case of incompetence, although some may argue that I'm kicking up a fuss over very small things.  But how does it happen inside a 5-star hotel?!  Seems like nothing much has changed since I last ranted about this...